October 18, 2003 – In a game that lived up to the billing as a classic, the Maroon Tigers of Morehouse defeated the Golden Tigers of Tuskegee 16-13 in a triple overtime thriller in front of 25,000 fans in Columbus on Saturday.

The deciding score in the 68th Annual Tuskegee-Morehouse Classic was a 41-yard field goal by Byron Archibald, the Morehouse senior place kicker who went from goat to hero. Earlier, with the game on the line, Archibald missed four field goals and an extra point that would have won the game for Morehouse in regulation and then again in overtime.

Defensive standout Andre Warren also came up big for the Maroon Tigers. The senior middle linebacker leads the conference in tackles and had a game-high 11 tackles. But his biggest play came near the end of the second overtime period, when he blocked what would have been the winning field goal. After Morehouse failed to score on its possession in the overtime period, Tuskegee place kicker Travis Gumbs, the leading kicker in the SIAC, lined up for a 39-yard attempt. The snap and the hold were good, but Warren, who grew up in Phenix City, Alabama, just miles from A.J. McClung Memorial Stadium, the site of the classic, leaped high into the air to bat the kick away.

Morehouse scored on its first possession of the game, on a 1-yard plunge by quarterback Duwuan Burton. Tuskegee scored seven minutes later on a 75-yard pass from quarterback Ralph Gordon to wide receiver Kenneth Henderson. Tuskegee field goals in the second and third quarters made the score 13-7.

With 4:16 remaining in the fourth quarter and Morehouse trailing 13-7, John David Washington capped a 32-yard scoring drive with a four-yard rush and dive into the end zone. The drive was set up by a Keon Mainor interception at the Tuskegee 35 yard line. The extra point attempt by Archibald fell feebly into the end zone and left the score knotted at 13-13.

Both teams played take-away-give-away for most of the rest of the game, missing repeated scoring opportunities deep in the other team’s territory. Tuskegee lost all of its four fumbles and Morehouse lost two of three. Morehouse Burton was intercepted twice, including one deep in Tuskegee territory. Maroon Tigers defenders Chad Allen, James Lane and Mainor each picked off passes by Tuskegee quarterback Ralph Gordon, who finished the game with 238 yards passing.

After the Archibald field goal, Tuskegee had once last chance to score. The Golden Tigers drove the ball to the Morehouse 1-yard line, but the Maroon Tigers defenders, who had employed a bend-but-don’t-break defense all game, forced a fumble by Tuskegee running back Cortland Florence. When defensive lineman Japheth Nelson pounced on the loose ball to seal the victory, players, coaches and hundreds of the Morehouse faithful stormed onto the field and the team doused coach Willard Scissum with a Gatoraid shower.

The Morehouse victory improves the team record to 2-5 (1-3 SIAC) and gives the Maroon Tigers some much-needed momentum going into next week’s game against Lane College. Tuskegee drops to 2-4 (1-3 SIAC).