DAYTONA BEACH (Interstat) — Keely Watson threw two touchdown passes and South Carolina State remained unbeaten with a 31-21 victory over Bethune-Cookman in an NCAA Football Championship Division game Saturday at Daytona Stadium.

Watson, a 6-foot-2, 190-pound quarterback from Jacksonville, Fla., completed 14 of 19 passes for 146 yards and two touchdowns. He connected with Darius Thompson on a 32-yard scoring strike and also found Troy Hillman for a touchdown as South Carolina State built and protected a lead. Watson had thrown for 186 yards and a touchdown in the previous game against Furman. Josh Shaw added 14 carries for 54 yards and two touchdowns, scoring on runs of 4 yards and 1 yard. Jett Jackson kicked a 34-yard field goal and made his extra-point attempts. Jackson also missed a 52-yard field goal in the third quarter. Malik Brightwell caught one pass for 6 yards and returned two kickoffs for 39 yards. Martavious Collins caught one pass for 3 yards. DJ Maultsby had one reception for 5 yards. Malaqhi Jones caught one pass for 11 yards. Shamontae Burgess had two receptions for 18 yards. Jahzae Kimbrough made three catches for 32 yards. Julian Milligan rushed once for 1 yard. Max’Ceon Cobb punted four times for 175 yards.

Bethune-Cookman countered behind quarterback Tyler Jefferson, who completed 13 of 19 passes for 96 yards and scored on a 63-yard run. Rashon Brown rushed 11 times for 55 yards and a touchdown, breaking free for a 45-yard score, and added three receptions for 14 yards. Isaiah Daniel completed his only pass for a 35-yard touchdown to Josh Evans, who finished with four catches for 65 yards. Daniel also returned six kickoffs for 133 yards, rushed twice for 1 yard and caught two passes for 14 yards. Rickie Shaw II caught two passes for 18 yards. Willie Anderson had two receptions for 11 yards. Micheal Walker caught one pass for 9 yards. Joel Morris also saw action for the Wildcats.

South Carolina State’s defense produced pressure throughout. Joshua Barker recorded four tackles, 2.5 sacks and two quarterback hurries. Ka Von Chisolm made seven tackles and 1.5 sacks. Roderick Kelly Jr., Jadin Jones and Zanjerry Dunham each finished with seven, seven and six tackles, respectively. Jordan Franklin added five tackles. Myles Dixon had four tackles and half a sack. Jayden Fuller recorded two tackles and half a sack. Jordan Dollard had two tackles and one quarterback hurry. Sharmari Reed, Marquis Bradley, Kwantre’ Harry, Zayveon Wells and Marion Smokes each made two tackles. Dominic Reaves, Marcus Samuels, Matthew Joines and Marquis Lane-Owens each had one tackle. Jabin Ford returned two kickoffs for 53 yards and made one tackle. Caleb Williams also appeared in the game.

Bethune-Cookman was led defensively by Joseph Evans, who made 10 tackles and one sack. Naim Lassiter added nine tackles. Preston Thompson and Malik Stinnett each had eight tackles. Isaiah Washburn finished with seven tackles. Stephen Sparrow had five tackles and one quarterback hurry. Myron Shafer III made four tackles. Jaden Davis had three tackles. Timothy Gulley recorded two tackles and one quarterback hurry.

South Carolina State struck first in the first quarter when Shaw capped a drive with a 4-yard touchdown run. Bethune-Cookman answered quickly when Jefferson broke loose for a 63-yard touchdown run. In the second quarter, Watson found Thompson for a 32-yard touchdown. Jackson later made a 34-yard field goal, and Ryder Goodwin missed a 38-yard field goal for Bethune-Cookman just before halftime. Watson also connected with Hillman for a touchdown. Jackson missed a 52-yard field goal in the third quarter. Bethune-Cookman then pulled closer when Brown scored on a 45-yard run. The Wildcats struck again when Daniel hit Evans for a 35-yard touchdown. South Carolina State sealed the game in the fourth quarter when Shaw scored on a 1-yard run. Goodwin made the extra points for Bethune-Cookman, while Jackson converted for the Bulldogs.

South Carolina State has been dominant at times this season. The Bulldogs opened with wins over Savannah State, Florida A&M, Virginia State and Furman before beating Bethune-Cookman. They scored 87 points against Savannah State and 66 against Virginia State. Bethune-Cookman beat Virginia Lynchburg and Stetson before falling to UCF. The Wildcats scored 62 points against Virginia Lynchburg and 43 against Stetson. Both teams will continue their schedules with conference and nonconference matchups ahead.

South Carolina State improved to 5-0 with the win. Bethune-Cookman fell to 2-2. The Bulldogs have won their first five games of the season and will return home to face Citadel. Bethune-Cookman will host Alabama State. South Carolina State is next scheduled to play at Charleston Southern. Bethune-Cookman will visit Alabama A&M. The Bulldogs also have upcoming games against Norfolk State, Morgan State, Howard, North Carolina Central and Delaware State. The Wildcats are set to face Mississippi Valley State, Jackson State, Arkansas-Pine Bluff, Southern, Grambling and Florida A&M.

Interstat’s game simulator had projected a final score of Bethune-Cookman 34, South Carolina State 32. Interstat’s ELO system had projected South Carolina State with a 74.4 percent probability to win. Bethune-Cookman had been installed as a pregame favorite with a spread of -15.5. The total score of 52 went over the over/under line of 59.5.