The Eagles maintained their winning streak (5-0 overall, 2-0 CIAA) over Bowie State University — without starting quarterback Adrian Warren.

Junior Charles Futrell stepped in to replace Warren, who was out with a shoulder injury from last week’s game.

This was Futrell’s second appearance as quarterback since the 2003 Aggie-Eagle Classic.

BSU felt its first upset of the season as Futrell, whose regular position is wide receiver, completed 9 of 16 passes for 101 yards, including a 21-yard touchdown pass, and rushed for 55 yards. He also scored on a 1-yard option keeper.

Futrell, an all-conference quarterback from E.E. Smith High School in Fayetteville, made a smooth transition from wide receiver to quarterback with only three days of practice.

Because he doesn’t normally play quarterback, Futrell said he had to act “out of character” for some plays.

“They were bringing the guys out on the blitz, so I had to do what was necessary to gain yards,” said Futrell.

The Eagles established dominance early in the game as sophomore Brandon Alston scored the first touchdown of the game with a 54-yard punt return.

Corey Brown rushed for more than 100 yards — the second time in two games, amassing 107 yards, more than a third of the Eagles’ total offensive yards against the No.1 NCAA Division II defensive unit.

While the Eagles offense was gaining yards, the Eagles defense shut down BSU’s attack to maintain the lead. Junior defensive lineman Greg Peterson led the Eagles defense with 10 tackles, including three hits that forced lost yardage and a sack.

Defensive lineman Ronald Dowdy, along with defensive backs Andre George and Derrick Ray, amassed eight tackles each.

The Eagles kept BSU’s Isaac Redmon, the conference’s top rusher, to only 82 yards on 20 carries.

Quarterback Lamar Manigo completed only 9 of 23 passes for 176 yards and three touchdowns.

“We were just trying to make a statement to the CIAA teams,” said Ray. “I was just trying to be a leader. This game meant a lot to us because Bowie was undefeated.”

Ray added two hits for a loss with a sack, two pass breakups and a blocked field goal to his record.