DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. - The Wildcats will look to avoid a dreaded 0-5 home season as they host Grambling State for Senior Day and the 2024 home finale on Saturday, Nov. 2 3 p.m. at Daytona Stadium. 

The game will be broadcast live on the SWAC Digital Network. Fans can catch the home radio call free on 1380 WELE Daytona Beach or at YouTube.com/CatEyeNetwork. Fans can also catch a brand-new episode of Hail Wildcats Radio premiering live one hour before kickoff. 

Saturday serves as B-CU's annual Senior Day, with 34 players set to be honored for their graduation out of the program. Dynamic return man Darnell Deas is the longest tenured Wildcat set to be honored - he has been a member of the program since 2021. Other notable names set to be honored include punter Anthony Frederique, quarterback Luke Sprague, defensive back Shelton Quarles, and safety Ray Woodie III.



Saturday, Nov. 2
Opponent: Grambling State (4-4, 1-3 SWAC)
Time: 3:00 p.m. EST
Location: Daytona Beach, Fla. | Daytona Municipal Stadium
Live Stats: https://bcuathletics.com/sidearmstats/football/summary
Watch: https://www.youtube.com/@swacsports1920
Listen: https://wele1380thecat.com/
Tickets: https://www.ticketmaster.com/bethune-cookman-university-football-tickets/artist/821762



The Wildcats had their homecoming spoiled as a strong start was not enough to overcome No. 23 Jackson State, last Saturday afternoon at Daytona Stadium.

After Jackson State deferred the opening kick, the Wildcats began their most successful offensive start of SWAC play, as quarterback Luke Sprague, making his first start of the season, needed only six plays to go 71 yards for an opening drive touchdown, finding Maleek Huggins for six to open the game. 

The Tigers quickly answered as running back Irv Mulligan tied things up at 7-7 with a 39-yard touchdown run.  

The strong start continued for B-CU converted on back-to-back third downs to set up Sprague for a 16-yard touchdown strike to Lorenzo Jenkins - his second score in as many games - to make it 14-7. 

The Wildcat defense stood strong on the ensuing Tiger drive, forcing a punt to enter the second quarter up, 14-7. 

The B-CU defense continued to bend, not break, in the second, holding the Tigers to a field goal, which Gerardo Baeza coverted from 24-yards out to cut their deficit to 14-10. 

The Wildcats took the three right back after chunk plays to Huggins, Jenkins, and Marcus Velez gave Cade Hechter a 25-yard field goal attempt, which he converted to put the Cats up, 17-10. It would be their final points of the afternoon.

Mulligan swung momentum back in JSU's favor with a 35-yard rush into B-CU territory. QB Jacobian Morgan found Joanes Fortilien a few plays later to knot things at 17-all with seconds to play in the half. 



Grambling State is 4-4 on the year with a 1-3 record in conference play. The Tigers took two early-season non-conference games against Tuskeegee and Texas A&M - Commerce before a 41-20, upset win over SWAC East leader Jackson State in what was designated as a non-conference contest. The Tigers have won just one game since, dropping games to Prairie View A&M, Alcorn State, and Texas Southern, with a win over UAPB mixed in back on October 19. 

Grambling State ranks fourth in the SWAC in offense, averaging 27.5 points per game They average 113 yards per game on the ground to 187 yards per game in the air. Senior running back Ke'Travion Hargrove leads the Tiger backfield with 376 rushing yards on nearly five yards per carry with four touchdowns. Fellow Senior Myles Crawley leads the passing attack, averaging 175 yards per game passing with 10 touchdowns to six interceptions on a 59 percent completion percentage. 

Defensively, Grambling State allows nearly 26 points per game, the fourth-best mark in the SWAC. They allow around 150 yards per game on the ground to 230 per game in the air. Junior linebacker Andrew Jones has starred up front for the Tigers, leading his team, and the SWAC, in tackles with 72 to go along with a pair of sacks. Another Tiger linebacker, Brenden Barley, has three interceptions on the year. 



JUST WIN ONE
The Wildcats, heading into Saturday's home finale, sit winless at home on the year. A loss against Grambling State would drop B-CU to an 0-5 finish at home this season. It would be the first time since 1993 that B-CU finished a season winless at home. B-CU's worst season at home since then came in 2009, where the Wildcats finished 1-4 at home.

FRESH MEAT
The Wildcats feature nine freshman on the two deep heading into game nine on the year. Three of those names will feature heavily on the offensive line in Vincent Forney, Melvin Puckett, and Teko Shoats.

AN EARLY CURTAIN CALL
The Wildcats wrap up their season at home with Saturday's game against Grambling State. With two more road games and the Florida Classic left on the slate, this marks the earliest a home finale has come for B-CU since 2019, when the Wildcats closed out their Daytona Stadium season on Oct. 26, followed by trips to Delaware State and NCAT before the Classic.

SPIRIT OF '93
The Wildcats have four games left to notch win number two on the year. Failing to do so would see them wrap up the year with a 1-11 record, the first time B-CU has finished with just one win in a year since 1993, when the Cats finished 1-10, and 0-6 in MEAC play. B-CU's lone win that season came at Norfolk State on Nov. 13. Head Coach Sylvester Collins was fired after week nine of that season, with Interim Head Coach Tyrone McGriff securing the team's lone win before a 27-22 loss in the Classic.




Saturday marks the 118th meeting all-time between B-CU and Grambling State. The Tigers own a 12-5 advantage in the series, but the Wildcats have won four of the last five meetings before falling, 28-14, on the road last season. Grambling State has won only one game in Daytona Beach in the series' history. 


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