PINE BLUFF, Ark. &045; Don’t look for things to get back to normal anytime soon &045; maybe not until 2006.

Normal game-day routine includes arriving a day before a game, getting a Friday workout in and getting up Saturday fully refreshed to play a game. Arkansas-Pine Bluff found itself in a predicament where it couldn’t find a hotel anywhere close to Alcorn the night prior to Saturday’s game.

So Alcorn officials pushed the kickoff back to 6 p.m. instead of the initial 2 p.m.

And that will make things a little easier on the Golden Lions, who will arrive Saturday morning ready to play.

&uot;We were originally scheduled to stay in V, and those rooms are confiscated,&uot; UAPB head coach Mo Fort said. &uot;We thought we had some rooms in Jackson, and those rooms are no longer available, either. The option is would there be some dorm rooms that we could get into there. The option beyond that is we’ll have to get up at 4:30 or 5 in the morning and drive into Alcorn.&uot;

Hotel rooms are scarce enough as it right now, and finding one to accommodate a collegiate football team and support staff is nothing short of a miracle. Even the University of Tennessee had to fly in Monday morning in order to play LSU since lodging was unavailable there, too.

&uot;We wanted to make this move as a way to accommodate UAPB with their travel to the game while also remaining sensitive to the victims of hurricanes Katrina and Rita,&uot; ASU athletic director Robert Raines said. &uot;We believe this is the best solution for all parties involved.&uot;

It’s a solution the Braves are familiar with. While last week’s trip to Alabama State followed normal protocol, their opener against Southeastern Louisiana was anything but. That game had to be rescheduled for 4 p.m. to Alcorn to arrive earlier in the day and leave following the game.

&uot;I lament for UAPB because they’re in that situation,&uot; Alcorn head coach Johnny Thomas said. &uot;We were in that very same situation, and we had to leave at 7 o’clock to go to Hammond and play the same day. We are all experiencing discomfort with hotel accommodations. Believe me, I don’t like traveling the day of the game. Traveling the day of the game is a huge inconvenience for a football team.&uot;

It makes things hard for the Lions, who are enduring the adversity while trying to get on track and claim their first win of the season. The Lions lost last week in St. Louis to Tuskegee, ranked No. 9 in Division II, after falling to Mississippi Valley, Bethune-Cookman and Alabama State to open the season.

Saturday’s loss was an improvement on the defensive side in Tuskegee’s 13-9 win. Up until them, UAPB had allowed at least 30 points each game.

&uot;They have some outstanding athletes and quick athletes,&uot; Fort said. &uot;They executed well. Our defense played tough most of the time, and it was a big improvement. They were still able to score 13 points. Our offense really wasn’t able to sustain anything over a period of time. Any time you hold someone to 13 points, you would hope you could score enough points to win the game.&uot;

A big key may have been UAPB’s Bass combination of Justin and Charles Bass. The two combined for 28 tackles and three tackles for loss of yards as the defensive unit put together its best showing of the season, and Justin Bass leads the team with 47 tackles.

It helped the Lions’ defense move up to seventh in the conference, but the offense remains the lowest-scoring and the most turnover-prone.

&uot;They just fall in there together,&uot; Fort said. &uot;Justin Bass has been playing very well this year for us. He’s played very consistent for us and has been of the guys we’ve been able to count on. Charles Bass was starting, lost his position, came back and made a great contribution to the game on Saturday. He did a great job.&uot;

Then there’s the offense, a different version of last year’s unit that pounded away with the run and was a pivotal part of the team’s 6-3 turnaround season. John Pierce is back at quarterback, but the offense has replaced an entire backfield from last year.

Among those gone from last year are James Johnson and Billy Moody, who combined for nearly 1,500 yards and 24 touchdowns.

&uot;Putting it in the end zone &045; that’s a big concern right there,&uot; Forte said. &uot;We went from being able to score a lot of points last year to not being able to score many at all this year. For various reasons, we’ve not been able to put the ball in the end zone when we’ve had it in the red area. We’ve got to evaluate our offense and personnel and come up with a solution.&uot;