Box Score
GREENSBORO, August 30, 2008 – North Carolina A&T head football coach Lee Fobbs walked into the Aggies locker room at halftime and overheard the famous words uttered when a team has a big lead at halftime and wants to stay focused.

“It’s 0-0,’’ he overheard one of his players scream. Fobbs quickly corrected him.

“No it’s not 0-0,’’ he replied. “We’re up by 31 points. Don’t take points away from us.”

It’s easy to understand Fobbs’ sentiment. For a man who has had to wait 22 games for his first career collegiate win, it does almost seems cruel to suggest the score is not what it says on the scoreboard.

The Aggies had indeed played an impressive first half Saturday night at Aggie Stadium that propelled them to a convincing 44-12 win over Division II Johnson C. Smith. The win ended what has been a frustrating 27-game losing streak, which was the longest in the nation and school history. N.C. A&T’s last win came on Oct. 8, 2005 when they beat Morgan State 40-33 in overtime at FedEx Field. The win also marked the Aggies first home win since Sept. 10, 2005 when they beat Norfolk State 16-14.

Michael Ferguson led the Aggies with 100 yards and two touchdowns on 15 carries. Fellow back Dione McNair added a career-high 92 yards and a touchdown on 18 carries as the Aggies compiled 291 yards rushing, the most gained during the Fobbs era. Junior quarterback Herb Miller also had a career game as he completed 13 of 22 passes for 157 yards and two touchdowns. Miller set career high marks for completions, attempts and yards passing. Meanwhile, the Aggies offense compiled 448 yards.

“I’m glad we can stop talking about it and move on,’’ said Fobbs about ending the streak. “I’ve certainly been plagued by it the last two years. We’ll enjoy it tonight and then tomorrow it’s all about our next opponent.”

Fobbs preached to his team all week it couldn’t look ahead to the next opponent until it took care of business against JCSU. He reminded the Aggies that Division I FCS Appalachian State walked in a beat Division I power Michigan last season in Ann Arbor, Mich.

But by the end of the first quarter on Saturday, it started becoming evident that there would be no improvable victory for the Golden Bulls. The Aggies did start the game with a problem that has plagued them the last 2 ½ years, however.

Turnovers.

Three plays into the game, Ferguson fumbled the football at the JCSU 30-yard line and Thelder Gamble recovered the ball for the Golden Bulls. But the Aggies responded by excelling in what has been another problem for them over the last few seasons – specials teams. Freshman Jeremy Graham blocked a punt from JCSU’s Serby Nuru.

The block gave the Aggies the ball at the JCSU 12. Two plays later, Ferguson scored from two-yards out to give the Aggies a 7-0 lead. The Golden Bulls didn’t seem impressed. JCSU took the ball and drove it 76 yards over 12 plays in 5:46. Kevin Allen capped the drive with a 3-yard touchdown, but Julius Wright missed the extra point to keep the Aggies ahead 7-6.

N.C. A&T took command from there and did it quickly. The Aggies took the ensuing drive and drove it 60 yards in five plays in 1:16 as Ferguson scored on a 16-yard run. After a JCSU turnover in Aggies territory, Miller threw a perfect over-the-shoulder pass to senior Chaz Dawson for a 23-yard touchdown that took just 1:17 off the clock.

Another special teams play put more points on the board for the Aggies. A bad snap on a JCSU punt, sailed the ball over the head of Nuru’s head to the back of the end zone to give the Aggies a safety and a 23-6 lead. A touchdown run by McNair and three-yard touchdown reception by Michael Christen capped off the Aggies first-half scoring as they went into the locker room with that 37-6 lead Fobbs emphatically spoke of.

The Aggies held the JCSU offense to minus-11 yards rushing in the first half.  “We should be happy,’’ said N.C. A&T linebacker Andre Thornton, who grew up around JCSU as a Charlotte, N.C., native. Thornton led the Aggies with 11 tackles.

“This is something we should be doing more often,’’ he added. “I feel the wins are going to start coming in bunches.”