QB Bradshaw Littlejohn completed 15-of-30 passes for 232 yards and two TDs.
Boxscore
Maine opened up its contest against Morgan State by scoring three touchdowns in three possessions as the Black Bears routed Morgan, 77-24, at W.A.C. Hughes Stadium before a crowd of 2,176.
Maine (6-4, 4-3 Atlantic 10) handed the Bears worst defeat since losing to Grambling State, 87-12, in 1994. The loss ended Morgan’s three-game winning streak.
Morgan State’s defense struggled against Maine’s potent offense as the Black Bears scored touchdowns on its first 7-of-9 offensive possessions in the first half.
UM’s Marcus Williams rushed for a career-high 246 yards on 21 carries with four touchdowns, and freshman quarterback Ron Whitcomb completed 13-of-21 passes for 319 yards and three touchdowns.
It was the first meeting between the two schools.
Maine wasted little time getting on the scoreboard, early and often. After forcing Morgan State to punt from its own 39-yard line to end its opening possession, speedy freshman Arel Gordon took the return back 75 yards for a touchdown.
Maine's next possession, which began at its own 35-yard line following MSU's second punt of the day, lasted exactly one play: a 65-yard touchdown pass from Ron Whitcomb to wideout Christian Pereira that put the Black Bears up 14-0.
The Black Bears got the ball back three plays later when Marcus Walton knocked the ball out of the hands of Bear running back William DeShazo, with the fumble recovery by Brandon McGowan. Maine's resulting offensive series lasted no longer than the previous one; Whitcomb and Pereira again hooked up, this time on a 31-yard TD pass.
Score: Maine 21, Morgan State 0. Maine's time of possession: 14 seconds.
After another Whitcomb touchdown pass to end the first quarter - this time a 19-yard TD toss to Ryan Waller - and a 13-yard Williams touchdown run to open the second, the Black Bears held a 35-0 lead.
Morgan State finally ended the shutout on All-MEAC kicker Jon Voroshilin's 39-yard field goal with 10:57 to play in the half. MSU cut the margin to 35-10 on a six-play, 84-yard touchdown drive at the 4:15 mark of the second quarter.
Twenty-one seconds later, Morgan State trimmed the lead to 35-17 when Whitcomb's pass was intercepted and returned 37 yards for a touchdown by Choo Choo Davis – it was his fifth interception of the season and his second returned for a touchdown. The pick-off ended Whitcomb's streak of 124 passing attempts without an interception.
Maine's ensuing possession featured a 37-yard Williams carry and a 29-yard reception by Kevin McMahan, and ended with Williams' one-yard TD rush - just 51 seconds after Morgan State's score.
Morgan State responded on the next offensive play with a 69-yard TD pass from Bradshaw Littlejohn to Kelvin Dickens.
On the kickoff following the MSU touchdown, Maine's Gordon took the return three yards deep in the endzone and sprinted 100 yards for the touchdown - becoming the longest kickoff return in history at W.A.C. Hughes Stadium.
Just one minute and 42 seconds after the score had been 35-3 in Maine's favor, it was now 49-24. Five touchdowns between the two teams in less than two minutes.
The margin would widen throughout the second half, with two more rushing touchdowns by Williams and two by backup tailback Onyi Momah.
Littlejohn finished the day with 232 yards and two touchdowns on 15-of-30 passing and gained 109 yards on the ground. Kelvin Dickens (seven catches, 150 yards) and Tommie Manus (six catches, 52 yards) led Morgan’s receiving corps.
Defensively, the Bears were led by Keion Gray with 10.5 tackles (9 solo) and Vincent Brown with 9.5 tackles and two sacks. Carlos Watts logged 5.5 tackles for the game.
The Bears had 397 yards of total offense, compared to Maine’s 685.
Morgan State (5-5, 3-3 MEAC) will attempt to finish with its first back-to-back winning season since the early 70’s when they host Norfolk State on Saturday, November 21st.
