Washington, D.C. (Nov. 1, 2014) --- Delaware State had more total yards and time of possession, but came up short on the scoreboard in a 17-10 MEAC loss to Howard at Greene Stadium this afternoon.

The Hornets dropped their third straight game to fall to 2-8 overall and 2-4 in the MEAC. The Bison snapped a five-game losing streak to improve to 2-7 and 1-5.

Delaware State racked up 321 total yards in the contest, its second-best output of the season and most since tallying 325 at Delaware on Sep. 7. The Hornets passed for 184 yards and rushed for 137.

Howard collected 298 total yards, 199 on the ground and 90 by the pass.

DSU also held a more than eight-minute advantage in time of possession (34:14-to-25:36).

The Bison led 10-3 at the half and stretched its lead to 17-3 with an early fourth-quarter touchdown. The Hornets pulled to within seven points on a touchdown midway through the fourth quarter.

Delaware State had two possessions after its final score, the last with 10 seconds to play, but could advance the ball no further than its own 47 yard line.   

The Hornets evened the score at 3-3 when Mitchell Ward connected on a 33-yard field goal to cap off an 11-play, 59-yard drive with 9:59 left in the second quarter. The big plays in the five-minute-22 second drive were a 23-yard run by Jamaal Jackson to the Howard 44 and a 14-yard pass from Marlon Kelly to tight end Nate Ortiz to the Bison 15.

Howard took advantage of a special teams mishap by the Hornets to regain the lead.

Two plays after the Bison blocked a 51-yard field goal attempt by Ward, Howard quarterback Greg McGhee connected with Richard Aiyegoro on a 52-yard touchdown pass. John Fleck's extra point kick after the score gave the Bison a 10-3 lead with 5:49 to go before halftime.

The defenses dominated the third period, which ended with Howard still holding a 10-3 lead.

The Bison capitalized on a Hornet turnover to stretch their lead in the fourth quarter.

Seven plays after Craig Johnson intercepted a pass by Kelly and advanced the ball to the DSU 38, McGhee hit William Parker for his second touchdown throw of the game to give the Bison a 17-3 lead with 13:20 left to play.

The Hornets answered the Howard score with a touchdown of its own on the ensuing possession. Jackson capped off the eight-play, 75-yard drive with an 18-yard touchdown run, the first of his career,  with 8:39 remaining in the fourth quarter.

Kelly completed four-of-five passes for 54 yards during the four-minute-52 second drive. Ward's extra point cut the Bison lead to 17-10

Jackson led the Hornets with a career-best 107 yards rushing, his second 100-yard game in the last three contests.   

Kelly completed 16-of-26 passes for a career-high 184 yards.

Freshman receiver Marquel Knight led the Hornets with six receptions for 70 yards. Milton Williams III had four catches for 55 yards for DSU.

Parker led the Bison with a game-high 151 yards rushing on 29 attempts. McGhee, the preseason MEAC Offensive Player-of-the-Year and the league's total offense leader, completed seven-of-12 passes for 90 yards and two touchdowns. He also rushed for 26 yards on nine attempts.

Defensively, freshman linebacker Dan Zajac led the Hornets with a career-high nine tackles, including seven solo stops. He also had a sack.

Defensive end Rodney Gunter had five tackles, including a 13-yard sack and a quarterback hurry.   

The Hornets are idle next week; and will return to action on Nov. 15 for the 2014 home finale against Florida A&M. The Military Appreciation/Senior Day contest will begin at 2 p.m. at Alumni Stadium.