Alcorn State 22, Prairie View A&M 10

October 8, 2005

ALCORN STATE, Miss. ­ Make no mistake, it was a happy homecoming.

Alcorn State quarterback Tony Hobson set personal bests in attempts, completions and yards, running back Michael Shepherd rushed for 100 yards for the second straight week, and a stifling Alcorn defense intercepted four passes.

The result: Alcorn State 22, Prairie View A&M 10 on Saturday afternoon at Jack Spinks Stadium.

“It’s always good to win homecoming,” Alcorn coach Johnny Thomas said. “All the festivities, all the events, all the parties, all the fanfare don’t mean doodly-squat if we lose the game. Winning the game gives everybody a good homecoming.” Alcorn (2-3 overall, 1-2 in SWAC) got on the board quickly, moving 77 yards in nine plays to set up Jeremy Shea’s 23-yard field goal.

Hobson completed a 32-yard pass to Charlie Spiller on the game’s first play, and Spiller then had a 15-yard run on the next play. Spiller also had a 34-yard reception later in the drive.

Getting Spiller involved early was important for Alcorn, especially since Spiller didn’t catch a pass in last week’s loss ­ snapping a streak of 19 straight games with at least one reception.

“Once they started focusing on him, it opened up things for our other receivers,” Hobson said.

Prairie View tied the game midway through the first quarter when Mario Sanchez booted a 37-yard field goal, but Alcorn dominated the rest of the game.

Hobson scored his first career rushing touchdown on a 1-yard run midway through the second quarter, and Shea kicked a 46-yard field goal on the final play of the first hl.

Shea added a 30-yard field goal in the third quarter, and Hobson capped an eight-play, 65-yard drive with a 6-yard touchdown pass to J.D. Robinson.

Hobson finished 16-of-27 passing for 202 yards.

“I think this game is going to get us rolling and get us in the direction we need to go,” Hobson said. “This was a must-win.” Alcorn dominated the game with its rugged running game, finishing with 229 yards on the ground and averaging 5.3 yards per carry.

Shepherd finished with 111 yards on 19 carries.

“We felt like it was a challenge ­ we were the No. 1 running team in the SWAC and they were the No. 1 rushing defense,” Shepherd said. “We wanted to show what we can do.” Shepherd is actually Alcorn’s third-string running back, but starter Jeremy McCoy sat out for the second straight week with a hamstring injury and second-teamer Vernardus Cooper is out the rest of the year with a knee injury.

Alcorn went to it jumbo package Saturday ­ using fullbacks J.D. Robinson and Ken Williams together.

Robinson finished with 44 yards on a season-high 12 carries, and Williams added 26 yards on five carries.

The Alcorn defense also flexed its muscle as Quentin Sullivan intercepted two passes, while Charleston Brown and Ken Bradford intercepted one apiece.

Lester Mosley finished wit a team-high 11 tackles, while Lee Robinson had eight tackles, a forced fumble and one of the team’s three sacks.

“We just started playing the game the way it’s supposed to be played,” Thomas said. “When you do that, good things happen.” Defensive lineman Mark Butler attended the game, and he accompanied the captains to midfield for the pre-game coin toss.

Butler suffered neck and head injures when a falling tree hit him during Hurricane Katrina. He has been at home in Tylertown recovering after spending some time in the hospital.

“Oh, man, it was great to be here,” Butler said. “I’m just happy to see the guys. It’s been a long time. I’ve been cooped up in the house.”