Cornelious Brown IV threw for 278 yards and four touchdowns as Alabama A&M earned Connell Maynor his 100th career victory on Saturday with a 49-7 win against Kentucky State.
“I’m just happy for the players,” Maynor said. “One hundred wins means I am probably getting old, been coaching a long time. But I had a lot of great coaches and a lot of great football players to make it to 100 wins. It ain’t just me. It’s always the staff and the players.”
Alabama A&M (1-1) forced Kentucky State to punt on its first possession, and the Bulldogs went to work. They scored on their opening drive, going 59 yards in 12 plays and taking just over four minutes off the clock.
AAMU used a balanced offense to score its first touchdown of the season, mixing four passes and eight rushes. Xavier Lankford scored on a 1-yard keeper to cap the drive and give the Bulldogs a quick 7-0 lead with 9:38 remaining.
“100 wins means I’m probably getting old…It ain’t just me. It’s always the staff and the players.”
Wins breakdown for Connell Maynor:
*45 w/ @WSSURamFootball (2x CIAA Champ)
*20 w/ @Hampton_FB
*35 w/ @AamufbR (2020 SWAC Champ)@FOX54News | @_AAMUAthletics https://t.co/scMlmQwoWe pic.twitter.com/8NZJ1tWW0M— Nick Kuzma (@NickPKuzma) September 8, 2024
It didn’t take long for the second Bulldog score of the night as AAMU started at the KSU 43 after a Thorobred punt.
Cornelious Brown IV found a wide-open Duke Miller down the left sideline for a 38-yard score as the Bulldogs pushed the lead to 14-0 with 6:36 left.
Alabama A&M took advantage of a Kentucky State turnover and marched 60 yards in six plays as Jacolby Hewitt caught an 8-yard touchdown pass from Brown as the Bulldogs increased their advantage to 21-0 just five seconds into the second quarter.
After stopping the Thorobreds on fourth down, the Bulldogs went right back to work, taking more than four minutes off the clock as Barry White caught a 20-yard touchdown pass from Aveon Smith to complete the 72-yard drive as Alabama A&M stretched its lead to 28-0 with exactly two minutes left in the half.
The Bulldogs took the opening kickoff of the second half, mixing the run and pass as Brown connected with Ryan Morrow for an 18-yard touchdown as AAMU extended its advantage to 35-0 with 12:47 remaining.
Alabama A&M put the game out of reach midway through the third quarter as Brown threw his fourth touchdown of the night, a 16-yard pass to Miller, capping a 9-play, 89-yard drive as the Bulldogs pushed the margin to 42-0 with 8:17 left in the period.
AAMU added a Kolten Nero 4-yard touchdown run with just over 10 minutes to play, extending the margin to 49-0.
Kentucky State (0-2) got into the scoring column midway through the final period as Jaun Gainious found Jaden Hale for eight yards as the Thorobreds trailed, 49-7, with 7:15 remaining.
Courtesy: Alabama A&M Athletics
