Inside the MEAC · recap

Delaware State trailed 33-16 and won on the last play

Norfolk State led 33-16 with 5:24 left in the third quarter on Saturday. They did not score again.

Delaware State 36, Norfolk State 33, at Lincoln Financial Field. We were in the stands.

Not every seat was filled, but there were a lot of people there. ESPN lists the attendance at 32,567, down from 47,266 for last year's game. It felt like a true rivalry, and when Delaware State tied it at 33 in the fourth quarter, the crowd went wild.

Norfolk State's first half

Norfolk State was dominant for most of the first half.

Marco Peery kicked a 32-yard field goal on the Spartans' first possession. Delaware State fumbled the ensuing kickoff at their own 10, Norfolk State recovered at the 8, and Jalyn Daniels ran it in on the next play. It was 10-0 twelve seconds after the field goal.

Midway through the second quarter Delaware State went for it on fourth and 2 at their own 21 and did not get it. Da'Jean Golmond threw 11 yards to Kam'Ryn Thomas five plays later, and it was 17-0 with 8:13 left in the half.

On Delaware State's next series, Ui Ale fumbled at the Delaware State 21. Norfolk State gained nothing and Peery missed from 39. Michael Vick said afterward it "would have been big to go up 20-0."

Penalties and a fumble before halftime

Delaware State scored ten points in the last five minutes of the half, and Norfolk State's penalties did a lot of the work.

The touchdown drive went 79 yards, and 30 of them came from two pass interference calls against Norfolk State. On fourth and 3 at the Norfolk State 33, Marqui Adams threw to Jaylin Terzado for the touchdown with 2:09 left.

Norfolk State fumbled the kickoff, and Ezekiel Orozco recovered at the Norfolk State 21. A third pass interference call moved the ball to the 16, and Patrick Fisher-Butler kicked a 35-yard field goal with 49 seconds left. It was 17-10 at halftime.

The quarterbacks

Adams, who wears No. 5, started for Delaware State. Ale came in for two series in the second quarter, the second of which ended in his fumble, and took two other snaps. He finished 0 for 3.

Adams went 17 of 23 for 243 yards and four touchdowns with no interceptions. He also led Delaware State in rushing with 69 yards on 18 carries.

In two weeks Delaware State has started Jayden Sauray and Adams and played Ale in both games. They still have not said why Ale did not play against Franklin Pierce.

The third quarter

Wayne Favors III intercepted Golmond on the first drive of the second half, but Delaware State gave it back on downs. Golmond threw 23 yards to Jason Wonodi for a touchdown and a 24-10 lead.

Adams answered with a 40-yard touchdown to Terrence Rone on fourth and 4. Delaware State went for two, and Nasir Bashir returned the failed try 88 yards for a Norfolk State defensive two-point conversion. Norfolk State says it was the program's first since 2017. It was 26-16.

Golmond found Elyjah Mitchell for 49 yards on the next drive, Ravon Moore scored from three yards out, and it was 33-16 with 5:24 left in the quarter.

Twenty straight points

Delaware State kicked a 23-yard field goal late in the third quarter.

Adams threw five yards to Jaron Kelley for a touchdown on the first drive of the fourth quarter, after a 32-yard completion to Kelley set it up. 33-26.

Phillip Dunnam intercepted Golmond at the Delaware State 40 on the next series. Adams ran for 21 and 20 yards on the drive and then threw 20 yards to Kyree Benton for the touchdown. It was 33-33 with 7:47 left.

The last minute

Both teams punted. Norfolk State got the ball back at their own 24 with 1:26 left and the game tied.

Golmond was sacked on first down. On second down he completed a short pass to Mitchell, and Dunnam forced a fumble. Ryan Brown recovered for Delaware State at the Norfolk State 15 with 57 seconds left. The call was reviewed and upheld.

Delaware State ran it twice and let the clock run down. Matteo Bracalenti, No. 47, kicked a 35-yard field goal as time expired.

What we got wrong

The preview picked Norfolk State. We wrote that Norfolk State knew who their quarterback was and Delaware State had not said.

Delaware State won with a quarterback who had thrown six passes all season before Saturday. We had it wrong.

We also said the ball would decide it. Norfolk State turned it over four times, two interceptions and two fumbles, and lost by three. Delaware State turned it over twice.

"I do think we're a better team this year," Vick said. "But despite four turnovers, we still lose by three. I think that'll be the story of the game."

Where it leaves them

Delaware State is 5-4 and 1-1 in the MEAC. They are still alternating wins and losses, nine games in, and this was their first win away from Dover this season. DeSean Jackson is 2-0 against Vick.

Norfolk State is 4-5 and 0-2. They scored 33 points with 22 rushing yards.

Delaware State hosts Morgan State on Saturday. Norfolk State hosts North Carolina Central.