BOX SCORE

DALLAS - Jonathan Troast came off the bench and threw four touchdown passes in the second half as Prairie View A&M scored 21 points in the fourth quarter to capture a 31-23 victory over Grambling State in annual State Fair Classic at the Cotton Bowl.

Tied at 3-all entering the half, Grambling State struck first in the second half as Dawrence Roberts broke free for a 74-yard run at the 12:56 mark.  Zolton Riazzo's PAT was good as the Tigers led for the first time all night 10-3.          

As the quarter came to an end and starting quarterback Jerry Lovelocke out of the contest after halftime, the Panthers inserted Troast for the first time since the season opener versus Bethune-Cookman.  In a stark contrast from his season debut on Sept. 4, Troast came out on fire as he hooked up with freshman wideout Greg Thurmond for a 32-yard pass with 2:45 left in the quarter.  Christopher Barrick's PAT was good as the Panthers knotted the contest at 10-apiece.

The Panther defense made a stand on the following possession as they recorded their first interception of the season.  Troast picked apart the Tiger defense with receptions to Spencer Nelson and Deandre Cooper as the quarter came to an end.  On the very first play of the fourth quarter, Troast found Thurmond once again on a 46-yard reception which gave PV a 16-10 advantage. 

Grambling would not go away as they tied the contest at 17-all following Frank Rivers' 23-yard touchdown pass to Mario Louis.  PV fumbled on the ensuing possession but the defense stepped up and forced another three-and-out which returned the ball to the Panthers with 10:27 remaining.

Once again, PV took to the air as Troast, Nelson and Cooper led them down the field.  With 7:42 left on the clock, Troast found Nelson for a 17-yard touchdown pass over the top as PV led 24-14 after Barrick's PAT.  The Panther defense once again held firm and had a huge stop as linebacker Chris Townsend sacked Rivers on a critical third down conversion.  Five plays later on the offensive side of the ball, PV stormed out to a two-possession lead as Troast hit fullback Krys Watkins for his first career touchdown at Prairie View A&M.

Ahead 31-17, the one-safe lead quickly evaporated as GSU used only 2:44 to claw back within a score after Rivers and Louis hooked up for a 40-yard touchdown reception.  GSU's PAT attempt failed though as PV led by eight at 31-23.

GSU tried an onside kick during its kickoff attempt but was flagged for illegal touching.  With the ball at the GSU 39, junior running back Le'Darryae Groover and Troast ran for two first downs to seal PV's second win over GSU in three years and its first over GSU head coach Doug Williams.

PV finished Saturday's extravaganza with 492 offensive yards (340 P, 152 R).  Troast passed for 312 yards on 21-of-27 attempts with a career-best four touchdown passes.  Thurmond caught four passes for 97 yards while Lovelocke finished with 42 rushing yards.  Defensively, defensive end Adrian Hamilton and linebacker Marcus White both tallied 10 tackles.

The Panthers head to Baton Rouge, La. next Saturday as they'll face Southern at 6 p.m.