Tech hands TSU worst loss; 63 points most for a foe
By MAURICE PATTON
Staff Writer
COOKEVILLE ? It was no fluke, Tennessee Tech's 63-13 Ohio Valley Conference victory over visiting 14th-ranked Tennessee State yesterday.
There were no questionable calls, no turning points ? just a derriere-dusting of the Tigers, plain and simple.
''We were embarrassed, the whole school,'' TSU Coach James Reese said after his team suffered the worst loss and gave up the most points in school history. Last season, Murray State beat the Tigers 62-40 to set the mark for most points allowed by TSU.
''A lack of execution may be an understatement,'' Reese said. ''They dominated us on both lines of scrimmage, and that's where the game is won.''
Adding to the pain of the 50-point ambush is the fact that, in all likelihood, TSU (7-2, 3-2) was eliminated from NCAA Division I-AA playoff consideration with the defeat.
''We'll have to play the rest of the season out and see how it falls out,'' said Reese, whose team travels to Eastern Kentucky next weekend before meeting Jackson State in Memphis on Thanksgiving to close the regular season.
Tech (6-3, 3-2) scored 36 straight points before TSU finally got on the board to open the third period with a 36-yard pass from backup quarterback Kenny Irby to C.J. Johnson.
The Golden Eagles shook off the rally and added 20 more points, then offset a 7-yard scoring pass from Riley Walker to Carlos Wright with a second TD run by Travis Rogers inside the final minute.
Rogers, who got Tech on the board in the first quarter with a 1-yard plunge, went in from the TSU 4 to wrap things up.
''I guess they just wanted it more than we did,'' defensive tackle Danny Roberson said. ''There's not much you can say.''
The groundwork for the day may have been set on TSU's first possession. Following a 9-yard pass from Shannon Harris to Patrick Jenkins, a couple of Marvin Jones runs for little gain set up fourth-and-short.
The Tigers punted, Tech moved 57 yards for its first touchdown and was never slowed the rest of the day.
''I was thinking about kicking it the whole time,'' Reese said. ''We didn't get it on second-and-short, and we didn't get it on third-and-short. [Going for it] wasn't my thought at that time. I thought we'd eventually be able to move the ball. I thought it was just a case of us starting slow.
''It was just that they were the better team, and we just got beat.''
Tennessee State was held to 300 offensive yards ? its lowest output of the season ? and managed just 19 first downs while converting only 4-of-13 third-down situations.
''We just kept going three-and-out, three-and-out,'' fullback KaRon Key said. ''You can't do that.''
While Tech had little to play for other than pride, that was apparently a big factor.
''We really felt like in this game they were not respecting us,'' said quarterback Grant Swallows, who completed 13-of-23 passes for 249 yards and a pair of early TDs, the second of which put the Golden Eagles up 20-0. ''It was really a big game and a big rivalry. We're glad to give them their worst-ever loss. It feels good.''
