By Stephen D. Riley
AFRO Contributing Writer
Sophomore wide receiver Willie Carter scored the game's sole touchdown. (Courtesy Photo/howard-bison.com)
|
(October 4, 2009) - “If you keep it close, you can win it”—that may not be the Howard University football team’s official slogan, but maybe it should be.
After a 7-3 nail-biter over the visiting Winston-Salem Rams on Oct. 3, the Bison are on a two-game winning streak following two blowout losses to start the season.
Howard was outscored 93-17 in back-to-back road games against Rutgers and Florida A&M, but in their two victories the Bison have given up far fewer points, outscoring their opponents 21-14.
The match-up with Winston-Salem didn’t have many big-time plays, but sophomore wide receiver Willie Carter certainly looked like a big-time playmaker.
The 6-foot, 2-inch tall South Carolina native led Howard with seven catches for 116 yards and scored the game’s sole touchdown on a pivotal drive in the third quarter. Carter hauled in three passes on a 70-yard drive that ended with a 20-yard touchdown hookup between Carter and Bison quarterback Floyd Haigler.
Howard stayed in control for most of the afternoon, but a simple mistake in the fourth quarter nearly cost the Bison the game.
Leading late in the fourth, the Rams punted to Howard return man Jeff Miller, who fumbled and gave Winston-Salem the ball at Howard’s 14-yard line.
But a bad snap by the Rams resulted in a 14-yeard loss and gave the momentum right back to the Bison. Another loss of yards following a Howard sack gave the Bison the stop they needed and their second-consecutive victory.
“Our backs were against the wall,” senior defensive lineman Will Croner, who came up with the crucial late-game sack, said in a statement posted on Howard.edu. “Our job was to keep them out of the end zone. The entire defense had the mentality of making a play and doing what we needed to do to achieve that.”
The Bison haven’t won two-straight games since the 2007 season and will look to continue their success Oct. 10 on the road against the Hampton Pirates.
Both teams will enter the contest at 2-2, with a chance for Howard to go over the .500 mark for the first time this season. Hampton should be well-rested, as the Pirates haven’t played since a 21-6 loss to Delaware State on Sept 26.
If Howard wants to continue their winning ways, the Bison will have to contain Hampton running LaMarcus Coker. The senior running back has run for over 100 yards in each of the last three games for the Pirates, and is averaging 107 yards per game for the season.