By T. SCOTT BOATRIGHT, Lincoln Parish Journal
GRAMBLING — Junior running back Tony Phillips was a big figure for Grambling State’s football team all month — all 5-7 and 150 pounds of him — heading into Saturday evening’s season opener against NAIA foe Clark Atlanta University.
So, it wasn’t any surprise that Phillps turned in the two biggest plays for the G-Men as the Tigers roared to a 49-7 over the Panthers at Eddie G. Robinson Stadium.
Phillips stormed out of the gates on the opening kickoff, taking it 89 yards to paydirt before adding the second score of the night for the Tigers on a 20-yard scamper through the left B-Gap to push Grambling State’s advantage to 14-0 only six seconds into the second quarter.
“Tony had the best camp than any player on offense or defense,” said GSU coach Mickey Joseph. “Tony showed up every day in camp. Tony really got better off the field — Tony’s a 4.0 student now. And Tony’s trying to gain weight. Tony’s probably the toughest kid on this team pound-for-pound.
“I told Tony today he was going to run the first kickoff back. I’m impressed with Tony. I’m pleased with what Tony’s doing. The whole running back room is young and I thought they all ran the ball well.”
Joseph admitted he had trouble sleeping Friday night because he knew very little about the Clark Atlanta football team.
“We talked about a couple of things (in the locker room),” Joseph said. “We talked about wanting to go 1-0 this weekend and we accomplished that. And then we talked about playing within the rules because we knew nothing about (Clark Atlanta). Their coach got released in May and then they hired Terry (Sims), who got there in July. And we didn’t get a roster on them until Thursday.
“Usually this team prepares by watching film so we can see what they do (opposing teams). So, we had no clue about what (Clark Atlanta) would be doing. We had to go on rules and go on trust — I take my hat to the team and our coaches for preparing. But disappointed in seeing too many penalties again, starting the season off like that — too many penalties.
“Everything that went bad today, we can clean up, But at the end of the story, we won the same and that’s what we came to do.”
Joseph had said last week that he would likely again use multiple quarterbacks in the contest. It ended up being four, with Jackobe Robinson, a transfer from the University of Mississippi, taking the first offensive snap for the Tigers.
Redshirt senior Ashton Frye was the next QB in for GSU, followed by redshirt junior transfer Reginald Johnson from Florida A&M-via-UMass. Late in the game, GSU’s fourth starting quarterback last season, Hayden Benoit, also played, completing 2-of-2 passes for 34 yards while conducting a touchdown drive.
Johnson fared best at quarterback for Grambling, completing 15-of-17 passes for 133 yards including an 11-yard scoring strike to redshirt sophomore receiver Tyson George.
“RJ was 7-of-7 at one time and I think he finished 15-of-17 ,” Joseph said. “We’ve got to get him to be better. He’s got to settle down. But remember, RJ just got here, so RJ really doesn’t have the system down the rest of the kids do. So, RJ can’t do anything but get better. I was pleased with the way he played. He played with some poise.”
None of Grambling’s quarterbacks fared poorly. Robinson completed 7-of-11 passes for 71 yards, including a 7-yard touchdown pass to running back Byron Eaton, Jr. with 17 seconds left in the second quarter to give GSU a 28-0 halftime advantage while Frye connected on 2-of-5 passes for 26 yards while adding 24 rushing yards on three carries.
Andre Crews led Grambling’s running backs with 50 yards on six carries while DeShun Ford, a transfer from Louisiana-Monroe, added 41 yards on six carries, including a 2-yard plunge to paydirt with 5:42 remaining. Clyde McClendon Jr. added 24 more rushing yards for GSU, including a 21-yard scoring scamper.
Save for one blown coverage resulting in Clark Atlanta’s lone score of the game on a 64-yard scoring pass less than two minutes into the second period, GSU’s defense dominated the Panthers.
“They played well,” Joseph said of his defense. “But they gave up too many first downs. They gave up 10 first downs. But (CAU) was 1-of-13 on third-down attempts. The kids played well. And if you know my kids and this generation, they’re visual learners. They need film. We couldn’t show them film, and that was killing us.
“I didn’t sleep last night because I thought (CAU) might come out with this awesome transfer portal roster because of all the kids out there right now that can only go (Division II) or NAIA right now.”
Contact Scott at tscottboatright@gmail.com