ITTA BENA, Miss. – Bethune-Cookman will look for a bounce back effort Saturday as they head to Itta Bena to take on Mississippi Valley State at Rice-Totten Stadium.

The game is set to begin at 3 p.m. EST and will be streamed live on SWAC TV.



Saturday, October 17th
Opponent: Mississippi Valley State (3-4, 2-1 SWAC)
Time: 3 p.m. EST
Location: Itta Bena, Miss. | Rice-Totten Stadium
Watch: https://tv.swac.org
Listen: https://wele1380thecat.com/ / Youtube.com/CatEyeNetwork / BCUAthletics.com/Radio
Live Stats: https://mvsusports.com/sidearmstats/football/summary
Tickets: https://mvsusports.myimpacttickets.com/events/166369

Bethune-Cookman (3-3, 1-1) got off to a slow start against Alabama A&M, falling behind 7-0 in the first quarter.

The Wildcats forced a turnover when Keontae Byas intercepted Cornelious Bass IV, setting up a 26-yard field goal by Aiden Lanier.

After the Bulldogs extended their lead to 14-3, B-CU responded with a 10-play, 74-yard touchdown drive, capped by a score to cut the deficit to 14-10.

Alabama A&M added a field goal just before halftime to take a 17-10 lead into the break.

The Bulldogs took control in the second half, scoring on their opening drive to extend the lead to 24-10.

Alabama A&M outscored the Wildcats 38-7 after halftime, totaling 297 yards of offense while limiting B-CU to just 94.

Three second-half turnovers proved costly for the Wildcats as the Bulldogs scored on six consecutive drives to secure a 55-17 victory.

Mississippi Valley State has turned things around after a slow start to the season. They began the year 1-4 including a 21-6 home loss to Division II Delta State, but are now firmly in the mix after back-to-back SWAC victories.

The previous two games have seen the Delta Devils overcome a 24-point and a 17-point deficit to pull off stunning victories over Prairie View A&M and Texas Southern. MVSU now sits in a three-way tie with Jackson State and Alabama State for first in the SWAC's East Division.

The Delta Devils are averaging just 18.3 points per game on the season but have improved that number to 27.0 in conference play, ranking eighth overall.

Graduate quarterback Josh Brown has carried the offense this season for the Delta Devils. He currently sits fourth in the SWAC in pass attempts, seventh in yards, and eighth in touchdowns.

Brown is also MVSU's leading rusher with 78 carries for 443 yards and six touchdowns, which all rank top 10 in the league. He is coming off a season-best effort against TSU with 266 yards passing, 147 yards rushing, and five total touchdowns.

Defensively, the Delta Devils have allowed 34.1 points per game but just 350.3 yards, which puts them fourth in the conference. They lead the SWAC with 19 sacks and sit second with seven forced fumbles.

Junior Javieane Stevens is the SWAC's individual leader with 7.0 sacks. He has recorded 1.5 sacks in back-to-back games with five quarterback hurries during that stretch.



ROAD WOES
Bethune-Cookman has struggled mightily on the road since joining the SWAC in 2021. The Wildcats have won only three road games total in that span, with two of those wins coming at the home of the Delta Devils in Itta Bena. The only other road win came all the way back in 2021, when B-CU defeated Grambling State, 31-14 in "The Hole" for their second win of the season. B-CU is 3-28 on the road since 2021. 

ON THE ROAD AGAIN
After playing four of their first five games to open the 2026 season at the friendly confines of Daytona Stadium, the Wildcats head to Itta Bena for game two for a stretch of five games out of seven on the road. With no true bye week on the year (B-CU was the only SWAC team to not have a week zero game), the Cats return home only twice more before the 2026 Florida Blue Florida Classic wraps up the regular season in Orlando.

GROUNDED
Bethune-Cookman's offense has excelled on the ground, averaging a conference-best 240.2 yards per game rushing. That number ranks fifth nationally at the FCS level. They have done so on the back of Rashon Brown, who has already reached nine rushing scores on the ear (2nd SWAC, 6th FCS). The ariel attack has not enjoyed the same success, with B-CU sitting in the bottom-10 nationally in passing offense, passes had intercepted, completion percentage, passing yards per completion, and passing efficiency.

NO FLY ZONE
The Wildcats have yet to allow a 200 yard passer on the 2026 season, with their best defensive effort coming against Alabama State in which they allowed only 93 air yards. B-CU has intercepted the most passes in the SWAC (8) and the twelfth-most in the FCS. Keyontae Byas in particular ranks atop the SWAC in passes defended and sixth in the nation with six.

IN THE ZONE
The Wildcats have converted 21 of 24 trips to the red zone into points, 16 of them touchdowns. They have allowed opponents to score in the redzone 17 of 20 times, 12 trips resulting in touchdowns.

STAYING DISCIPLINED
After opening the season with 11, 9, and 11 penalties in the firs three games, respectively, B-CU has tightened up its discipline. The Wildcats have only 15 penalties through the last three games combined, with only four called against the Maroon and Gold at Alabama A&M a week ago.



Bethune-Cookman is 8-2 against Mississippi Valley State all-time and are on a four-game winning streak in the series.


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