SWAC Shellacking

Bethune-Cookmans Daniel Rhodes (27) upends Prairie View A&M quarterback Jonathan Troast in the third quarter Sunday. (N-J | Nigel Cook)

ORLANDO -- New season. New quarterback. Same old Wildcats.

Bethune-Cookman started its second season under head coach Brian Jenkins a lot like it started its first -- with a thorough thrashing of an overmatched opponent.

Last year, B-CU pummeled an NAIA team -- Edward Waters (70-10) -- in Jenkins' debut. On Sunday, the Wildcats cruised to a 63-14 victory over Prairie View A&M before an announced crowd of 17,337 in the MEAC/SWAC Challenge at the Florida Citrus Bowl.

Prairie View of the Southwestern Athletic Conference is coming off a 7-4 season, but the Panthers (0-1) are rebuilding under new coach Heishma Northern, while the Wildcats (1-0) are reloading with a new quarterback.

Senior Jamarr Robinson, who transferred from the University of Maryland, passed for 251 yards and a touchdown and added two scoring runs while playing just one series into the third quarter, when the 'Cats took a commanding 49-7 lead.

"Prairie View is a tough team. Everything just fell our way early," Jenkins said. "I think Coach Northern is the right coach for their program. They will rebound."

B-CU scored on six of its first seven possessions including consecutive fumble returns by Spruce Creek grad D.J. Howard (31 yards) and linebacker Reggie Sandilands (51 yards) in the second quarter.

Just like the offense, which piled up 500 yards, the defense picked up where it left off last year, wreaking havoc while causing six turnovers.

"Scoop and score. We practice that all the time," said Sandilands, who recovered two of the Panthers' four lost fumbles. "We're a very selfish defense. We don't get to touch the ball a lot, so when we do we all want to score. We want to cause turnovers and get touchdowns."

The Wildcats finished second in the nation in the Football Championship Subdivision last year with 41 caused turnovers and first in turnover margin at plus-27. They're on the way to repeating such numbers with a turnover margin of plus-six in their first game.

"We swarm to the ball," defensive back Jean Fanor said. "Everybody goes to the ball, so when someone knocks it loose, someone else is there to pick it up."

Robinson, who had never before conducted a no-huddle, fast-paced offense like B-CU's, looked like an old hand Sunday.

"There are no similarities at all to what we did at Maryland," he said. "It was exciting to get back out there and compete. I just went through my reads and tried to execute."

He scored on a 10-yard run as B-CU marched 64 yards on its opening drive. After punting, B-CU scored on five straight possessions to take a 42-0 lead.

Robinson completed 22 of 31 passes and ran for 30 yards, then went to the sideline as David Blackwell and Jackie Wilson took over for most of the second half.

Running backs Isidore Jackson (59 yards rushing) and Anthony Jordan also scored two touchdowns apiece for the Wildcats. Jackson scored on a 1-yard run in the first quarter and a 9-yard run in the third. Jordan ran for two fourth-quarter TDs.

Mississippi transfer Rodney Scott led all B-CU rushers with 67 yards. Maurice Francois led the receivers with four catches for 74 yards. The Wildcats were balanced offensively with 240 yards rushing and 260 passing.

They held Prairie View to 262 total yards.

Next week, B-CU plays its home opener against South Carolina State in a Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference matchup. B-CU, 10-2 last season, finished in a three-way tie with S.C. State and Florida A&M for the conference championship last year.

The Bulldogs and Wildcats are considered the conference favorites again this year.

"We were focused on Prairie View. Now we're focused on South Carolina State," Jenkins said. "Hopefully the end result will be the same."

NOTES:

HOWARD RETURNS FROM KNEE SURGERY:

D.J. Howard said he was

nervous Sunday playing in his first game since undergoing knee surgery last Oct. 8.

The Spruce Creek graduate, who tore his anterior cruciate ligament in the second game last season, didn't miss a beat, retuning a fumble 31 yards for a touchdown, intercepting a pass and finishing tied for third on the team with five tackles against Prairie View A&M.

"I knew I could do it, I just had to remain calm," said the redshirt sophomore who has returned to safety after attempting a switch to cornerback last year. "This is my second chance. I'm taking things more seriously now because I know it all can be taken away from you at any moment."

AFTER FURTHER REVIEW ...

The first video review in Bethune-Cookman history went against the Wildcats. On the first possession of Sunday's game, a Prairie View pass was ruled a lateral that hit the ground and went out of bounds for a 16-yard loss. But the officials in the video booth overturned the call, ruling the play an incomplete pass.

The Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference announced last week that it will use replay review this season in all games televised by the ESPN networks. Sunday's game, on ESPN, was the first. B-CU will have four more TV games this season that will use video review.

"I think it's good. I'm all for it,"

B-CU coach Brian Jenkins said.

MEAC commissioner Dennis Thomas said the conference will evaluate the review process after the season.

"We feel this is the first step to adding the system to our regular-season conference games," Thomas said.

FANOR RETURNS:

Defensive back Jean Fanor was B-CU's winner of the MEAC/SWAC Challenge Walter Payton Achievement Award. Fanor is a two-time member of the MEAC all-academic team. Fanor, a senior, played in his first game since breaking his foot before the 2010 season. He finished with five tackles, including one for a loss.

Former B-CU lineman and coach Larry Little was one of four MEAC/SWAC Challenge Legends honored before the game. The former Miami Dolphin great was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1993.

WILLIAMS HELD OUT:

Three B-CU quarterbacks got on the field during Sunday's rout. One QB who did not see action was heralded freshman Quentin Williams, the reigning Mr. Florida award winner out of Tampa Jefferson, furthering speculation that the Wildcats' quarterback of the future will redshirt this season.

Senior safety Mike Williams, who led the Wildcats last season with six interceptions, missed the game with a minor injury, Jenkins said.

-- Brent Woronoff