North Carolina A&T received a gauge for what it will take to become one of the country’s elite Division I-Football Championship Subdivision teams.
North Dakota State, the top-ranked team in the STATS Perform Media Poll and the American Football Coaches Association Coaches Poll, scored 21 points off A&T turnovers to win 43-3 at the Fargodome on Saturday.
“You can’t spot a team this good 21 points and expect to be successful. They’re too good,” said A&T coach Sam Washington. “But we got a chance to play against a national championship caliber team, which will tell us a lot about our needs going forward.”
NDSU scored quickly on their first drive. Wide receiver Zach Mathis split two A&T defenders and received a pass on the numbers from NDSU quarterback Cam Miller to give the Bison an early 7-0 lead. The Aggies did have a quick response.
Freshman quarterback Zachary Yeager, playing three hours away from his hometown of Minneapolis, Minn., made his second straight start for the Aggies after making his first career start last week. He led the Aggies on an eight-play, 37-yard drive that ended with a 39-yard field goal from sophomore Andrew Brown.
After a 6-yard run by NDSU running back Cole Payton and a two-point run by Payton to give NDSU a 15-3 first-quarter lead, the Aggies seemed to settle in defensively. After Payton’s scores, A&T held the Bison to a three-out. The Aggies also picked up a few first downs on its next offensive possession.
But on a 3rd-and-9 from the Aggies 37-yard line, Tyrone Pierce forced a sack-fumble on Yeager. Pierce recovered the fumble to give the Bison a first down at the Aggies 31. Preseason All-American fullback Hunter Luepke helped the Bison capitalize on the turnover by catching a 15-yard TD pass from Miller.
A Yeager interception on the Aggies ensuing possession led to another NDSU score as Luepke scored from a yard out to give the Bison a commanding 29-3 lead. The Bison would go into the locker room at halftime with a 36-3 lead. NDSU scored the game’s final touchdown on a 79-yard fumble return by Dawson Weber.
A&T running back Bhayshul Tuten did finish with 127 yards on 24 carries. The Aggies did have a two-quarterback system on Saturday, with Jalen Fowler making his first appearance of the season. Aggies sophomore Tyquan King finished with nine tackles.
Courtesy: North Carolina A&T Athletics
