JEFFERSON CITY, MO – The Lincoln University football team ran into a big and shifty Morehouse Maroon Tiger squad that powered their way to a 38-0 victory Saturday afternoon at Dwight T. Reed Stadium.
The Maroon Tigers (3-1) took advantage of a couple of turnovers and a blocked punt to expand on a seven-point lead in the second quarter.
With the Lincoln (0-4) defense doing everything it could to keep the game close, a fumble gave Morehouse great field position early in the second frame.
Junior quarterback Josh Goffigan fumbled on the first play deep in Blue Tiger territory and the Maroon Tigers’ pounced on it at Lincoln’s 11.
The Blue Tiger defense stifled Morehouse and forced just a 24-yard field goal to keep the score at 10-0 two minutes into the second quarter.
On the next Lincoln possession, the Blue Tigers had a solid drive going, but a 15-yard penalty made for a fourth and long out near midfield. Morehouse brought the house at punter Jeremy Turner and as the punt left Turner’s foot, several Maroon Tigers’ were in his face to block the punt and place Morehouse at Lincoln’s 35.
Four plays later, quarterback William Brack hit John Smith just inside the end zone for a two-yard strike and a 17-0 advantage following the extra point.
After Morehouse capitalized on another Lincoln turnover, the Blue Tigers began to move the ball steadily with still time on the clock before halftime.
On a 2nd-and-8 on Lincoln’s 25, the Blue Tigers went with some trickery as running back Chris Willis took the pitch and instead of running threw a pass deep down the middle of the field into the waiting arms of Jerrell Anderson for a 30-yard gain to Morehouse’s 45.
Lincoln continued to try and air it out, but the Maroon Tigers’ sniffed out the next four pass plays to deny Lincoln any chance and keeping Morehouse ahead 31-0 at the break.
The teams went back-and-forth in the second half, as Morehouse’s lone touchdown near the end of the third quarter would be the lone score in the second half for either team.
Junior cornerback Ammar Dyson, returning after missing last week’s game, made a big impact again, not only retuning a few punts, but Dyson also tallied an interception early into the fourth quarter denying Morehouse of another scoring drive.
Lincoln continued to fight, mounting another long drive late in the fourth quarter, as AJ Simeon and Joe Simmons traded off pounding the ball behind the Blue Tiger offensive line to get the ball down to the Maroon Tigers’ 46.
Junior quarterback Allen McClain then delivered a strike to running back Willis for five-yards and a chance for Lincoln to move into Morehouse territory.
After a 15-yard penalty, Lincoln was in prime position, but the clock ran out on the Blue Tigers stopping the drive at the Maroon Tigers’ 30.
Freshman running back Andrew Young continues to be the workhorse for the Blue Tigers, as Young carried the ball 29 times for 80 yards. Simmons had a solid day as well, carrying the ball just four times, but tallying 56 yards in the process.
Goffigan went 1-for-10 on the afternoon for 11 yards, while McClain and Willis each completed their only passes they attempted in the game.
The option-style offense once again chewed up the clock for Lincoln, as they held the ball for nearly 35 minutes (34:43), to Morehouse’s 25:17.
The Blue Tigers also produced the best offensive output of the season, as Lincoln tallied 180 total yards of offense to the Maroon Tigers’ 360.
Lincoln will hit the road for their next contest when they will play at St. Joseph’s (IN) in Rensselaer, IN., to open up Great Lakes Football Conference play Saturday, September 26 with kickoff set for 12 p.m. CT.
Box Score (Final)
Score by Quarters 1 2 3 4 Score
----------------- -- -- -- -- -----
Morehouse........... 7 24 7 0 - 38 Record: (3-1)
Lincoln University.. 0 0 0 0 - 0 Record: (0-4)
Scoring Summary:
1st 07:37 MHC - Harrison,Mychal 11 yd run (Mullen,Ian kick), 10-73 4:24, MHC 7 - LU 0
2nd 13:43 MHC - Mullen,Ian 24 yd field goal, 4-4 1:03, MHC 10 - LU 0
08:32 MHC - Smith,John 2 yd pass from Brack,William (Mullen,Ian kick), 4-35 1:22, MHC 17 - LU 0
05:46 MHC - Brack,William 1 yd run (Mullen,Ian kick), 5-20 2:00, MHC 24 - LU 0
01:28 MHC - Green,Christian 30 yd run (Mullen,Ian kick), 6-61 2:20, MHC 31 - LU 0
3rd 04:21 MHC - Brack,William 1 yd run (Mullen,Ian kick), 9-64 3:07, MHC 38 - LU 0