SALISBURY – More than 130 years after Johnson C. Smith and Livingstone helped establish the foundation of Black college football, the Golden Bulls added another victory to their historic rivalry Saturday afternoon.
Fabian Duncan rushed for 148 yards and two touchdowns, and Johnson C. Smith built a 20-point lead before holding off a fourth-quarter rally to defeat Livingstone 27-14 in the Commemorative Classic at Alumni Memorial Stadium.
The victory improved Johnson C. Smith to 6-2, while Livingstone fell to 3-6.
The annual meeting carries significance far beyond the conference standings. On December 27, 1892, Biddle Institute, now Johnson C. Smith University, defeated Livingstone 5-0 on a snowy field in Salisbury in what is widely recognized as the first football game between historically Black colleges and universities.
That contest marked the beginning of Black college football, making the Commemorative Classic a celebration of both the sport's origins and the enduring relationship between the two North Carolina institutions.
On Saturday, Johnson C. Smith established control early behind Duncan and a defense that kept Livingstone off the scoreboard through three quarters.
The Golden Bulls opened the game with an eight-play, 75-yard touchdown drive. Duncan supplied the biggest gain with a 24-yard run, while quarterback Damien Mazil connected with Dashawn Medley for 32 yards to move the ball to the Livingstone 4. Duncan finished the possession with a 4-yard touchdown run, giving Johnson C. Smith a 7-0 lead with 11:57 remaining in the first quarter.
Livingstone struggled to generate offense throughout the opening half, repeatedly finding itself backed up deep in its own territory.
The Golden Bulls capitalized on that field position midway through the second quarter when a short Livingstone punt gave them possession at the Blue Bears' 15-yard line. Duncan gained 13 yards on the first play and scored from two yards out shortly afterward, extending the advantage to 14-0.
Johnson C. Smith added a 25-yard field goal from Alexis Rosario-Beltran with 18 seconds remaining before halftime to take a 17-0 lead into the break.
The Golden Bulls continued to control the game in the third quarter. A 10-play, 58-yard possession ended with Rosario-Beltran connecting from 29 yards, pushing the margin to 20-0 with 4:59 remaining.
Livingstone finally broke through early in the fourth quarter.
Quarterback Andrew McClain found Tikey Hayes for a 68-yard touchdown pass with 11:44 remaining, cutting the deficit to 20-7. The two-play, 70-yard possession provided the Blue Bears with their first points and briefly threatened to change the direction of the contest.
But Johnson C. Smith answered with the game's decisive sequence.
With Livingstone attempting to close the gap, Salen Streater intercepted McClain in the fourth quarter, giving the Golden Bulls possession at the Blue Bears' 45-yard line.
Mazil needed only one play to capitalize, connecting with Reginald Daniel for a 45-yard touchdown with 4:21 remaining. The score restored Johnson C. Smith's 20-point advantage at 27-7 and left Livingstone with little time to mount a comeback.
The Blue Bears responded quickly. McClain connected with Davyn Reid for 70 yards to the Johnson C. Smith 4 before finding Darius Headley for a 3-yard touchdown pass with 3:04 remaining.
Livingstone had scored twice in the fourth quarter, but the late surge was not enough to overcome the deficit.
Duncan carried much of the offensive workload for Johnson C. Smith, finishing with 148 yards on 37 attempts. Mazil completed nine of 20 passes for 155 yards and a touchdown without an interception. Medley led the Golden Bulls with 57 receiving yards on two catches.
McClain completed 17 of 28 passes for 237 yards, two touchdowns and one interception for Livingstone. Hayes finished with 89 receiving yards and a touchdown on three catches, while Reid added 83 yards on four receptions.
Livingstone actually finished with more total offense, gaining 340 yards compared with 312 for Johnson C. Smith. However, the Blue Bears struggled to turn that production into points until the final quarter.
Defensively, Jamaris Stevens led Johnson C. Smith with 11 tackles, followed by Taurus Damon Jr. with 10 and Anthony Binyard with nine. Trevagne McCluskey paced Livingstone with seven tackles, while Travis Burton contributed six tackles and was responsible for several stops behind the line of scrimmage.
The victory gave Johnson C. Smith another chapter in a rivalry that stretches back to the earliest days of organized Black college athletics.
What began as a 5-0 contest on a snowy Salisbury field in 1892 has grown into one of the most historically significant traditions in HBCU football. Saturday's meeting continued that legacy, connecting the modern Golden Bulls and Blue Bears to the players who helped launch Black college football more than a century ago.
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