South Carolina State turned Dawson Stadium into a fireworks show on Saturday night, outlasting Bethune-Cookman in a 55-41 SWAC vs MEAC thriller that lived up to every bit of the HBCU conference rivalry hype.
| Statistics | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | OT | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Bulldogs Blitz Early
The Bulldogs (2-1) wasted no time setting the tone, exploding for 24 first-quarter points. Quarterback Ryan Stubblefield engineered the attack with efficiency, going 21-of-35 for 286 yards and a touchdown through the air while adding 31 yards and two rushing scores.
The MEAC defense also joined the party early. With Bethune quarterback Timmy McClain under pressure, Malik Harp scooped up a fumble and returned it for a touchdown, putting SCSU up 21-0 before the first quarter ended.
Wildcats Find a Spark
Bethune-Cookman (0-3) looked dead in the water, trailing 27-0 in the second quarter, before redshirt senior quarterback Cam’Ron Ransom entered the game. Ransom provided an immediate jolt, leading a 17-play, 75-yard drive capped by his own two-yard touchdown run for the Wildcats’ first points of the HBCU football season.
From there, Ransom kept the SWAC program alive. He finished 20-of-30 for a game-high 302 yards with four passing touchdowns while also rushing for 78 yards and two more scoresbethune stats. Wideout Maleek Huggins was his top weapon, torching the SCSU secondary for 148 yards and two touchdowns on eight catches.
Second-Half Fireworks
Every time Bethune clawed closer, South Carolina State had an answer. After a missed PAT left the Wildcats trailing 27-13, Stubblefield extended the lead with a 13-yard keeper. A controversial fumble call in the red zone stalled another B-CU drive, and SCSU made them pay with a Stubblefield-to-Jordan Smith touchdown strike. Smith finished the night with nine catches for 87 yards and a score.
Bethune didn’t quit, though. Ransom connected on bombs to Huggins and Lorenzo Jenkins as part of a furious 28-point fourth quarter. But each Wildcat push was countered by a Bulldog haymaker—none bigger than Mason Pickett-Hicks’ 69-yard sprint to the end zone that snuffed out momentum. Pickett-Hicks needed just four carries to rack up 87 yards and that game-breaking touchdown.
By the Numbers
This was a pure offensive slugfest. The SWAC and MEAC teams combined for 1,068 yards of total offense—561 for SCSU, 507 for Bethune-Cookman.
- SCSU Offense: Stubblefield (335 total yards, 3 TDs), Pickett-Hicks (87 yards, 1 TD), Tyler Smith (53 yards, 1 TD).
- B-CU Offense: Ransom (391 total yards, 6 TDs), Huggins (148 yards, 2 TDs), Morales, and Jenkins with touchdowns.
- Defenses: SCSU’s Roderick Kelly led with 10 tackles, while B-CU’s Antwone Watts had seven stops.
What’s Next
South Carolina State heads to Tampa next weekend to face FBS foe South Florida on Sept. 20, with a noon kickoff. Bethune-Cookman finally gets a home HBCU crowd when it hosts Edward Waters at Daytona Stadium on the same day. A matchup set to coincide with Hall of Fame Weekend and Welcome Dr. Mosley Day.