Harrington Gardiner | Staff Writer
The Hampton Pirates football team got off to a rough 2018 start by losing three of their first four games. They suffered tough defeats to Monmouth, Northern Iowa and Charleston Southern in September.
Hampton struggled on both sides of the ball in their losses, and inconsistency was an issue.
Then the calendar turned.
The Pirates are now winners of two straight games, downing Lane University 41-8 and edging Presbyterian College 24-23.
Hampton (3-3) heads into the weekend looking forward to its homecoming game against Virginia University of Lynchburg.
How did the Pirates rebound?
In Hampton’s bounce-back win against Lane, the Pirates controlled the tempo and had everything going their way. The Pirates had more passing yards, rushing yards, first downs and third-down conversions.
Quarterback Delmon Williams was 15-of-21, with four touchdown passes, 321 yards through the air and zero turnovers. Williams also had 115 yards rushing.
Ronald Bell was another key contributor to the Pirates’ success. Bell caught four passes for 137 yards, including an 85-yard touchdown reception.
On defense, the Pirates played lockdown, surrendering only one touchdown and a two-point conversion.
In the win against Presbyterian, the victory was in a similar fashion.
The Pirates controlled the pace and rushed for 262 yards while allowing 64 yards on the ground.
Hampton escaped with the win after a missed extra point attempt.
Now the Pirates are sitting at 3-3 on the season, and everything is going right for them now that didn’t go right for them at the beginning.
The Hampton Script 