Underdog Howard gets signature win over Alabama A&M in MEAC/SWAC Challenge

This was supposed to be more about the activity off the field for Howard football supporters.

Gather with old friends. Enjoy some good times at the tailgate. Then file into Center Parc Stadium to watch the rebuilding Bison get overpowered by Alabama A&M.

That’s not how it went, though.

The party continued inside for Howard on Saturday night, and it was still going after the final whistle.

The underdog Bison, of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference, controlled the game early. Alabama A&M, of the Southwestern Athletic Conference, gained its first lead late in the fourth quarter. Then Howard won the MEAC/SWAC Challenge Kickoff by scoring a 51-yard touchdown with less than three minutes to play.

Howard’s 31-24 victory could be the start of a resurgence. The Bison won the MEAC title as recently as 2023. After back-to-back losing seasons, Howard hired coach Ted White to turn the program around.

White starred at quarterback for Howard in the 1990s. His peers didn’t expect his team to win much in Year 1. The Bison were picked to finish last in a preseason vote of MEAC coaches and sports information directors.

It already looks like they underestimated Howard.

“We feel like we’ve got the best defense in the country,” White said. “We feel like we‘ve got the best offense in the country. We go against each other every single day (in practice); it’s a bloodbath.

“When we get together on Saturdays, we just make sure we are united.”

Alabama A&M fell behind 13-0 in the second quarter and trailed 20-14 at halftime. The Bulldogs gained their first lead of the game, 24-23, with a field goal at 7:49 of the final quarter.

Alabama A&M fans and members of the Marching Maroon and White band had reason to celebrate as the Bulldogs rallied from a 20-7 deficit against Howard to take a 24-23 lead in the MEAC/SWAC Challenge Kickoff in Atlanta on Saturday, Aug. 29, 2026. The Bison ultimately pulled out the victory, 31-24. (Ben Gray for the AJC)

The Bison went three-and-out on their next possession. The Bulldogs had good field position after the punt, but they also went three-and-out.

Howard started its next drive at its 17-yard line with 5:17 to play. Quarterback Ja’Shawn Scroggins ran for 17 yards on the first play. Four plays later, Scroggins scrambled for 13 yards on fourth-and-2.

Then Scroggins saw Se’Quan Osborne streaking open down the middle of the field.

“After that, it’s something you don’t think about,” Scroggins said. “It’s something that just happens.”

The 51-yard touchdown pass put Howard ahead with 2:41 left. The Bison were up 31-24 after Scroggins completed a pass to Nathanial Clark to convert the two-point try.

The Bulldogs needed to go 80 yards to score a TD on their next drive. They made it as far as Howard’s 21-yard line. That’s where Howard linebacker Aidan Foster forced a fumble that was recovered by teammate Rodney Roane.

Smith won his first game as coach of his alma mater. He had an emotional moment with family on the field after the game, and again during the postgame news conference.

“To be able to come back as the head coach here, it means a lot,” Smith said. “These players, they really go to bat for me. Every morning, we practice at 7 in the morning and there is not one soul that complains.

“Today, we talked about this being a privilege of having an opportunity to play the MEAC/SWAC challenge to not only represent the university but represent the conference.”

The Bison got a signature win to start a new era. Alabama A&M was picked to finish fifth in the SWAC’s rugged West Division.

But the Bison bullied the Bulldogs early in the game. Howard scored on its first three possessions to lead 13-0.

“We didn’t take our practice to the game, for whatever reason,” Alabama A&M coach Sam Shade said. “It was almost like we were a little bit stage frightened.”

The Bison led 23-14 after three quarters. Alabama A&M scored early in the fourth quarter when former Georgia State quarterback Cornelious Brown IV ended an 11-play drive with a 4-yard touchdown run.

Howard’s lead was down to 23-21 with 13:10 to play. The Bulldogs had momentum. They kept the pressure on Howard by forcing a three-and-out and returning the punt to Howard’s 47-yard line.

The Bulldogs kicked the go-ahead field goal to end that drive. Then, after the teams traded possessions, Scroggins and Osborne linked up for the game-winning score.

“These guys didn’t blink at all,” Smith said of his players.

That’s why Howard’s party wasn’t limited to the tailgate.