THE DELTA | Mississippi Valley State football delivered a dramatic comeback Saturday afternoon at Rice-Totten Stadium, erasing a 24-point deficit to defeat Prairie View A&M, 28-27, and secure its first SWAC victory of the season.
The Delta Devils improved to 2-4 overall and 1-1 in SWAC play after scoring 28 of the game's final 31 points. Prairie View A&M built a 24-0 advantage midway through the second quarter before MVSU began its charge.
Quarterback
Josh Brown powered the comeback with one of his strongest performances of the season. Brown completed 13-of-25 passes for 144 yards and a touchdown while adding 101 rushing yards and three touchdowns on 17 carries, accounting for 245 yards of total offense and all four of Valley's touchdowns.
Brown put the Delta Devils on the board with a nine-yard touchdown run with 1:43 remaining in the second quarter. He struck again in the third quarter on a 13-yard run to cut the deficit to 24-14 before electrifying Rice-Totten Stadium with a 62-yard touchdown run early in the fourth quarter, pulling Valley within three at 24-21.
Every Kick is History!
Nina Schiks remained perfect on the afternoon, converting all three of her extra-point attempts following Brown's three rushing touchdowns. Schiks' 3-for-3 performance continued another memorable chapter in her season — Every Kick is History!
Prairie View responded with a 30-yard field goal to stretch its lead to 27-21 with 5:27 remaining, but the Delta Devils were not finished. Brown directed a six-play, 75-yard scoring drive before connecting with
Caleb Brownlow for a 35-yard touchdown with 2:11 left in the game.
Luka Sari converted the ensuing extra point to give MVSU its first lead of the afternoon, 28-27.
Brownlow finished as Valley's leading receiver with four catches for 92 yards and the game-winning touchdown.
Jaylen King added five receptions for 27 yards, while
Mekhi Penix collected two catches for 22 yards.
Dayvian Bluitt contributed across multiple phases, finishing with 102 all-purpose yards, including 68 kickoff-return yards, 24 rushing yards, six receiving yards and four punt-return yards.
The Delta Devils finished with 306 yards of total offense, including 162 on the ground and 144 through the air, while holding Prairie View A&M to 258 total yards. Valley also controlled possession for 31:19 and converted six of its 13 third-down opportunities.
Defensively,
Christ Kore led the way with nine tackles and 2.5 tackles for loss.
Malek Jackson,
Jusden Culpepper and
Javieane Stevens each recorded seven tackles, with Culpepper adding two tackles for loss and Stevens registering four quarterback hurries.
Joey Davis provided a key first-quarter takeaway with an interception that helped keep the Delta Devils within striking distance.
The victory marked a resilient response for Mississippi Valley State, which refused to fold after falling behind 24-0 and instead outscored the Panthers 28-3 over the remainder of the contest to complete the comeback.
UP NEXT
Mississippi Valley State returns to the road on Saturday, Oct. 10, when the Delta Devils travel to face Texas Southern in SWAC action.
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