LORMAN &045; Here’s a vital sign those young players on defense for Alcorn State are beginning to grow up.

What was another rough day at stopping the run wasn’t nearly as hard to swallow as all those previous outings. The Braves surrendered 267 yards rushing Saturday to Mississippi Valley &045; three yards shy of a season-worst mark &045; but clamped down at the right times to come away with the 31-30 win in Itta Bena.

Credit some of it to those young players in the trenches &045; new starters at three of the seven positions up front &045; and a secondary that continues to make its push as the best cover team in the conference.

The lesson of the afternoon? Keep on fighting no matter what.

&uot;A lot of people don’t realize this, but we’re playing eight new starters on defense,&uot; Alcorn head coach Johnny Thomas said. &uot;They’re freshmen right out of high school and red-shirt freshmen. They have done an outstanding job at this particular point. We’re happy to be in the position we’re in. They’re very talented, and the only thing they’re lacking is game experience.

&uot;As we continue to play teams who run the football, they get accustomed to different blocking schemes and see how different teams run the football. I think our defense is going to show up and do a pretty good job against the run.&uot;

The Delta Devils were able to run the ball effectively at times, but in that showdown Saturday of rivalry schools both teams kept making big plays throughout the course of the game.

Valley had the 30-18 lead before Alcorn put up two touchdowns to take the one-point lead. Then the Braves got a key interception from Jeffrey Hobbs to wrap up the game.

&uot;I have to take my hat off to my team,&uot; Valley head coach Willie Totten said. &uot;They played very, very well. We felt really good going into this game, and we felt we could move the football. The kids played as hard as they could possibly play. To go in and dominate that game like we did and still lose, it’s disappointing.&uot;

The Braves had trouble up front, but that’s when they leaned on senior middle linebacker Leo Nobles, who had another big games while being named SWAC Defensive Player of the Week. He showed again how big of a role he plays at middle since being moved there four games ago by finishing with 15 tackles, one tackle for loss, one interception and one hurry.

Nobles, who started the season at strongside linebacker, came up with his pick in the second quarter after the Devils moved past midfield while holding a 14-12 lead.

&uot;He’s still banged up a little bit, but he’s playing through pain,&uot; Thomas said. &uot;He’s not very comfortable at that position at this particular point. If we left him at sam, he’d probably be playing a little better than he’s playing. If he would have been playing that position since training camp, I think we’d see a much, much better Leo Nobles at middle linebacker.&uot;

And like in any other big rivalry game, each side pointed to one big play that really turned the momentum. The Braves were holding an 18-17 lead in the third quarter when they held Valley to a punt from its own 15, but they were flagged for roughing the punter to give the Devils a first down.

Twelve plays later &045; including a huge third-and-10 pass completion &045; the Devils punched it in on a 5-yard run from Cotton for a 23-18 lead.

Then at the start of the fourth quarter Aries Nelson hit Shang Moore on a 31-yard pass to set up another Cotton touchdown run for a 30-18 lead.

&uot;That gave them the momentum they needed to have for the third quarter and the first few minutes of the fourth quarter,&uot; Thomas said. &uot;We were very fortunate to get out of there. Valley played extremely well. They really prepared for us. We just had to realize if we kept pushing and kept fighting we’d ultimately win the game, and fortunately we were able to do that.&uot;

Totten pointed to a key play the Braves made late to take the momentum for good. The Braves were held to fourth-and-11 at the 50

trailing 30-18 on a drive that had started at their own 41, but Donald Carrie hit Charlie Spiller on a 50-yard pass for a touchdown that cut the lead to five.

The Devils then had a 33-yard field goal try blocked by Quentin Sullivan, and the Braves took the lead when Carrie hit Nate Hughes on a 10-yard TD pass with just 1:43 left in the game.

Valley got down to the Alcorn 28 before Jeffrey Hobbs came up with an interception to seal it.

&uot;We gained a lot of experience from that game,&uot; Totten said. &uot;You’re talking about a young team that is growing up, and we’re going through a lot of growing pains. You have to experience some things for yourself, and experience right now is the best teacher. But I can’t take anything away from Alcorn. Alcorn has a fine team, and defensively they made the stops when they needed to have the stops.&uot;

NOTES &045; Carrie was named SWAC Offensive Player of the Week for the second time this season. He also topped 10,000 yards passing for his career, second in school history behind Steve McNair Š Alcorn offensive coordinator John McKenzie was inducted into the Jackson State Hall of Fame Friday after starring for the Tigers from 1981 to 1984 Š Cotton was named SWAC Newcomer of the Week Š Carrie’s 245.1 yards passing per game is now tops in the conference.