Eagles roll despite opening-night changeshttp://www.heraldsun.net/printer_friendly/937086009.02.10 - 11:31 pm
BY JOE JOHNSON
jjohnson@heraldsun.com; 419-6667
DURHAM -- N.C. Central played Thursday night's season opener
without two of its top three players, which potentially could have been an excuse for the 59-0 final score.
Fortunately for the Eagles, they were the ones putting up the gaudy numbers at O'Kelly-Riddick Stadium, shutting out Johnson C. Smith in the first Thursday night game at O'Kelly-Riddick Stadium since the 1967 season.
Quarterback Michael Johnson, who was held out because the school had not received NCAA clearance to participate, and defensive lineman Teryl White, who was away from the team because of a death in his family, did not play.But the Eagles recorded their largest margin of victory since beating Fort Jackson 85-0 in 1946. NCCU's last shutout came in 2007 when it beat St. Augustine's 6-0.
Redshirt junior Keon Williams, who started at quarterback for the first time since Nov. 22, 2008, against Savannah State, was effective for the Eagles. Williams, who saw action in eight games a year ago as Johnson's backup, threw four touchdown passes and was 14-of-22 for 110 yards without an interception. He also had 62 yards on the ground with six carries.
"I just had to get my mind right and ready to play," said Williams, who found out Thursday morning that he was going to start. "When I woke up this morning, I thought I was just going to put my hat on and give signals. I'm a vet now, so it comes naturally to me."
NCCU coach Mose Rison, who got his first season-opening win in four years, said Williams' performance should have been expected.
"He's been here four years, and he's been a part of this system for quite some time now," Rison said. "He completely understands it.
"He probably didn't think he was going to start when he woke up, but he knew he was going to play -- how much, we didn't know until this afternoon."
The Eagles set the tone early by taking the opening kickoff and then putting together a 13-play, 95-yard touchdown drive.
Junior fullback Justin Manning caught the first of his two first-half touchdown receptions on a 4-yard curl out of the backfield. He later hauled in a 5-yard pass in the second quarter that gave the Eagles a 26-0 lead.
Senior running back Tim Shankle carried 15 times for 86 yards and touchdown, Tony McCord rushed for 46 yards on nine carries. The Eagles finished with 175 yards on the ground, and Rison said he believed his team could run ball any time it wanted against the Golden Bulls.
The NCCU defense, which Rison said would be the strength of the team, lived up to its billing. NCCU held Johnson C. Smith to 233 yards of offense and forced five turnovers.The Eagles also recorded a safety in the third quarter when Anthony Sharp sacked Ryan Carter in the end zone.
Two of the turnovers resulted in NCCU touchdowns, as James Reese returned a fumble 9 yards and Roger Stewart brought back an interception 83 yards in the fourth quarter.
Linebacker Calvin Hillie led the defense with six tackles, including three for loss and a sack.
"It's great to get a shutout in the first game of the year and get back in the groove of things," Hillie said. "It's a great confidence builder for us. We've been here four years and never won a season opener, so it was a big point of emphasis this week."The game was marred by an on-field incident with 9:43 left in the game, which sparked a scuffle in the stands behind the Johnson C. Smith bench. It took about five minutes for the referees to get the penalties sorted out and eject three JCSU players.
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