Howard University Athletics

ATLANTA (August 30, 2026) --- Ja'Shawn Scroggins (Las Vegas) passed for a career-high 315 yards, including the game-winner, to help the Howard University football team defeat Alabama A&M, 31-24, in the annual Cricket MEAC/SWAC Challenge at the Center Parc Stadium in front of 17,320 fans.
 
It was not just any win for the Bison but new head coach Ted White.
 
"It was a special moment for me," acknowledged an emotional White at the postgame press conference. "It is something that I have always wanted, to come back to my alma mater and help the program. I had my wife, daughter, family members, college and high school teammates to come support me. It means a lot. It is something I will never forget."
 
Scroggins, a graduate student who has been with the program for four years and spent most of last season serving as a backup, accounted 364 yards and three TD passes.
 
The Bison (1-0) opened the game capping off a 49-yard drive with a TD pass to Markus Hopson (Newport News, Va.).
 
Scroggins engineer another drive, this time for 49 yards with Matt Conord (Lithia, Fla.) delivering an 18-yard field goal to up the score, 10-0, at the 3:14 mark in the first quarter.
 
Alabama A&M (0-1) was unable to get anything going against the aggressive defense, so the Bison took advantage with a 19-yard field goal, 13-0, early in the second quarter.
 
The Bulldogs were finally able to get on the board with a four-play, 69-yard drive with Cornelius Brown IV connecting on a 26-yard TD pass to Jared Williams midway through the second stanza.
 
Howard countered with an answer as Scroggins finished off an eight-play, 68-yard drive with a beautiful throw to Nathanial Clark (Virginia Beach, Va.) to push the score, 20-7, with 4:23 on the clock in the second quarter.
 
But the talented Bulldogs under the leadership of Brown where he got his team to within a one-possession game, 20-14, at half when he connected with Iman Conley from 14 yards to narrow the deficit.
 
Conord converted on his third field goal with less than two minutes left in the third quarter, 23-14, with under two minutes before the end of the third quarter.
 
Alabama A&M appeared to shift the momentum, reeling off 10 straight points on a Brown four-yard scamper and a David Faulk 26-yard field goal to take its first lead of the game, 24-23, with 7:49 remaining in regulation.
 
But the Bison did not panic.
 
"When we fell behind, there was no panic or anxiety on the sidelines," noted Scroggins, who added 30 more yards on the ground. "The coaching staff had prepared us, so we just went out and responded."
 
Scroggins showed his calm and leadership when he engineered a six-play, 83-yard drive that was culminated on a perfectly executed 51-yard pass play to Se'Quan Osborne (Charlotte, N.C.) with 2:41 remaining. The Bison went for the two-point conversion that was good on a Scroggins pass to Clark.
 
"On the drive for the win, we just executed what we had been working on," Scroggins continued. "So, it was nothing special, just execution and belief in one another."
 
The Bison defense had an overall solid performance despite playing a number of newcomers, holding the explosive Bulldogs to only 144 yards passing while recording the season's first interception.
 
"We stayed with the game plan by being disciplined and in the right place," said Aiden Foster (Washington), who led the team with five tackles and two QB hurries. "We made some mistakes, but overall, we did the things that we needed to do to get the win. It is good to start off the season with a win, but it is even special to give Coach his first win at his alma mater.
 
NEXT UP: Howard hosts the University of Richmond Saturday (Sept. 5) at Greene Stadium. Kickoff is scheduled for 6 p.m.
 
For more information, visit the Bison Athletics website at www.HUBison.com.