CHARLESTON, S.C. - The Buccaneers struck early and often en route to a 38-13 victory over Savannah State, Friday night at Ted Wright Stadium. The Buccaneers took just 3:38 off the clock on their first two drives, using long plays to take an early lead on the Tigers.

The Buccaneers amassed more than 450 yards of total offense, punting just twice in the game. Drafts led the way with 87 yards on the ground, and 276 through the air, completing 20 of 27 passes. Maurice Price was on the receiving end of nine of those, recording 75 yards. Senior Bryant Burch caught three balls for 101 yards. Junior Jonna Lee led CSU defensively with nine tackles, including three tackles for loss.

The Bucs showed a determination early to establish a running game as they were facing the nation's 12th-best passing defense. On the first drive, the Bucs used four running plays to drive the ball 53 yards and go up 7-0 early. The drive was made possible by a 25-yard run by senior Robert Adams, and capped by an 11-yard touchdown run by Drafts.

"Both of our running backs did a great job running the ball today," said CSU head coach Jay Mills. "Collin did a great job of directing the offense and reading the defense. This game helped show that we have multiple weapons."

On the second CSU drive, the defense got the better of the battle as Drafts threw his third interception inside the 20 in as many games, and gave Savannah State their first interception of the season.

There was just 1:53 to go in the first quarter before Maurice Price caught his first pass of the game. Making the defense watch Price paid off as the next play went 41 yards to Bryant Burch who cut between two Tiger backs and caught the ball in the end zone to increase the CSU lead to 14-0 with 1:17 remaining.

"Before the game, Collin told me that they would try to get me in the end zone," said senior wide out Bryant Burch, who topped the 100-yard mark for the first time in his career. "When I started football, Coach Mills said that they would try to use my speed. We came in with a good game plan and we executed it very well."

After yet another stop by the Buccaneer defense, the offense got the ball back with 89 yards to go to increase their lead. The Bucs got 58 of that back on two passes as Drafts and Burch connected on a 30-yard pass, and then Drafts found senior Ryan Robertson on a 28-yard pass to set the Bucs up with a first-and-goal on the one-yard line. Drafts would again do the honors as he stepped into the end zone to put CSU up 21-0 with 9:01 still to go in the first half.

The Tigers would come right back with the help of a 52-yard pass to junior Del Ben to put the Tigers deep in CSU territory. Sophomore Louis Bacon would cap the drive on a nine-yard run up the middle to cut the lead to 21-7 with 7:01 to go in the second quarter.

The momentum wouldn't stay with SSU for long as CSU put together a nine-play, 75-yard drive of their own, as Drafts and Price found their connection three times, including a two-yard touchdown pass, putting CSU back up 28-7 thanks to Nick Ellis' fourth successful PAT.

With time running out in the first half, the Buccaneers elected to use some timeouts to get the ball back with just over a minute to go. The decision looked as if it would pay off as a 56-yard punt return by C.J. Hirschman set the Bucs up on the SSU 19-yard line. On a scramble to pick up a first down, Drafts had the ball stripped, giving the ball back to the Tigers, and keeping the score at 28-7 in favor of the Buccaneers at halftime.

Coming out of the half, it was the Tiger defense that got on track first, stopping the Bucs and forcing the first CSU punt of the day. The Tiger offense followed suit, as they drove down the field getting inside the red-zone and threatened to score. Junior Jon Carmon ended the drive with no damage, as he picked off a pass just on the goal line, and returned it out to the 24-yard line.

The remainder of the third quarter was a stalemate, as neither team could move the ball enough to put any points on the board.

The Bucs would increase their lead to 35-7 on their first drive of the fourth quarter, and would strike again as they got the ball on the SSU 23 yard line, thanks to a fumble by the Tigers. The SSU defense would hold and surrender no points, when CSU junior Nick Ellis missed a 41-yard field goal attempt.

CSU would make up for it as the first play from scrimmage would be picked off by redshirt freshman Kevin Mitchell, who would return it right back to the 23-yard line in SSU territory as the CSU offense threatened again. This time, a 37-yard field goal by Ellis would be good and increase the lead to 38-7.

Savannah State's Anthony Humphries took the ensuing kickoff back 93 yards for a touchdown, but with time running down, the two streaks continued. CSU's winning streak moved to 10 consecutive games, while the Tigers lost their 19th-straight.

"We can certainly relate to the situation that Savannah State is in," said Mills, who suffered through a 1-11 season, just three years ago. "They play hard and you can definitely tell that Coach Lemon has them headed in the right direction."