Alabama A&M Athletics

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. | The Alabama A&M University football team surrendered the lead with less than 10 minutes remaining and could not recover as the Bulldogs suffered their first lost against Bethune-Cookman since 1978 with a 31-14 Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) defeat on Saturday at Daytona Memorial Stadium.
 
The Bulldogs (4-6 overall, 2-5 SWAC) raced out to a 14-0 lead, but gave up 31 unanswered points as Bethune-Cookman used a 21-point fourth quarter to pull away from Alabama A&M.
 
Bethune-Cookman, which has now won two consecutive games after starting the season 1-7, got the ball to begin the game and got a 17-yard Tylik Bethea run to move the ball into Alabama A&M territory. The Wildcats forced the Bulldogs to jump offsides on 4^th-and-1, giving BCU a fresh set of downs at the AAMU 44. Alabama A&M's defense forced the stop on 3^rd-and-9 as Bethea completed a 17-yard pass to Jalen Brown, but he coughed up the football as Emari Pait recovered the loose ball, returning it to the AAMU.
 
After back-to-back first downs on its first offensive possession, Alabama A&M was forced to punt the ball after starting quarterback Quincy Casey was sacked by Joshua Thornhill.
 
Turnovers proved costly for Bethune-Cookman on its next offensive series as the snap went past Jimmie Robinson III and was recovered by Tony Overstreet at the Wildcat 19.
 
It took just one play for Alabama A&M to capitalize off the turnover as Casey connected with Cameron Young for the 19-yard scoring strike, as the Bulldogs grabbed a 7-0 lead with 7:49 remaining in the first quarter.
 
After a Wildcat punt, Alabama A&M's offense went right back to work, moving the ball to the BCU 11. On 4^th-and-3, Casey completed a 5-yard pass to Levar Gumms for 5 yards, set up first-and-goal from the 6. Two plays later, Xavier Lankford capped a 12-play, 76-yard drive, taking more than four minutes off the clock, by scoring on a 2-yard run, extending AAMU's lead to 14-0 with 14:56 left in the half.
 
The Wildcats (3-7, 2-5) answered the AAMU scoring drive, with the bulk coming on the ground, as Walter Simmons III capped the 10-play, 62-yard drive with a 1-yard keeper as Bethune-Cookman closed the gap to 14-7 with 11:21 remaining. 
 
After a 38-yard punt by Anthony Frederique, the Bulldogs took over at their own 4 with 7:38 left in the second.
 
Alabama A&M moved the ball to the BCU 20, but Casey's pass was picked by Thornhill at the Wildcat 5 with 3:37 remaining.
 
The Bulldogs opened the second half with the ball and drove to the BCU 31. However, Casey sprinted 24 yards to the Wildcat 9, but was hit hard by LaQuan Johnson and lost control of the ball. Johnson picked up the loose ball and moved it to the BCU 23.
 
On the very next offensive possession, the Wildcats converted a 4^th-and-9 after a Simmons 15-yard run. But Robinson fumbled the ball at the AAMU 10, turning the ball back over to the Bulldogs with 7:48 remaining in the third.
 
Special teams continues to be an issue for Alabama A&M as the snap on the punt was short and Austin McCready was tackled at the Bulldog 12. 
 
However, the Alabama A&M defense forced Bethune-Cookman into a field goal attempt as Cade Hechter booted the 27-yarder, closing the gap to 14-10 with 1:55 left in the period.
 
Both teams turned the ball over on interceptions and neither team could cash those turnovers into the points.
 
After an Alabama A&M punt backed Bethune-Cookman up to its own 1, the Wildcats went 99 yards in eight plays, with seven coming on the ground as Mar'Kai Shaw broke free up the middle for a 52-yard touchdown as BCU grabbed its first lead of the day, 17-14, with 9:14 remaining.
 
The Wildcats sealed the game with a time-consuming drive, taking more than four minutes off the clock as Simmons busted through the AAMU defense for 47 yards as Bethune-Cookman extended the advantage to 24-14 with 3:40 left.
 
Simmons added the icing on the cake after an interception by Casey as he broke past the Bulldog defense for the 22-yard score as Bethune-Cookman pushed the margin to 31-14.
 
CHECKING THE BOX SCORE

• Alabama A&M finished with 312 total yards, with 173 coming through the air
• The Bulldogs registered 18 first downs
• Quincy Casey went 17 of 30 passing for 171 yards, with two interceptions and one touchdown 
• Casey tallied 66 yards on the ground on nine carries
• Cameron Young caught six passes for 68 yards and one score
• Jordan Mitchell led the defense with 14 total tackles, with seven solo stops
• Kaleb Dawson added 10 tackles, including four solo tackles
• Bethune-Cookman finished with 480 total yards, including 412 on the ground
• The Wildcats recorded 25 first downs
• Walter Simmons III went 5 of 12 passing for 30 yards, with one interception
• Simmons registered 165 yards on 16 carries, with three touchdowns
• Jimmie Robinson III carried the ball 25 times for 137 yards 
• Jalen Brown caught one pass for 17 yards
• Dearis Thomas added nine tackles, including four solo stops

NEWS & NOTES

• Alabama A&M and Bethune-Cookman met for the 19^th time
• Bethune-Cookman extended the all-time record to 12-6-1 
• The Wildcats snapped a four-game winning streak of AAMU
• Bethune-Cookman defeated Alabama A&M for the first time since 1978
• The Bulldogs are now 3-5-1 in Daytona Beach against BCU
• The Wildcats have now won two consecutive games since starting the season 1-7
• Quincy Casey got the start at quarterback for the Bulldogs
• The Bulldogs played two quarterbacks – Quincy Casey and Xavier Lankford
• Emari Pati recovered a fumble in the opening quarter
• Pati was named an Aeneas Williams Award Semifinalist last Tuesday 

UP NEXT  
The Bulldogs close out the season at home as Alabama A&M plays host to Mississippi Valley State on Thursday night. Kickoff against the Delta Devils is set for 6 p.m. from Louis Crews Stadium.
 
For complete coverage of Alabama A&M Athletics, check out the official homepage at www.aamusports.com. Remember to follow us on social media: Instagram (@aamuathletics) and Twitter (@_aamuathletics).
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