NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Kendric Rhymes rushed for 174 yards and two long touchdowns and Tennessee State held off North Carolina A&T 24-21 on Saturday when the Aggies missed a field goal in the final seconds of the season opener.

The Aggies drove from their own 13-yard line to the Tennessee State 21 on their final drive, but Andrew Brown missed a 38-yard field goal try with 6 seconds remaining.

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Braxton Thomas’ 1-yard touchdown run gave the Aggies a 14-10 halftime lead. Earlier in the half, Wesley Graves had a 40-yard TD run for the Aggies and Tennessee State’s DeVaughn Slaughter scored on an 82-yard pass from Jonathan Palmer.

Tennessee State went ahead 24-14 on second-half touchdown runs of 60 and 51 yards by Rhymes.

The Aggies then got within 24-21 on Thomas’ 66-yard touchdown pass to Amonte Jones — the game’s fifth touchdown of 40 yards or more.

The Tigers had one first down on their next two possessions and left the Aggies at their own 13-yard line with about two minutes to go before the dramatic final drive.

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Thomas completed 11 of 13 passes for 166 yards for the Aggies.

Palmer threw for 123 yards for the Tigers, with Slaughter catching four passes for 102 yards.

It was Reggie Barlow’s first game as head coach of the Tigers.

The game was Tennessee State’s annual John A. Merritt Classic, honoring the coach of the Tigers from 1963 to 1983. He guided the Tigers to four undisputed national championships among historically black colleges, as ranked by the Sheridan Poll. He amassed a lifetime coaching record of 172-33-1. ___

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