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Air Force Reserve Celebration Bowl<br />
GAME HISTORY<br />
Date Result Attendance TV Rating<br />
Inaugural Game<br />
12/19/2015 North Carolina A&T 41, Alcorn State 24 35,528 1.71 ABC<br />
Air Force Reserve Celebration Bowl<br />
12/17/2016 Grambling State, 10 North Carolina Central 9 31,096 1.83 ABC<br />
12/17/2017 North Carolina A&T 21, Grambling State 14 25,873 1.59 ABC<br />
Individual Awards: MVP<br />
Outstanding Offensive Player<br />
Outstanding Defensive Player<br />
2015 Tarik Cohen, North Carolina A&T Denzel Jones, North Carolina A&T<br />
2016 Martez Carter, Grambling State Jameel Jackson, Grambling State<br />
2017 Marquell Cartwright, North Carolina A&T Franklin “Mac” McCain, North Carolina A&T<br />
Memorable Games:<br />
2015: The inaugural Air Force Reserve Celebration Bowl was an explosive back-and-forth affair, within the first<br />
few minutes there was a special team’s bash of the highest caliber. Not only did Khris Gardin open the scoring<br />
with a 74-yard record-breaking punt but the Braves responded with an 84-yard punt return score of their own<br />
thanks to the shifty moves of Anthony Williams Jr. Alcorn State trailed by 14 points in the third quarter, but the<br />
Braves played ball-control offense and came up with a timely stop on defense to pull even at 27-27 just minutes<br />
into the fourth. However, the Aggies responded with an efficient six-play, 81-yard drive to jump back ahead by<br />
a score before Alcorn State drove down and converted a fake field goal to knot things again at 34. Cohen ran<br />
roughshod over the Braves defense with a 73-yard touchdown run with just over four minutes remaining helped<br />
North Carolina A&T prevail 41-34 win over Alcorn State.<br />
2016: Grambling State seized the opportunity when North Carolina Central's Quentin Atkinson celebrated too<br />
much in the Celebration Bowl. Grambling State blocked an extra-point kick set back 15 yards by Atkinson's<br />
excessive celebration with just over two minutes left, holding off North Carolina Central 10-9 Joseph McWilliams<br />
surged in and swatted Brandon McLaren's 35-yard try with 2:14 remaining to preserve the Tigers' edge. Down<br />
10-3, the Eagles had a chance to pull even after Atkinson shook loose and caught a 39-yard touchdown pass<br />
from scrambling Malcolm Bell. But Atkinson took off his helmet while reveling with the crowd, drawing a<br />
personal foul penalty. In short, the Celebration Bowl may have been decided by excessive celebration.<br />
Top Individual Performances:<br />
2015 - Tarik Cohen had a 73-yard touchdown run with just over four minutes remaining which helped North<br />
Carolina A&T. Cohn had an explosive game and set a school record with 22 carries, 295 yards, 3 touchdowns.<br />
Denzel John also had big defensive impacts against the Braves that helped A&T prevail with 7 Tackles and 1<br />
interception he truly made an impact throughout the course of the game.<br />
2017 - A&T's Running Back Marquell Cartwright and Cornerback Franklin "Mac" McCain III were named offensive<br />
and defensive most valuable players. Cartwright recorded 110 yards rushing on 20 attempts and 54 receiving<br />
yards on 3 catches. Cartwright's efforts resulted in 2 Touchdowns for the Aggies.[10] McCain recorded 4<br />
tackles and a second-half interception at the Grambling goal line.<br />
Last Year’s Game:<br />
North Carolina A&T State quarterback Lamar Raynard culminated a seven-play, 56-yard scoring drive with a oneyard<br />
sneak with 38 seconds remaining to lift the Aggies to a hard-fought 21-14 win over Grambling State in the<br />
third annual Celebration Bowl Saturday before a crowd of 25,873 at Mercedes Benz Stadium. The victory gave<br />
the MEAC a 2-1 lead in the three-year old bowl, with NC A&T getting both wins. Coach Rod Broadway’s team also<br />
played in the inaugural event in 2015 and came away with a 41-34 victory over the SWAC’s Alcorn State. With<br />
the win, the Aggies completed a perfect 12-0 season, while the loss dropped Grambling’s final 2017 record to<br />
11-2. The Aggies became the first MEAC team to compile a 12-0 campaign, including the postseason. Grambling<br />
was also making its second appearance in the contest. Each team had two more possessions before the winning<br />
drive by NC A&T, which began at the Aggie 44- yard line with 1:42 remaining. On the first-play of the drive, it<br />
appeared the Tigers had recovered a fumbled pass by Cartwright, however, a review confirmed the call on the<br />
field as an incomplete pass. Six plays later, Raynard scored from the one, giving his team, a 21-14 edge following<br />
the extra point by Noel Ruiz and the victory. The Aggie defense made the score stand, although Grambling had<br />
one more possession, taking over with 38 seconds left, however, a third-and-nine Kincade pass attempt to Carter<br />
fell incomplete as time expired.<br />
Score by Quarters 1st 2nd 3rd 4th Final<br />
North Carolina A&T 0 7 7 7 21<br />
Grambling 0 7 0 7 14<br />
Scoring:<br />
First Quarter:<br />
Second Quarter: A&T - Marquell Cartwright 11 Yd pass from Lamar Raynard, (Noel Ruiz Kick); Grambling - Jordan<br />
Jones 2 Yd pass from Devante Kincade (Marc Orozco Kick)<br />
Third Quarter: A&T - Marquell Cartwright 29 Yd Run (Noel Ruiz Kick)<br />
Fourth Quarter: Grambling - Martez Carter 29 Yd pass from Devante Kincade (Marc Orozco Kick), A&T - Lamar<br />
Raynard 1 Yd Run (Noel Ruiz Kick)<br />
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