PHILADELPHIA — They billed this the “Battle of the Legends.”
Here were Norfolk State’s Michael Vick and Delaware State’s DeSean Jackson, once teammates for five years with the Philadelphia Eagles, returning to their old Lincoln Financial Field stomping ground to square off as rookie coaching opponents.
Of course, on the surface with Vick’s Spartans coming in 1-7, while Jackson’s Hornets were 5-3, at least on paper it figured to be more like a massacre.
But apparently Norfolk State never got the memo.
From the outset the Spartans showed they were in this for the long haul, bottling up DSU’s usually dynamic offense most of the the night.
Unfortunately, it wasn’t enough, as Delaware State finally got it going late, scoring twice in a 3:02 span, enabling them to survive a desperate late Norfolk State rally 27-20.
While the defense kept it close most of the way, the offense — other than one second quarter drive — was never really able to get in sync until late. Quarterback Otto Koons was under heavy pressure all night and wasn’t helped by open receivers dropping catchable balls.
It had to make Vick, who threw 57 touchdown passes and 9,984 yards during his Eagles career — many of them here — wince.
Still, his team managed to stay within striking distance until the fourth quarter when the Hornets finally began to buzz. Until then they had held down Delaware State’s high powered running game, which came in averaging 315.1 yards a game and was coming off a game in which three Hornets surpassed the century mark on the ground while they scored 70 points.
Michael Vick and DeSean Jackson share a long embrace after Delaware State beat Norfolk State, 27-20. pic.twitter.com/PKf2dqpKyJ
— Devin Jackson (@RealD_Jackson) October 31, 2025
But this was a different story. Delaware State managed just one mere first-half field goal — yet still had the lead thanks to Amir Anderson’s blocked punt, which he recovered in the end zone, giving them a 10-6 halftime lead.
That came after Norfolk State had gone ahead on a 10-play, 75-yard drive following that 30-yard Patrick Fisher field goal. It was capped on a Kuhns 13-yard scoring pass over the middle to JJ Evans. But when Evan Helfrich shanked the extra point the Spartans had to settle for a 6-3 lead.
That lead quickly disappeared when Delaware State’s Anderson not only roared in to block Marco Peery’s punt from deep in NSU territory, but was able to pick it up in the end zone for a touchdown.
That undoubtedly gladdened Jackson’s heart, since he was often a central figure in the punt game. While blocking them was never his thing, returning them was, In fact, he took four to the house during his 15-year NFL career, including a memorable one in 2009 to beat the Giants at the Meadowlands on the game’s final play.
Despite holding that precarious10-6 lead going into the lockerroom Jackson clearly wasn’t happy, telling ESPN as he left the field his players “were having trouble playing under the big lights.”
Vick, meanwhile, had to be thrilled with his defense, which had limited the Hornets to that lone field goal while constantly swarming quarterback Kaiden Bennett and limiting him to 54 yards passing.
But things began to change after intermission.
After an exchange of punts, Delaware State finally got its running game going, driving deep into NSU territory before settling for another short Fisher field goal to boost the lead to 13-6
It remained that way heading into the fourth quarter before Delaware State — aided by a third down roughing the passer penalty to sustain the drive — finally got some insurance. The payoff came on when Bennett bought some time on third and nine, before finding Tahmir Ellis alone in the end zone for a 24-yard scoring strike. The Hornets, too, then missed the extra point to keep it 19-7
But just when you figured this one was over, Norfolk State had other ideas. Going deep from his own 24, Kuhns’ persistence was rewarded when Evans made a juggling catch over his defender, then broke away for a stunning 76-yard score to cut it to 19-13 with 7:20 left.
Their upset hopes didn’t last for long, as moments later James Jones burst up the middle untouched and rumbled 76 yards to the end zone. When Del State tacked on a two-point conversion the lead swelled to 27-13
The Spartans tried to mount another comeback, getting all the way to the Hornets’ 11, before Ellis picked off Kuhns in the end zone to kill the drive but not their hopes. Moments later after blocking a punt the Spartans were back in the red zone, threatening to again make it a one-score game.
By the time they did, Kuhns hitting DreSean Kendrick from 11 yards out, only 54 seconds remained. And when Delaware State recovered the ensuing onsides kick, the Hornets could finally breathe a sigh of relief.
For more on the game, including postgame reaction, check pilotonline.com and dailypress.com later.
