A&T STATISTICAL LEADERS: LB Joseph Stuckey (13 tackles, 8 unassisted, 1.5 TFLs, LB Alex Fumbah 8 tackles, 3 unassisted, 3.0 TFLs); ROV Richie Kittles (7 tackles, 6 unassisted); ROV Stephen Davis, Jr. (5 tackles, 4 unassisted, 1 FR for TD, 2 PBUs); LB Jacob Roberts (5 tackles, 1 unassisted, 0.5 TFL, 1 PBU, 2 BLKS); QB Kingsley Ifedi (4-for-8, 42 yards, 1 INT; 7 rush att., 37 yards, 1 TD); WR Jamison Warren (6 rec., 52 yards); PK Andrew Brown (2-for-2 FGs (43), (41); 3-for-3 XPs). 

GWU STATISTICAL LEADERS: QB Bailey Fisher (21-for-31, 259 yards, 3 TDs); RB Narii Gaither (22 rush att., 81 yards; 11 rec., 104 yards, 2 TDs); WR Justin Jordan (4 rec., 127 yards, 2 TDs); DE Shai Thomas (10 tackles, 7 unassisted, 2.5 TFLs, 1.0 sacks); DE Ty French (9 tackles, 6 unassisted, 2.0 TFLs, 1.0 sacks); LB William McRainey (8 tackles, 3 unassisted, 3.0 TFLs, 1.0 sacks). 

WHY A&T DID NOT GET THE W: Penalties have been a problem for the Aggies for most of the season, and the penalty monster made another appearance on Saturday. The officials flagged A&T 12 times for whopping 144 yards. When you couple that many penalty yards with the fact A&T's offense compiled only 168 yards on 56 plays, it became too much for the Aggies to overcome.  

WHY GWU GOT THE W: Quarterback Bailey Fisher and running back Narii Gaither were terrific. Gaither needed 115 yards rushing to reach 1,000 for the season. He came up short, but he still closed his season out with a bang. Gaither posted 185 all-purpose yards and scored two touchdowns. Bailey completed 68 percent of his passes, his offensive line kept him clean most of the day, and he made wise decisions with the football throughout. In the pivotal fourth quarter, he was 6-for-8 for 72 yards and two touchdowns. He also had a rushing TD in the fourth quarter. 

CRUCIAL: It was the double pass that buried the Aggies winning season. GWU looked like a team against the ropes waiting for the final knockout punch. QB Kingsley Ifedi had just finished cruising into the end zone for an 11-yard touchdown run to give the Aggies a 20-7 fourth-quarter lead. But on 1st-and-10 from the GWU 24-yard line, the Runnin' Bulldogs ran a double pass that landed in the hands of Justin Franklin, who heaved a bomb to a wide-open Justin Jordan. Jordan waited for the ball to come down around midfield with the closest Aggie, not within 15 yards. Jordan eventually took the pass to the house to cut the Aggies lead to 20-14. 

Bhayshul Tuten fumbled the ensuing kickoff that the Bulldogs recovered at the Aggies 4. Fisher ran it in from four yards out to give the Bulldogs the lead within a matter of 17 seconds. 

EAST GREENSBORO – The future started for the North Carolina A&T football after its 13-point fourth-quarter lead disappeared in a 35-27 loss to the Gardner-Webb Runnin' Bulldogs Saturday at Truist Stadium. 

The Aggies completed their first season in the Big South Conference with a 5-6 record overall and a 3-4 mark in the conference. Defensively, the Aggies still looked strong, stopping the run, but pass defense became a struggle for the Aggies squad. 

A&T also went through its trials and tribulations offensively during the season. Their tough times mainly happened in the second half on offense. The Aggies scored a combined 21 second-half points over their last six games of the season. 

Both deficiencies showed themselves on Saturday. The Aggies surrendered 335 yards passing and four touchdowns. Offensively, the Aggies played three different quarterbacks and ended the afternoon with 168 yards of offense. 

"I think the core of what we do will always remain the same," said A&T coach Sam Washington. "But I do think we've got to get better at pass defense, particularly on the backend. I think the front is stable. But, offensively, we've got to get better at the quarterback position. Period. It's obvious we have not played well at that position." 

However, it appeared the Aggies were going to go into their offseason improvements with a win at its back. Despite GWU's effective passing game and the Aggies shortcomings on the offensive end, the Aggies held a 20-7 lead when Kingsley Ifedi (Charlotte, N.C.) eased his way into the end zone for an 11-yard touchdown run at the start of the fourth quarter. 

Two crucial turnovers and 28 GWU fourth-quarter points changed the Aggies fortunes. After the GWU executed a flawless double pass that resulted in a 76-yard touchdown, Bhayshul Tuten (Paulsboro, N.J.) fumbled the ensuing kickoff that led to a 4-yard run by GWU quarterback Bailey Fisher to give the Bulldogs a 21-20 lead. 

"That was a pivotal moment," said Washington. "But I think muffing the kickoff was the turning point. I honestly think we could have bounced back from the double pass, but to follow that with a muff was tough." 

An A&T three-and-out followed Fisher's touchdown. GWU then put together a 10-play, 67-yard drive that ended with a 7-yard touchdown pass from Fisher to Narii Gaither with 7:13 remaining. Things got worse for A&T when A.J. Thomas intercepted Ifedi at the Aggies 11. 

On a 3rd-and-18 from the A&T 19, Fisher found Gaither again across the middle for a touchdown, turning a 13-point fourth-quarter deficit into a 15-point lead with 4:53 remaining. 

But all hope was not lost. Aaron Harris (Elizabeth City, N.C.) sprinted to a 99-yard kickoff return for a touchdown to cut GWU's lead to 35-27. But GWU took a little more than three minutes off the clock with its next drive, leaving the Aggies with only 1:19 to secure a touchdown and two-point conversion. 

Freshman quarterback Zach Yeager (Minneapolis, Minn.) entered the game and could not get anything going in four plays to secure the win for the Bulldogs. Fowler started the game before Ifedi and Yeager entered in relief. 

"I learned that the league was very competitive," said Washington about the Big South. "The difference between the top and the bottom is very thin. The parity is unbelievable. I've never been in a conference where the parity is so dense."

Now with lessons learned, the Aggies look toward their future in the Big South. 

QUOTABLE: "It was a rollercoaster ride, but it was glorious. I got the opportunity to work with some of the finest young men and loved that our senior class never wavered. I found that remarkable. They could have jumped off the ship at any time and posed a problem. But they stayed focused, heard the message and delivered. They stayed positive and maintained a good attitude throughout the whole process." 

A&T head coach Sam Washington on the Aggies senior class

GAME NOTES 

• A&T's loss on Saturday dropped the Aggies to 5-6, ending their streak of consecutive winning seasons at eight. 
• A&T will not be playing postseason football for the first time in five seasons. The Aggies went to the Celebration Bowl in 2015, 2017, 2018 and 2019, and they went to the NCAA playoffs in 2016. 
• Aaron Harris' 99-yard kickoff return is the Aggies first since Malik Wison's 79-yard return in the 2018 Celebration Bowl.
• The Aggies will not finish the season nationally ranked for the first time in four seasons. 
• A&T honored 14 seniors on Saturday in OL Bilal Ali, LB Zaire Ashley, RB Kashon Baker, DL Michael Branch, LS John Davis, ROV Stephen Davis, Jr., LB Alex Fumbah, WR Ron Hunt, QB Kingsley Ifedi, ROV Will Jones, ROV Richie Kittles, RB Jah-Maine Martin, DB Najee Reams and OL De'Jour Simpson.
• Martin finished his career with 2,624 rushing yards, finishing as the Aggies eight all-time leading rusher. 
• Wide receiver Jamison Warren's six receptions are the most by an individual Aggie this season.