DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – Once is a coincidence, twice is a pattern and three times means you've got it going on – as is the case for junior safety Trenell Troutman (Orlando, Fla.) who upped his interception count to three (and games closed to two) as Alabama A&M (2-0, 1-0 SWAC) held off Bethune-Cookman (0-3, 0-1 SWAC) 30-27 in an NCAA Division I football game on Thursday, September 16.
 
Played in front of 4,173 fans and delayed more than 40 minutes by lightning, Troutman brought the thunder for the second straight game with another clinching pick – a play that was witnessed by a national television audience on ESPNU as the Bulldogs opened defense of their Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) Championship with a thrilling victory over league newcomer BCU.
 
THE STATS - ALABAMA A&M
On a night where air yards were hard to come by in less than favorable conditions, graduate quarterback Aqeel Glass (St. Louis, Mo.) finished with 234 yards and a pair of touchdowns on 22-of-35 passing and senior running back Gary Quarles (Cottondale, Ala.) pounded out 101 yards on the ground, finding the endzone on one of his 27 carries.
 
When Quarles wasn't tenderizing the defense, "The Outlaws" – as the A&M receiving corps has been branded – did the rest of the damage. That group was led by six-time All-American junior wide receiver Abdul-Fatai Ibrahim (Miramar, Fla.) with a pair of TD grabs as part of a five catch, 38-yard night.
 
Fellow junior wideout Odieu Hilarie (Belle Glade, Fla.) snagged seven balls for 69 yards and Quarles got in on the action with three catches for 46 yards. Senior wide receiver Brian Jenkins, Jr. (Daytona Beach, Fla.) returned home and finished with three grabs for 41 yards with a long of 23.
 
Not to be outdone by the offense, the defense stepped to the forefront in a game that would be played almost entirely in a driving rain. Troutman registered nine tackles, six solo and 1.5 for loss, to go with his two picks and safety JaBraun McNeal (Gadsden, Ala.) recorded seven stops, two by himself. Graduate defensive tackle Breon Austin (Eufaula, Ala.) chipped in with an eight-yard sack.
 
It would be a game that would see excellence in all three facets as special teams played a critical role in both the scoring and the field position game. Redshirt-senior kicker Spencer Corey (New Palestine, Ind.) went a perfect 3-for-3 on field goals, hitting from 22-, 26- and 43-yards and nailed all three of his extra points while sophomore punter Troy Lendvay (Montreal, Quebec, Canada) delivered key kicks of his own.
 
On the night he would post a 41.5-yard average on four punts with a long of 65 yards, planting kicks at the two- and four-yard lines at key junctures. They would be joined by senior wide receiver Terrell Gardner (Birmingham, Ala.) with 65 kick return yards on a pair of run backs, including a long of 44-yards.
 
THE GAME
While BCU would have the ball to begin the game, they wouldn't have it long as Troutman picked up where he left off, picking off a second down pass and setting the Bulldogs up at the Wildcat 26-yard line.
 
Handing one of the most high-powering offenses in the country the ball halfway into your own territory is never where you want to be and A&M capitalized on it in short order – with a little help. Finding themselves with a 4^th and 5 from the 21-yard line and choosing to go for it, the Bulldogs drew a pass interference penalty that kept the drive alive and led to a seven-yard touchdown grab by Ibrahim three plays later with 8:34 on the clock.
 
Following a 15-yard pass play to start their next possession, Bethune-Cookman's drive would falter and give the ball right back to an offense waiting to take full advantage. Quarles would be a central figure in that drive with a 17-yard catch and a 21-yard carry to fuel what would end up being nine plays, 65 yards and a 26-yard field goal from Corey to extend the lead to 10-0 by the 3:11 mark.
 
Neither team would move the numbers on the scoreboard over the rest of the first but A&M would begin a 10-play drive with 39 seconds left in the frame that would find paydirt. Highlighted by a 24-yard grab on 3^rd and 11 by Hiliare and magnified by a roughing the passer penalty, that possession would result in another Corey field goal, this one from 22-yards to make it 13-0 just under three minutes into the quarter.
 
After watching A&M go up and down the field with methodical drives, the Wildcats would make up for multiple fruitless possessions of their own in one fell swoop. That would come in the form of Darnell Deas who proceeded to run back the ensuing kickoff 89 yards to cut it to 13-6 at 12:04.
 
The Bulldogs would be back to their old tricks despite that body blow, however, as they went right back to work with a nine play, 64-yard drive. That stretch included a 29-yard catch by Quarles, a 10-yard completion on fourth down by graduate wideout Zabrian Moore (Tuscaloosa, Ala.), another pass interference to take it inside the five and a three-yard TD run by Quarles. All of that pushing the lead to 20-7 in a span of just 3:44.
 
It would then be an exchange of unsuccessful drives but A&M's would result in a fumble that set BCU up at their own 45-yard line. From there the Wildcats would benefit from a 33-yard strike to Marcus Riley before capitalizing on the turnover with a 14-yard rushing touchdown by Que'Shaun Byrd just outside the two minute mark.
 
Seeing their lead cut to 20-13, the Bulldogs and Glass would engineer a massive 10-play, 65-yard drive in the next 1:56. That possession would see a pair of key runs by the AAMU signal caller, including a four-yard scamper on 3^rd and three to keep the drive alive and a 13-yard run to take it down to the BCU 12-yard line with seven seconds remaining in the half.
 
With a timeout in their back pocket they went ahead and risked time running out on the three points and found themselves reeling in the full seven with an incredible catch with 2.6 seconds on the clock. Ibrahim worked his way along the back of the endzone, setup shop and had the entire upper half of his body hanging beyond the end line and his toes in the green as he hauled in his second TD grab of the night, this one to make it 27-13 to head to the break.
 
The second half would be a far different story in terms of offense as both teams couldn't add to their tallies for much of the third quarter. It would be a battle of the punters as Lendvay belted a 65-yarder that landed at the two-yard line and a 48-yarder while BCU's Ben Lennon notched a 46-yarder.
 
That game of field position would result in the Wildcats getting the ball at their own 40-yard line with just over seven minutes showing but they wouldn't stay there long. Byrd opened things up with a 25-yard rush while Taron Mallard added a 16-yard carry and Dylaan Lee a 16-yard catch on a 2^nd and 15 from the A&M 24-yard line.
 
Three plays following that grab, Byrd went in from one yard out at 4:23 and Patrick Shannon ducked into the endzone for a surprise two-point conversion attempt to close to within 27-21. A&M would then once again bridge the quarter as a 23-yard snag by Jenkins, Jr. helped get the ball down to the Bethune 26-yard line. That set the stage for Corey to come through once again, this time belting home a 43-yarder to make it a two possession game at 30-21 just seconds into the fourth.
 
BCU would then see the positive of a 61-yard kickoff return by Jimmie Robinson III ripped away by a fumble that gave it right back to the Bulldogs at their own 25-yard line. While they would not be able to take advantage of the additional possession, it temporarily halted the momentum that the Wildcats had built – but only temporarily.
 
After getting the ball back, Patrick landed a 42-yard bomb to Kemari Averett and benefitted from a 15-yard face mask penalty to take it all the way down to the A&M nine-yard line on the first play from scrimmage. A pair of negative plays would leave BCU with a 2^nd and 11 from the 11-yard line before Patrick picked up four yards  and then drilled a ball to Averett in the endzone. Following a failed two-point attempt, the Wildcats found themselves within 30-27 with 8:50 to play.
 
Alabama A&M would not extend their lead on their next drive but would chew up more than four minutes off the clock and pin Bethune at their own four-yard line with another tremendous punt from Lendvay. Taking possession deep in their own end with 4:35 to play Patrick took eight plays to move 59 yards to the A&M 37 but would face a 4^th and 10 from there.
 
In a perfect example of history repeating itself, and in much less time than it usually takes to happen, Troutman stepped in front of Patrick's fourth down pass at the 13-yard line to once again seal the deal, and prove to be the closer, as he locked down the 30-27 victory. He did the exact same thing in the Bulldog's 42-41 season opening victory over South Carolina State on September 4.
 
THE STATS – BETHUNE-COOKMAN
Byrd led the way for the Wildcats, accumulating 132 yards and a pair of scores on 21 carries while Patrick finished 17-of-31 with a pair of interceptions and 221 yards. They were joined by Averett with three grabs, 64 yards and a TD and Riley equaled that catch total for 59 yards and Deas rounded out the scoring with his 89-yard kickoff return for touchdown.
 
Untareo Johnson notched nine tackles, four solo and three in the backfield, to anchor the defense and Uriah Ratliff had eight tackles and a fumble recovery. Tekeven Thomas added nine stops, six by himself, and Mason Hall had 1.5 TFLs.
 
In the kicking game, Lennon had four boots for 159 yards and a 39.8-yard average and placed one inside the 20-yard line and one in the endzone. On the night he drilled a long of 46 yards to round out BCU's top performers.
 
UP NEXT
The Bulldogs will benefit from slightly longer rest than normal following the Thursday night outing as they won't take the field again until Saturday, September 25. That will come against Division II Tuskegee at Ladd Peebles Stadium in Mobile, Alabama as part of the Gulf Coast Challenge. Game time is set for 4 p.m.
 
NOTES
The meeting was the first in 42 years between the programs, dating to a 12-0 A&M victory on September 29, 1979.