TOWSON, Md. (Sept. 10, 2022) - Saturday night marked the 27th meeting in the Morgan State versus Towson crosstown rivalry game. Towson handed the Bears a 31-0 loss at Hughes Stadium a season ago, but tonight was much more of a battle.
Towson quarterback Tyrrell Pigrome turned in a top performance to help the Tigers pull out a 29-21 victory in front of 9,784 fans in attendance at Johnny Unitas Stadium.
Pigrome went 14 of 25 for 157 yards, including three touchdowns as Towson (2-0, 0-0 CAA) rallied to beat the Bears (0-2, 0-0 MEAC) to improve to 21-6 all-time versus Morgan, including winning the last five games.
Pigrome also finished with a game-high 124 yards on 19 carries.
"It was a hard fought football game," said Morgan coach Damon Wilson. "We didn't finish. I think we played a good three quarters of football, but we just didn't finish. I thought we played a good Towson football program and we had too many penalties in costly situations and that cost us, but we're headed in the right direction for sure."
Carson Baker had a solid night as the Bears starting signal-caller. He went 10 of 24 for 152 yards and threw a pair of touchdowns and an interception for Morgan. Alfonzo Graham, who entered the game coming off a 106-yard rushing performance at Georgia Southern, led the Bears with 89 yards on 17 carries and scored two touchdowns.
Andre Crawley had four receptions for 63 yards, while Avery Jones added a TD grab in the second quarter for Morgan.
Morgan lit up the scoreboard on their opening drive in tonight's edition of 'Battle for Greater Baltimore' series. Graham took a handoff and bounced outside for a 16-yard touchdown run. The point after attempt by Beckett Leary gave the Bears a 7-0 lead at the 11:20 mark of the first quarter.
Pigrom engineered a 13 play, 74-yard drive that culminated with a 24-yard field goal by Keegan Vaughan. Towson took their first lead of the night when Pigrom tossed a 19-yard strike to wideout Isaiah Perkins to go up 10-7 with 7:53 remaining in the second quarter.
Morgan got back on the scoreboard when Baker threw a pinpoint pass to Avery Jones for a 45-yard score to help the Bears retake the lead at 14-10.
A 60-yard kickoff return by Juwan Burgess put Towson on the Morgan 18 to begin the next drive. But the Bears defense stiffened and the Tigers were forced to settle for a 37-yard field goal by Vaughn to trim Morgan's lead to 14-13 at halftime.
Pigrome led the Tigers on a 10 play, 70-yard drive to open the second half of play. He connected with wideout Darian Street for a 20-yard TD score to give the Tigers a 20-14 advantage.
Morgan's offense responded on the ensuing possession. Baker connected with Graham for a short throw, but the electric running back took the pass and cut it all the way back across the field and outraced several defenders for an 18-yard score. The Bears regained the lead at 21-20 with 6:31 left in the third quarter.
Street got behind the Bears secondary and Pigrome found him for a 28-yard TD. The pass attempt for a 2-point conversion was unsuccessful. The Tigers led 26-21.
Morgan's offense fizzled on the ensuing drive and they ended up punting the ball back to the Tigers at the start of the fourth quarter.
Pigrome led the Tigers on a 14 play, 51-yard drive that consumed over 7 minutes of clock. Vaughn connected on a 28-yard field goal to extend the lead to 29-21 with 6:31 remaining.
The Bears turned the ball over on downs on their final drive of the night.
Towson outgained Morgan State 385-302 on offense, including 221-98 in the second half. Towson powered its way to 228 rushing yards, averaging 5.1 yards a carry.
Morgan's defense was led by junior linebacker Lawrence Richardson. The Philadelphia product finished with a game-high 13 tackles (9 solo) with two tackles for loss and a forced fumble. Jayden Wooden added six tackles and Jae'Veyon Morton had five stops.
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ABOUT MORGAN
Morgan State University, founded in 1867, is a Carnegie-classified high research (R2) institution offering nearly 140 academic programs leading to degrees from the baccalaureate to the doctorate. As Maryland's Preeminent Public Urban Research University, and the only university to have its entire campus designated as a National Treasure by the National Trust for Historic Preservation, Morgan serves a multiethnic and multiracial student body and seeks to ensure that the doors of higher education are opened as wide as possible to as many as possible. For more information about Morgan State University, visit www.morgan.edu.
