Morgan State football is doing something it hasn’t done in nearly two decades. And the HBCU program in Baltimore is finding dramatic ways to make history.
The Bears improved to 5-1 Saturday afternoon with a thrilling 28-27 homecoming victory over Robert Morris. Senior running back Keith Jenkins Jr. scored the winning touchdown with just 24 seconds remaining at Hughes Stadium.
It marked Morgan State’s best six-game start since 2009 and extended its winning streak to four games.
More importantly, the Bears are beginning to look like a legitimate threat in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC).
For the second consecutive Saturday, Morgan State needed a late touchdown to secure victory.
A week earlier, quarterback Cameron Edge scored with 36 seconds remaining to give the Bears a 38-35 upset victory over Villanova.
Against Robert Morris, the challenge was even greater. The Colonials jumped out to a 14-0 lead before Morgan State began chipping away. Robert Morris still led 14-3 at halftime, but the Bears outscored the visitors 18-7 in the third quarter.
A 56-yard touchdown pass from Edge to Joseph Towler helped spark the comeback. Jenkins later broke loose for a 45-yard touchdown run, and a successful two-point conversion tied the game at 21.
Robert Morris regained the lead in the fourth quarter, taking a 27-21 advantage with 4:16 remaining.
That was more than enough time for Edge and the Bears.
The quarterback engineered an 11-play, 75-yard drive that ended with Jenkins leaping into the end zone from one yard out.
Gavin Fetty added the decisive extra point.
Morgan State’s defense finished the job when Donovan Moyer forced a fumble on a sack that Jordan Jeudy recovered.
“I just want to win. So whatever it takes to win,” Morgan State head coach Damon Wilson said afterward.
“But the one thing that I know in life, when you’re faced with adversity, your true character comes out, and I think we’ve been facing adversity a number of times this year, and our true character came out. That says a lot.”
Is Morgan State becoming a MEAC contender?
For years, Morgan State has struggled to consistently compete with the top HBCU football programs.
Wilson, who previously built a championship program at Bowie State, is now overseeing one of the Bears’ most promising starts in recent memory.
His team has demonstrated something that doesn’t always show up in the standings: an ability to handle adversity and finish close games.
Against Robert Morris, Jenkins finished with 98 rushing yards and two touchdowns on 13 carries. He also caught five passes for 47 yards.
Edge completed 18 of 29 passes for 181 yards and a touchdown. He added 61 rushing yards, giving Morgan State another dimension offensively.
The Bears produced 369 total yards, including 188 on the ground.
Those numbers are encouraging, but the larger story is the team’s confidence.
Morgan State hasn’t started conference play yet. However, the Bears have already positioned themselves as a program worth watching when the MEAC championship race begins.
Defending conference champion South Carolina State suffered a 49-39 loss to Charleston Southern on Saturday, adding another interesting development to the conference picture.
Delaware State is also showing improvement, setting up an intriguing second half of the season.
A historic opportunity awaits this HBCU
Morgan State travels to Tennessee State on October 17 before opening MEAC competition against Howard. The upcoming stretch will determine whether this remarkable start develops into something even bigger.
The Bears haven’t won an outright MEAC football championship since 1979, when the program competed at the NCAA Division II level. Nearly five decades later, Morgan State has an opportunity to write another important chapter in its football history.
Six games don’t guarantee a championship. But after years of searching for sustained success, the Bears are giving their supporters a reason to believe.
And if Morgan State continues finding ways to win, the rest of the MEAC will have to pay attention.
