TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – North Carolina Central University freshman quarterback Davius Richard accounted for 260 total yards and three touchdowns, but homecoming host Florida A&M University scored with just 32 seconds left to capture a 28-21 conference victory on Saturday in front of 25,679 fans inside Bragg Memorial Stadium.
Richard completed 16 of 35 passes for 220 yards and two touchdowns, while also rushing for a game-high 40 yards and a score. The rookie signal caller engineered a seven-play, 77-yard drive to tie the score at 21-21 on a 16-yard pass to Tyler Barnes with 4:25 left in the contest.
Florida A&M senior quarterback Ryan Stanley, who threw for 306 yards on 22-for-32 passing, tossed his fourth touchdown of the game with just 32 seconds remaining to move the Rattlers to 4-1 overall and 2-0 in MEAC play.
NCCU (2-4, 1-1 MEAC) entered Saturday as the NCAA leader (all divisions) with 16 takeaways. Senior safety Deonta Fair collected the Eagles’ 11th interception of the year with a first-half pick of Stanley, only his second interception thrown this season. Fair topped NCCU with a game-high eight tackles, including a hit for a loss. Linebacker Jerome Foster added seven takedowns, and defensive end Darius Royster contributed five stops, including 2.0 tackles for a loss.
Xavier McKoy led the NCCU receiving corps with four catches for 61 yards, followed by Barnes with three grabs for 52 yards and a touchdown, and Ryan McDaniel with three catches for 44 yards and a score.
NCCU posted 316 yards of total offense, while FAMU amassed 396 total yards.
NCCU returns to action on Thursday, Oct. 10, by hosting Bethune-Cookman at 6 p.m. on ESPNU.
Courtesy: NCCU Athletics
