Ettrick, VA- On October 27, Virginia State University hosted Chowan University in their final home game of the 2012 season. It was evident from the opening plays of the game that this would be an extremely fast paced game with tons of offensive production from both sides.

In the first quarter, Virginia State deferred to the second half giving Chowan the ball first.  Chowan was able to drive down the field efficiently on their opening drive. Chowan took the ball nearly the full length of the field and the drive was capped off by a 10-yard run by running back, Elliot Smalls.  After a solid return on the ensuing kickoff, the VSU offense looked to respond quickly.  Wide receiver Ja'von Smallwood (Fr./ Virginia Beach, VA) sparked the Trojans' offense with a 29-yard reception.  Two plays later, Bryan Jones (Jr. / Hayward, CA) evened up the score 7-7 with a huge 42-yard run.  The Trojans defenses had their hands full and were on the field for a large portion of the first quarter.  Brandon Robinson (So./Mechanicsville, VA) led the Trojan defense with four tackles in the opening quarter. Chowan's offense was able to put together another drive that resulted in a 13-yard TD pass with under two minutes remaining in the quarter. At the end of the first quarter Virginia State trailed Chowan 14-7.

There was very little production offensively for both sides in the second quarter.  Chowan was able to control the tempo of the game with 9:43 time of possession for the quarter.  VSU only had the ball for 5:17.  Although they were tired from spending a majority of the quarter on the field, VSU did an outstanding job containing the high powered offense of Chowan.  Trojans' defensive back Darion Thomas (R-Fr./ Virginia Beach, VA) intercepted Chowan's quarterback in the VSU red zone and returned it for 660-yards into Chowan territory. The Trojans were unable to capitalize on the turnover.  The only score of the quarter was a 1-yard run by Chowan's Quincie Bethea.  Chowan attempted a fake on the field goal attempt, but Virginia State was aware able to stop Chowan short of the goal line.  At the end of the first half the scoreboard read Virginia State 7, Chowan 20.
The Trojans opened the second half with their passing attack in full effect.  Quarterback Jared Battle (Sr./ Norfolk, VA) threw for 122 yards in the third quarter alone, including a 50-yard touchdown strike to William Mitchell (Jr./ St. Petersburg, FL).  Battle had an outstanding third quarter but threw an interception for a Chowan 35-yard touchdown. The Trojans' defense was able to keep Chowan's high powered offense out the end zone, VSU defensive back Justin Carr (Sr./ Richmond, VA) recorded an interception giving the Trojans outstanding field position.  The third quarter ended with VSU trailing Chowan 14-27.

The momentum shifted in the direction of the Trojans to open up the fourth quarter.  VSU held Chowan to 81 yards of total offense in the final quarter. Trojans defensive back Virginior Loiseau (Jr./ Fort Myers, FL) stripped Chowan's wide receiver and returned the ball deep into Chowan territory. Virginia State was able to put together a great drive that was capped off with a 2-yard touchdown run by running back Lamont Britt (R-Fr./ Norfolk, VA). The Trojan defense held off the Chowan offense as long as they could but Chowan was able to score with 3:21 left in the game. The Hawks quarterback Cameron Stover scored on a 5-yard rushing touchdown to seal the win for his Hawks. An outstanding effort on the part of the Trojans to fight back into the game, but it was just a little too late.  Final Score, Virginia State 21,  Chowan 33.

Virginia State's football team fell to 4-5 overall with a 3-3 CIAA conference record. Quarterback Jarred Battle led the Trojans completing 16 of 30 pass attempts for 197-yards through the air. Running backs Bryan Jones and Lamont Britt both scored touchdowns for the VSU offense. Jones had seven rushes for 64-yards, while Britt collected 30-yards on eight carries. Wide receiver William Mitchell caught three passes for 70-yards and Ja'von Smallwood led with four receptions for 64-yards. Defensively, Brandon Robinson led with 11 tackles (8 solo, 3 assisted) and Alandus Beggs (Sr./ Hampton, VA) collected three sacks for a loss of 25-yards on the Chowan quarterback.
The Trojans will close out the regular season on the road in Richmond, VA on November 3^rd against the Panthers of Virginia Union.