Al-Terek McBurse became the first Florida A&M running back to post a 200-plus yard game in four seasons, as he carried the Rattlers (3-3, 1-2 in the MEAC) to a 47-7 victory on Saturday against Savannah State (1-5, 1-2 in the MEAC) at T.A Wright Stadium. The blowout win kept FAMU’s record a perfect 4-0 against the Tigers all time, with 47 being the second-most points scored in the series.
McBurse racked up 218 yards on 14 carries and scored three touchdowns. Phillip Sylvester was the last Rattler to rush for more than 200 yards, when he ran for 222 against Howard University in 2007. Lenworth Lennon scored the team’s first touchdown on a 13-yard pass from freshman quarterback Damien Fleming, who finished the game 10-of-14 for 83 yards. Fleming also added a score on the ground. He finished the game with nine carries for 29 yards.
McBurse scored on a 5-yard run in the first, to give the Rattlers a 14-0 lead. He had runs of 32 and 17 yards on the drive to set up the score.
In the second quarter, McBurse took a handoff 60-yards for his second score of the game. The run was also his longest of the evening. Fleming followed suit with a 19-yard touchdown run with 37 seconds left to play in the half, to give the Rattlers a 28-0 lead at halftime.
McBurse scored his final touchdown of the game on a 31-yard scamper, giving FAMU a 34-7 lead with 6:33 left in the third.
Quarterback Austin Trainor saw action late in the game, going 5-of-6 for 74 yards a touchdown. Trainor connected with Edmond Baker on a 16-yard strike with the clock at 5:33 left in the game.
Eddie Rocker also added a score from five yards out in the games final minute.
The Rattler defense continued its dominance against the pass, tallying three interceptions on the day. Jerral Stewart, Marvin Ross and Terry Johnson each recorded one, giving the team a total of 18 takeaways on the season. John Ojo led the Rattler defense with a season-high nine tackles, six solos. SSU was paced by Justin Babbs, who had a team-high 117 yards on 10 carries. Sheldon Barnes, who had the team’s only touchdown of the game, rushed for 61 yards on seven carries.
Alfred DeFillips finished the game 6-of-19 for 97 yards.
Chris Asbury led the Tigers defense with a game-high 10 tackles, four solos.
The team’s next game will be against co-MEAC champions, the South Carolina State Bulldogs (4-3, 3-1 in the MEAC). The game will be on Saturday in Orangeburg, S.C., at the Oliver Dawson Stadium. The game will start at 1:30 p.m. and will be aired on ESPNU at 10:30 p.m. with a tape delay.