COLUMBIA, S.C. – The Clark Atlanta Panthers used a pair of big plays to shock the Benedict College Tigers 24-3 and spoil Benedict's Homecoming game on Saturday at Charlie W. Johnson Stadium.

Clark Atlanta picked up its first win of the season, improving to 1-6 overall and 1-2 in the SIAC. Benedict fell to 0-7 on the season and 0-2 in the SIAC.

Clark Atlanta broke a 3-3 tie late in the first half after recovering a Benedict fumble with a minute left in the half. The Panthers got a 19-yard run and followed with a 14-yard scoring pass from Matthew Vincent to Jaha McCray to take a 10-3 lead with 32 seconds before the halftime break.

In the second half, the Panthers were facing a first down from their own 2-yard line, but McCray broke to the outside and outran the Benedict defense for a 98-yard scoring run. The Panthers started another drive late in the third quarter at their own 20-yard line and drove to midfield. On the first play of the fourth quarter, Vincent found a wide-open Brenton Martin for a 52-yard touchdown pass and a 24-3 lead.

"Too many big plays, too many mistakes, and turnovers raised their ugly head again. I almost feel I have to apologize to our alumni for coming back and seeing such a bad performance on a special day," Benedict head coach Mike White said. "We've got some guys kind of banged up, and it cost us, especially in the coverage. We blew two big plays in the coverage, and it's something we've got to continue to work on."

Benedict's season-long offensive struggles were evident once again. The Tigers failed to score a touchdown for the fourth time in seven games. Benedict had just 35 yards rushing on 25 carries and finished with 122 yards of total offense. Clark Atlanta, meanwhile, finished with 206 yards rushing and 434 yards of total offense.

"We didn't see it at all today," White said about the offense, which had scored five touchdowns in the past two games and had a season-high 275 yards of total offense last week against Lane. "Again, you go back to the turnovers and the inconsistencies. We've got a lot of work to do."

The Tigers turned the ball over three times on two interceptions and one fumble. The Panthers were able to capitalize only once on those turnovers, the fumble late in the first half which led to a touchdown. Benedict managed just eight first downs and had to punt the ball nine times out of their 14 possessions.

Benedict took a 3-0 lead in the first quarter. A 54-yard punt by Brian Curry was downed at the Clark Atlanta 1-yard line. The Panthers couldn't get a first down and ended up punting from their 4-yard line. A 34-yard punt and a 12-yard return by George Myers Jr. gave the Tigers the ball at the Clark Atlanta 26-yard line. Benedict got a first-and-goal from the 3-yard line after a nine-yard pass from Patrick Hoard to Okechi Ntiasagwe, but couldn't get across the goal line and settled for a 21-yard field goal by Tory Mimbs.

Clark Atlanta later tied the game after a 12-play, 69-yard drive ended with a 23-yard field goal by Jorden Paige with 6:56 left in the second quarter.

Charles Powell led the Benedict defense with 12 total tackles, 2.5 sacks for minus 15 yards and 5.5 total tackles for a loss for minus 20 yards. He also forced one fumble.

Benedict is now on the road for the next two weeks, starting with a trip to Atlanta to take on Morehouse College next week.