Coastal Carolina 20, NC A&T 7

September 27, 2008

GREENSBORO, – William Richardson rushed for two touchdowns and Coastal Carolina rode a solid defense en route to a 20-7 over North Carolina A&T in Aggie Stadium.

The Aggie defense got things rolling in the first half. Adam Beal stripped Andre Sitton of the football and Jamison Hedgepeth recovered. But Herbert Miller's pass was picked off by Keon Cunningham, who returned the ball 33 yards. The return was topped off by an unsportsmanlike conduct, moving the ball to the Aggie 9-yard line. Richardson capped off the drive with a quarterback sneak for a 7-0 Coastal lead.

N.C. A&T responded with one of their best drives of the evening, going 43 yards in eight plays, but Herbert Miller's pass intended for Chaz Dawson was intercepted by Josh Norman in the end zone. The Aggie defense held on the ensuing possession, as Justin Durham missed a 40-yard field goal. Durham later added a 31-yard field goal to push Coastal's lead to 10-0 at halftime.

The Aggie defense came up huge again in the third quarter. Hedgepeth struck again, this time putting his team on the scoreboard. Richardson, trying to avoid a sack in his own end zone, flipped the ball in the air into Hedgepeth's arms for an Aggie touchdown, which made the score 10-7. Durham added another field goal on the ensuing drive to push the lead to 13-7.

N.C. A&T had a chance to score late in the third when Jarrell Herring picked off a tipped pass from Richardson. Following a 20-yard completion to Chaz Dawson, the drive stalled at the Chanticleer 33, ending in a punt. Coastal took the ball and drove 80 yards, as Richardson scored on a 22-yard run for the final margin.

Coastal (3-2) amassed 351 yards of total offense with 243 yards coming on the ground. N.C. A&T mustered just 146 yards, but the Aggie defense forced three turnovers to stay close. The Aggies felt the absence of starting tailback Mike Ferguson, who sat out due to injury.

Dione McNair rushed for 71 yards on 23 carries. Miller completed 9-of-19 passes for 69 yards and two picks. Dawson caught five passes for 54 yards. Andre Thornton led the Aggie defense with 11tackles. Coastal’s Phillip Oboh, a Greensboro native, finished with eight tackles with three of them coming behind the line of scrimmage. N.C. A&T (2-3) will play their final non-conference game of the season against N.C. Central in Charlotte at 5 p.m. Coastal Carolina will host No. 24 Liberty at 7 p.m. in Conway, S.C.