After having their CIAA championship hopes dashed by a shutout loss to Fayetteville State last season, the Johnson C. Smith Golden Bulls were not to be denied this time, scoring a go-ahead touchdown in the final seconds to come away with a 17-13 win.
This snapped an eight-game losing streak for the Golden Bulls against the Broncos dating back to 2015 and marked the first time they have beaten them on the road since 2012.
Fayetteville State entered this game simply needing a win to clinch a spot in the CIAA championship game.
Bobby Smith was the Player of the Game for the Golden Bulls, notching his second straight 100-rushing-yard game with a season-high 113 on 31 attempts and a touchdown.
In addition to contributing a rushing touchdown, Kelvin Durham threw for 182 yards, completing 20-of-27 pass attempts.
For the Broncos, Bryce Council led the way with 78 rushing yards on 13 attempts, including a 21-yard rushing touchdown. Demari Daniels added 149 passing yards, completing 64% of his passes and scoring a touchdown.
Shawn Robinson led the way for the Broncos’ defense, recording 2.0 of the team’s 3.0 sacks, adding 2.0 tackles for loss.
Through the first three quarters, Johnson C. Smith was in complete control, shutting Fayetteville State out 10-0 and holding them to 73 offensive yards.
The tide began to change in the fourth quarter when the Golden Bulls muffed a punt that the Broncos recovered on JCSU’s side of the field.
Fayetteville State took advantage of the turnover by capping a six-play drive with a 21-yard misdirection touchdown by Council for its first points of the game.
After multiple stalling drives by both teams, the Broncos pulled ahead despite starting their possession at a disadvantage.
Forcing Johnson C. Smith to punt for the fourth straight time, Fayetteville State was flagged during the play for holding, pushing the start of the drive from the 13-yard line to the 8.
It only took six plays for the Broncos to find the endzone, with Daniels finding Xayden Watson up the middle for a 52-yard touchdown to take a 14-10 lead with 3:28 remaining.
On JCSU’s ensuing drive, despite multiple false start penalties and facing a 3rd-and-21 after surrendering the third sack of the game, they would convert a fourth-and-long scenario to keep the drive alive.
On the next play after the fourth-down conversion, the Golden Bulls would score on a go-ahead rushing touchdown by Smith to take a 17-14 lead with 13 seconds left.
The Golden Bulls’ defense would get a stop to secure the win.
As a result, Johnson C. Smith will enter the final week of the regular season needing a win against Livingstone to clinch its first CIAA championship berth since 1970.
Should JCSU lose to Livingstone next weekend, then Fayetteville State would have the opportunity to claim the title berth, needing to beat Winston-Salem State.
