KENT, Ohio (September 13, 2008) ? The Delaware State University football team failed to capitalize on several good scoring opportunities, allowing Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) Kent State to claim a 24-3 victory before 8,529 fans at Dix Stadium Saturday afternoon.
The Golden Flashes improved to 1-2 on the season, while the Hornets fell to 1-1. The teams were meeting for the second-straight year. Kent State won last year's contest 38-7.
"We made too many mistakes and Kent State deserves a great deal of credit for taking advantage of them, said Delaware State Head Coach Al Lavan, who fell to 2-3 vs. FBS opponents. "This was almost a replay of last year's game, where we gave Kent State too many chances and we failed to take advantage of our opportunities. Its tough to win when you lose the field position battle; that's what hurt us today."
Delaware State forced three Kent State turnovers, including first-half interceptions by James Romain and Francis Adjei. The Hornets also recovered a second-half fumble by the Golden Flashes.
The Golden Flashes took an early 7-0 lead on a 7-yard run by quarterback Julian Edelman with 9:49 left in the first quarter. The drive, which went for 62 yards on nine plays (eight on the ground) in 3:43, was kept alive on a pass interference call on third down and 19 yards to go for Kent State on its own 29-yard line.
The score became 14-0 on a fake field goal by KSU which resulted in a Leneric Muldrow 31-yard touchdown run with 14:53 left in the first half. The score capped off a drive which lasted six plays for 64 yards in 1:46.
Delaware State attempted to get on the board with time winding down in the second quarter. A 23-yard field goal try by Riley Flickinger with 24 seconds left in the first half was blocked, resulting in a 14-0 halftime score. It proved to be the second missed field goal of the half.
Despite trailing by 14 points, the Hornets out-gained the Golden Flashes, 203-120 during the first half of action.
Kent State extended its lead on a 5-yard rushing touchdown by Andre Flowers with 1:35 minutes left in the third quarter. The drive lasted nine plays for 73 yards, eating up 3:23. The Golden Flashes added three points on a 43-yard field goal by Nate Reed with 8:25 left in the game to make the score 24-0.
The Hornets finally got on the board when second-string quarterback Anthony Glaud engineered a 13-play, 77-yard drive that resulted in a 23-yard field goal by Flickinger with 3:16 left to play.
Glaud completed 13-of-21 passes for 159 yards, while starting signal-caller Vashon Winton connected on 11-of-18 passes for 88 yards. Winton also rushed for 44 yards on seven carries, including a career-high 39-yard scamper in the third quarter.
"I had butterflies on my first series, but things settled down after that," said Glaud, a sophomore transfer from Bowling Green University. Glaud was making his first appearance for the Hornets.
Chris Strother led the Hornets in rushing for the second straight game, racking up 60 yards on 11 carries.
Freshman Darius Jackson had five catches for 70 yards, each a team-high.
Romain was the Hornets' top tackler with nine. He was also credited with two pass break-ups.
"I felt like I needed to step up today because I gave up a touchdown against these guys last year," said Romain, who has two career interceptions, each against Kent State.
Edelman completed 10-of-20 passes for 113 yards, while rushing for a team-high 71 yards and a score.
Delaware State will take next weekend off before hosting first-time opponent Central Connecticut on Sep. 27 at Alumni Stadium. Game time is 7:00 p.m.
