Bison Face Tough Challenge in Road Game at FAMU

Game Notes Howard University will be looking to snap its current four-game losing streak when it travels to Tallahassee, FL to take on the Rattlers of Florida A&M on Saturday at 2 pm in Bragg Memorial Stadium. It will be homecoming for the Rattlers.

The Bison (1-5, 0-3 in the MEAC) have had problems in all three phases--offense, defense and special teams---during the slide.

Howard surrendered over 500 yards of total offense in the loss to Old Dominion. In the setback at North Carolina A&T, the Bison were victimized by nine dropped passes. In the loss to North Carolina Central, it was special teams play that proved to be the downfall. And in last week's loss to nationally ranked Bethune Cookman, the offense, which came into the game leading the MEAC in total offense, was held to a season low 186 yards.

"We are doing some great things on defense and offense, but we have to find a way to put it all together to get that next win," said Howard head coach Ray Petty during the weekly teleconference. "We have to eliminate the mistakes that have hurt us and learn to finish games."

Junior quarterback Greg McGhee continues to be the most consistent player on offense. Despite a number of dropped passes and a bevy of injuries to the wide receivers, the junior from Pittsburgh still leads the conference in total offense and passing offense. McGhee has passed for 1,275 yards and 10 TDs.

Defensively, the Bison have been having problems getting stop on third downs. The young defensive front has played well in spots. Sophomore defensive end Damon Greshman-Chisholm, who has seen a number of double teams on the season, has come on strong of late and has proven to be a force with 5.5 tackles for losses.

Senior Tabrian Resby is having an all conference season at linebacker and leads the team in tackles for losses with 6.5. The secondary is getting strong play from red-shirt junior safety Cam Alston and senior cornerbacks Curtis Simmons and Ademola Olatunji, who has three interceptions on the season.

They will be tested by FAMU junior quarterback Damien Fleming, the pre-season Co-Offensive Player of the Year, who has come on strong after a slow start. Fleming has passed almost 700 yards and 5 TDs. His favorite target is Lennon Lenworth, who has 19 receptions for 282 yards and two TDs.

"It is going to be a tough challenge for us playing them down there for their homecoming," predicts Petty, who is 2-3 versus the Rattlers as a head coach. "FAMU is always one of the most skilled teams in our conference and they always have speed that presents a problem for us. We have to put on a great performance to come out with a win."

Despite the team's current slide and the record, the Bison are better than their record suggest. Their 5 losses have come from a FBS team (Eastern Michigan on the road), a FBS transitional team (Old Dominion on the road) and three conference teams (NC A&T, NC Central and Bethune Cookman), that have winning records and are ranked in the Black College poll.

"Howard is a good football team," said FAMU first year head coach Earl Holmes. "They are solid in what they do. We have to be up for the challenge. It is our homecoming and everyone wants to win their homecoming."

NOTES: Howard has won two in a row in the series, including a thrilling 29-28 come-from-behind win over the Rattlers at their homecoming two years ago. The Rattlers, however have dominated the series, 29-6. The Bison have never won three in a row.

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