Oct 13, 2001

Donald Carrie passed for 202 yards and a touchdown and Kris Peters snagged 6 passes for 122 yards and a score as Alcorn State defeated Samford 17-7 in rain-soaked NCAA Division I-AA football action Saturday.

Alcorn State defeated the Bulldogs for the first time in the five-game series, outgaining the Bulldogs 309 to 273 yards of total offense. Freshman quarterback Ramon Nelson led the Bulldogs offensively with 102 yards, 94 passing and 8 rushing.

Both teams battled in a steady rain at Jack Spinks Stadium, and Alcorn State scored on its first possession. Donald Carrie connected on a big 66-yard scoring strike to Kris Peters to cap a five-play, 81-yard drive for the Braves and ASU led at the 11:10 mark of the first quarter.

Samford answered in the second quarter, as sophomore running back Jason Ogletree took a swing pass from Nelson and tiptoed down the ASU sideline 69 yards to tie the game, 7-7. Alcorn answered again in the second quarter, as Cletis Walker pounded in from three-yards away for a 14-7 halftime lead.

Mistakes cost the Bulldogs in the second half, mainly in the form of penalties. On their best drive of the half, Samford drove to the Alcorn 14-yardline but backed up with holding and personal foul penalties. Faced with a 2nd and 29 from the Alcorn 33, Nelson was intercepted by Lewis Green who returned it to the Samford five-yard line. Samford's defense held, forcing a 22-yard field goal by Ed Cicoria, and ASU led 17-7.

After holding penalties again stymied the Bulldogs on their last possession inside ASU territory, Willie Blair batted Nelson's pass away on fourth and 17 to seal the game for the Braves.

The Bulldog lost junior quarterback Josh Kellett for the season to a broken arm on their first offensive possession, and Nelson took over to lead the Bulldogs three plays into the game.

Complete Play-by-Play in PDF Format
Download Free Acrobat Reader

Samford/Alcorn State Box Score in PDF Format
Download Free Acrobat Reader