Winston Salem State 24, Bowie State 12

The Bulldogs were looking for a stamp of legitimacy, facing a Rams' team that won Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association championships in 1999 and 2000 before falling in the 2001 championship game. The Bulldogs came in at 2-0, but killed themselves time and again, losing 24-12.

The Bulldogs (2-1, 1-1 CIAA) committed 12 penalties, had a number of drops from receivers and turned the ball over four times. The Rams (1-2, 1-0) negated the Bulldogs' speed on defense by attacking them head on. Rams running Willie Byrd responded by battering the Bulldogs for 171 yards on 29 carries and scored two touchdowns.

The Bulldogs defense came into the game ranked in the top 10 in the nation, but were pushed around by the Rams and gave up 320 total yards of offense, more than they had given up in their first two games combined. All-American Atcheson Conway led the Bulldogs defense with 13 tackles, while All-Americans Charles Alston and Damian Walker had nine apiece.

Kicker Mehmet (Sheik) Hazar put the Bulldogs on top with a 35-yard field goal at the 12:37 mark of the first quarter following a Robin Dawson interception of Rams' quarterback Joshua McGee.

The Rams and Byrd responded by going 74 yards on five Byrd carries, the last covering 43 yards, taking the 7-3 lead.

Byrd would score on a one-yard plunge at the 11:50 mark of the second quarter, but the Bulldogs and Mike Bryant immediately responded. Bryant returned the kickoff 65 yards and then got into the end zone on a 34-yard pass from quarterback Maurice Hill, cutting the lead to 14-10.

Hill was injured in the third quarter, finishing 10-21 for 147 yards and a touchdown. Freshman Jabali Smith played the final quarter and a half and was 11-23 for 88 yards and three interceptions, but was victimized by his own receivers with at least three dropped balls.

The Bulldogs came out in the third quarter and moved the ball, but got nothing to show for their efforts. On their second possession of the half, the Bulldogs went 68 yards in 15 plays, holding the ball for almost six minutes, but turned the ball over on downs at the Winston-Salem State 32.

Caleb Cranke carried the ball seven times for 30 yards on the drive, but his effectiveness was limited the rest of the way as the Rams built their lead to 24-10. Cranke finished the game with 51 yards on 13 carries. Kelvin Collins, who had been the focal point of the Bulldogs' running attack in the first two games, gained 14 yards on two carries, but left the game early in the first quarter with a high-ankle sprain.

The Bulldogs climbed to within 24-12 with 3:45 left in the game after a Smith interception at the Rams' one. Quarterback Joshua McGee fumbled the ensuing snap and recovered in his own end zone for the safety.

McGee started slow, getting intercepted on his first attempt for the day and seeing Bulldogs cornerback Brandon Cooper drop a sure-fire interception for a touchdown on his second attempt. He recovered to go 14-20 for 124 yards with a dead-on pass to Brandon Free in the corner of the end zone for a nine-yard touchdown.

Smith drove the Bulldogs to the Rams 17, but Dion Thompson picked off his second pass of the afternoon at the goal line, returning it 21 yards and effectively ending any hopes of a Bulldogs' comeback.

The Bulldogs will look to get back into the win column when they travel to Raleigh, NC, on Saturday to face St. Augustine's College.

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