Morgan State defeats Savannah State in season opener

August 30, 2007
BALTIMORE --Chad Simpson ran for 142 yards and scored three touchdowns to lead Morgan State over visiting Savannah State, 47-7 at Hughes Stadium before a crowd of 952. It was the season opener for both teams.

Simpson scored on a eight yard run with 9:06 left in the first quarter. John Skeete nailed the extra point and the Bears led 7-0.

Morgan State scored 23 points in the second quarter to bust the game open. Skeete hit a 37 yard field goal with 8:56 on the clock to put the Bears up 10-0. Sixteen seconds later, Bryan Wilson returned a interception 23 yards for a score. Courtney Anderson added a one yard touchdown run with 4:42 left in the half and quarterback Mario Melton tossed a nine yard touchdown pass to Roderick Wolfe with 13 seconds remaining before halftime to give Morgan State a commanding 30-0 lead.

Simpson scored on a 10 yard run early in the fourth and added another 10 yard touchdown run with 14:55 left in the game to give the Bears a 44-0 advantage.

Savannah State wide receiver Isaiah Osborne broke up the shutout with a 45myard touchdown reception from JaCorey Kilcrease with 8:37 remaining.

James Meade kicked a 28 yard field goal for Morgan State with 2:46 remaining to close out the scoring.

Morgan State offensive coordinator Chennis Berry, a 1996 SSU alumnus, had a good game-plan for the Bears which resulted in 345 yards of offense. The Bears won with ease despite committing 13 penalties for 149 yards, including seven for 97 yards in the first half. However, Savannah State could not take advantage of any of MSU's mistakes as the Tigers had three turnovers, and gained just 140 yards in total offense, including 15 yards during the first two quarters.

Melton passed for 112 yards and a touchdown for Morgan State while Jerrell Guyton led the defense with 10 tackles.

Kilcrease passed for 111 yards with one touchdown and one interception for the Tigers. Osborne hauled in three passes for 60 yards and a touchdown. Antwain Allen led the SSU defense with 10 tackles while Chris Herans added eight.

Savannah State will host Johnson C. Smith on September 8 at Memorial Stadium in the Joe Turner Classic. Kickoff is set for 1:00 p.m.