PINE BLUFF -- The University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff had to deal with Mother Nature before taking care of Cumberland (Tenn.) University on Saturday night.
Quarterback Shannon Patrick completed 10 of 11 passes for 227 yards and 3 touchdowns in one half of play as the Golden Lions overwhelmed the Phoenix from start to finish in a 55-0 rout on a rainy evening at Simmons Bank Field.
Wide receiver Josh Wilkes caught 7 passes for 176 yards and 2 touchdowns while Dejuan Miller had 5 catches for 99 yards and a score for UAPB (1-1), which scored on six of its eight first-half possessions and got a bounce-back performance from its defense to stroll past its NAIA opponents. The 55-point victory margin was the largest for the Golden Lions since beating Concordia (Ala.) 31-0 in 2014.
The game was delayed for two hours and 25 minutes after thunderstorms pelted the area just before the scheduled 6 p.m. kickoff. After lightning began flashing near the stadium, officials ushered players and coaches into their locker rooms and instructed fans to leave the seating area. When the game officially started at 8:25 p.m., first-year UAPB Coach Cedric Thomas saw what he was looking for after his team's season-opening loss to Morehouse College.
"We know we left one out there last week, and I just basically wanted to see, in dealing with adversity, how the kids would respond," he said. "It started in practice Monday, and I was very impressed with the overall mindset we had of just continuing to get better. I'm proud of the guys for the way they answered the challenge in all phases."
UAPB used a 31-point second quarter to build a 38-0 lead at halftime. The Golden Lions finished with 532 yards of offense and got a 58-yard punt return touchdown from Tyrin Ralph. The sophomore also had a 66-yard touchdown return called back because of a holding penalty.
Running back Taeyler Porter added 71 yards rushing and two touchdowns for UAPB, which had five players run for at least 20 yards.
After surrendering 569 yards on defense last week, UAPB allowed just 225 against a Cumberland team that operates out of the Triple Option. The Phoenix mustered 132 yards on the ground.
"That product that we put out last week, that's not us," Thomas said in referring to his team allowing 307 yards rushing to Morehouse. "We can't go out and play undisciplined football. We've got to be sound and understand that you've got to do what you're supposed to do every time. And this was a great week for them to put it all together.
"And I thought that that's what they did, just understanding what that offense was trying to do."
Running back Telvin Rucker carried 13 times for 69 yards for Cumberland (1-2). Quarterback Dezmon Huntley, who came in averaging nearly 200 yards passing through two games, completed 6 of 16 passes for 55 yards.
UAPB needed four plays to go 80 yards on its opening series. Patrick hit Wilkes in stride for a 66-yard touchdown with the game 1:09 old. The Golden Lions wouldn't score for the remainder of the quarter but sprung for 31 in the second to take the air out of the Phoenix.
Kicker Jamie Gillan had a 31-yard field goal and Porter scored on a 5-yard run before Ralph's touchdown gave UAPB a 24-0 lead. Patrick followed up a 40-yard scoring toss to Miller with a 17-yard touchdown to Wilkes with three seconds left in the half.
Porter had a 37-yard scoring run on the Golden Lions' first possession of the third quarter, and backup Roger Totten scored on a 1-yard run with 3:13 showing to put the advantage at 52-0. Freshman kicker Zach Piwniczka had a 47-yard field goal midway through the fourth quarter to cap the scoring for UAPB, which snapped a five-game home losing streak and an eight-game skid overall.
"We've just got to keep getting better," Thomas said. "The whole philosophy behind this journey has been to just continue to improve, and I think we're doing that."
Sports on 09/10/2018