Panthers get the better of rival Tigers
QB Hollins takes offensive control late in first half for SWAC win
Prairie View A&M struggled offensively, and Texas Southern’s defense was outstanding.
At least that was the case for most of the first half Saturday night.
Then Panthers quarterback Neiko Hollins took over.
Hollins passed for three touchdowns and 319 yards, leading Prairie View to a 30-16 Southwestern Athletic Conference win over Texas Southern at BBVA Compass Stadium, securing a third straight winning season for the Panthers under third-year coach Willie Simmons, who is unbeaten against the Tigers.
“We’re in a good place with the program,” Simmons said. “It was my job to come and give us some consistency.”
But Hollins was far from perfect. A third-quarter interception returned 39 yards for a score by Archie White got the Tigers to within five points.
But Hollins was instrumental in the Panthers’ win over their biggest rival.
Since taking over as the starting quarterback six games ago, Hollins has been the guiding force for the resurgent Panthers (6-5, 4-3 SWAC), who ended their 2017 football season with their third straight win.
“Since he took over the reins, the offense has taken off,” Simmons said.
Hollis connects twice
The Panthers didn’t score until 2:21 remained in the second quarter, scoring the final 14 points of the opening half, both touchdowns on passes from Hollins.
The Panthers erased a 3-0 deficit on a 36-yard scoring pass from Hollins to Joshua Simmons, followed by Zach Elder’s extra point.
Proving his prowess and leadership abilities, Hollins engineered an 83-yard, seven-play scoring drive that took only 63 seconds to close out the first half.
Ronald Collins was on the receiving end of a 1-yard pass on the final play of the first half.
Setting up Collins’ touchdown was a 31-yard reception from Hollins to Darius Floyd to the TSU 1-yard line with only four seconds remaining on the clock. Floyd, a receiver/ kick return specialist, twice has earned SWAC Specialist of the Week honors this season.
Hollins also threw a fourth-quarter touchdown pass of 12 yards to Zarrian Holcombe.
“They run a lot of cover 2,” said Hollins, who completed 26 of 41 passes. “I knew if I stayed true to my reads, was accurate, I would have a big game.”
Hollins’ favorite target was Simmons, who had 11 receptions for 152 yards.
Hollins passed for exactly 200 yards in the first half as the Panthers took a 14-3 halftime advantage. The redshirt freshman from Hightower completed 15 of 24 passes in the first half. Hollins has thrown for at least one touchdown pass in eight straight games.
TSU (2-9, 2-5) stayed competitive throughout the game, but the Tigers couldn’t get going offensively behind quarterback Elijah Odom. With 24 seconds remaining in the game, TSU’s Brad Woodard scored on 46-yard run.
“Our offense didn’t do well,” TSU second-year coach Michael Haywood said. “Our defense played well but just got tired. Our inability to protect the quarterback hurt.” Long wait to play
For TSU, standing out defensively were linebackers Julian Marcantel and Sean Jones, in addition to Rice and Marquel Daigle, who had an interception.
Saturday night’s game was rescheduled from both teams’ season opener to Thanksgiving weekend for the season finale due to the aftermath of Hurricane Harvey.
TSU took a 3-0 lead on a 36-yard field goal by Aaron Cuevas, a redshirt freshman from North Shore, with 4:14 remaining in the opening half.
Prairie View won last year’s meeting against TSU 29-24 in the inaugural football game at Panther Stadium and has enjoyed a renaissance over the past decade. Since 2007, the Panthers have posted seven winning seasons and .500 records in 2013 and 2014.