Broncos Dominate the Second Half to Win the 2009 CIAA Championship

As excitement and anticipation filled the hearts of more than 7,000 people in attendance at the 2009 CIAA Championship game in the Durham County Stadium on Saturday, November 7, 2009, the Fayetteville State Broncos (8-3) found success in the second half scoring 21 unanswered points in their defeat against the Bowie State Bulldogs (6-5) 10. Unbelievable would be the best way to put this nail biting game in the books as the FSU Broncos win their 3rd CIAA Conference Title in seven years. The last time these two teams met was on September 19, 2009 in Bowie, Maryland with the Broncos winning 30 to 20. With the Bowie Bulldogs' freshman running back Ramono Flowers (Largo, MD, Largo HS) scoring a touchdown within 3 minutes after the start of the 1st quarter, the Broncos knew this game would be the toughest one they have played all season. Still, the Broncos were determined to give it their all and to prove why they belonged there. However, only having possession of the ball for a little more than a total of three minutes the entire 1st quarter crippled the Broncos. Surprisingly, the Broncos defense could not seem to slow down the Bowie Bulldogs from achieving more than an impressive 150 offensive yards in the 1st quarter.

After the 1st quarter, the Bowie State Bulldogs repeated their offensive plan by scoring a field goal within two minutes of the 2nd quarter. Coming within scoring range twice in the first half, the Broncos could not seem to get their offense going and as a result the Broncos defensive team paid the price doing all it could to stop the Bulldogs from scoring at will. Had it not been for the heart of the Broncos defense, that had stopped the Bulldogs from scoring at every possession, things could have been a lot worst for the Broncos in the first half. Plagued with penalties, incomplete passes, interceptions and missed field goals, the first half was a nightmare for the Broncos, ending in 0-10 for the Bulldogs.

As despair and disappointments shadowed the chances for the Broncos to win, hope sparked in the beginning of the second half of the game in the 3rd quarter, with an interception by senior linebacker Joseph Brown (New Bern, NC, Catawba). It was this play that gave the Broncos the opportunity to redeem themselves and they did with a 13-yard touchdown pass from junior quarterback Benjamin Williams (Charlotte, NC, Olympic HS) to freshman Jamare Pugh (Henderson, NC, Southern Vance HS) making the score 6-10. Missing two big field goals in the first half, the CIAA's Special Teams Player of the Year, kicker Austin Turner, (San Diego, CA, Mesa CC) focused to capitalize on the extra point for the Broncos making the score 7-10.

Entering the last quarter of the game, with the Broncos down by 3 and the Bulldogs being scoreless in the 3rd quarter, the 2009 CIAA Championship Football title was up for grabs by both teams. As a result of the Bulldogs not being able to meet the 24 yards to go on a 3rd down, they were forced to punt it on 4th down with six minutes for the Broncos to score. All that the Broncos had worked hard for was either about to end or pay off. This was the moment for quarterback Benjamin Williams to seal the deal for the Broncos with another touchdown play. Completing 5 passes for more than 40 yards, and rushing for more than 15 yards, Williams did what any great quarterback would have done if his team was losing in a Championship game, and made every play count. Out of the 45 yards explosive junior running back Richard Medlin (Raleigh, NC, Garner HS) rushed for, his last three yards in the game carried the fate of the Broncos victory with a touchdown causing all the FSU students, alumni, and other visitors in favor of the Broncos to rant and rave with their first lead of the entire game, 14-10. With only 2:29 left, the Bulldogs had enough time for one last and final attempt to score.

Scrambling in efforts of trying to score before the game clock expired, the Bulldogs quarterback Tyrae Reid Jr. (Baltimore, MD, Baltimore Polytechnic HS) panicked at the sight of the threatening defense running over the Bulldogs offensive line and threw a hasty pass that was intercepted with only 2:17 left in the game by the freshman defensive end Jaamal Dixon (Gatesville, NC, Gates County HS), who returned it for another touchdown for the Broncos making the score 20-10. Having no interceptions the entire season, this interception for Dixon was not only the first but also the most remarkable thus far in his football career. Austin Turner kicked the extra point that was good and changed the score to 21-10. Even though the tables were turned around for the Bulldogs, there still were two precious minutes left in the game for them to make something happen.

The incomplete pass by Tyrae Reid on a 4th down for the Bulldogs, cost them the game and eliminated the possibility of a comeback, making the Broncos victorious in their 21-10 win. Quarterback Benjamin Williams was honored as the Broncos' most valuable player of the game with 6 of 14 passes completed for 87 yards and a touchdown pass that became the Broncos' first score of the game. Sophomore linebacker Delano Johnson (Baltimore, MD, Dunbar HS) was named the Bulldogs' most valuable player of the game with nine tackles. Terrence Pete also made nine tackles on the field for the Bulldogs. On the Broncos' defense, Joseph Brown was the only defensive player to sack the Bulldog's quarterback and to have six tackles. Leading the Broncos in tackles, were Darius Powell (Waldorf, MD, UNC) and Marco Esquivel (Kearny, AZ, Ray HS), both with 10.

Respectively, the Broncos worked as a team with the defense scoring, the offense through rushing and passing, and the special teams scoring as well as picking up good yardage to come close within touchdown territory. During the presentation of awards after the game, Coach Kenny Williams was recognized as the only Coach in CIAA history to have three CIAA Championships. When he spoke on how he felt about the game, Williams said ".we had to come out like a bunch of wild broncos." To add, after the game and the awards presentation, one FSU football player said "I tasted defeat and it wasn't a good taste. We had to get that taste out of our mouths.