NASHVILLE, Tenn. - Behind a crushing defensive effort that forced four turnovers, Tennessee State took down Bethune-Cookman 41-17 at home Saturday night to pick up their first win of the season.
The win improved Tennessee State's record to 1-4 on the season while the BCU fell to 1-4.
Jalen Rouse paced the TSU rushing attack by accumulating 87 yards and one touchdown over the course of the game, averaging 4.6 yards per carry. Devon Starling also added 43 yards on the ground, averaging 4.3 yards per carry.
Karate Brenson reeled in three catches for 64 yards.
Josh Green showed out for the Tennessee State defense, collecting four tackles, 1.0 TFL, and one interception for a score. Tre Boone III added one recovered fumble for a touchdown, while Cameron Stewart had 1.0 TFL and one recovered fumble in the win.
TSU won the turnover battle in Saturday's game, forcing four turnovers while coughing the ball up three times, with Tennessee State turning those takeaways into 14 points. Tennessee State converted on 60 percent of third-down attempts on the day.
Tennessee State's defense held up fairly well against the run, limiting Bethune-Cookman to 185 yards on the ground. The TSU defense lived in Bethune-Cookman's backfield all game, collecting four sacks and 10 total tackles for loss.
How It Happened
The Tigers found themselves down early 3-0, but responded to take a 7-3 lead with 3:28 left in the first quarter.The TSU then extended their lead to 14-3 with another score.
Tennessee State kept Bethune-Cookman off the scoreboard and extended its lead to 24-3 with 3:09 remaining in the second quarter.The TSU continued to add to their advantage after Bethune-Cookman closed the gap to 31-10, scoring again to go up 34-10.
Tennessee State kept building its advantage after Bethune-Cookman made it a 34-17 game, scoring again with 4:09 left in the fourth quarter make the score 41-17. Neither team scored again in the game.
Game Notes
» Bethune-Cookman outgained Tennessee State 381-307 in the contest.
» Tennessee State won the turnover battle 4-3 after intercepting one pass and recovering three fumbles.
» Tennessee State had their highest scoring quarter in the second when they put up 24 points.
» Tennessee State converted 6 of 10 third downs while Bethune-Cookman was successful on 6 of 17.
» Gleson Sprewell led the TSU with nine tackles.
» Tennessee State allowed just 10 points in six Bethune-Cookman trips to the red zone.
» Tennessee State forced one red zone turnover in the contest.
» The TSU collected 10 tackles for loss and added four sacks.
» Jalon Jones led the BCU passing attack, completing 19 of his 34 attempts for 146 yards with one interception.
» Jones led the Bethune-Cookman rushing attack with 116 yards and one touchdown.
Up Next
TSU enters OVC play next Saturday at Tennessee Tech at 6 p.m. on ESPN+.
