Today the Clark Atlanta University Panthers take on another big Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference foe when they visit Tuskegee at 1 p.m. central time.
The game will be broadcast live on ESPN+. Due to Tuskegee's Covid-19 protocols, visiting fans are not allowed at Cleve Abbott Alumni Memorial Stadium this season.
The Panthers (1-3, 0-2 SIAC) are coming off a tough 49-0 at Albany State last weekend. But CAU head coach
Tim Bowens said his team is hungry heading into this week's game.
"We are working really hard to make sure we are getting those young guys ready to go," Bowens said. "I think anytime you get the opportunity to go play the game again, you're excited about seeing how much they've grown and learned.
"As far as practice, this week has been pretty good," he said. "Our biggest focus has been alignment and technique and really working on those things. And we have to make sure we execute at our best and give ourselves a chance to play well against a good Tuskegee program."
CAU takes on a Tuskegee team that is 1-3 so far this season, scoring only 13 points in losing to Fort Valley State and West Alabama in their first two games, but losing a 45-35 shootout with FCS SWAC team Alabama A&M last weekend. They defeated Edward Waters 23-6 two weeks ago.
Running back Ivonte Patterson has led the Tuskegee offense, rushing for nearly 300 yards in four games, but scoring six touchdowns. Quarterback Bryson Williams is the triggerman for the Golden Tigers offense, ranking eighth in the SIAC in passing yards per game. Senior linkebackers Woody and Wesly Applolon lead the always stout Tuskegee defense. Woody is second in the SIAC in tackles so far this season with 34, while Wesly is third with 32. Darren Peterson has three sacks for Tuskegee this year, second among SIAC defenders, while Devir Hamilton has two.
"Tuskegee is big and they are physical," Bowens said. "Coach Slater has done a really good job of running the ball over the past years and getting out on the perimeter. He's getting it out there on perimeter much more now. They are always extending your defense. We have to make sure that we take what they give us. We got to have make sure our quarterbacks play well. We're looking forward to how they see things out there. They try to disguise some things and get back to their base. But I tell you they do a good job at what they do."
The Panthers are still using both
Elijah Odom and
Shariif Brown at quarterback. Both showed flashes during the Albany State game, driving CAU down the field and making plays for the Panthers at times.
"I think we're trying to find that consistency in there," he said. "I made that comment to our quarterbacks. We have to have consistent play out of that room. We have to find a person who is going to take us down the field consistently, week in and week out."
Defensively, the Panthers have been led by
Timothy Jones who has 21 tackles this season, 16 of them solo. Right behind him are
Rodney Lewis (20 tackles, 3.5 tackles for loss, one sack),
Aderrius Barron (19 tackles, 12 solo), and
Charles Crawford (19 tackles, 16 solo, three tackles for loss). Lewis, Jones and
Tyler Wimberly combined for 18 tackles last week at Albany State.
Panther Notes:
- The last time the two teams battled, Tuskegee needed a 14-point fourth quarter to come back and defeat CAU 24-17 at CAU Panther Stadium in 2018.
- CAU has fallen to Tuskegee in each of the last six matchups of the two programs.
- Quarterback Shariif Brown is sixth in total offense in the SIAC with 166.7 yards per game.
- Kicker Carlos Saldana is second in the SIAC in field goals and also ranks fifth in scoring among kickers with 3.2 points per game.
- Punter Fernando Lobo is seventh among SIAC punters, averaging 35.5 yards per kick on 15 punts. His longest this season is 63 yards.
- The Panthers return to the friendly confines of CAU Panther Stadium next week when they face Allen University at 2 p.m.
