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North Carolina A&T put up a valiant effort to get a win over Towson University during the “Greatest Homecoming On Earth” but unfortunately fell short 42-32, North Carolina A&T had their best offensive performance of the season, finishing the game with 501 yards of total offense with 248 passing yards. The Aggies have struggled to put together a consistent passing attack this season but their aerial assault was clicking on all cylinders on Saturday.
In the opening quarter, Towson came out strong, with running back Devin Matthews finding the end zone twice for a 14-0 lead. However, North Carolina A&T was determined to fight back. Kenji Christian, the Aggie running back, broke free for an 11-yard run, putting A&T on the scoreboard at 14-7. Towson responded swiftly, as Chris Watkins sprinted for a 34-yard rushing touchdown, extending their lead to 21-7 after a successful PAT.
A&T didn't back down, though. The Aggies had a promising 12-play drive that included a 22-yard run from quarterback Kevin White, a 15-yard run from Christian, and a 15-yard roughing the passer penalty. It ended with a 26-yard field goal by Owen Daffer, reducing the Tigers' lead to 21-10. After a three-and-out by Towson, the Aggies' offense went back to work.
On their first drive of the second half, Brickandler, the Aggies' quarterback, led them on a 7-play, 80-yard drive, highlighted by a 54-yard completion to Jones, the longest pass of Brickhandler's career. This impressive play set up a 2-yard TD run by Christian, narrowing the Tigers' lead to 21-17.
Nevertheless, the Tigers had an answer for every A&T push. Immediately after the Aggies' touchdown, Towson's Nathan Kent connected with Zay Perkins for a 15-yard touchdown pass. Brickhandler continued to lead the Aggies, converting a crucial 3rd-and-3 with a 20-yard completion to Nicholas Dobson. A penalty against Towson helped A&T advance to the 11-yard line, resulting in a 10-yard touchdown pass to Darren Bennett on a 3rd-and-9. Despite a failed two-point conversion, Towson remained ahead 28-23 with 14:55 left in the game.
Towson wasted no time responding, as Kent threw another touchdown pass. The Aggies' Daffer added a field goal, but the game-changing moment came when Kent found Lukkas Londono wide-open for a 69-yard completion, setting up Matthews' two-yard touchdown run to seal the victory with four minutes remaining.
Although the loss was heartbreaking, head coach Vincent Brown was encouraged by his team's performance postgame.
“There are no moral victories, but you want to see improvement. I want to see improvement. I've seen that the last couple of weeks despite having a myriad of injuries. But in order for us to win, it's got to be all three phases operating at an extremely high level. We're just going to keep fighting and keep trying to build each week.”
North Carolina A&T looks to rebound in their next matchup vs. the University of Rhode Island on Saturday at 1 PM EST.
