Howard Beats Georgetown, Ends Nine-Game Losing Streak

As the seconds ticked off the clock on Howard's 14-11 victory over Georgetown at Multi-Sport Field on Saturday afternoon, Bison players Keith Pough and Darrin Christy grabbed a cooler of Gatorade, sneaked up behind Coach Carey Bailey and, when the buzzer sounded, doused their coach.

A Gatorade shower may seem a bit over the top for winning the D.C. Cup, but not for Howard, which finally won a game, snapping its nine-game losing streak that dated from last season.

"Oh, man, we needed this win," Howard defensive end Will Croner said. "Just for the team morale, we needed it. After last year's loss [to Georgetown], we had a chip on our shoulder."

Between Brandon Sherman catching a 35-yard touchdown pass from Floyd Haigler and Kenneth Austin-Bruce scoring on a five-yard run, Howard (1-2) did just enough to win.

"Georgetown did a [heck] of a job, but I thought we had opportunities to score at least three more times that we didn't take advantage of," Bailey said.

When both teams look at the game film, they will lament missed chances, most notably the Hoyas (0-4), who decided not to kick a field goal on fourth and two from the 2-yard line early in the fourth quarter. At the time, Georgetown trailed 14-3. On their next drive, the Hoyas scored a touchdown -- their first offensive touchdown since their first drive of the season -- to pull within a field goal after the two-point conversion. Had they kicked a field goal on the previous possession, the score would have been tied.

"Well, we wanted to score" a touchdown, Georgetown Coach Kevin Kelly said. "We could have [kicked a field goal]. Thought about it, but we didn't. . . . Obviously, the situation in the game would have warranted kicking the field goal, but we didn't."

In a game between two offensively challenged teams, the D.C. Cup looked more like the Futility Bowl. Georgetown gained just 45 rushing yards. Howard was penalized 14 times for 135 yards.

One of the Bison's most futile drives came in the third quarter. Howard started on its 45-yard line and needed 15 plays and nearly 6 1/2 minutes to move the ball 13 yards. The Bison were twice penalized for unsportsmanlike conduct during that drive.

"There's a lot to improve on," Bailey said. "The thing is, [the players] are going to be able to see on field the opportunities that we had that we didn't take advantage of. Hopefully, we can correct some of those mistakes."

-- BOWIE STATE 31, SHAW 24: Freshman quarterback Emmanuel Yeager threw a 30-yard touchdown pass to Larry Dixion Jr. to lift the host Bulldogs in double overtime.

Yeager completed 15 of 22 passes for 128 yards, and running back Rodney Webb had 183 yards on 29 carries for Bowie State (3-1, 1-1 CIAA), including a touchdown in the first overtime.

Shaw fell to 4-1, 1-1.

-- GALLAUDET 49, CASTLETON 18: The Bison racked up 477 yards of total offense and cruised to a road win over the Spartans, who are playing their first year of collegiate football.

Gallaudet (2-2, 1-1 Eastern Collegiate Football Conference) ran for 448 yards, and sophomore Phillip Hayes (132 rushing yards) scored three touchdowns.

Castleton fell to 1-2, 0-1.

-- RANDOLPH-MACON 31, CATHOLIC 21: The Yellow Jackets scored 21 unanswered points to start the second half and beat the host Cardinals.

Randolph-Macon rushed the ball 52 times for 236 yards and dominated time of possession, holding the ball for more than 38 minutes.

Catholic quarterbacks Matt Cantafio and Dylan Knight, who alternate every two series, combined to go 14 for 24 for 187 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions.