CHARLOTTE, N.C. - Week eight of the CIAA football season favored all the road teams, as teams that traveled for their matchup went 5-0 on the week. It was also another successful week of offense for the conference, as 8 of the 10 teams that competed notched 20+ points.  

Johnson C. Smith def. Winston-Salem State, 24-15 
The undefeated Golden Bulls had the tall task of keeping their unbeaten streak alive, as they headed to second-place Winston-Salem State. A strong performance on both sides of the ball in the first half helped the Golden Bulls to a 10-0 lead heading into the break. The lead extended to 17-0 in the third quarter, but the Rams finally found the endzone shortly after to cut the deficit back down to 10. That held for about seven minutes, until JCSU were back in the endzone for seemingly a final blow, as WSSU only managed one more touchdown in the dying minutes of the game.  

Virginia Union def. Bowie State, 56-28 
Virginia Union’s record-setting performance helped them take down Bowie State and remain undefeated in conference play and atop the CIAA standings. The Panthers’ lead running back, Jada Byers, broke four school records including most rushing yards (324) and touchdowns (6) in a single game, while also breaking the school’s record for most rushing yards (5,311) and rushing touchdowns (66) in VUU history. The Bulldogs managed over 400 yards of offense themselves but could not keep up with the Panthers’ elite rushing attack. 

Lincoln (PA) def. Elizabeth City State, 21-20 
Lincoln (PA) headed to Elizabeth City State for their yearly matchup. The Lions got the scoring started early with a pair of touchdowns in the first quarter to go ahead by 14. The Vikings responded well with two touchdowns of their own in the second quarter, trailing 14-13 at the half. ECSU would eventually take the lead in the third quarter to cap off 20 unanswered points, but the Lions would find the endzone once more and connect on the extra point which would prove to be the difference, as they’d hold on, 21-20.  

Shaw def. Fayetteville State, 38-35 
Shaw and Fayetteville State went head-to-head in a nail-biting matchup that saw both teams combine for seven rushing touchdowns. The game was exciting from start to finish, with the Broncos taking a 21-17 lead at the half. Shaw fought back with vengeance and with less than six minutes remaining, had the ball with a chance to lead, and did exactly that with a go-ahead touchdown leaving just 53 seconds on the board. FSU had a chance to tie it late, however a game-tying field goal attempt sailed wide of the crossbars as the Bears would hold on to get back in the win column.  

Virginia State def. Bluefield State, 45-6 
Virginia State extended its winning streak to three this past weekend with a commanding 45-6 victory over Bluefield State. They found the endzone six times offensively while holding the Big Blue to under 200 yards and two turnovers. They moved one spot to third in the conference, passing Winston-Salem State after their week 8 loss. 

Next week's schedule will see 10 teams take the field in week nine of the 2024 football season, with Winston-Salem State enjoying their bye week. 

WEEKLY HONORS
Below are the weekly honors:


NAME: Christian Peters
POSITION: Quarterback
CLASS: R-Senior
HOMETOWN: Charlotte, N.C.

Peters entered the game after the Bears second offensive possession with Shaw down 14 points and proceeded to lead the Bears to a 38-35 comeback win over FSU giving Shaw its first win over the Broncos since 2013.  The redshirt senior finished the game 18-30 for 238 yards. One passing TD and zero interceptions. Peters completed the comeback scoring on a three-yard run with 35 seconds left on the clock. 


NAME: Jada Byers
POSITION: Running Back
CLASS: Senior
HOMETOWN: Bridgeton, N.J.

Virginia Union University's Jada Byers had a record-setting day as VUU defeated Bowie State 56-28 on Saturday, October 26, in Bowie, Md.

First, Byers became the Panthers' all-time leading rusher by rushing for 324 yards, giving him a career total of 5,311 rushing yards.  This broke the previous record of 5,008 set by Andre Braxton from 1997-2000.

Then, Byers scored six rushing touchdowns to set a new school-record of 66 career rushing touchdowns, eclipsing the old mark of 63 also held by Braxton.

Byers' six TDs also broke a 93-year-old school-record for the most rushing touchdowns in a single game.  The old record was five, done three times:  by Dick Armistead against Brick Junior College in 1931, by J.W. Cotton against Saint Paul's in 1927 and by R.S. Moton against Johnson C. Smith in 1926.

Finally, Byers' 324 rushing yards also broke his own school-record of 319, set against Valdosta State in 2022.

NAME: Reginald Vick Jr.
POSITION: Wide Receiver
CLASS: R-Sophomore
HOMETOWN: Wendell, N.C. 

Vick caught seven passes for a season-high 148 yards.  This is the fifth time this season that Vick has had 100 or more yards in receiving.


NAME: Mathias Nielsen
POSITION: Offensive Lineman
CLASS: Sophomore
HOMETOWN: Bagsvaerd, Denmark 

Nielsen anchored a Panther offensive line which allowed Virginia Union to rack up 613 yards in total offense in VUU's 56-28 win over Bowie State on Saturday.  The VUU offensive line has not allowed a sack for five straight games.

NAME: Cam Davis
POSITION: Defensive Lineman
CLASS: R-Sophomore
HOMETOWN: Richmond, VA.

Cam led a VSU Defense that held it's 2nd consecutive opponent under 185 yards total offense (65 rushing/ 117 passing) by having team leading 6 tackles and 1 tackle for loss. 


NAME: Shamar Graham
POSITION: Linebacker
CLASS: R-Junior
HOMETOWN: Richmond, VA.

Graham had seven tackles, including six solo tackles in VUU's 56-28 win over Bowie State.  Graham also returned an interception 18 yards.


NAME: Narique Smith
POSITION: Defensive Back
CLASS: Senior
HOMETOWN: Roanoke, VA. 

Against Johnson C. Smith, Smith had six total tackles (3 solo), and 3 assists. Smith's biggest play came in the 3rd quarter when he had a pick-six returning it for 37 yards.


NAME: Brady Myers
POSITION: Kicker
CLASS: Junior
HOMETOWN: Orlando, FL. 

Myers went 8-for-8 in PATs as Virginia Union downed Bowie State on Saturday in Bowie, Md.  Myers also had nine kickoffs for a total of 502 yards (an average of 55.8 yards per kick). 


NAME: Dyllan Jones
POSITION: Defensive Back
CLASS: Freshman
HOMETOWN: Durham, N.C. 

The true freshman Jones made a mark off the bench leading the Bears defense with 7 total tackles (four solo) helping Shaw end an 11-year losing skid to Fayetteville State.