GREENSBORO - There is no better way to spend your first Greatest Homecoming On
Earth than being the biggest difference in the game.
Freshman quarterback Kwashaun Quick replaced North Carolina
A&T starter Lewis Kindle to open the second half, and led the Aggies to a
30-9 win over Norfolk State at Aggie Stadium. It is the first time A&T has
won consecutive homecomings since 2000 and 2001. Quick, who started the first
game of the season in place of a suspended Kindle, used his legs to baffle NSU's
defense in front of a homecoming crowd of 20,356.
Quick rushed for 68 yards on seven carries. Twenty-nine of
those yards came on a touchdown run on the Aggies' first drive of the second
half.
"He changed the tempo of the game for us," said North
Carolina A&T head coach Rod Broadway about Quick's performance. "He showed
something out there. He kept plays alive and made plays for us. He was the
difference."
It was not a banner day for either offense when it came to
protecting the football. There were a combined 10 turnovers in the game. Norfolk
State came into the game as one of the most turnover-prone teams in the nation.
Three of A&T's four turnovers were first-half interceptions by Kindle. With
the veteran quarterback struggling, and the Aggies offense looking for its
first touchdown in six quarters, Broadway made the switch.
"Quick needed a chance to play," Broadway said. "We just
needed to protect the football a little better. You go through some streaks sometimes
when you don't play your best. When you're in a slump like that and you're
turning the ball over like that, then we need to give someone else a chance.
Looking back on it now, it was a good decision. (Quick) responded and played
well."
Kindle was
supportive of Quick in the second half, according to Quick. Quick quickly
helped the Aggies overcome a 9-7 halftime deficit as he put together runs of eight
and nine yards to help the Aggies advance to the NSU 29-yard line. On 2nd-and-1,
Quick ran a read-option play where he held the ball close to running back Mike
Mayhew's abs until he saw the NSU defender
commit to tackle Mayhew.
Quick then
pulled the ball away and kept it himself. He ran through a few NSU tacklers and
sprinted to the end zone to give A&T a 14-9 lead.
While the
Aggies (4-4, 2-3 MEAC) went turnover free in the second half, the Spartans
continued to have turnover issues. The Aggies expanded their lead after NSU
running back Takeem Hedgeman fumbled a pitch at his own 19. Linebacker Brandon
Hover recovered, setting up a 19-yard touchdown run by junior running back
Ricky Lewis. Lewis led the Aggies with 81 yards on 18 carries.
The score
provided the A&T defense with the cushion it needed. The Aggies allowed the
Spartans only one first down in the second half and five for the game.
"Our coaches
preached it all week," said A&T cornerback Ayodeji Olatoye, who had a
fumble recovery and an interception on Saturday. "They were going to give us a
few (turnovers), so we were actually looking for them to turn it over. Our
coaches told us we had to be ready to capitalize when they got sloppy with the
ball."
Ten minutes
into the second quarter the Aggies trailed 6-0. NSU kicker Everett Goldberg
lined up to kick his fourth field goal of the half, a 47-yarder. But the wind stopped
the kick's momentum, making it fall short and into the hands of the dangerous D'Vonte
Graham. Graham took the short kick and returned it 100 yards for the Aggies'
first score.
"That was a
big play," Broadway said. "That got us going. We had the right guy back there
at the right time."
The Spartans (2-7,
0-6 MEAC) also had a few quarterback issues of their own. Four different men -
Jake Basmagian (starter), Nico Flores, Pierre Narcisse and Brendon Riddick
(wildcat quarterback) - lined up at quarterback for NSU Saturday afternoon. The quarterback rotation led to four
interceptions.
Broadway was
non-committal on his quarterback situation for next week. The second-year
A&T head coach would only say that he goes into every ballgame looking to
do things better whether it's dealing with personnel or schemes. Kindle and Quick
will come into the week doing what they always do, compete for the starting
job.
"I go out
every week and tell Lewis I'm going to challenge him," Quick said. "We compete
at everything. We compete on every throw."
The Aggies
will host Florida A&M 1:30 p.m., Saturday, Nov. 3 at Aggie Stadium.
