The Grambling Tigers travel to Dallas, TX this weekend to face the Prairie View A&M Panthers in the State Fair Classic. Grambling defeated Alabama A&M 31-6 last weekend, while Prairie View was idle.Brandon Landers passed for two touchdowns and 235 yards in last week’s victory over Alabama A&M. Landers executed the game plan nearly to perfection, he didn’t force throws, he took what the defense gave him and as a result, Grambling was victorious.
Prairie View ranks 9th in total defense. The Panthers defense hasn’t been very consistent this season. In their week 1 victory, Prairie View allowed 463 total yards against Texas Southern.
In their week 2 victory against North Carolina A&T, the Panthers allowed 205 yards on the ground.
However, in their defeat against Southern, PV held the SWAC’s 2nd rated offense to 223 total yards. This week the Panthers will attempt to hold Grambling under 50 points for the first time since 2002. Grambling has scored a total of 221 points in the past four games between these two teams.
Prairie View has only scored four offensive touchdowns in three games; all of them have come via the running game. Chris Gibson is a dual threat quarterback; Gibson leads the Panthers in total offense thus far. Gibson is averaging 6.1 yards per carry, and scored on a 51 yard touchdown run against Texas Southern in the Labor Day Classic.
If the Panthers want to avoid losing to Grambling for the 22nd consecutive game, they must keep Grambling’s offense off the field. The Panthers could benefit from running misdirection plays, and a few tricks plays to keep the Tigers defense on their heels.
Grambling held Alabama A&M to 147 total yards last week. Zaire Wilborn had nine tackles while John Scroggins had two sacks. The key this week against the Panthers will rest on the shoulders of tackles Jason Banks and Melvin Matthews. Prairie View’s offense is predicated on its running game. If Banks and Matthews continue to clog the lanes, it will be extremely difficult for PV to score.
Grambling enters the contest winning 35 out of the last 36 games against Prairie View.
Prediction
Grambling 52
Prairie View 0