SALISBURY, NC – Fayetteville State University will play for the Southern Division Title and a trip to the CIAA Championship game next weekend after defeating winless Livingstone, 28-26, in Alumni Memorial Stadium.
The Broncos (4-2 CIAA, 4-0 Division) took the final lead of the game with a 27-yard passing touchdown from Richard Latimer (Charlotte, NC) to Stevie Green (Washington, NC) with 1:30 left in the game.
Livingstone (0-6 CIAA, 0-4 Division) failed to convert on fourth down as the game expired.
It only took three carries for Stevie Green to acquire the needed 20 yards for him to eclipse the 1,000-yard plateau for the second time. During his rookie campaign, Stevie rushed for 1,150 yards on 219 carries. Green rushed for a two-yard touchdown on his first carry and three yards on his second. On his third touch, Stevie rushed for 26 yards to the Livingstone 13-yard line. He rushed for a total of 77 yards, which makes a season total of 1,057 yards. For his career, Stevie has a current total of 2,207 yards on 405 carries.
Fayetteville State scored quickly in the first moments of the game. Darius Darden (Greensboro, NC) sacked Livingstone’s quarterback Xavier Longerbeam which forced him to fumble. Anthony Harris (Greenville, NC) recovered the fumble and returned it to the Blue Bears two-yard line. Green continued it into the end zone on the Broncos first offensive play with 13:29 on the clock.
On the Broncos following possession, Stevie Green surpassed the 1,000-yard mark and scored on his next carry from 23 yards out at the 6:40 mark.
Following the touchdown, FSU jumped to a 21-0 lead after Jaelin Beurge (Rockingham, NC) scooped up a Livingstone fumble by Justin Ruffin and returned it 25 yards for the score.
“We got lucky today and escaped a tough game,” said Head Coach Richard Hayes. “I tried to tell these guys all week that Livingstone was not going to lay down. We jumped out early 21 – nothing in the first quarter and I think our guys relaxed.”
Livingstone managed its first points of the game early in the second quarter. Marcus Baisy scored on a 67-yard rushing touchdown with 21:38 on the clock for a 6-21 score. On the Blue Bears pursuing drive, LC managed 91 yards in 20 plays to reach pay dirt and trail 12-21 with 9:02 left in the half.
Following the Homecoming halftime intermission, the Blue Bears Kevin Williams picked a Latimer pass and returned it 13 yards to the FSU 35-yard line. Four plays later, LC crossed the goal line for a 19-21 score. Late in the third quarter, Livingstone captured a 26-21 lead with a nine-play 45-yard drive with 4:28 on the clock.
Late in the game with 2:34 remaining, Richard Latimer connected with Curtis Burston, III (Brooklyn, NY) on a 32-yard pass. Three pass attempts later, Latimer scrambled in the backfield eluding tacklers to connect with Green, who did the same on his way to win the game.
The Bronco defense stopped an eight-play 55-yard drive in the final minute and thirty seconds to seal the win.
Fayetteville State will travel to Winston-Salem State next weekend to play for the Southern Divisional Title. WSSU defeated Shaw 27-21 in overtime for a 4-2 conference record. Saint Augustine’s beat Johnson C. Smith 24-0 to create a three-way dilemma in the division.
Division winners are determined by the highest winning percentage of conference games won based upon the seven-game conference schedule. In case of a tie between divisional teams, the winner shall be determined by head-to-head competition and then by the divisional winning percentage. The third tiebreaker results versus common conference opponents, followed by a coin toss.
Saint Augustine’s defeated Winston-Salem State 17-14 on October 14th. Fayetteville State defeated the Falcons 34-31 the following weekend on October 21.
FSU would need to defeat the Rams for the divisional title and a trip to the championship game. A Bronco loss and a Falcon win over Shaw would advance Saint Augustine’s to Salem, Va. A Shaw win and a WSSU win would turn the tables in favor of the Rams.
Courtesy: FSU Athletics
