Oct. 18, 2003

Salisbury, NC - The Winston-Salem State University Rams traveled the 33 miles down I85 to Salisbury, NC to take on the Livingstone College Blue Bears in a CIAA Football contest on Saturday, and came away with a 42-23 victory on Saturday evening.

The game started out with the Blue Bears jumping on the board first 3-0 when they nailed a 31-yard field at 7:01 of the first quarter, capping a nine-play, 62-yard drive that ate up 4:42 of the clock. The Blue Bears narrowly avoided turning the ball over as running back Patrick Pope fell on his own fumble, thus forcing the long field goal attempt.

However, it would take only 1:34 for the Rams to get their first points of the game as WSSU capped a 5-play, 63-yard drive with Jerrick "Jed" Bines (RB/Fr./5-10/190/Winston-Salem, NC) recording his first touchdown of the season when he scrambled for a 31-yard touchdown run. The Ashton Oakley (K/Sr./5-10/175/Haw River, NC) PAT would make it 7-3.

The Rams would waste very little time before they made it 14-3 as Raymond Barksdale (DB/So./5-10/180/Charlotte, NC) would scoop up a dropped pitch attempt and scampered into the endzone for the touchdown.

The Ram fans would not wait much longer for more WSSU fireworks as the second play of the second quarter saw Josh McGee (QB/Jr./6'0"/180/Winston-Salem, NC) complete a 68-yard touchdown pass to a streaking Brandon Hussey (WR/So./5-10/175/Pine Top, NC) to increase the Ram lead to 21-3 with 14:44 remaining in the first half of play, capping a 95-yard drive.

Brandon Hussey would continue to tear up the Blue Bear defense as he ran a punt back 95 yards for a touchdown that was nullified by an unnecessary block in the back, moving the Rams back to the 25-yard line and taking a touchdown from the Rams, canceling a Hussey 95-yard return. However, only two plays later Martin Hicks (RB/So./5-9/180/Oxford, NC) sprinted in from ten yards out for his sixth touchdown of the season to make it 28-3 with 4:47 remaining on the half.

A Josh McGee tipped pass would turn into an interception only two minutes later, and on first down the Blue Bears would break their scoring drought, with a 36 yard touchdown pass finalizing a one-play, six second drive cutting the Ram lead to 18 points at 28-10. The two teams would fail to score any more points in the half, and the intermission would come with the Rams leading 28-10. The first half of play would see the Rams tally 259 yards of total offense on 32 plays and lead at the half for the first time in three games.

The second half of play was once again witness to the Blue Bears striking first, this time a nine-yard touchdown strike to make the contest closer still at 28-17. The pass would cap a five play, 53-yard drive that spent only one minute, thirty seconds off of the clock.

The third quarter would see the Ram offense stall, as the Rams abandoned the passing game that was so successful in the first half, and attempt to go back to a ball control, rushing offense, that produced nothing in the way of points, as the two teams would take the 28-17 Ram lead into the final quarter of play.

The fourth quarter would open with the Rams forcing a fumble, one that Raymond Barksdale recovered at their own 45-yard line. Rodney Milbourne (QB/Sr./5-11/186/Battleboro, NC) replaced Josh McGee at quarterback for the Rams and subsequently led the Rams to another three and out, forcing the fifth Chad Oakley (P/So./5-10/165/Haw River, NC) punt of the evening.

The Blue Bears would score once again and fail to convert on a two-point conversion try, and the Rams would see their lead dwindle to five at 28-23. However, Martin Hicks returned the ensuing kickoff 47 yards and into Blue Bear territory to set the Rams up for a possible late game score. The Rams would benefit from a five yard touchdown courtesy of Jed Bines, his second of the game, and second of the season to increase their lead back to 12 points at 35-23.

Livingstone, to their credit, would not quit, as the Blue Bears mounted a 9 play, 77 yard drive that was kept alive by a WSSU pass interference penalty, nullifying an interception, coupled with an un-sportsmanlike conduct penalty, to give the Blue Bears the field position necessary to possibly punch the ball into the end zone and keep their comeback hopes alive. However, the Rams Rodney Norman (DL/Sr./6-2/245/Plymouth, NC) stuffed the Blue Bears on fourth and goal from the one, capping off four consecutive defensive stops from inside the five, to preserve the Ram victory. The Rams would put the icing on the cake with a Rodney Milbourne one-yard TD run to make it a 42-23 victory for the Rams.

With the victory, the Rams improve to 4-3 overall and 2-2 in the CIAA. The Blue Bears fall to 1-6 overall and 1-3 in the CIAA. The Rams return to action next Saturday, October 25th, 2003 as they return home to the friendly confines of Bowman-Gray Stadium to host the Eagles of North Carolina Central in the Rams -vs- Eagles Classic. The kickoff is slated for 7:00 pm and the game will be broadcast LIVE on Black Entertainment Television (BET).