Call 'em champs! JCSU blasts Va. Union for CIAA crown

DONALD WATKINS | THE CHARLOTTE POST

Johnson C. Smith football coaches and players are doused with water after their 45-21 win against Virginia Union in the CIAA title game Nov. 15 at Durham County Stadium. The Golden Bulls (10-1) clinched an automatic berth in the Division II playoffs and the first 10-win season in school history.

DURHAM – Johnson C. Smith’s 53-year road to football relevance is complete.

The Golden Bulls wrapped up the school’s first CIAA title since 1969 with a dominant 45-21 win against Virginia Union Saturday at Durham County Stadium, putting an emphatic stamp on the school’s best season.

JCSU (10-1, 7-1 CIAA) earned redemption for a 28-10 loss to the Panthers (9-2, 7-1) on Sept. 20 by thoroughly beating VUU in every phase. As a result, the Golden Bulls, ranked No. 16 in Division II, earned an automatic berth to the national playoffs and ran their win streak to seven straight – one shy of the program record set last year.

“I’m just so happy to be part of it as I’m an alumnus and a Charlottean and just so happy for our coaching staff, our young men and the work they put in and so happy for the ones that put the foundation in when we started this four years ago,” fourth-year coach Maurice Flowers said. 

JCSU, playing in its first championship round since 1972, started quickly, with Daryl Taybron’s recovery of a Curtis Allen fumble into a 19-yard scoring pass three minutes in. Virginia Union counted with a pair of touchdown runs before the Golden Bulls ripped off 21 unanswered points to break the game open. JCSU’s All-CIAA tandem of quarterback Kelvin Durham and title game MVP Biggie Proctor were the instigators, starting with a 25-yard connection 4:24 before intermission backed by a 58-strike and Durham’s 4-yard run in the third quarter. Proctor finished with seven catches for 146 yards and a pair of scores. 

“We know we couldn’t take our foot off the gas,” said Durham (16-of-29, 285 yards, five touchdowns). “No matter what the score was, we had to keep on scoring and scoring fast and keep on playing our kind of football. We were in the mindset of not letting up, just keep going until it’s all zeroes on the scoreboard.”

Durham dazzled in the first half, hitting 10-of-14 passes for 161 yards and three scores in executing JCSU’s offensive game plan – run Bobby Smith (23 carries, 78 yards) to keep Virginia Union honest while pushing the ball deep after loosening the Panthers’ secondary on the perimeter. The Golden Bulls’ initiative included springing surprises like handing the ball to Proctor on running plays and throwing to tight ends as well as an efficient 9-of-12 on third down chances.

DONALD WATKINS | THE CHARLOTTE POST

Johnson C. Smith defenders Cadricus Stanley (22) and Chris Jackson tackle Virginia Union running back Curtis Allen in the Golden Bulls' 45-21 win. JCSU outscored VUU 24-7 in the second half to pull away to the Golden Bulls' first CIAA title since 1969.

As sterling as the Golden Bulls were on offense, JCSU’s defense was dominant, limiting the Panthers’ potent running attack and forcing Virginia Union to compensate through the air. Curtis Allen, who rushed for more than 2,000 yards to earn the CIAA’s offensive MVP, finished with 183 yards and two touchdowns on 25 carries, including 48 yards on 14 first-half carries. Once JCSU opened a two-score advantage, Virginia Union, which won the previous two conference titles and advanced to the third round of last year’s playoffs, was forced to go away from its strength, which played into the Golden Bulls’ hands.

Required to take to the air against the swarming Golden Bulls, Panthers quarterback R.J. Rosales struggled to 10-of-22 passing for 150 yards and a pair of interceptions. Vincent Hill paced JCSU with seven tackles, while South Mecklenburg High grad Jalen Alexander, Caprices Stanley and Ty Hines chipped in with six each.

Outside of Allen’s 5-yard scoring run with 4:16 left, JCSU beat Virginia Union physically in the second half with a scheme that wore the Panthers down on both sides of the ball. Fifty-six years between championships was an extra incentive for JCSU, who went from afterthought to CIAA power during Flowers’ tenure. There’s more left to accomplish, too. 

“We’ve learned from a lot of teams from the CIAA before and a lot of teams before Virginia Union, it was win the CIAA championship and that was the highlight of the season,” Flowers said. “From the beginning when we started this four years ago, it wasn’t to be just CIAA champion, we wanted to build a Division II contender. We wanted to contend for a national championship at Johnson C. Smith University. Winning the CIAA championship was one of our goals and we wanted to have a deep run for a national championship.” 

For a season that set new standards of accomplishments, the Golden Bulls added to the program’s history. JCSU earned its first 10-win campaign and perhaps a home playoff game when the national postseason brackets are announced Sunday. The Golden Bulls, who started the week third in Super Region 1, will likely move up at least one position after taking down Virginia Union, the region’s second-ranked team and No. 9 nationally. 

“We’re going to enjoy this one, that’s for doggone sure,” Flowers said. “We waited more than 50 years for this one and we look forward to the playoff selection show tomorrow evening.” 

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