SAVANNAH, Ga. – Savannah State's football team will attempt to snap a three-game losing streak when it plays Norfolk State in a Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference game at 2 p.m. Saturday at Dick Price Stadium in Norfolk, Va.

 SSU (1-6 overall, 1-4 MEAC) will be the Homecoming opponent for Norfolk State (2-6, 2-3), which also will be trying to end a three-game losing skid. The game will be radio-broadcast on WHCJ 90.3 FM.

"These next three games, I'm trying to get on that winning track," said SSU third-year head coach Earnest Wilson III, whose Tigers beat Florida A&M, 37-27, on Oct. 3 in Savannah.

SSU will finish the season with home games against Hampton University (Nov. 14) and South Carolina State (Nov. 21) at T.A. Wright Stadium.

"I've asked our coaches to try and be more creative," said Wilson, whose Tigers suffered a 55-9 setback, their worst MEAC loss this season, at Howard University last Saturday. "We've got to be better at halftime adjustments, and be better at taking all of those nagging injuries that seem to plague us and just learn how to win."

SSU is 1-9 in the series against Norfolk State, which has won the last six meetings. The Tigers lost, 14-7, last season in Savannah. SSU's only win against Norfolk State was a 41-34 double-overtime victory in the 2004 season opener in Norfolk, Va.

Norfolk State is coming off a 24-16 loss at North Carolina Central last Saturday.

"We had our bloopers and blunders (against Howard)," Wilson said. "We just have to play football. We have to continue playing football. We have three more games to stop this onslaught of losses and do well."

WHO WILL START AT QB?
Wilson said Wednesday night that he was undecided about who would be SSU's starting quarterback against Norfolk State. The Tigers have started four players at QB this season: Tino Smith, David Handler, Arshon Spaulding and Leon Prunty, who made his first start this season against Howard.

Prunty finished 11-of-29 passing for 113 yards, including a 34-yard touchdown pass to Rashad Saxton. It was SSU's only passing touchdown this season. Prunty also threw two interceptions.

"He was 11 of 29. That's not good," Wilson said. "In order for us to be successful, we have to develop our quarterbacks and they've got to accept leadership roles. They've got to accept understanding the finer points of the game in order for us to be successful. The quarterback has got to be a coach on the field, and we're not really progressing like that.

"I think it's because of the lack of meeting hours so they've got to be meeting on their own," Wilson continued. "When you have 11 hours (because of NCAA restrictions) and everybody else has 17 hours … I don't know. Our quarterback coach (Russell DeMasi) and offensive coordinator (Andy Siegal) have got to come to me. We've really got to hone in on certain things. We're not going to have spring ball once again because of the APR (Academic Progress Rate)."

ROOKIE RUNNING BACKS
SSU's Saxton, a 5-foot-8, 170-pound freshman from Jacksonville, Fla., ran for a team-leading 57 yards on three carries against Howard, an average of 19 yards per carry. Uriah Oliver, a 5-foot-11, 180-pound freshman from Honea Path, S.C., gained 42 yards on nine carries against the Bison.

"Rashad Saxton and Uriah Oliver, two of our freshmen running backs, are explosive," Wilson said. "Rashad had a good game the other day and Uriah played well against Florida A&M (five carries for 13 yards, one catch for 41 yards). Those guys are going to have good careers."

Wilson said SSU's second-leading rusher, Richard Williams, will return to play against Norfolk State after missing games because of a knee injury. Williams, a 5-foot-8, 195-pound junior from Memphis, Tenn., has run for 232 yards and a touchdown on 45 carries this season.

"Richard Williams is going to come back but I don't think we'll have (Joshua) Berry (hamstring) back," Wilson said.
Berry, a 5-foot-11, 190-pound sophomore from Long County High School in Ludowici, is SSU's third-leading rusher with 166 yards and three touchdowns on 37 carries.

YOUNG RECEIVERS
SSU freshmen wide receivers Anthony Raymond, Miles Kelly and Paris Baker, and freshmen running backs Saxton and Oliver, combined to make seven of the Tigers' 15 catches against Howard.

"By the time the game ended, we were playing with five freshmen wide receivers on the field," Wilson said. "You don't really think about it sometimes. I think they've come along."

MYERS LEADS TIGERS' DEFENSE
Linebacker Leonardo Myers, a 6-foot-1, 235-pound senior from Augusta, leads SSU in tackles with 43. Linebacker Marquis Smith, a 6-foot-3, 235-pound junior from Prince Georges County, Md., is second with 42.

"Leonardo is doing what a senior should do," Wilson said. "He's doing a good job. I'm happy for him."

NORFOLK STATE OUTLOOK
Spartans quarterback Greg Hankerson, a 6-foot, 190-pound junior from Lauderdale Lakes, Fla., is 128-of-250 passing for 1,552 yards, 10 touchdowns and three interceptions. Hankerson, who transferred from Florida Atlantic University, started against the Alabama Crimson Tide last season.

"They've got a transfer quarterback that we could have had," Wilson said. "Unfortunately, we could not take transfers so he went to Norfolk State. He runs around well. He can throw the ball."

Wide receiver DeAndre Sangster, a 6-foot-2, 180-pound redshirt senior from Woodbridge, Va., has made 28 catches for a team-leading 394 yards and two touchdowns. Wide receiver Isaac White, a 6-foot-3, 185-pound senior from Portsmouth, Va., has made 28 receptions for 391 yards and a team-leading five touchdowns.

Running back Gerard Johnson, a 5-foot-9, 200-pound junior from Richmond, Va., is the Spartans' leading rusher with 400 yards and a touchdown on 110 carries. Johnson transferred from Old Dominion University. Hankerson is second in rushing with 279 yards and two touchdowns on 89 carries.
Linebacker Deon King, a 6-foot-1, 235-pound senior from Reston, Va., leads the nation's Football Championship Subdivision players with 114 tackles in eight games.

"They run a 3-4 defense," Wilson said. "It's just like last week (against Howard); they have a lot more upperclassmen than we do. That's what scared me about last week, their size, their strength, their power. And (Norfolk State) is not too far from it. Their program is more established (than SSU's). Latrell (Scott), even though it's his first year coaching, they still have a good base. We're going to have to fight our way through."