boxtorow.com

ATLANTA – On Monday the Grambling Tigers most likely will be crowned HBCU national champions.

That’s because of their 10-9 victory over North Carolina Central in the Celebration Bowl before a crowd of 31,096 at the Georgia Dome.

A defensive battle throughout and with the Tigers leading 10-3 late in the fourth quarter, Eagles quarterback Malcolm Bell scrambled out of the pocket and found Quentin Atkinson for a 39-yard touchdown pass in the back of the endzone to bring the Eagles to within 10-9.

But Atkinson took off his helmet after the play and was assessed a 15-yard unsportsmanlike conduct penalty.  Brandon McLaren’s then 35-yard extra point attempt was blocked by Joseph McWilliams.  NCCU attempted and onside kick but Tiger wide receiver Chad Williams recovered.

“I do take the fault for that and I do want to apologize to my team for that and it was  a selfish act,” said Atkinson a red-shirt senior from Raleigh, N.C. “I am not selfish, but in the heat of the moment I did that and I was excited to bring the team back, So I do want to apologize to my team for that.”

The Eagle defense then stood tall on GSU’s first two runs after the onside kick.  On third and 12, Tigers quarterback DeVante Kincade found Verian Hunter in the flat and Verian turned a one-yard pass into a 12 yard run and a first down to seal the game as the Eagles had used all of their timeouts.

NCCU (9-3) scored first after forcing Kincade to throw an interception on the Tigers’ first possession.  The Eagles put together a 13-play, 74 yard drive that culminated in a McLaren 23-yard field goal that put the Eagles up 3-0 with 6:05 remaining in the first quarter.  During the drive Atkinson dropped a sure touchdown pass on third and three.  Eagles receivers dropped numerous passes during the course of the game.

Grambling (11-1) put together a drive to respond but Jonathan Wallace’s 30-yard field goal attempt missed.  The Eagles drove on their ensuing possession inside the redzone, but Bell’s pass was intercepted by Deaumante Johns at the Grambling 10.

Both teams’ defenses played well and the Eagles led 3-0 at halftime.  The Eagles offense struggled in the second half, aided by the play of the Tigers defense.  The Eagles went three and out on their first possession.  The Tigers, who threw the ball 21 times and ran it 17 times in the first half, used an eight-play 70-yard drive capped off by a Martez Carter 32-yard touchdown run which put the Tigers ahead 10-3.  Running back Jestin Kelly carried the ball four times for 26 yards during the drive and Kincade threw just one pass on the drive which fell incomplete.

“Our philosophy has always been to throw the ball first to set up the run,” said Grambling third-year head coach Broderick Fobbs.

The Eagles didn’t get much going offensively in the second half going three and out five times and two other possessions resulted in a fumble and a second interception by Bell.

Meanwhile, GSU had its opportunities to score more, but was stopped on fourth and two from the NCCU two yardline with 11:31 remaining in the fourth.

Carter was named the Offensive MVP, rushing for 109 yards on 12 carries with one touchdown.  He also amassed 69 yards on kickoff and punt returns.  Kincade, a BOXTOROW All-American completed 15-of-31 passes for 149 yards no touchdowns and an interception.  Defensively for the Tigers, Arkez Cooper recorded six tackles, two tackles for loss and a sack.

Bell completed 18-of-32 passes for 240 yards one touchdown and two interceptions.  The Eagles as team rushed for just 55 yards.  Defensively, linebacker Reggie Hunter recorded 11 tackles (six solo).

The final BOXTOROW Coaches and Media Polls will be released on Monday at which time the HBCU national champion will be named.

Updated 12/17/16 at 1:46 p.m. ET