EAST GREENSBORO – What better way to show Aggie Nation who the next great running back is in the storied history of the North Carolina A&T football program (aka) Running Back U. than to prove it at Aggie Nation's biggest gathering?
In front of an enthusiastic sellout crowd at the Greatest Homecoming on Earth, sophomore running back Bhayshul Turent rushed for two touchdowns and a homecoming-record 256 yards on 30 carries in a come-from-behind 45-38 Big South Conference win over the Campbell Fighting Camels Saturday afternoon.
Tuten's performance put him over the 1,000-yard rushing mark for the season. The Aggies have now had a single-season 1,000-yard rusher 11 times since 2007. Tuten has 1,032 yards on the season. But Tuten was not the only Aggie playmaker on Saturday.
A&T (5-3, 3-0 Big South) put themselves squarely in the conversation about receiving the Big South's automatic bid to the NCAA Division I-FCS playoffs by being its conference champion. The Aggies, winners of five straight, are tied with Gardner-Webb (4-5, 3-0) for the Big South lead, followed by Campbell (4-4, 2-1).
"It was a character win," said Washington. "I thought the guys showed true grit and no quit in the effort that was displayed."
A&T's alumni were rewarded with one of the better homecoming games in recent history after COVID stymied A&T's traditional annual reunion party the past two years. Tuten's play and a second-half full of A&T's big plays contributed to the fun.
But things did not start out the way. The Aggies surrendered 28 first-quarter points as the Camels scored on their first four drives of the game. It led to Campbell holding a 28-10 halftime lead with all 38 points coming in the first quarter.
"How in the hell are we going to stop them? That was my thought," said A&T head coach Sam Washington about his mindset after Campbell's hot start. "We had to figure out how to get them stopped, and I think we did that after the first quarter.
Obviously, we would have liked to have stopped them sooner and made our adjustments sooner, but I'm pleased with how the guys didn't waiver. The average team would have dropped their heads and tucked their tails after a team had that kind of beginning. We did not."
Tuten ignited the second-half spark by rushing for a 70-yard touchdown within the first 90 seconds of the third quarter. That was followed up by a Jacob Roberts 39-yard interception return for a touchdown to pull the Aggies to within 28-23 after the extra point was blocked.
Graduate receiver Zach Leslie then gave the Aggies the lead by catching a 35-yard TD pass from graduate quarterback Jalen Fowler. Fowler had another 200-yard passing day, completing 12 of his 21 passes for 233 yards and two touchdowns. For the second straight week since his return from injury, Leslie had 100-plus receiving yards and two touchdowns.
"He is so cool, calm, and collected," said Washington. "Sometimes, he is too cool for me. I made a call, and there he goes shooting me a thumbs up, and I'm over there jumping up and down. He's a little too cool sometimes. He is very collected, and he plays like a senior. The guys respect him as a leader."
Fowler kept firing, and Leslie kept catching. After the Camels scored on a 25-yard field goal to take a 31-30 lead, Fowler and Leslie connected again on a 77-yard touchdown play. Fowler then found Leslie for the two-point conversation to put the Aggies ahead 38-31.
It did not take Campbell long to answer as they drove 75 yards in four plays as a 69-yard catch and run by Bryant Barr led to a 1-yard touchdown run by Julian Hill to tie the game at 38 early in the fourth quarter.
But the Aggies put the game away with a running back not named Tuten. Freshman Wesley Graves scored from six yards out to put the Aggies up for good with 8:46 to play. After the Aggies defense stopped the Camels on a 4th-and-9, the Aggies put the ball in the hands of Tuten to melt the clock.
After Tuten's career game on the big stage, Tuten decided to send a message to future opponents.
"It feels good, but I'm just here to play more football," Tuten said about his performance. "As coach says, there's more to come and more records to break."
