WASHINGTON (Sept. 20, 2024) – The Howard University football team will face rival Hampton in the annual Truth & Service Classic at Audi on Saturday (Sept. 21), with kickoff scheduled for 4 p.m.
GAME INFORMATION
GAME 4
Howard University (Bison) vs. Hampton University (Pirates)
Saturday, 21 September 2024
4 p.m.
Audi Field (20,000)
Washington, DC
LAST TIMEOUT
Howard (2-1) earned a 35-21 win over Morehouse College in the HBCU NYC Football Classic on Saturday (Sept. 14). Howard delivered an outstanding performance from redshirt senior Jaylon Tolbert (Fort Lauderdale, Florida) with a career-high four touchdown passes and an outstanding defensive performance in which he limited Morehouse to minus-62 yards and sacked the quarterback seven times.
Hampton (2-1) comes into play after a convincing 37-7 victory over rival Norfolk State on Saturday (Sept. 14). The Pirates totaled 466 yards of offense and limited the Spartans to 104 yards of offense.
FOLLOW THE ACTION
REGARD: Monumental Sports: Wes Hall (live commentary) and former Washington Commander star Brian Mitchell (color commentator)
HEAR: WHBC Locations Trevin A. Jones (game by game), Nathaniel Henry (Color Analyst) & Sarah Rudd (Reporter on the sidelines)
IN THE GAME: LIVE RESULTS
THE SERIES
The Pirates beat the Bison 35-34 in last year’s Classic, their seventh straight win in the series. The Bison led 34-21 in the fourth quarter, but Hampton rallied, scoring 14 points in five minutes to beat Howard 35-34.
The two schools meet for the 100th anniversary.th time, with Hampton having a 56-42-1 lead. The series began in 1908.
THE COACHES
Howard is trained by Larry Scott (USF, ’00), who is in his fifth season, while Hampton will be coached by interim coach Trent Boykin (Youngstown State, ’95), who served as an assistant with the Pirates.
WHAT THE COACHES SAY
LARRY SCOTT
“Hampton is a challenge in many ways. They have a two-quarterback system and a strong running game. Our challenge this week will be to go out there, execute the game plan, minimize the mistakes and compete in front of fans and alumni.”
TRENT BOYKIN
“We recruit in the Washington area and Howard recruits in the Hampton Roads area. Our fans are a little more excited when we play Howard. I’ve been to the last three games and I know how excited our fans are when we play Howard. Howard is a very solid football team. They have a very balanced offense that makes them hard to stop. They have some excellent talent on defense. We’ll have to play our best on Saturday.”
KEY PLAYERS
In search of the bison
On offense, the Bisons rely on Tolbert (23 of 41, 267 yards and 4 TDs) and Ja’Shawn Scroggins (Las Vegas).
The running game is driven by the duo of Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) graduate and Preseason Player of the Year, Jarrett Hunter (57 runs, 276 yards & 3 TDs) and his backfield colleague Junior Eden James (14 runs for 28 yards and TD).
The passing game is strengthened by wide receivers Isiah Williams (8 catches for 118 yards & TD) and Richie Ilarraza (13 receptions for 125 & TD) and Senior Kasey Hawthorne (7 receptions for 70 yards).
The offensive line is carried by experienced all-conference guards Darius Fox (Washington).
Defensive, All-American Kenny Gallop Jr. (Portsmouth, Va.) leads the team in tackles (28 total tackles, 1.5 TFL and 0.5 sack).
Gallop has a lot of support in senior linebacker Terrance Hollon (21 total tackles, 2 FFs & FR), Senior Defensive Backs Xavier Robiou (11 tackles in total) and Robert Jones III (Fairwood, Maryland).
In front the trio of juniors Noah Miles (Tampa, Florida), sophomore Ishaun Abdul Ali (Charlotte, NC) and Senior James Stewart (Richmond, Va.) have come on strong and proven to be a formidable force.
HAMPTON
The high-powered offense is led by the dynamic duo: redshirt junior quarterback Chris Zellous (20 carries, 106 yards & 4 TDs; 40 of 59 & 410 yards) and redshirt senior quarterback Malcolm Mays (22 of 29, 291 yards & 3 TDs; 4 carries for 63 yards).
The running game is powered by the running power of senior Elijah Burris (73 carries for 265 yards and 3 TDs; 8 catches for 98 yards and a TD).
When Hampton throws the ball, junior WR Kevin Johnson, Jr. (11 caught passes for 122 yards and a TD), freshman tight ends Brennan Ridley (10 caught passes for 136 yards) and Christian Greenlaw (5 caught passes for 72 yards and a TD) are the primary targets.
Hampton’s rugged defense is led by veteran defensive backs Tre Everett III (12 total tackles, 3 TFLs, 2 sacks, FF & FR) and Xavier Marshall (11 total tackles), as well as veteran defensive lineman Christopher Eaton (8 total tackles, 2.5 TFLs & 1.5 sacks).
NATIONAL STATISTICS
HOWARD
Nationally, the Bisons rank ninth in sacks and 17th in the total number of tackles as a team.
Individually, Hollon is fifth in forced fumbles. Miles is sixth in sacks. Abdul Ali isth in fumble recoveries. Gallop is 20th in the total number of tackles.
HAMPTON
The Pirates rank highly in several categories: third in passing yards allowed, fourth in total defense and 4th-down conversion offense, sixth in passing percentage offense, eighth in 4th-Down conversion and tied for 10th in 1st down defense.
BISON NOTES
Tolbert, Miles and Ke’Untae Mosley (Laurens, SC) were named MEAC Offensive Player of the Week, Defensive Player of the Week and Rookie of the Week…Hunter and James were both selected to the MEAC first team in the backfield in the preseason, another first…Hunter (2700 yards & 24 TDs) and Hawthorne (2000 yards & 19 TDs) were two of the most productive players in recent history…James put up good numbers in his first two seasons, rushing and receiving for 1342 yards and averaging over 5.0 yards per carry…Ilarraza made a quiet impression with 98 receptions…The number of negative rushing yards allowed at Morehouse was the second lowest in school history…In 1970, Howard held Delaware State to minus-63 yards…Scroggins and Tolbert were named MEAC Players of the Week on consecutive Saturdays.
PIRATE NOTES
The Pirates lead the CAA in total defense (235 yards per game) and pass defense (90.7 yards per game), are the third-best scorers (32.67 points per game), fifth-best running offense (179.7 yards per game) and sixth-best running defense.
Individually, Burris is fourth in rushing (88.3 yards per game) and sixth in scoring… Zellous is fifth in scoring… Dorrian Moultrie is fourth in punt returns (13.0 yards per return) and Tre Everett is 10th in bags.
KENNY GALLOP. JR WATCH
CAREER STATISTICS
176 solo tackles, 107 assists for 283 tackles
10 tackles with loss of space, 2.5 sacks, 3 forced fumbles, 3 fumble recoveries, 3 interceptions
Next
Howard returns to New Jersey for the third time this season and will face Princeton on Saturday, September 28th.
Hampton travels to Williamsburg, Va., to face nationally ranked William & Mary on Saturday, Sept. 28 at 6 p.m.
For more information, visit the Bison Athletics website at www.HUBison.com.
