ATLANTA, Ga. (Football) – The Grambling State University Tiger football (11-1) team capped off an amazing season with a Historically Black College and University National Championship on Saturday afternoon in the Air Force Reserve Celebration Bowl. The Tigers took the Georgia Dome by storm and bested the North Carolina Central University Eagles, 10-9.

The victory was hard fought as, for the second time this season; the G-Men were held scoreless in the first half. NCCU (9-3) seemed to have Grambling's number when it came to the offensive side of the ball in the first two quarters of play. The Tigers offense was held to 17 plays for 73 yards. DeVante Kincade finished the first half going 9-of-21 with one interception for 111 yards and was sacked three times. Grambling's receivers combined for seven catches for 98 yards in the first half.
NCCU's Brandon McLaren scored the only points of the first half as he drilled a 23 yard field goal with 6:05 left in the first quarter.

In the second half of play, the Tigers came out with a renewed spirit and began to put together a drive. Grambling's "Golden Curtain" defense halted the Eagles to bring up a quick four downs and give the offense a crack at the end zone. The G-Men began to utilize the running game to pound the ball into the heart of North Carolina Central's defense. Eventually, the hard work began to pay off with yardage and a touchdown. Martez Carter found the end zone for Grambling's first touchdown of the game with a 32 yard run and Jonathan Wallace tacked on the point after with 9:14 left in the third quarter, 7-3.

The Tigers earned a few more points as Wallace hung a field goal on board after GSU's drive stalled with 2:50 left in the third quarter, 10-3.

In the last quarter of the game, each team tried to impose their will on the other. Grambling was able to hold the Eagles to just one first down and seven rushes for four yards. The fourth quarter was also one of momentum swinging plays. The first swing happened when Jameel Jackson intercepted Malcolm Bell's pass at the Grambling 33 yard line with 5:41 left in the game to give the momentum back to the G-Men. The drive stalled and the Tigers were forced to punt with 4:03 left in the game. The second swing came when Bell connected with Quentin Atkinson for a 39 yard touchdown with 2:14 left, 10-9.  The third moment happened when Joseph McWilliams blocked the Eagles extra point and the ball was scooped up by De'Arius Christmas to prevent the game from being tied.
When North Carolina Central regained possession, the team attempted an onside kick that was almost successful but was called back because of two penalties. On the replay of the kickoff, NCCU couldn't capture lightening twice as Grambling's Chad Williams came up with the ball on the Eagles 42 yard line with 2:12 left.
As time wound down, it would be Verlan Hunter who put the nail in the coffin as he made a 12 yard catch from Kincade to pick up the first down with 1:00 left. The Tigers last plays of the season were the victory formation for two straight plays.

Kincade finished the day going 15-of-31 with one interception, 149 yard, and was sacked three times. Hunter was the leading receiver for Grambling with four catches for 35 yards, the longest being 18 yards. Carter led the running back corps for GSU with 12 carries for 109 yards, one touchdown, and averaging 9.1 yards per carry. The G-Man defense was anchored by Jackson with five solo tackles and one interception.

Carter was named Air Force Celebration Bowl Offensive Most Valuable Player while Jackson claimed the Defensive MVP honor. Grambling also set a Celebration Bowl record with 20 first downs.
Bell went 18-of-32 for two interceptions, 240 yards, one touchdown and was sacked twice. He also led in rushing for NCCU with 13 carries for 31 yards. The Eagles defensive leader was Reggie Hunter as he racked up 8.5 total tackles and one tackle for a loss of one yard.