WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. - Bowie State linebacker Atcheson Conway just shook his head, unable to believe what had just happened.
It wasn't the 17-14 loss to Fayetteville State yesterday in the Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association championship game that had the sophomore linebacker so stunned.
It was that Bowie State watched the Broncos fumble nine times, but the Bulldogs couldn't recover any of them.
"That made a huge difference," Conway said. "We weren't able to take advantage of any turnovers. That's part of our game as a defensive unit."
Instead, it was Fayetteville State that took advantage of the Bulldogs' mistakes, scoring both of its touchdowns after turnovers by Bowie State (6-5).
"Their defense was able to make the big plays to set their team up to go ahead," Bowie State coach Henry Frazier said.
After Fayetteville State (10-1) took an early lead on a 22-yard field goal by Justin Langdon, the Broncos added to their lead by taking advantage of a Bowie State turnover.
Bowie State quarterback Jabali Smith was intercepted by Fayetteville State linebacker Brian Holliday, who returned the ball to the Bulldogs' 22.
Three plays later, the Broncos scored on a 25-yard pass from Te'Mon Wallace to Elliott London. Fayetteville State was up 10-0, and there was still 8:44 to play in the first quarter.
But Bowie State was able to wrest momentum back in the second quarter by establishing its running game. Using an assortment of running backs, the Bulldogs had success on the ground in the first half.
The Bowie State running game led to the Bulldogs' first score. Taking advantage of a short field after a short Fayetteville State punt, Bowie State drove 42 yards on eight plays, all runs, ending with a 1-yard touchdown by Julius Jordan to make it a 10-6 game.
"We knew we would be able to run against them just off the last game we played against them," Jordan said. "We came at them wanting to run it straight at them."
But Fayetteville State did a much better job shutting down Bowie State's running attack in the third quarter. The Bulldogs ran for 109 yards in the first half, but in the third quarter they were limited to 11 yards on the ground. They also failed to get a first down in the third period.
Fayetteville State extended its lead by capitalizing on another Bowie State mistake. The Bulldogs' Kevin Nesbitt fumbled a punt on Bowie State's 11. Holliday recovered, and Fayetteville State wasted no time, scoring on a 6-yard reception by Carnell Thornton from Wallace to take a 17-6 lead.
But Bowie State still had opportunities to win.
On a drive aided by a roughing-the-passer call on third-and-8, the Bulldogs cut Fayetteville State's lead to 17-14 when Jordan scored on a 3-yard run and Smith ran in the two-point conversion.
Bowie State 0 6 0 8 - 14
Fayetteville State 10 0 7 0 - 17
First quarter FS-FG 22 Landgon, 10:24 FS-London 25 pass from Wallace (Langdon kick), 8:44 Second quarter BS-Jordan 1 run (kick blocked), 10:24 Third quarter FS-Thornton 6 pass from Wallace (Langdon kick), 6:07 Fourth quarter BS-Jordan 3 run (Smith run), 6:44 A-n/a
BS FS
First downs 13 14
Rushes-yards 45-152 41-89
Passing 79 215
Comp-Att-Int 5-13-1 13-20-0
Return Yards 104 53
Punts-Avg. 7-34.1 7-33
Fumbles-Lost 1-1 9-0
Penalties-Yards 12-58 8-60
Time of Possession 29:12 30:48
Rushing-Bowie State, Jordan 19-102, Cranke 9-23, Smith 1-17, Bryant 8-15, Collins 6-8, Bulldog 1-0, Hill 1-13. Fayetteville State, Bridgers 23-61, London 1-30, Thornton 2-14, Wallace 14-6, Taylor 1-10. Passing-Bowie State, Hill 4-7-49-0, Smith 1-6-30-1. Fayetteville State, Wallace 12-18-208-0, Taylor 1-2-7-0. Receiving-Bowie State, Jeffries 2-13, Bryant, 1-30, Johnson 1-25, Henson 1-11. Fayetteville State, London 7-103, Thornton 3-86, Bright 3-26.