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GREENSBORO, September 22, 2007 -- Hurt. You could see on the face of the Aggie players, coaches and fans as they watched in pain as N.C. Central linebacker Eric Ray intercepted the Aggies chances of winning their first game under N.C. A&T head coach Lee Fobbs.

Ray intercepted Herb Miller’s pass at the NCCU 1-yard line with 14 seconds remaining to secure a 27-22 Eagles win over arch-rival N.C. A&T Saturday night at Aggie Stadium. Ray’s interception was the third of the night for the Eagles. The first picks went back for touchdowns.

“It always hurts when you lose,’’ said N.C. A&T running back Michael Ferguson, who had his fifth career 100-yard rushing day on Saturday with 13 carries for 113 yards and touchdown. “But when you play the way played and accomplished some of the things we accomplished tonight, it really gets to you.”

N.C. A&T did almost everything they wanted to do Saturday. For the first time in 15 games, the Aggies totaled more than 400 yards of offense. For the first time in 68 quarters the Aggies hit a field goal. At one point in the game, redshirt freshman quarterback Shelton Morgan was 13-for-13 passing the football. But turnovers nullified many of those accomplishments.

“You’ve got to take care of the ball,’’ said N.C. A&T head coach Lee Fobbs. “I keep saying that over and over. We were able to do things we thought we could do against them, but when it counted we didn’t get it done. It’s disappointing that we compiled a lot of yardage and didn’t win the ball game. But our kids fought hard and we were right there with a chance to win the ball game.”

Down by five, the Aggies took possession of the football with 2:17 remaining in the game. Miller, who shared playing time at quarterback with Morgan Saturday night, completed passes of 14 and 24 yards to Michael Ferguson and Chaz Dawson respectively on the drive. Miller’s pass completion to Dawson gave the Aggies a 1^st-and-10 at the Eagle 16-yard line.

The Aggies inched closer to the goal line with a five-yard completion to Michael Caldwell and a five-yard first down run by Miller. On 2^nd-and-goal, Miller looked to his right for the tight end, but Ray sat on the route for the pick at the 1.

“They ran that play a couple of times during the game,’’ said Ray. “The first time they completed it and almost scored on it. A couple of times I jumped it, but couldn’t get the right angle. I had a feeling it was coming, so I waited for it and just took advantage of the opportunity.”

The win marked the first time the Aggies have lost to N.C. Central in consecutive meetings since the 1987 and 1988 seasons. N.C. Central improved to 4-1 on the season, while the Aggies dropped to 0-4.

“The opportunity we had there to stick it end at the end was taken away,’’ said Fobbs. “The kid made a great play on it. We thought we had a good play called there, but it was just a great play by the defender to step into the passing lane to make the pick. We had it open there for just a moment, but wasn’t able to complete it. “

If the Aggies had of taken care of the ball, they might have been able to end a 19-game losing streak, which now stands at 20. The Aggies led 19-14 going into the fourth quarter, which marked their first fourth-quarter lead since Oct. 8, 2005.

But with 12:30 remaining in the game, Ray’s twin brother Derrick Ray returned a Morgan interception 23 yards for a touchdown to give N.C. Central a 21-19 lead. Four minutes later Eagles defensive back Jeffrey Henderson returned an overthrown Morgan pass 72 yards for another interception return for a touchdown to give N.C. Central a 27-19 lead after the Aggies blocked Taylor Gray’s extra point attempt.

The Aggies answered with a 38-yard field goal, one of two from Eric Houston on the night. The Aggies didn’t allow a second-half touchdown by the Eagles offense. Unfortunately for the Aggies, the two NCCU interception returns marked third and fourth defensive touchdowns an Aggies opponent has scored in the last two games. Seven of the 19 touchdowns the Aggies have given up this season have come from either the opponents’ special teams or defense.    

“There were a lot of positives in that ball game that we can continue to build on,’’ said Fobbs. “We went back to basic fundamentals. Blocking and tackling are the things that put you in position to win ball games. We were able to do those things tonight, but not quite enough. It’s a growing football team. It’s a football team that is gaining a lot of experience. We just have to keep plugging.”

Other than the interceptions, the two Aggie quarterbacks played well. Morgan was 13-for-17 for 121 yards, while Miller was 9-for-13 for 127 yards. Caldwell caught five passes for 69 yards.