Alabama State beats Tuskegee in the Turkey Day Classic

Courtesy: Alabama State Athletics

MONTGOMERY, Ala. | Led by a dominant defensive performance and career days on offense from Kareem Key and Robert McMinn, Alabama State University beat the Golden Tigers 34-6 in the 100th Turkey Day Classic on Thursday afternoon.

Alabama State held the Tuskegee Air Attack to 93 passing yards and 138 yards on the ground while extending its streak of quarters without allowing a touchdown to nine straight yards.

Keye completed 12 of 18 passes for a career-high 331 yards and four touchdowns Robert McMinn Caught four passes for a career-high 152 yards and two touchdowns on offense in the Turkey Day Classic.

The win improved Alabama State’s record to 7-5, securing a third straight winning season under head coach Eddie Robinson Jr. The last time Alabama State won three straight seasons was under head coach Reggie Barlow. Barlow led the Hornets to five straight winning seasons from 2010 to 2015.

AJ Gates led all Hornets rushers with 45 yards in the contest and collected 15 yards per carry. Gates also added 57 receiving yards. Jalen Jones He also added 36 yards on the ground, an average of 18 yards per carry, as well as 87 receiving yards and a touchdown.

Amon Scarbrough played for the Alabama State defense, totaling five tackles and one interception. Tre Phillips added an interception and Treqwan Thomas had four tackles, 1.0 TFL and a sack in the win.

The Hornets forced two turnovers in Thursday’s contest, with Alabama State turning those takeaways into three points. Alabama State’s offense did a good job of extending drives, converting 44.4 percent of third-down attempts.

Alabama State’s defense held off Tuskegee’s offense, giving up 231 total yards. The Hornets held Tuskegee to under 150 yards on both the ground and through the air, allowing 93 passing and 138 rushing yards. The Hornets’ defense disrupted the Tuskegee passing game by throwing two interceptions and breaking up four Golden Tigers passes in the Turkey Day Classic.

HOW IT HAPPENED

Alabama State took a 7-0 lead over Tuskegee after scoring its first points of the game on its first drive of the game. The Hornets then extended their lead to 14-0 with another score.

Alabama State then added a touchdown with 5:45 left in the first quarter to make the lead 21-0. The Hornets continued to extend their lead after Tuskegee cut the deficit to 21-6 and scored again to take a 28-6 lead.

Alabama State continued to extend its lead, scoring again with 4:30 left in the third quarter to take a 31-6 lead. The Hornets continued to score and extended their lead to 34-6 with a field goal. Neither team scored again in the game.

CLASSIC FOR TURKEY DAY GAME NOTES

• Alabama State outscored Tuskegee 478-231, including a 331-93 edge through the air.
• The Hornets scored first with 13:07 remaining in the first quarter and improved to 15-4 under Robinson when they scored the first goal.
• Alabama State’s defense finished the season with nine straight quarters without allowing a touchdown.
• Demark Cunningham led the Hornets with nine tackles.
• ASU’s offense finished the year with one rushing total in 2028. Alabama State’s last 2,000-yard rushing season was in 2019, when the Hornets rushed for 2,805 yards and 27 touchdowns.
• The ASU offense set a season high for total yards with 478 yards.
• The Hornets collected eight tackles for loss and added three sacks on defense.
• Keye completed 66.7% of his passes on the day, going 12 of 18 and averaging 18.4 yards per attempt.
• Raequan Beal Led the Golden Tigers’ passing attack, completing nine of his 20 attempts for 86 yards with two interceptions.
• Johnny Morris Led the Tuskegee rushing attack with 88 yards.

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