Bowie State 40, West Virginia State 7

August 27, 2005

(INSTITUTE, WEST VIRGINIA) Bowie State University dominated from beginning to end, crushing West Virginia State 40-7 in the season opener for both teams. “Going into this game there was a lot of uncertainty… No film on them from last year and we didn’t know if they had any film on us from the end of last year … however, we had a game plan and stuck to it,” said BSU Head Coach Mike Lynn.

The Bulldogs jumped out to a 7-0 first quarter lead mainly on a strong ground attack and never looked back. Sophomore Isaac Redman scored the first six points of the season from 1-yard out with 5:37 remaining in the first quarter. Bowie State’s Lamar Jones picked off a Lucas Wright pass and rumbled 45 yards for the Bulldogs next touchdown, increasing BSU’s lead to 14-0.

Redman rushed for his second touchdown of the afternoon at the beginning of the second period, padding Bowie State’s lead to 21-0. The Yellow Jackets of WVSU finally lit up their side of the scoreboard with 8:49 remaining before halftime on a 38 yard scamper by Perry Smith. However, with just 13 seconds left before halftime, the visiting Bulldogs penetrated the West Virginia State end zone again. This time junior Glenn Thomas leaped high above a WVSU defender to score a 10 yard touchdown from junior Lamar Manigo, giving BSU a very comfortable 28-7 halftime advantage.

The Bowie State duo of Manigo (8 of 17 for 90 yards) and Thomas (3 receptions for 38 yards) hooked up again, this time for a 19 yard touchdown, pushing the Bulldogs lead to 34-7. Redman scored his third TD of the day with 6:30 left in the third, pushing the Bulldogs lead to 40-7. “Isaac Redman is a heck of a running back, but all our running backs are good, “said Lynn. “Isaac is big, strong, fast and shifty … He’s everything you want in a running back and we’re glad to have him here.”

As a unit, Bowie State rolled up 380 yards in total offense (271 rushing and 109 passing) and held the West Virginia State to just 70 total yards (7 rushing and 63 passing). Isaac Redman ended the game with a career high 145 rushing yards (24 carries) and three touchdowns. Perry Smith led the Yellow Jackets limited ground game with 40 yards on 9 carries. Marcus McLain led the Bulldogs defense with seven total tackles.

Bowie State will play its home and conference opener next Saturday (9/3) against the Golden Bulls of Johnson C. Smith at 1:00 p.m. Johnson C. Smith dropped their season opener, losing 33-9 at home to Glenville State.