Box Score FRANKFORT, KY. -- The Kentucky State football team fell in its 2015 home opener, with Johnson C. Smith coming away with a 38-14 win on Saturday at Alumni Stadium.

The majority of the Thorobreds' highlights came on the defensive side of the ball, where Raymond Malone accounted for both of Kentucky State's touchdowns. Malone capped a series of three turnovers in the first 2:22 of play by scooping up a Desean Binyard fumble and taking it 44 yards to the end zone for an early 7-0 lead. In the third quarter, Malone jumped in front of a Golden Bulls' pass at their own 3-yard line for the Thorobreds' other score.

The Kentucky State defense held Johnson C. Smith to 238 yards of offense, but Kentucky State managed just 139 yards of offense, turned the ball over five times, and had a field goal and a punt blocked. The Golden Bulls scored 21 points off turnovers and started five of six scoring drives inside Thorobreds' territory.

"We had some good plays, and I don't want to say we played badly on defense, we were solid," said head coach Josh Dean. "We didn't put ourselves in a position to succeed. It starts up front, and we weren't able to protect, dictate, or take control of the line of scrimmage."

After the Thorobreds took the lead, Johnson C. Smith took advantage of a 45-yard kickoff return by Carlo Thomas, and found the end zone four plays later on a keeper by quarterback Harold Herbin from a yard out. The Golden Bulls took a 10-7 lead to the second quarter after an Erik Amaya field goal, and took advantage of a blocked punt with an 11-yard touchdown pass from Herbin to Roderick Carter to go up 17-7. Before halftime, Johnson C. Smith would again take advantage of a short field from a fumble to go 30 yards in four plays with Binyard plunging in from a yard out to make the score 24-7 at the break.

Malone's interception pulled the Thorobreds to within 10 at 24-14, but it would be their last points on the day. Johnson C. Smith pulled away by turning an interception into a 12-yard touchdown pass from Herbin to Bryan Chambers and getting a blocked field goal return for a touchdown by Keith Darnell.

Though the Thorobreds drop to 0-2 on the season, Dean sees a learning opportunity for his team and room for improvement.

"I expected us to have a different outcome, but we didn't come out and play like we know how to play," said Dean. "We've got one more game before we start in the conference, and we're going to turn it around. From a physicality standpoint, to how we execute, to playcalling, everything from top to bottom, it will be addressed."

The Thorobreds return to the road for their final non-conference game when they travel to face Virginia State next Saturday at 2 p.m.