DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – Bethune-Cookman's 11-game home winning streak ended Saturday evening as visiting Tennessee State handed the Wildcats a 31-24 defeat before a Hall of Fame Weekend crowd of 9,385.
 
Backup quarterback Ronald Butler's 7-yard touchdown pass to Patrick Smith with 3:55 remaining and two fourth quarter interceptions from Terrell Bonds helped Tennessee State (3-0) down Bethune-Cookman, whose last home loss came against Norfolk State in a 27-24 setback on November 9, 2013.
 
This was also the Tigers second consecutive win over Bethune-Cookman in Daytona Beach – the last at the 2012 Hall of Fame Game, where TSU assistant coach Jeff Parker was inducted into the class.
 
The Wildcats (0-2) tied the game on a 20-yard Jamaruz Thompkins run with 14:16 remaining. The Maroon and Gold got the ball after a Tennessee State punt, but Bonds' interception gave the Tigers the ball back. And it was Butler who led TSU on a 48-yard scoring drive just moments later. Bonds recorded a second interception to preserve the Tigers lead and win.
 
After replacing injured starter O'Shay Ackerman-Carter, Butler finished 7-of-13 passing for 72 yards and two touchdowns. Earl Harrison rushed for a game-high 113 yards, included a 46-yard second quarter touchdown.
 
Bethune-Cookman also went to back-ups after starter Larry Brihm, Jr. (8-of-13 passing for 74 yards and a 21-yard touchdown pass to Frank Brown) went down to injury.
 
The teams traded the lead often in the early going.
 
Down 3-0, the Wildcats took a 7-3 lead after Arthur Williams' interception gave B-CU the ball at the Tigers 25 yard line. Five plays later, Cameron Rigby scored his first collegiate touchdown on a one-yard scamper that made it 7-3 with 4:47 left in the opening stanza.
 
After Tennessee State regained the lead on a 71-yard catch-and-run from Ackerman-Carter to Steven Newbold, Bethune-Cookman answered on the Brihm-to-Brown connection for a 14-10 advantage.
 
Uriel Hernandez's 26-yard field goal with 1:14 left in the second quarter sent the teams into the locker room tied at 17.
 
Anthony Cruz, one of two backup quarterbacks that saw playing time for B-CU, led the Wildcats in rushing with 81 yards on 11 carries. Thompkins and Rigby rushed for 57 and 38 yards, respectively.
 
Brown led eight Wildcat receivers with three catches for 43 yards and a touchdown.
 
Diquan Richardson had a game-high matching eight tackles – matched with linebacker Trenton Bridges, for a Wildcats defense that denied three TSU red zone threats. Daniel Palmer had a fumble recovery.
 
Tabbed with a 0-2 record for the first time since 2009, Bethune-Cookman will look to get avoid a 0-3 start when the Wildcats step into Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) play next weekend at Savannah State. For the Cats, the loss is also the first time B-CU has lost back-to-back games since falling to Tennessee State and Miami (Fla.) in 2012.
 
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