Football | 9/15/2017 9:41:00 AM

Braves Host McNeese State on High School Day

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LORMAN, Miss. – In the first of two consecutive home games at Jack Spinks-Marino Casem Stadium, the Alcorn State University football program will battle McNeese State in a non-conference affair Saturday at 6 p.m.
 
Saturday is also High School Day beginning at noon in the Davey L. Whitney Complex.
 
It's Alcorn's second home game of the season. The Braves (1-1, 0-0 SWAC) opened the year with a 50-21 victory over Miles on Sept. 2. Alcorn scored six touchdowns; senior quarterback Lenorris Footman accounted for three of them with two on the ground and one in the air. Alcorn held a large advantage in total offense, 614-251 including a 300-82 edge in passing yards.
 
The Braves are coming off a hard-fought 17-10 defeat to FIU last Friday at a neutral site in Birmingham, Alabama. The game was originally supposed to be played Saturday in Miami but was moved due to Hurricane Irma.
 
Alcorn trailed FIU 10-7 late in the fourth quarter when sophomore kicker Corey McCullough drilled a 49-yard field goal to tie the game 10-10 with 3:54 remaining. It marked the second-longest field goal in school history behind a 50-yarder by George Green Jr. in 1984 against Alabama State.
 
Sophomore linebacker Solomon Muhammad is the reigning SWAC Defensive Player of the Week winner. Against FIU, he registered nine tackles, four tackles for a loss, two sacks and a pass break-up. It was his second straight big game after recording a career-high 10 tackles against Miles College.
 
McNeese (1-1, 0-1 SLC) fell at Nicholls State 37-35 in the last second to open the season, but bounced back with a 42-21 win at home last weekend against Florida Tech. The Cowboys are receiving votes in the FCS Coaches Poll.
 
The Cowboys have allowed just 62.0 rushing yards per game which ranks No. 1 in the SLC and No. 9 in the FCS. Offensively, the team is quarterbacked by junior James Tabary who has thrown for at least 200 yards in six straight games and has tossed five TD passes this year.
 
McNeese was picked third out of 10 in the SLC Preseason Poll.
 
NOTES
- Saturday marks the third-ever meeting between Alcorn and McNeese and the first since 2001. The Braves are looking for their first non-conference win over a Division I opponent since 2004 when they beat North Carolina A&T 16-13 at home.
 
- Alcorn is 7-13 all-time against teams in the Southland Conference with two wins against Abilene Christian, two against Southeastern Louisiana, one against Lamar, Northwestern State and Sam Houston State). The last victory over the SLC was against Southeastern Louisiana 33-27 in 2004 on the road.
 
- Footman enters the weekend ranked No. 9 all-time in career rushing yards in Alcorn history with 1,670, 11th in career passing touchdowns with 23 and 12th in career passing yards with 2,825 (page 14).
 
- Alcorn has given up just 19.0 points per game this season which is the fewest in the SWAC. It has allowed just 358.0 yards per game in total offense which is also first in the conference.
 
- After the victory over Miles, senior running back De'Lance Turner went on to win SWAC Offensive Player of the Week honors. He rushed for a career-high 131 yards and averaged 14.6 yards per carry. His 88-yard TD run was the longest in school history; the previous record was 85 yards by Gregory Jones in 1980 and Darryan Ragsdale in 2015.
 
- Alcorn has won three SWAC Player of the Week awards in two weeks. In addition to Muhammad and Turner, junior wide receiver Marquis Warford won the first SWAC Special Teams Player of the Week nod. He posted a 72-yard punt return touchdown and notched a career-high 190 all-purpose yards against Miles. Warford missed most of 2016 due to injury but was the 2015 SWAC Newcomer of the Year winner.
 
- The Braves are ranked No. 8 in the BOXTOROW HBCU Coaches Poll.
 
- Alcorn is the three-time defending SWAC East Division champion and was picked to win the division again in the 2017 Preseason Poll. The Braves have gone undefeated against SWAC East Division opponents in back-to-back seasons.
 
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