Birmingham, Alabama (September 2, 2007) - In a game billed as the Labor Day Golden Classic, featuring the Golden Tigers and the Golden Bears, Tuskegee scored early and often, dismantling Miles 40-6 before an announced crowd of 39,583 on Sunday evening at Legion Field.
Tuskegee (1-0, 1-0 SIAC), defending co-SIAC champion, was opening the 2007 season with a new quarterback, junior Jacary Atkinson, and Miles (0-2, 0-1 SIAC) had one game under its belt, a 24-7 loss to Shaw University on Aug. 25.
Tuskegee won the toss and chose to receive.
On the third play from scrimmage, Atkinson connected with senior wide receiver Lorenzo Crawford on a 62-yard scoring strike at 14:02. Freshman placekicker Matt Sims booted the first of his five points after touchdowns.
Tuskegee added a safety at 13:22 in the second quarter to give the Golden Tigers a 9-0 lead. Tuskegee put three more touchdowns on the board in quarter two. Atkinson and freshman running back John Pascley each scored on 5-yard runs and Atkinson tossed a 10-yard touchdown pass to Pascley, extending Tuskegee's lead to 30-0 at intermission.
Junior wide receiver Jason English grabbed a 12-yard touchdown reception from Atkinson at 11:17 in quarter three. The Golden Tigers were ahead of the Golden Bears 37-0 before Vincent Hill picked off an Atkinson pass, racing 56 yards for Miles' first score. Hill's two-point rushing PAT attempt failed.
"I guess the thing that sticks out in my mind the most is he came over to me after the interception and said, 'I let you down, Coach,' " Slater said. "I said, 'No, you didn't let me down.' But he's conscious of turnovers, which is a good thing."
Only one turnover was committed by the Golden Tigers.
Atkinson, who completed 15-of-26 passes for 267 yards and 3 touchdowns, guided the Golden Tigers on one fourth quarter series before being replaced by freshman southpaw signal caller Jamorris Williams. Atkinson rushed 8 times for 32 yards and a score and Williams gained 32 yards on two carries.
For his play, Atkinson was named SIAC Offensive Player of the Week.
Sims, attempting his first college field goal, nailed a 47-yarder at 4:44 in the fourth quarter to put Coach Willie Slater's team in the lead 40-6, yielding Tuskegee its fifth consecutive win.
The Tuskegee defense held Miles scoreless and only allowed 85 yards in total offense, 25 rushing and 60 passing. The secondary picked off three passes, two by sophomore cornerback Justin Hannah and one by sophomore safety Jeremy Obie. Six different defensive players contributed to a record-setting nine-quarterback sacks. Junior defensive end Jarvis DeVaughn and sophomore linebacker Jonathan Hall led with two sacks each.
"Our D-line did a great job helping the secondary out," Slater said. "They played hard."
Tuskegee had a great day offensively. The Atkinson brigade produced 434 yards of total offense with 167 yards coming on the ground and 267 yards through the air. Nine different backs rushed the pigskin and eight receivers caught passes for Tuskegee. Crawford led all receivers with four receptions for 113 yards and one touchdown.
Senior offensive lineman Larry Peoples was tabbed SIAC Offensive Lineman of the Week. He graded out at 90% for his effort that accounted for 434 yards of total offense and a 40-point production by the Tuskegee offense. Sims received SIAC honorable mention honors as Special Teams Player of the Week for his performance.
Tuskegee is open this week and will start preparation for its Sept. 15 visit to Columbia, SC to face SIAC foe Benedict College.
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