Football

Complete Game Notes

WASHINGTON, D.C. - The Howard University Bison (4-4, 2-3 MEAC) will play host to the South Carolina State University Bulldogs (4-4, 3-2 MEAC) at 1:00 pm Saturday in a conference matchup at Greene Stadium.

THE GAME: This is a Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference match-up between the Bulldogs of South Carolina State University and the Bison of Howard University. The Bulldogs (4-4 overall, 3-2 in the MEAC) are coming off a 17-16 home loss to Delaware State this past Saturday that all but ended their chances of winning the regular season title.  The Bison (4-4 overall, 2-3 in the MEAC) are coming off a big, 17-10 upset win over Norfolk State University on the road this past Saturday.  They have won four of their last five after starting the season, 0-3.

THE COACHES: SC State is coached by Oliver "Buddy" Pough (SC State, ‘75), who is in his sixth season there and has a 44-21 career record to date.  Howard University is coached by Carey Bailey (Tennessee, '92), who is in his first season after serving as defensive line coach at the University of Minnesota.  Bailey has paid his dues after stints at Oklahoma State, West Virginia, Middle Tennessee State, Louisiana Lafayette and VMI as an assistant coach. 

WEATHER FORECAST:  Sunny, High in the Upper 60s.

ON THE AIR: The game will be webcast live on www.howard-bison.com...Ty Miller is doing the play-by-play and Tony McGee and Ron Harris are handling color commentary...South Carolina State will broadcast the game live on the Bulldog Network in Columbia, SC. Ernest Robinson, Bobby Gist and Stan McIntosh will bring all the exciting action.

THE SERIES

SC State has won four straight and six of the last seven to hold a commanding 26-10 advantage in the series which dates back to 1971.

KEY PLAYERS

South Carolina State
Offensively, the Bulldogs are led by red-shirt senior QB CLEVELAND MCCOY (81 of 162, 929 yards, 6 TDs, 6 interceptions; 98 carries, 598 yards, 3 TDs), sophomore RB WILLIAM FORD (150 carries, 854 yards, 2 TDs; 12 receptions, 95 yards, 1 TD), red-shirt sophomore RB JONATHAN WOODS (65 carries, 285 yards, 1 TD), red-shirt junior WRs DUSTIN DUBOSE (16 receptions, 176 yards) and PHILLIP MORRIS (13 receptions, 184 yards) and red-shirt sophomore WR OLIVER YOUNG (12 receptions, 229 yards, 1 TD).

Defensively, SC State is led by red-shirt sophomore LBs MARKEE HAMLIN (30 solos, 19 assists, 5 interceptions), sophomore LB RAFAEL BUSH (29 solos, 12 assists, 4.5 tackles for losses, 2 fumble recoveries), red-shirt junior LB TONY WHITE (18 solos, 32 assists, 5.0 tackles for losses, 2.0 sacks), red-shirt senior LB LATAVIS HENDERSON (22 solos, 15 assists, a tackle for a loss, an interception), senior DL JAMES SIMMONS  (11 solos, 17 assists, 6.5 tackles for losses, 2 sacks) and red-shirt junior DB CEDRIC LLOYD (7 solos, 15 assists, 5.0 tackles for losses, 1.5 sacks).

Howard
Offensively, Howard is led by senior QB BRIAN JOHNSON (125 of 209, 1,540 yards, 16 TDs, 5 interceptions; 96 carries, 327 yards, 2 TDs), junior TBs TERRY PERRY (85 carries, 373 yards, 2 TDs) and KARLOS WHITTAKER (88 carries, 352 yards, 4 TDs; 7 receptions, 109 yards), senior WRs JARAHN WILLIAMS (41 receptions, 537 yards,11 TDs) and LARRY DUNCAN (23 receptions, 315 yards, 1 TD) and junior WR ARLANDUS HOOD (16 receptions, 176 yards, 1 TD).

Defensively, the Bison are led by senior All-American DE RUDY HARDIE (29 solos, 15 assists, 19.5 tackles for losses, 8.0 sacks, 6 QB hurries), senior S RANDELL MEANS (23 solos, 39 assists, 6.0 tackles for losses, 4 pass breakups), red-shirt sophomore LB ROBERT PARKER (24 solos, 15 assists, 4.0 tackles for losses, 2.0 sacks, an interception), senior LB ROBERT DOWDY (29 solos, 36 assists, 6.5 tackles for losses, a sack), junior LB ENDOR COOPER (34 solos, 32 assists, 7.0 tackles for losses), junior CB MARTIN DECEMBERT (21 solos, 11 assists), senior DE JARRETT BURGESS (7 solos, 16 assists, 3.5 tackles for losses) and junior DT JAMES CARTER (7 solos, 13 assists, 3.5 tackles for losses, a sack) and senior CB MAURICE CHEEKS (15 solos, 7 assists).

Bulldog Barks

Nationally, SC State is ranked 10^th in rushing offense and in passing defense and tied for 13^th  in third down efficiency...the Bulldogs lead the MEAC in rushing offense and in total offense, are second in sacks and third in scoring defense, in rushing defense and in total defense...Ford is second in the conference in rushing and fifth in all-purpose running...McCoy is third in total offense, 4^th in passing, 7^th in rushing and 8^th in pass efficiency...Markee Hamlin leads the MEAC in interceptions (5)...the talented Bulldog offensive line has allowed only 11 sacks all season...McCoy and Ford have each rushed for over 100 yards in the past three games...as a team, SC State is averaging over 5.4 yards per rush.

Bison Hooves

Howard leads the country in time of possession at 35:41 and is 12^th in rushing defense...Hardie is second in the country in tackles for losses and tied for 9^th in sacks...the Bison lead the MEAC time of possession, in pass efficiency defense, in least penalized and in rushing defense...they are second in third down conversions and in scoring offense...Brian Johnson leads the MEAC in pass efficiency, is 2^nd in total offense and is 3^rd in passing...Jarahn Williams leads the MEAC in scoring and is 2^nd in both receiving yards per game and receptions per game...Larry Duncan is tied for 9^th in receptions per game...Williams has caught a TD pass in every game this season, a school record...Howard was named the College Sports Report  Team of the Week for its upset win over Norfolk State...the Howard rush defense, which is allowing only 3.2 yards per rush, has allowed only one back to reach for 100 yards this season...it held Norfolk State to minus 15 yards rushing.

Local Flavor
Howard has some South Carolina connections.  Outside linebackers coach James Moses is a native of Orangeburg as is junior long snapper Joshua August, red-shirt sophomore quarterback Floyd Haigler and freshman defensive lineman Corey Berry.  Junior offensive lineman Sean Woolford is Columbia, junior defensive lineman Charlie Richards is from Georgetown and senior offensive lineman Torrence Simon is from Manning.

The Catalyst
Brian Johnson has quietly established himself as one of the top quarterbacks in the MEAC.  The 6-0, 190-pound senior from Gardenia, CA, is the main catalyst on offense for the Bison, completing 60 percent of his passes while leading the conference in pass efficiency.  Johnson has thrown a career-high 16 TD passes and only 5 interceptions.  He is also third on the team in rushing with 327 yards and 2 TDs.  But it is difficult to measure Johnson's contributions by sheer numbers.  It is the intangible qualities that he brings:  poise and leadership.  In 2006, the Bison struggled on offense and played musical chairs with five different quarterbacks getting snaps in the first six games.  Then the reins were handed over to Johnson and he responded by leading Howard to a 4-1 record to end the season. This season, the Bison opened with an 0-3 start, but Johnson again has worked his magic as Howard has won four of its last five.

Growing Up Fast
Martin Decembert, Brandon Bufford and Theodore Graham, IV are getting a serious baptism at the collegiate level.  The young trio, who are splitting time at the cornerback positions, were all reserves at the beginning of the season.  But injuries to the two starting corners, pre-season All-MEAC selection Thomas Claiborn, and Rickey Jackson three games ago has accelerated their maturation.  Decembert, a 6-1 talented junior from Miami, FL was moved over from safety where he had moved to from quarterback and wide receiver last year.  He is fifth on the team in tackles with 32.   Bufford, a 6-1, 180-pound sophomore from Detroit, MI, has shown marked progress each game and currently has 18 tackles and three pass breakups.  Graham is a 5-10, 175-pound freshman from Lauderhill FL, who has 6 tackles, but more importantly, 2 fumble recoveries, including one that preserved the Bison's 17-10 win over Norfolk State last week.

Stepping Up
When junior tailback Terry Perry and senior Leonard Moore went down with injuries against NC A&T, Frank Berchie and Karlos Whittaker were anxiously awaiting their turns.  The senior and junior tailbacks, respectively, have taken full advantage of the opportunity. Last week, the duo helped Howard control the clock for over 41 minutes as they bulled their way through the tough Spartan defense.  Whittaker logged a career-high 31 times for 84 yards while also adding another 57 yards on three receptions while Berchie complemented him with 40 yards on 10 carries, many of which helped keep drives alive on third and short.  Whittaker is second on the team in rushing and Berchie is fourth.

Nice Recovery
After sitting out the past year and a half recovering from a serious shoulder injury, Jarahn Williams was written off by many as probably never playing for the Bison again.  But the 5-10, 180-pound senior wide receiver from Miami, Fl never stopped working and believing in himself.  It has paid big dividends for him as Williams is having the best season of his career.  He leads the team in receiving (41 receptions), receiving yards (537), touchdowns (11) and scoring (66 points).  One of his four receptions has gone for a TD.  The single-season record for TD passes is 12 held by the late Jevonte Philpot.

Hitting Stride
There was a lot of concern over the play of All-American candidate Rudy Hardie when he got off to a slow start.  The 6-2, 270-pound senior from Hartford, CT, who ranked among the nation's leaders in sacks and tackles for losses, went the first three games with neither a sack nor a tackle for a loss.  Then suddenly in the Winston-Salem State game, a light bulb went off and Hardie became his old self again, wreaking havoc against opposing offenses.  A pre-season All-American and all-MEAC candidate, Hardie has 44 tackles including 19.5 for losses and 8 sacks in the past five games.  He now has 41 tackles for losses and 18 sacks in the past 19 games.

Keeping Up the Tradition
Howard University has long been recognized for its outstanding linebacker play, but there were questions on whether it would be able to maintain its tradition coming into the season.  After all, the Bison lost all but one of the starters and reserves due to graduation or off the field problems.  But due to the steady and consistent play of Robert Dowdy, the smooth transition of Endor Cooper from defensive line to the middle linebacker and the emergence of Robert Parker, III, Howard's tradition is alive and well, thank you.  Dowdy, a 6-2, 220-pound senior from Fayettevile, NC is one of the most intelligent players at the position in recent memory.  He currently ranks second on the team in tackles with 65 to go along with 6.5 tackles for losses and a sack.  Cooper, a 6-3, 245-pound junior from Woodbridge, VA, had an outstanding season last year after moving over to defensive end from the linebacker spot.  Then when the Bison needed someone to plug the middle, in came Cooper.  He leads the team in tackles with 66 and has 7 tackles for losses.  Parker is a 5-10, 200-pound red-shirt sophomore from Tampa, FL who was used sparingly last season a special teams' player.  But he had a fine spring and earned a starting spot.  He is fifth on the team in tackles with 39 and 4 for losses and an interception return for a TD.

Quietly Getting the Job Done
Randell Means is considered a bit on the small size for a safety by most standards.  The 5-8, 175-pound senior safety from Detroit, MI, makes up for his lack of size with tenacity and intelligence.  That combination has made him one of the best safeties in the MEAC.  Means is third on the team in tackles with 62 and has 6 tackles for losses.  Means contribution to the team goes beyond numbers.  He has had to provide leadership for cornerbacks Martin Decembert, Brandon Bufford and Theodore Graham, IV and safety Maurcie Cheeks, all of whom are starting and/or playing for the first time.

TALE OF THE TAPE

LOOKING AHEAD: SC State hosts Morgan State next Saturday at 1:30 pm in Bulldog Stadium while the Bison close out the 2007 home schedule against the Wildcats of Bethune-Cookman University next Saturday at 1 pm in Greene Stadium. 21 seniors will be honored on Senior Day as they will be playing their last home game in a Bison uniform.