DURHAM, N.C.  - Shaw's offense and special teams both fired on all cylinders, led by running back Marquise Grizzle and quarterback James Stallons, as the Bears rolled over Fayetteville State 45-28 in a game played at Durham County Memorial Stadium Saturday afternoon.

The win evens Shaw's season record at 3-3 and moves them to 2-1 in the CIAA.  Fayetteville State drops to 1-5, 0-3 in conference.

"It was a win we needed," said Shaw head coach Robert Massey.  "I thought we won definitively in two phases - offense and special teams.  I always say that if you win in two phases, you can win the game."

The offense was led by the two-headed beast of Stallons and Grizzle.  Grizzle dazzled both on the ground and through the air, rushing for 163 yards - his third straight 100-plus yard game - and one touchdown, while also hauling in five passes for another 103 yards and a touchdown. 

" That's an outstanding young man.  I thank God we got him," said Massey.  "He's a true freshman and is only going to get better.  He's wiry and strong. "

Stallons lit it up in the air, completing 17 of 30 for 360 yards and four touchdowns, as well as orchestrating an offense that collected 545 total yards.

" I think Stallons has come into his own.  He's getting more into a leadership role," said Massey. "I think he showed us in practice this week that this has become his team.  If you're a senior quarterback, you are expected to lead your team."

Perhaps most surprising for the Bears was the performance of its special teams unit.  After struggling early in the season - and even sending in Stallons to punt in two different games - the specialty unit found its footing today, with Vinny Pacifico booting three punts for an average of 32.7 yards and George Mulumba hitting six PATs as well as a 40-yard field goal.

The only possible downside to the afternoon was the performance of the Shaw defense, which gave up 392 yards to Fayetteville State.

" I thought defensively we sputtered a little too much," said Massey.  "We were lucky in some ways to get this win.  We've got a lot of people who are banged up.  Our linebacking corps is nicked up.  We've got to get healthy and then I think we'll be all right."

Fayetteville State actually took the early lead, taking the ball 61 yards on their first drive, ending with a pass from Andreas Hudson to Anthony Duran for a two-yard touchdown.

Shaw answered on their next drive, with Stallons and Grizzle leading the Bears downfield.  FSU stopped the drive at the 22, but Mulumba booted the field goal from 40 yards out to cut the Bronco lead to 7-3. 

On the ensuing kickoff, the Bears recovered the onside kick at the FSU 35.  After a one-yard Grizzle rush, Stallons completed a pass to Derek Grant to cover the rest of the distance and the Bears took a 10-7 lead with 4:26 left in the first quarter.

FSU took the ball on the next possession and started a steady drive down the field.  After the second quarter got underway, the Broncos fell short of the goal line, but Antonio Mayo hit a 35-yard field goal to tie the game at ten.

With 10:35 left in the first half, Stallons and the Bears got the ball on the Shaw 17.  Stallons then connected on five of seven pass attempts, including a 14-yard strike to Andre Polite that gave Shaw a 17-10 lead.

After the Shaw defense shut down the Broncos, the Bears again got the ball deep in their own territory.  Grizzle slashed through the right side of the line to move Shaw out of the shadow of their end zone, then Stallons hit De'Angelo Ruffin for 14 yards, then connected on a short pass to Grizzle that the running back turned into a 59-yard gain and a 24-10 lead for Shaw with 1:42 left in the half.

Fayetteville State answered with a drive of their own, but the Shaw defense rallied as the Broncos approached the end zone, forcing FSU into a field goal that cut the Shaw lead to 24-13 going into the half.

The second half opened with two drives that set the tone for the rest of the game.  While FSU had good starting position on their own 43, the Shaw defense shut them down, forcing a punt that pinned the Bears back at their own six.  The FSU drive, though, ate up nearly four and a half minutes of clock, a benefit to the Bears with the lead.

Grizzle opened the Shaw drive with two rushes - one for 16 and one for 13 yards, followed by two Stallons' completions - one to Travis McDonald for 12 yards and the other to Ta'Juan Brown for 75 yards and the touchdown.  Shaw now led 31-13 with 8:45 left in the half.

On the next drive, Fayetteville State put together a lengthy drive, largely on the back of Colon Bailey, who rushed for 29 yards, including the one yard that put the Broncos in the end zone to cut the Shaw lead to 31-20.  While the Broncos scored, they took another four and a half minutes to do so, leading themselves an 11-point deficit with 3:55 remaining in the third.

Grizzle took over for the Bears on the ensuing drive, rushing four times for 73 yards, culminating in a 12-yard rush that put another six points on the scoreboard for the Bears.  Mulumba's PAT extended the Bear lead to 38-20.

With 11:26 left in the game, the Broncos got the ball on their own ten, and constructed another touchdown drive, this one culminating in a Hudson touchdown pass to Andre Montgomery.  The two-point conversion - another Hudson to Montgomery connection - was good, cutting the Bear lead to ten - 38-28.

Shaw began another long drive on their next possession, but the FSU defense forced a fumble, which the Broncos recovered.  But the Bear defense stepped up, forcing the Broncos backwards 15 yards. 

The Bears - with both Odom and Stallons now sitting on the sideline - went backwards nine yards on their next drive, but ate up a minute and a half, punting the ball away with 1:41 left on the clock and holding a ten-point lead.

On the third play of the FSU drive, Darnell Evans picked off a Hudson pass, and returned it 48 yards for a Shaw touchdown and a 45-28 lead. 

On the very next FSU offensive play, Evans again intercepted Hudson, this time returning it for 17 yards with 32 seconds left on the clock.  The Bears went into the victory formation and came off the field with the 17-point win.

Darius Moffett led the Bears in tackles with nine, including six solo hits.  He also broke up two passes and had one quarterback hurry.   Oscar Petty had eight tackles  with one tackle for a loss.  Evans finished with seven tackles - five solo - as well as his two interceptions. 

Montgomery had 110 yards rushing on 16 carries.  Hudson finished the game 19 for 37 for 216 yards with two interceptions and two touchdowns.  Kasunn Williams was the leading receiver with six catches for 77 yards.

Defensively for the Broncos, four players had six tackles:  Reginald Paker, Marquel Gathers, Marcus Witherspoon and Michael Johnson.  Gathers had two tackles for a loss and Witherspoon had a sack.

The Bears return to action Saturday when they travel to Salisbury, N.C. to take on Livingstone - who suffered their first CIAA loss to Saint Augustine's today.  Shaw returns home on October 20 when they host Johnson C. Smith in their homecoming game.