Dover, Del. (Nov. 2, 2013) --- Mitchell Ward kicked a 26-yard field goal on the final play of the game to lift Delaware State to a 22-20 win over Howard in a MEAC thriller at Alumni Stadium this afternoon.

The game-winning drive began when DSU's Milton Williams III recovered a perfect onsides kick by Ward at midfield with 1:58 left to play. The onsides kick followed a bobbled snap on the extra point try after the Hornets pulled to within 20-19 on a 33-yard touchdown pass from Cory Murphy to Williams.

The Hornets' game-winning drive was highlighted by a 31-yard pass from Murphy to Malik Golson on third-and-18 to the Howard 27. Two plays later, Dae-Hon Cheung rushed for 14 yards to the Bison four.

On the winning kick, holder Marco Kano pulled down a high snap before setting the ball. Ward sprinted the length of the field after the kick, followed by his joyous teammates.

It marked the first time in recent memory that the Hornets scored on the final play to win a game.

Howard opened the scoring when Greg McGhee connected with David Wilson on a five-yard touchdown pass with 2:53 left in the first quarter.

Delaware State took advantage of a Howard turnover to even the score midway through the second quarter. Four plays after Terrick Colston recovered a fumble by Howard's Darrin Christy at the Bison 25 yard line, Nagee Jackson scored on a two-yard run to pull the Hornets to within 7-6 with 7:32 to go before halftime. The touchdown was set up by a 26-yard pass from Murphy to Golson to the Howard  two. Ward's 43^rd straight extra point kick tied the score at 7-7.

It took Howard just six seconds to regain the lead.

On the ensuing kickoff,  Richard Aiyegoro returned Ward's line drive kick 75 yards for a touchdown to give the Bison a 14-7 lead.

The Hornets put together an 80-yard touchdown drive just before halftime, but missed the potential game tying extra point. Lamar Shaw capped off the seven-play drive with a three-yard touchdown run to cut Howard's lead to 14-13 with 1:06 left in the second quarter. Murphy was three-for-three for 54 yards during the march, including a 38-yard pass to Williams to the Howard 15. The Hornet signal-caller also had a 10-yard run on the drive. Ward's extra point streak came to an end when he missed the point-after try, leaving DSU behind 14-13 at the break.      

Howard took nearly a full quarter on a 99-yard, 23-play touchdown to put the Hornets in a deeper hole. The Bison received the ball at their one yard line after recovering a Murphy fumble when it appeared the Hornets were about to score with 1:39 left in the third quarter. Howard had eight first downs during the march, including one on a DSU personal foul penalty on a second-down-and-six play near midfield. Howard's Anthony Philyaw capped off the 12-minute-58- second drive with a four-yard touchdown run to give the Bison a 20-13 lead with 3:41 left to play. Jalen Fleck missed the extra point after the touchdown that would have given Howard an eight-point lead.

After the missed kick, Delaware State needed a touchdown and extra point to tie the game. The Hornets responded with an impressive eight-play, 77-yard drive to handle the touchdown part of the comeback. Starting from the DSU 23, Murphy completed four -of-seven passes, capped off by a 33-yard touchdown strike to Williams with 1:38 left in the contest. Williams hauled in the pass at the Howard 20 and outran several defenders to the endzone for his third touchdown of the season to cut the Bison's lead to 20-19. However, the extra point-snap was bobbled by Kano who was tackled while attempting to run.

The missed opportunity forced the Hornets to attempt the onsides kick on the ensuing play. Ward's kick travelled more than required 10 yards before Williams out leaped several players to recover the ball and set up the last second heroics for the Hornets.

Murphy completed 20-of-30 passes for 241 yards and a touchdown. He also led the Hornets with 49 yards rusing on 12 carries.

Williams had five receptions for 107 yards, marking the fourth time this season he has exceeded the century mark . Golson added eight catches for 94 yards, giving him 17 receptions for 174 yards in the last two games.  

Cory Scott led the Hornet defenders with 10 tackles, including eight solo stops. J.R. Robinson had an interception for the second straight game, and has a team-high three picks this season.            

The Hornets won for the third time in four games to improve to 4-5 overall and 4-2 in the MEAC. The loss snapped a two-game win streak for the Bison, who fell to 3-6 and 2-4.

After an open week, Delaware State will return to action on Nov. 16 at Florida A&M.

The Hornets will wrap the season at home against Morgan State on Nov. 23.