The Morgan State Bears and the Howard Bison will resume their rivalry Saturday at Greene Stadium with a chance at the MEAC conference title on the line, according to The Baltimore Sun.
Morgan State enters the game on a three-game winning streak, defeating Norfolk State, Delaware State, and South Carolina State. The wins put the Bears in a three-way tie for first place with North Carolina Central and Howard.
The Bears (4-5 overall, 3-1 in the MEAC) are led by a two-headed rushing attack in J.J. Davis and Jabriel Johnson with 750 yards rushing and three touchdowns combined.
The Bears also sport three quarterbacks with at least two touchdowns this season. On the outside, the Bears will feature wide receiver Treveyon Pratt, who has 24 receptions for 326 yards and two touchdowns this season.Davis told the Baltimore Sun the Bears expected to be in this position and are ready for the challenge.
“We always had these expectations,” redshirt junior running back J.J. Davis said. “Our coach always likes to break it down and say that we have two seasons. We have our non-conference schedule in basically the first five games, but the true season starts when we begin playing conference games. So we’ve always had expectations of winning the MEAC.”
The true hallmark of Morgan State football this season is their defense. They’ve given just 19.5 points per game during MEAC play. Linebackers Elijah Williams and Erick Hunter are a formidable duo as Williams leads the Bears with five and a half sacks, and Hunter has a team-high 49 tackles.
The Bison (5-5 overall, 3-1 in the MEAC) have won three of their last four games, including a 50-20 drubbing of North Carolina Central. Quarterback Quinton Williams is the leader of the Bison’s offense, with
2,015 yards passing and 16 touchdowns this season. At running back, the Bison sport a committee of runners as Jarett Hunter, Eden James, and Ian Wheeler all have at least 300 yards rushing and two touchdowns. Wideout Kasey Hawthorne leads the team in receiving with 452 yards and five touchdowns, but the Bison spread the ball around as a bevy of backs, receivers, and tight end Gavin Davis have caught passes this season.Defensively, the Bison don’t get to the quarterback much, but they make up for it on the back end as cornerback Kenny Gallop Jr. leads the team in tackles with 50 and has a team-high three interceptions.
The Bears must defeat the Bison on Saturday and hope for the biggest upset this season in the conference to capture their third MEAC title and an invite to the Celebration Bowl on Dec. 16 at noon at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in New Orleans. If the Bears can defeat Howard, their hopes rest on Delaware State (1-9, 0-4) upsetting North Carolina Central (8-2, 3-1).