Bulldogs fall in Heart Breaker

Box Score

Photogallery of Practice Before Championship Game

Photogallery Day of Game

Photogallery of Game

BIRMINGHAM -- The Alabama A&M Bulldogs fell to the Grambling State University Tigers in a heart breaker 16-15 in the 2011 Southwestern Athletic Conference football championship game.

"The same way we started the season is the same way we ended it," said head coach coach Anthony Jones, who took Saturday's loss extremely hard. "Great half of football and couldn't seal the deal at the end."

The Bulldogs opened the game with a nine play 84 yard drive which resulted in the first touchdown of the contest. The next four drives ended in punts before the second TD came from a connection between junior quarterback Deaunte Mason and red-shirt freshman Terrance Pride to give A&M a 12 point lead.

GSU finally got on the scoreboard when the Tigers kicker Zoltran Riazzo hit a 34-yard field goal.

Before half-time junior kicker Chance Wilson hit a 34 field goal to give A&M a 15-0 lead at the break.

The game continued to with no big plays until the Tigers freshman QB and coaches son D.J. Williams, hit wide receiver Mario Riley for a 80-yard touchdown to pull GSU within six 15-9. The ensuing PAT was missed.

"We were in a bad coverage and they caught us napping and capitalized on it," Corey Hart mentioned.

As the fourth quarter opened the Tigers and Bulldogs traded turnovers. Then on sophomore fullback Bryon Nelson’s third run of the game he fumbled the ball and Grambling’s Jacarde Carter returned it 66 yards for the final score giving Grambling State a 16-15 victory over Alabama A&M in the Farmers Insurance SWAC Football Championship Game presented by Toyota on Saturday.

Grambling (8-4) won its sixth SWAC championship in the 13-year history of the event. Head coach Doug Williams earned his fourth in eight seasons at the helm of the Tiger program. Four of those wins have come against Alabama A&M, which fell to 1-5 all-time in the title game.

The Tigers won despite completing four passes and being outgained in total yardage 337-182.

Junior runningback Kaderius Lacey rushed for 86 yards securing the season rushing record with 1,143 for the year. Senior defensive lineman Corey Hart ended his Maroon & White career with 57 tackles, 17 sacks, 35 tackles for loss tying him with Robert Mathis for the most in a season, 12 QB hurries, three fumble recoveries and a one handed interception versus the Tigers.

Even though winning a championship was the goal for the Bulldog football program they should not hang their heads as A&M won eight contests after going 3-8 in 2010. This was Jones biggest turnaround of his head coaching career. The eight wins was Jones sixth season with eight or more victories, his fifth Eastern Division title, eight All-SWAC players, a runningback with 1,143 yards, Jones eighth Magic City Classic win, his second Louis Crews Classic victory, two players participating in the Russell HBCU bowl game and multiple player awards throughout the season and during the post season.

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