Grambling wins SWAC title, and Sam Houston State advances in playoffs.
Grambling State, the most dominant team in the Southwestern Athletic Conference all season, continued its mastery Saturday.
At least in the second half.
And the Tigers also needed a little good luck to pull off an improbable comeback.
Grambling State spotted Alcorn State 17 first-half points before roaring back for a 27-20 victory over the Braves in the SWAC championship game before a crowd of 24,917 at NRG Stadium.
The first half belonged to the Braves, whose twoyear reign as conference champion ended. The second half was all Grambling, which avenged last year’s title-game loss to the Braves, and finally solved Alcorn’s three-man defensive front.
“I’m humbled that we were able to win a championship, even more so how we did it,” Grambling coach Broderick Fobbs said. “It’s something to say about a team that’s down, and they show their character by coming back and playing the way they played in the second half.” Big plays spur rebound
Grambling, which outscored Alcorn State 27-3 in the second half, tied the game at 20 on a bizarre play.
Martez Carter caught a short pass from Devante Kincade at the Alcorn State 18-yard line and just before Carter was to reach the end zone, Stacey Garner knocked the ball out of Carter’s grasp.
But Grambling’s Dominique Leake wasat the right place at the right time. Leake alertly caught the ball in the air and ran in the remaining 2 yards for the score. But the extra-point attempt was blocked and the game remained tied with 7:25 left in the fourth quarter.
“I thanked Dominique right after the play,” said Carter, who rushed for 136 yards.
Kincade was 15-of-22 passing for 237 yards and two touchdowns.
Grambling came right back and took its first lead with 3:38 remaining. Carter scored on a 31-yard run for the go-ahead points.
Down 17-0 at halftime, Grambling (10-1) needed a huge play to get back in the game and got it from Carter, who returned the secondhalf kickoff 73 yards to the Alcorn State 25, giving the Tigers excellent field position.
Carter’s kickoff return set up a 29-yard pass from Kincade that found Verlan Hunter alone in the end zone on fourth down, giving the Tigers’ their first score and igniting the team to its 10th consecutive win.
“(Carter) is a very resilient young man,” Fobbs said. “In the third quarter, I said, ‘We need you’ and despite being hurt and being tired, he didn’t come out of the game. That’s what it takes.
“Any time you are in these championship games, you have to reach down deep to win championships.” Falling short of history
Alcorn State (5-6) outgained Grambling 448-412, but the Braves were penalized 15 times for 134 yards. Lenorris Footman, who engineered last year’s 49-21 championship game win over Grambling, passed for 259 yards. The Braves’ De’Lance Turner rushed for 126 yards, including a 69-yard touchdown run, and caught a 57-yard pass from Footman.
Alcorn State was attempting to become the first Eastern Division team to win three straight SWAC championships since the title gamewas started in 1999.
“We had a chance to win the game if we executed on offense and played the second half like we played the first half on defense,” Alcorn State coach Fred McNair said. Richard Dean is a freelance writer.