Alcorn State avoids misstep against Arkansas-Pine Bluff for share of first place

The Braves cruise to a 31-7 win.

For the Alcorn State football team, this was the definition of a trap game.

A “trap game, as defined by the Urban Dictionary, is “a game played against an opponent deemed to be easy to defeat. As a result, a person or team may not prepare as thoroughly as they would for a formidable opponent. Often this attitude and its attendant lack of preparation lead to a loss.”

Alcorn State didn’t fall for it on Saturday. There was little doubt and less suspense as the visiting Braves ran all over Arkansas-Pine Bluff, 31-7, to spoil homecoming in front of 13,469 fans at Simmons Bank Field.

With its third consecutive victory, Alcorn (4-3, 3-1 in the Southwestern Athletic Conference) moved into a tie with Southern and Prairie View A&M atop the SWAC West Division. Conversely, Pine Bluff (1-6, 0-4) continued its struggles under first-year head coach Alonzo Hampton.

The Golden Lions couldn’t contain senior Jarveon Howard, who finally lived up to his billing as a preseason All-SWAC halfback. Howard entered the contest averaging just 46 yards per game. He more than tripled that output against Pine Bluff, rushing for 155 yards and a touchdown. Alcorn rushed for 304 yards on the day, including 68 from sophomore Kobe Towns and 37 from quarterback Allen Aaron.

“We missed some tackles,” Pine Bluff head coach Lorenzo Hampton told the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. “Had them bottled up a lot of the night. We knew Jarveon Howard was a good back, and he had a long (run) of 56 (yards). We didn’t do a good job of gang tackling, and then a lot of times, we had the guys in position, and then they would not do their jobs.” 

Alcorn head coach Fred McNair warned his team to take Pine Bluff seriously and not look ahead. That message will be in heavy rotation this week as the Braves prepare for another game against a sub-par program – Mississippi Valley State (1-6, 1-3) – before hosting Southern on Nov. 4.  The loser of that game on Nov. 4 is highly unlikely to win the wild, wild West.

Prairie View controls its destiny – after beating Alcorn on Sept. 23 – with a Nov. 11 matchup against Southern that could settle matters. Southern was the preseason favorite and can validate that prediction by beating Alcorn State and Prairie View in back-to-back games. Among the three contenders, only Alcorn needs help to win the title, even if it wins out. 

But the Braves had to handle Pine Bluff first to keep the permutations in play. They came to life after a scoreless opening quarter, putting up points on three of their next four possessions. 

Allen passed for two of those touchdowns – 38 yards to senior Tavari Griffin and 4 yards to junior Akeem McNair – and scored the other on a quarterback sneak. Pine Bluff constructed its best drive in the midst of that spree, with sophomore Chancellor Edwards hitting senior Chrysten Cochran for a 26-yard touchdown pass to cap an 11-play, 72-yard march.

Trailing 21-7 at intermission, Pine Bluff never got going in the second half. The Golden Lions were held to just 96 yards, punting on five consecutive possessions. Edwards, making his first start this season, completed 19 of 37 passes for 221 yards and remained confident.

“I trust my team,” he told the Democrat-Gazette. “I trust my offensive line. I trust my receivers and running backs to make plays with me. I just trusted the guys, so I just tried to come out and execute. We didn’t execute as we wanted, but we’ll look forward to next week.” 

The schedule doesn’t let up for Pine Bluff, which hosts Jackson State on Saturday and visits Prairie View the following week. The Golden Lions yielded season-highs in rushing yards (304) and total yards (523 yards). Defensive end Kendarius Clark said preparation isn’t the issue.

“Our coaches prepared us good this week,” Clark said in the Democrat-Gazette. “We watched a lot of film. We pretty much knew they were going to run the ball. Like Coach Hampton said, they got three good backs. We knew what was coming.” 

Alcorn knows what’s coming when it faces Mississippi Valley – another trap game. The Braves can’t afford to trip up.

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