Norfolk State Rolls Past Savannah State 35-6

Norfolk, Va.— William Smith rushed for 138 yards and three touchdowns as Norfolk State rolled past Savannah State 35-6 Saturday night in Norfolk, Virginia. Norfolk State improved to 2-0 for the first time since 1991 with the victory.

NSU (2-0) got on the scoreboard first as William Smith capped a seven-play 60-yard drive with a one-yard touchdown to give the Spartans a 6-0 lead with 5:24 left in the first quarter. The point after attempt was no good.

The next NSU score would be setup by an Anthony Owens's interception that gave the Spartans the ball on the Savannah State five-yard line. Two plays later, Smith added his second touchdown of the evening on a one-yard run to push the NSU lead to 12-0. The point after was no good.

Terrell Johnson's 19-yard touchdown run at the 1:19 mark of the second quarter gave Norfolk State an 18-0 halftime lead.

It would be more of the same in the second-half, as NSU continued to pound the Tiger's defense with its relentless running attack. The Spartan's two headed monster of Smith and Johnson accounted for 144 yards rushing in the second half.

Gideon Tekola's 29-yard field goal with 5:18 left in the third quarter gave the Spartans a 21-0 lead. Smith added his third touchdown of the evening on a one-yard plunge with 14:18 left in the fourth quarter to put NSU ahead 28-0. Tyrone Hall closed out the scoring for NSU with a one-yard run with 6:36 left in the game.

Savannah State (0-3) scored its lone touchdown on a 14-yard touchdown pass from Clyde Tullis to Ashley Simms with 4:13 left in the contest.

This was the first time since NSU moved to Division I-AA football that Norfolk State had two running backs rush for 100 yards in one game. Smith ended the night with 138 yards on 26 carries and three touchdowns, while Johnson had 111yards on 16 carries and one touchdown. Dontrell Leonard completed 11-of-21 passes for 149 yards and had no interceptions for the second consecutive game. Anthony Owens had another terrific outing with 110 all-purpose yards. He had three punt returns for 59 yards, one kickoff return for 29 yards and one interception return for 22 yards.

Norfolk State gained 370 yards (221-rushing 149-passing) of total offense, while holding the Tigers to only 204 yards (115-rushing, 89-passing) of total offense. NSU also converted 7-of-15 third down conversions on the night.

Defensively, Owens led the Spartans with four solo tackles, two assisted tackles, two pass breakups, and one interception. Jamal Naji had one solo tackle, three assisted tackles, one fumble recovery and one sack for a minus four yards.

NSU has a bye this week and will return to action on September 28, 2002 as they travel to Daytona Beach, FL to face Bethune-Cookman. Game time is set for 5:00p.m.

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