The NFL Network's Sunday broadcast of the Black College Football Hall of Fame Classic from Canton, Ohio, focused on Jada Byers, Virginia Union University's junior running back, with good reason.

Byers led all FBS, FCS and Division II rushers with 1,928 yards last season. The Panthers faced Morehouse College in the season opener for both teams and the Maroon Tigers also focused on Byers, a 5-foot-7, 180-pounder from Hammonton, N.J.

Byers and the Panthers started slowly, but came on strong in a 45-13 victory.

Byers scored on runs of 29 and 24 yards, and one yard. The game's offensive MVP finished with 147 yards on 24 carries, but the Panthers took charge behind strong defense that featured junior linebacker Jabrill Norman. Norman, the game's defensive MVP, intercepted a pass and returned it 68 yards for a touchdown in the second quarter to give the Panthers a 14-0 lead.

That was the halftime score, and after Morehouse blocked a VUU punt for a TD, Norman set up Virginia Union's third-quarter touchdown by forcing a fumble and recovering the ball in Morehouse territory. Byers followed that with a 24-yard TD run that made it 21-7 with 1:29 left in the third quarter.

The Panthers partially blocked a Maroon Tigers' punt and then reached Morehouse's one on a reverse pass. Byers' short TD run gave VUU a 28-7 lead with 14:56 remaining. VUU stretched the lead to 35-7 with 12:08 remaining, and 42-7 with 8:25 left.

Byers in 2022 was named the winner of the Willie Lanier Award, which goes to the premier non-Division I player in Virginia, was named second team All-American by the Associated Press, and was one of nine finalists for the Harlon Hill Award, Division II's version of the Heisman Trophy.

He is the key figure on VUU's offense, and also returns kickoffs and punts for the Panthers, who were picked No. 3 in the CIAA preseason poll, behind Fayetteville State and Bowie State.

"I was extremely happy for our student-athletes to be able to participate in such a great event, hopefully we get invited back," said VUU Head Football Coach Dr. Alvin Parker.  "Our guys played well and were able to make some big plays when we needed them. I feel there is still work to do moving forward, but what I've found out is that this team loves work".

Morehouse, a member of the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference, comes off a 1-9 year and last posted a winning record in 2018. The Maroon Tigers, from Atlanta, were picked to finish last in the 13-team SIAC.

According to the Associated Press and Nielsen's cable estimates, the NFL Network is available to 51.1 million customers, which is the most for a network run by a professional league or college conference. Virginia Union football had never received that level of national exposure.

Virginia Union comes off a season in which it went 9-2 (most wins since 2007) and 7-1 in the CIAA, earning its first slot in the NCAA Division II playoffs since 2015. Through regular-season achievement, VUU also earned an NCAA home playoff game for the first time since 1990. The Panthers fell to Wingate 32-7 at Willie Lanier Field in Hovey Stadium.

VUU next plays at Shaw Saturday.