Alcorn Suffers Setback Away to Grambling State

GRAMBLING La. – Alcorn junior quarterback Tre Lawrence threw his first touchdown of the season on Saturday, as visiting Alcorn dropped a Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) football contest away to Grambling State, 35-6 at Eddie G. Robinson Memorial Stadium.
 
The day for Alcorn (3-5, 2-3 SWAC) was summed up early, as redshirt senior receiver and kick returner Manny Jones cut inside a host of Braves blockers on the opening kickoff, only to see the ball stripped a second later by a Grambling defender, allowing the Tigers good field position with less than 10 seconds run off the clock.
 
Grambling (2-6, 1-4 SWAC) took just five plays and went 22 yards to open the scoring off the end of a Maurice Washington sprint around the outside for the touchdown. Added the point-after from Garrett Urban, and the Tigers led 7-0 just over three minutes into the contest.
 
The Braves found it to be tough sledding offensively in the opening quarter, having just 29 yards total for the period.
 
The hosts would add to the lead with 9:56 showing on the clock in the first quarter, as the Tigers used a one-yard plunge up the middle from Chance Williams to make it 14-0.
 
The score would swell to 21-0 in the second quarter as Aaron Allen's pass was intercepted by Grambling's Myron Stewart and returned 68 yards for a touchdown.
 
Grambling would lead 28-0 at the break following a seven-play, 64-yard drive that was finished off by quarterback Julian Calvez's rush around the left side for the fourth touchdown of the opening 30 minutes for the Tigers.
 
Alcorn got on the board in the third quarter with a lengthy 12-play drive that spanned almost the length of the field (96 yards to be exact) and took 5:43 off the clock. The Braves saw backup quarterback Tre Lawrence connect with Tavarious Griffin for a four-yard sore that cut into the deficit at 28-6. For Lawrence and Griffin, the touchdowns would be the first of the season for the duo passing and receiving.
 
However, the momentum would last only a minute as the hosts added a 23-yard rushing score from Floyd Chalk to produce the final 35-6 margin.
 
The Braves were led by Javonta Leatherwood with 82 yards rushing, while Jarveon Howard added 72 yards and Niko Duffey had 37 yards for the "Trident" backfield. Keyron Kinsler Jr. led the Braves defensively with four tackles on the day.
 
Allen ended the day 6-for-10 passing for 54 yards, while Lawrence was 7-for-15 behind center with a touchdown and an interception. Juan Anthony Jr. recorded a game-high six receptions for 83 yards.
 
Grambling used 67 yards rushing and a touchdown on nine carries from Washington to lead all players for the Tigers. Chalk had 33 yards on the ground and as score, while quarterback Calvez registered 58 yards on 7-of-14 passing.
 
Alcorn will now quickly turn its attention to Prairie View A&M as the Braves travel to Prairie View, Texas for "Friday Night Lights" when the Braves visit the Panthers for a SWAC Western Division showdown on November 4, at 6:30 p.m.
 
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