Saturday afternoon was poised to be a wonderful day for the Arkansas Pine Bluff football team, as they were prepared to celebrate their homecoming and aim to cap off an incredible day by winning a football game. The Texas Southern football team, on the other hand, didn't get the memo since they had their sights set on dominating the whole game and making UAPB's homecoming their own. After a 24 to 17 victory, one thing became clear: do not schedule the TSU football team as your homecoming opponent if you are looking for an easy win. The old cliché in football is that defense wins games, and the TSU defense has consistently put this team in positions to win or close to winning. It must be fantastic for Andrew Body and the offense to be able to play football essentially stress-free knowing that the defense has their back.Â
The greatest illustration of this occurred in the fourth quarter during UAPB's final possession of the game; the TSU defense understood precisely what they had to do as the TSU offense had just taken the lead in the last minutes of the game. Tarik Cooper, a senior linebacker, caused the game-ending incomplete pass with an unbelievable QB hurry. With their win over UAPB, the TSU football team earns a much-needed bye week, allowing them to rest up and prepare to ruin another homecoming when they travel to play Alcorn State University. The Andrew Body quote after the thrashing of Southern, "Don't sleep on us, we are going to give everyone the same fight," is beginning to make perfect sense now that this team is well into SWAC conference play. The TSU football team will give all they have on the field, regardless of the opposition, in an effort to make a statement. TSU possesses a potent offense that can put up a lot of points on the scoreboard and a defense that can compete with the best of them. You can choose to overlook them, but your team won't get the results they are hoping for.
