Game Notes
HAMPTON, Va. – The Pirates of Hampton University (2-2, 1-1 MEAC) are set to host the Bison of Howard University (2-2, 0-1 MEAC) in the Battle for the Real HU at Armstrong Stadium on Saturday night at 6 p.m.
Coming into the game Howard is on a two-game winning streak, after defeating Georgetown in its season opener and then winning a 7-3 battle against the Rams of Winston-Salem State this past weekend. The Bison are looking to end over a decade's losing streak against the Pirates, while Hampton is looking to rebound after the tough loss to Delaware State two weeks ago.
“After the loss to Delaware State, we had a chance last week to work on the little things, which will give us a chance to get better,” said Pirates coach
Donovan Rose. “We went back to the basics on both offense and defense over the bye week to work on those things that will help us to get better.”
This will be the 86th meeting between the Pirates and the Bison, with Hampton holding a 45-39-1 advantage in the series. The Pirates have dominated the series as of late, winning the last 12 meetings, including a 38-27 decision last year at Armstrong Stadium. Howard's last victory over Hampton came back on Sept. 13, 1996, when the Bison defeated the Pirates 26-7 at the Urban League Classic at RFK Stadium. Hampton has faced Howard 85 times, which is more than any other opponent in Pirates history.
“Howard has a really good team and they are well-coached. Their quarterback is doing a good job for them and Coach Bailey is putting him into a good position to get some things done. We just have to wait and see which Howard team will show up, because they do so many different things on offense, we never know what they are going to show us,” said Rose.
Throughout the years, there have been 28 shutouts in the series and Hampton's largest win was a 51-2 decision in 2002. Howard's largest victory was a 51-0 rout over the Pirates in 1973.
The last time the Pirates lost to the Bison at Armstrong Stadium was 1986, by a score of 21-7 and that season Hampton finished with a record of 3-6-1. The Pirates will look to make it 13 in a row against the Bison on Saturday.
The game will kick-off at 6 p.m. at Armstrong Stadium; for tickets, contact the Hampton University ticket office at (757) 728-6828. Anyone who can't attend the game can follow along via live stats; just visit
www.hamptonpirates.com, click on the football page and click the “Live Stats” link.
For more information on Hampton University football, please call the Office of Sports Information at (757) 727-5811, or visit the official Pirates website at
www.hamptonpirates.com.
