BOX SCORE
The freshmen trio of Jerry Lovelocke, Fred Anderson and De'Auntre Smiley combined to score five touchdowns as Prairie View A&M won a 43-34 offensive shootout over Mississippi Valley State on Saturday evening at Blackshear Field.
MVSU struck first on its opening kickoff as Kenneth Dabney returned the kickoff 80 yards to the PV 15. Two plays later, MVSU's Trey Bateaste scored in from 12 yards for the game's first score. Placekicker Carlos Sanchez nailed the PAT as MVSU claimed a 7-0 lead with 13:59 remaining.
On PV's second drive of the evening, the offense showed up in a big way as quarterback Jerry Lovelocke found senior running back Jermaine Waddy for a 22-yard strike on the opening play of the drive. Three plays later, the Panthers closed the gap to 7-6 as Spencer Nelson caught a Lovelocke pass and raced 53 yards for the score. Chris Barrick's PAT was good as the Panthers knotted the game at 7-all.
As the first quarter came to an end, Prairie View A&M moved ahead 10-7 as Barrick nailed a 46-yard field goal. Two possessions later, the offense struck again with a bang as freshman quarterback De'Auntre Smiley barreled over a MVSU defender en route to a 66-yard touchdown run. Barrick's PAT sailed through the uprights as PV led 17-7 early in the second stanza.
MVSU crept back into the contest on the following possession as quarterback Garrick Jones found wideout Paul Cox for a 54-yard touchdown reception on third down. Sanchez's PAT was good as MVSU trailed by a field goal 17-14. Not to be undone, PV answered on its next drive as Waddy returned the kickoff 44 yards to the PV 49. The Panthers marched to the MVSU 15 but had to settle for a 32-yard field goal from Barrick en route to a 20-14 advantage midway through the second stanza.
As the quarter came to an end, MVSU went into its two-minute drill and came out successful after Dytanyl Greer caught a 4-yard touchdown pass from Jones. Sanchez hit the PAT as MVSU jumped on top 21-20 to close out the first half.
Midway through the third quarter, the Panther offense woke up as Waddy caught a pass from Lovelocke and broke away from the pack for a 43-yard touchdown reception. The PAT was good as the Panthers moved ahead 27-21. After a defensive stop, the Panthers were primed to do more damage but Nelson fumbled a punt which led to a MVSU recovery at the PV 10. Valley took advantage of the gift on its next drive as quarterback Marvin Pittman found JJ Thurman all alone in the end zone as the Delta Devils now led 28-27 following the PAT.
The Panthers shook off the mishap on the next drive and answered the score as freshman running back Fred Anderson combined to rush for 56 yards en route to scoring his first collegiate touchdown via a 3-yard scamper to begin the fourth quarter. On the next drive, Prairie View A&M senior defensive end Adrian Hamilton sacked the quarterback and junior defensive lineman Donald Law picked up the fumbled ball and raced 32 yards to the MVSU 6. Anderson scored his second career touchdown following the fumble from three yards out as the Panthers moved ahead 40-28 on Barrick's PAT.
Two drives later, PV suffered a huge turnover which MVSU converted offensively as Pittman hit Cox for a 31-yard strike. The PAT by Sanchez was no good but PV's once-safe lead was trimmed to 40-34 with 14:26 remaining in the game.
With MVSU hanging around, the Panthers found their running game as Anderson and junior Le'Darryae Groover marched the Panthers 65 yards downfield. Barrick nailed his third field goal of the night from 30 yards out to close out the scoring.
Prairie View A&M exploded for a season-best 550 yards offensively with 308 yards rushing and 242 passing. "Lovelocke passed for 242 yards and two touchdowns on 19-of-23 passing while Anderson led all rushers with 91 yards on 16 attempts. Nelson had his second career and second straight 100-plus yard night with 117 yards receiving yards on nine receptions.
For his efforts offensively, Lovelocke was named the “Proud Panther” Player of the Game. Prairie View A&M University Athletics recently received an anonymous donation of $12,000 which will be used to support and highlight Prairie View A&M Athletics. The weekly player of the game will be one of the avenues used to highlight the donation. The donation came with a note challenging all alumni friends and supports to come together and support the PV Athletic Department and PV Foundation's development efforts now.
Redshirt sophomore linebacker Marcus White returned to action for the first time this season and had a solid night with 16 tackles, 4.5 tackles for loss and a half-sack. Hamilton followed with nine tackles and three sacks while freshman Jerome Howard followed with seven tackles and 2.5 sacks.
The Panthers return to action next Saturday as they'll face Grambling State in the annual State Fair Classic at the Cotton Bowl in Dallas, Texas beginning at 6 p.m.
For a full recap of the game from head coach Heishma Northern's perspective, tune into the Heishma Northern on Sunday at 4 p.m. on KNTH 1070 AM. Panther fans will have an opportunity to call into the show and dialogue with Coach Northern and host Leonard Moon at (713) 339-1070 or 1-866-357-1070.
Fans are also encouraged to submit questions via the official Prairie View A&M Athletic Department Facebook Page (Prairie View A&M Panther Athletics) or Twitter site (PV Panther Athletics). The show will also be available via the Internet at www.1070KNTH.com.
