Battle for Greater Baltimore: Morgan State ends 17-year losing streak with win over Towson

TOWSON, Md. — Morgan State defeated Towson 41-26 Saturday night at Johnny Unitas Stadium, ending a 17-year losing streak against their local rival and winning the Battle for Greater Baltimore.

The Bears entered the game 2-1 on the season but had not beaten the Tigers since 2009. Towson had won eight straight in the series and held a 24-6 advantage in the all-time record heading into the game.

Towson drew first blood with a short field goal after forcing a fumble on the opening drive, but Morgan State answered quickly with a touchdown pass from Cameron Edge to Marquez Spells to lead 7-3 after the first quarter.

The Bears extended their lead early in the second quarter when Jordan Barnett punched it in on a 3-yard touchdown run to make it 14-3. After Towson went three-and-out on their next possession, Edge found Joseph Towler on a 40-yard touchdown pass, helping give Morgan State a 24-6 halftime lead.

Towson began to fight back in the third quarter when Andrew Indorf connected with Aaron Enterline on an 18-yard touchdown to cut the deficit to 24-13.

Morgan State responded with a trick play on their next drive. Edge flipped it to Dante Archie, who threw it to a wide-open Justin Perry for a 37-yard touchdown, pushing the lead back to 18 early in the fourth quarter.

Towson quickly answered with a 4-play drive capped by a 41-yard touchdown pass from Indorf to Enterline, pulling within two scores.

But the Bears had an answer on the ensuing kickoff. Keith Jenkins Jr. fielded the kick on a bounce, made a cut, and followed his blockers 95 yards to the end zone — a return that effectively sealed the victory.

Morgan State head coach Damon Wilson said the win carried personal significance.

"I mean when I took the job at Morgan State, I understood how important it was. If you're going to have a rival, both teams got to take [turns] winning and the last 10, 15 years, we hadn't done our part. So for me it was really personal if you will with regards to winning that ballgame. We've been really close the last few years. These guys, they deserve it. And there's some seniors that never beat Towson. So that's one thing they can at least check off their box." Wilson said.

Towson head coach Pete Shinnick said his team's lack of focus cost them.

"Very frustrating and again I think our guys didn't look at it as seriously as they needed to because I don't think our attention and our focus was there. We told them early on, this is a huge for Morgan. That's all they're talking about. We run into Morgan guys and they're like hey man we're getting you this year. We're getting you this year, we were close last year. And so our guys, we need to be a little more focused." Shinnick said.

The loss drops Towson to 0-4 on the season. Morgan State improves to 3-1. Towson next game is on September 26 at Delware State. Morgan State has a bye week before their next game on October 3 at Villanova.

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