Before Morehouse can worry about Albany State losing again, the Maroon Tigers have to make sure they keep winning.
Morehouse nearly stumbled against Benedict on Saturday before pulling out a dramatic 37-31 homecoming victory. David Carter’s 11-yard touchdown run with 19 seconds left lifted Morehouse to the win after Benedict had surged ahead with 3:53 to play.
Morehouse lost at Albany State last weekend to lose control of the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference’s East division. Losing to Benedict (2-6, 1-4) would have essentially ended Morehouse’s SIAC title bid and damaged its prospects of making the NCAA Division II playoffs.
“I think our guys to some degree thought they were going to come out and lay down, and that did not happen,” Morehouse coach Rich Freeman said. “That is not going to happen the rest of the year. The conference has parity, and any team can win on any given day.”
Morehouse (6-2, 4-1) stayed tied with Albany State for the division lead. Albany State (6-2, 4-1) defeated Clark Atlanta 19-13 on Saturday.
Morehouse still can make the SIAC championship game if it wins at Fort Valley State and Kentucky State and Albany State loses again. Albany State finishes the regular season with games against Benedict and Fort Valley State.
It looked as if Benedict might spoil Morehouse’s postseason plans when Justin Shaw scooped up Thomas Williams’ fumble and ran 73 yards for a touchdown. That quieted the festive, overflow crowd at B.T. Harvey Stadium.
But a short kickoff and a good return put Morehouse at the Benedict 48 with 3:48 to go. Morehouse kept the drive alive when quarterback Byron Ingram converted a fourth-and-5 with a 7-yard pass to Derrick Hector.
A Morehouse holding penalty on first down led to a third-and-12. Ingram dropped back to pass, scanned the field and then suddenly took off, running for 16 yards while shaking a couple of defenders along the way.
“They dropped in coverage and voided the middle of the field,” Ingram said. “I saw they had pretty good coverage on our wide receivers, and I just read and reacted and just made a play.”
That run gave the Maroon Tigers a first down at the 11. After two incomplete passes, one of which was nearly intercepted, Carter ran around right end for the winning score.
Freeman said the plan was to set up on the right hash mark to attempt a field goal.
“David Carter, he does unscripted things for us, things that you can’t coach,” Freeman said. “That was awesome.”
Carter (Sprayberry High) ran for 117 yards on 31 carries with three touchdowns. Ingram (Redan) passed for 193 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions.
Benedict led 16-7 in the second quarter after Jeremy Vaughn returned an interception 15 yards for a touchdown. Morehouse answered with a quick succession of big plays.
After Vaughn’s touchdown, Morehouse’s Jamar Rodriguez returned the kickoff 63 yards to the Benedict 12. A Benedict late-hit penalty put the ball at the 5, and Carter ran in for a touchdown to trim Benedict’s lead to 16-14.
Less than three minutes later Carter scored on a 4-yard run to put Morehouse ahead 20-16. Morehouse linebacker Brandon Houston set up that score with one of his two interceptions.
Morehouse extended the lead to 26-16 with a five-play, 80-yard drive that was capped by Ingram’s 2-yard touchdown pass to Khamarr Smith. The Maroon Tigers muffed the extra-point try, however, and Benedict’s Vaughn ran it back for two points.
Benedict got within 26-25 early in the third quarter and regained the lead before Morehouse won it in the final drive. The Maroon Tigers had to overcome five turnovers, included the two that went for touchdowns.
“We didn’t play Morehouse football like we should have, but we never gave up, and we kept fighting until the end,” Ingram said.
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