DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – The Delta Devils of Mississippi Valley State University fought hard Saturday in a battle against the weather and the Wildcats before falling 41-27 at Bethune-Cookman.
 
Intermittent bouts of heavy rainfall affected play as the teams combined for seven turnovers and only 543 yards of total offense. In spite of those numbers, the visiting Delta Devils had their best showing yet under first-year head coach Vincent Dancy and will look to make further strides when they return to Southwestern Athletic Conference play next week at Jackson State.
 
Henry Isaiah Robinson led the Delta Devils (0-4) with 55 yards on 12 carries and was one of three Valley players to rush for a touchdown. His 40-yard scamper with 9:36 remaining in the opening quarter put the Devils up 7-0.
 
It may have been out of necessity with the rain, but the Delta Devils found success with their running game Saturday. Valley rushed for 146 yards on 35 carries as a team against the Wildcats; the 146 yards were almost seven times their total of 22 yards rushing as a team in the Delta Devils' previous contest at Alcorn State, which had been the team's previous high this season.
 
Valley quarterback Dejerric Bryant rushed for 52 yards and a touchdown on nine attempts, while Booker Chambers rushed for 20 yards and a touchdown on seven attempts. Bryant also connected with Quinn McElfresh for a seven-yard touchdown pass with 5:02 remaining in the game to cut BCU's lead to 34-27.
 
The Delta Devils were within striking distance of their opponents until very late in the contest. After McElfresh's touchdown, the visitors forced a midfield punt and got the ball back on their 10-yard line with 3:41 left in the game.
 
The game-tying rally, however, was not meant to be, as Bethune-Cookman forced an interception two plays into the Valley drive. On the very next play, BCU's Isaac Washington scored a six-yard touchdown with 3:14 left on the clock, which turned out to be the game's final score.
 
The Delta Devils scored in every quarter of the game, and also held their opponents scoreless in the first quarter, both of which were firsts for the season. Valley stretched their lead to 14-0 when Chambers scored on a three-yard run to cap a 10-play, 71-yard drive with 11:52 left in the first half.
 
Trailing 28-14 in the third quarter, the Delta Devils seized momentum when MVSU's Deione Reed recovered a fumble by BCU's Akevious Williams on the Wildcats' two-yard line. Three plays later, Dejerric Bryant was in the end zone on a one-yard run.
 
Bryant also finished the game with 71 yards passing while completing 12 out of 26 attempts.
 
Tadarius Davis led the Valley defense with eight tackles and two fumble recoveries. Tracy Thompkins had six tackles, five of which were solo.