South Alabama Gets First-Ever Win At Arkansas State 38-31
South Alabama’s Jalen Tolbert set a new single game record with 252 yards receiving on 10 catches with three touchdowns leading the Jags to a 38-31 win over Arkansas State. This is the first win in Jonesboro in seven tries and the first road conference win since their 2017 win over Troy.
The Jaguars (4-6, 3-4 Sun Belt Conference) needed a defensive took it down to the final play but Jeremiah Littles sacked Layne Hatcher at the South Alabama 13 yard line to end the game. Arkansas State (3-7, 1-6 SBC) drops their fifth-straight game and their first losing season since 2010.
Arkansas State opened the game and scored on their first possession after the Jags were forced to punt. The Jags tied it with :35 left in the first quarter when Desmond Trotter ran it in from 2 yards out.
The Jags took the lead 14-7 in the second quarter when Trotter connected with Kawaan Baker for a 26 yard touchdown.
The Red Wolves tied the game up late in second quarter on a 25 yard touchdown pass by Logan Bonner to Brandon Bowling.
The Jags punt after a short 5 play possession using only 38 seconds off the clock. Arkansas State were not content to go into halftime tied and quickly marched down the field to the Jaguar 18 yard line with just 2 seconds left in the half and added a 35 yard field goal to go into halftime with a 17-14 lead over the Jaguars.
Arkansas State opened the second half with a 9 play, 75 yard touchdown drive to go up 24-14 with 9:55 left in the third quarter.
The Jags would respond with their own score. Trotter connected with Tolbert for a 42 yard touchdown with 6:39 left in the game to cut the Red Wolves lead to 24-21.
After Trotter had to leave with an injury, redshirt freshman Tanner McGee would have to come in and the Jaguar offense didn’t miss a beat. McGee would put the Jags ahead on a 37 yard touchdown pass to Tolbert 28-24.
Arkansas State scored early in the fourth quarter when Bonner connected with Jonathan Adams on a 3 yard touchdown pass with 12:03 left in the game to go up 31-28.
McGee plays throw and catch again with Tolbert covering 51 yards for another touchdown and taking a 35-31 lead with 4:56 left in the game.
Arkansas State turns the ball over on downs at their own 31 but the Jags can only manage to get a 30 yard field goal to extend their lead to 38-31 with 1:28 left in the game.
The Red Wolves behind Layne Hatcher drive down to the Jaguar 6 yard line after what looked like a game sealing interception by Keith Gallmon was overturned. With :16 seconds left in the game, Hatcher had three attempts to get into the end zone. Two incomplete passes followed by the game ending sack by Littles as the clock expired.
The Jags gained 486 total yards, 387 of them through the air and 99 on the ground. The Jags offense was only 5 of 15 on 3rd down.
Trotter went 16-of-22 for 242 yards and two touchdowns before leaving the game with an injury. McGee came in and went 6-of-8 for 145 yards and two touchdowns.
Tolbert caught 10 passes for 252 yards and three touchdowns. Kawaan Baker added five catches for 51 yards and a touchdown before also leaving the game with an injury.
Carlos Davis rushed 12 times for 31 yards. Caullin Lacy and Jared Wilson both ran for 26 yards on four and 13 carries respectively.
Arkansas State rolled up 494 yards of total offense, 324 of them through the air and 170 on the ground. The Red Wolves were 5 of 14 on 3rd down as well.
Logan Bonner went 11 of 16 for 183 yards and four touchdowns. Layne Hatcher went 8 of 14 for 141 yards.
Jonathan Adams caught 9 passes for 138 yards and two touchdowns. Jeff Foreman caught 5 passes for 111 yards. Brandon Bowling caught 4 passes for 64 yards and two touchdowns.
Jamal Jones carried the ball 19 times for 93 yards to lead all rushers. Marcel Murray carried it 13 times for 38 yards.
South Alabama will return home for the season finale and Senior Day game hosting Troy for the annual ‘Battle for the Belt’. Kickoff is scheduled for 1pm at Hancock Whitney Stadium and will be viewable on ESPN3.
Preview: South Alabama At Arkansas State
Kickoff: Saturday November 28, 2:00 pm
Venue: Centennial Bank Stadium Jonesboro, Arkansas
TV: ESPN3
Radio: Sports Talk 99.5FM, 96.1 The Rocket, iHeartRadio
South Alabama enter into their final road game of the season in the midst of a four-game losing streak. Their offensive line has turned into a sieve, leaking sacks at a frantic pace, 20 over the last four games and 33 for the season.
The Jaguars (3-6, 2-4 Sun Belt Conference) look to put an end to their losing streak and notch their second road win of the season. If successful, that would be the first time that the Jags have won two road games in a season since 2015.
The Arkansas State Redwolves (3-6, 1-5 SBC) have struggled this season well. Their biggest struggles have been on defense. Head coach Blake Anderson relieved his defensive coordinator of his duties earlier this season after a 59-52 win over Georgia State.
The Redwolves are coming off of a 47-45 loss at Texas State. This game against the Jaguars is the beginning of a three-game home stand and they would like nothing more than to start it off with a revenge win over the Jaguars and keep their hopes alive of getting back to .500 and get bowl eligible.
Arkansas State Offense
The Redwolves score an average of 31.4 points per game with 125.7 yards rushing and 352.6 yards passing per game. That’s an average of 478.2 yards per game of total offense.
With all that yardage, they are only converting 37.8% of their 3rd down attempts. However they have scored on 77% of their red zone trips with 63% of them being touchdowns. Not a bad stat to have.
They are also embracing their quarterback rotation. Layne Hatcher has gone 97-of-166 for 1,591 yards, 14 touchdowns and two interceptions. Logan Bonner has gone 139-of-229 for 1,495 for 13 touchdowns with 5 interceptions on the season.
Jonathan Adams Jr leads the receivers with 70 catches for 973 yards and 10 touchdowns. The next closest receiver has 34 catches for 436 yards and 5 touchdowns. Dahu Green has caught 32 passes for 542 yards and 5 touchdowns. Five other ASU players have caught double-digit passes on the season with six touchdowns combined.
Jamal Jones leads the running attack with 452 yards on 99 carries with three touchdowns. Lincoln Pare is next in line with 450 yards on 72 carries with a touchdown.
Against Texas State the Redwolves put up 654 yards of total offense. Jones rushed for 106 yards and wide receiver Jeff Foreman had 148 yards on three catches with a touchdown.
Arkansas State Defense
As mention above, the defense is a glaring deficiency on this team. So bad the coach Anderson let go of his defensive coordinator mid season.
The defense is allowing 39.6 points per game. They allow 316.6 yards passing and 168.1 yards rushing per game for an average of 484.7 total yards per game.
Opponents are converting 45.9% of their 3rd down attempts. They are also scoring 85% of the time when they reach the red zone. 67.5% of those red zone trips have been touchdowns. With numbers like that, will the Jags be able to put points on the board in the red zone?
Last weekend against Texas State they allowed 505 yards of total offense and could not prevent the game-winning score with :34 left in the game.
Linebacker Justin Rice is the leading tackler with 68 stops and also leads the team with seven sacks.
Keys to the Game
Offensive line
The offensive line play has been terrible. They haven’t been helped with the absence over the last two weeks by starters Jacob Shoemaker and Connor Estes due to Covid and contact tracing.
Last week Georgia State sacked Desmond Trotter seven times. They have allowed 20 sacks over the last four games and 33 sacks for the season.
If the offensive line continues to struggle to protect Trotter and establishing the run, then the Jags will likely add to their loss total.
Turnovers
Last week against the Panthers, the Jaguars as a team was +3 in turnover margin. They managed three interceptions and forced a fumble which they recovered. The Jags offense fumbled twice and only lost one of them.
On the season the Jags have only recovered 13 turnovers. So the four takeaways they recorded last Saturday is over 30% of their turnovers for the season! And despite being +3 last week, the Jags are -1 in turnover margin for the season.
The Jags need to keep generating turnovers. If they can keep up the positive numbers, then this can only give the offense more opportunities to put points on the scoreboard.
Points
The most obvious thing to win a game is to score points. Over the last four games the Jags have scored a measly 47 points, or an average of 11.75 points per game.
That’s not going to get it done.
The offense has to find a way to generate points and head coach Steve Campbell understands that. Arkansas State is a prime opportunity. Last year the Jags ended their nine-game losing streak with a 34-30 win over the Redwolves in their season finale.
It was a bit of a coming out party for Jalen Tolbert and Desmond Trotter. Tolbert caught 5 passes for 144 yards and four touchdowns. Trotter, in addition to the four touchdowns passes, rushed for 58 yards for an offense that ran for 216 yards on the ground.
Prediction
Arkansas State is a 7 point favorite and are able to score a lot of points.
The Jaguar defense hasn’t been playing bad, they just don’t get any offensive help. They held Coastal Carolina to well below their season average in the loss. They also held the Georgia State to 7 points through the most of three quarters. But down the stretch the defense allowing 24 points after the Jags had taken a 14-7 lead in the 3rd quarter.
Arkansas State and coach Anderson really need a win, the Redwolves want revenge for 2019, the Jags have never won in Jonesboro, and the Jags are struggling. I think the Redwolves win and unfortunately I also think they cover the spread.
But as always when I pick against South Alabama, I’d love to be proven wrong.
Go Jags!
South Alabama Suffers Fourth-Consecutive Loss With 31-14 Defeat By Georgia State
South Alabama’s losing streak grows to four after Georgia State comes into Hancock Whitney Stadium and brings home a 31-14 win.
The Jaguars (3-6, 2-4 Sun Belt Conference) attempted to take control of the game in the second half after taking a brief 14-7 lead in the third quarter. However the Panthers (4-4, 3-4 SBC) scored 24 unanswered points to finish the game.
The struggling offensive line allowed seven sacks in the game. That number tied the school record by an opponent that was set in 2012 when the Jags traveled to NC State. The offensive line was missing starters Jacob Shoemaker and Connor Estes for the second-consecutive game due to Covid and contact tracing.
Over the last four games the Jags offensive line has allowed 20 sacks. To say the offensive line pay has been atrocious would be an understatement.
South Alabama has guaranteed a seventh consecutive losing season with only two games left in the 2020 season.
On the second offensive play of the game, South Alabama’s Christian Bell picked off quarterback Cornelious Brown IV at the Panther 34 yard line. They capitalized quickly when Carlos Davis took it in from 17 yards out to give the Jags a 7-0 lead with 13:05 remaining in the opening quarter.
Georgia State was threatening to score when Keon Voisin recovered a fumble at the Jaguar 19 yard line with 8:37 left in the first quarter. However the Jags couldn’t get anything going and punted the ball away.
The Panthers were able to capitalize on their next possession to tie the game 7-7 with 13:25 left in the first half. The Jags were aided by an unsportsmanlike penalty on the PAT.
On the ensuing kickoff, Kawaan Baker fielded the kick at the 21 and seemingly got a big return, was hit deep in Panther territory and fumbled, which was recovered by a Jag and advanced into the end zone for what seemed like a touchdown. However an illegal block was called on Cade Sutherland brought the ball back to the Jaguar 22.
Facing 4th and 8 at the Panther 39 yard line, head coach Steve Campbell opted to go for it. All of Trotters options down field were well covered and he was forced to dump it off to Carlos Davis, who was dropped for a two yard loss and giving the ball to the Panthers at their own 41 with 9:40 left in opening half.
The Jags got the ball back again when Shawn Jennings intercepted the Panthers at the 11 yard line and returned it 15 yards. But the Jags gave the ball back a few plays later when Terrion Avery fumbled and the ball was recovered at the Panther 38.
The Panthers were threatening to take the lead just before halftime but Devin Rockette made a spectacular play to intercept the fade pass in the end zone with one hand and still manage to get his foot down inbounds.
The Jags came out flat in the third quarter but finally got in gear offensively about midway through the quarter.
After taking over on their own 30 yard line, the Jags quickly drove 70 yards on 8 plays only consuming 1:32 off the clock. Jared Wilson had a fumble overturned by replay officials after finding he was down before the call came loose. He then carried the ball three more times for 31 yards, aided by a 15 yard personal foul penalty, to score on a 7 yard touchdown run to put the Jags ahead 14-7 with 6:11 left in the third quarter.
The Panthers answered right back with a lightning fast 3 play, 75 yard drive in only 55 seconds. The big play was on 2nd and 3 when Brown hooked up with Sam Pinckney for 65 yards to the Jaguar 3 yard line.
After a three-and-out by the Jags, the Panthers put together a 5 play, 80 yard drive in only 1:46 to take their first lead of the game 21-14 with 2:05 left in the third quarter.
The Jags had another three-and-out to give the ball back to the Panthers with 43 seconds left in the third quarter. THe Panther drive would stall at the Jaguar 5 yard line and they would have to settle for a 23 yard field goal to extend their lead to 24-14 over the Jags with 11:03 left in the game.
The Jaguar offense finally broke their three-and-out streak when Trotter connected with Jalen Tolbert for 30 yards to the Georgia State 48. But the Jags would give the ball back over on downs when they could not convert 4th and 11.
The Panthers picked right back up where they left off and hit on a 43 yard pass on their second play of the possession to get to the Jaguar 7 yard line. They would punch it in from the 1 yard line to make it 31-14.
Georgia State rolled up 556 yards of total offense on the Jaguar defense. The Panthers threw for 334 yards and rushed for 222 more while converting 9-of-14 on third down.
Brown went 19-of-28 for 334 yards with three interceptions for the game. Sam Pinckney led all receivers with 176 yards on five catches. Roger Carter and Jamyest Williams both caught 5 passes as well for 71 and 48 yards respectively.
Tucker Gregg led all rushers with 79 yards on 18 carries with three touchdowns. Jamyest Williams added 68 yards on 10 carries in addition to his receiving yards.
South Alabama had 324 total yards of offense, 211 yards through the air and 113 on the ground. They were a mere 8-of-19 on third downs and 0-of-3 on 4th down attempts.
Desmond Trotter went 25-of-43 for 211 yards. Jalen Tolbert led the Jags with 75 yards on five catches. Baker added 37 yards on five catches.
Jared Wilson rushed for 49 yards on 7 carries with a touchdown. Carlos Davis added 38 yards on eight carries with a touchdown.
We’re very disappointed in the outcome of this game,” said head coach Steve Campbell after the game. “I thought the guys played hard, but we need to play better. We need to score more points. We need to get off the field more defensively.”
“We were up 7-0 early, but we couldn’t get any separation,” Campbell explained. “We couldn’t score points, and that’s been our issue. You’ve got to score to beat a good team, and we weren’t able to matriculate the ball down the field enough to score points.”
“It’s very disappointing,” Jalen Tolbert said. “The defense gave us four turnovers and we couldn’t get more points than we did. We’ve just got to execute better. We had all the momentum and we let it slip away.”
South Alabama will travel to Jonesboro, Arkansas for their final road game of the season when they face Arkansas State at 2pm. The Red Wolves will look to exact revenge for the regular season finale where the Jags upset them at Ladd-Peebles Stadium 34-30 last season.
Preview: Georgia State At South Alabama
Kickoff: Saturday November 21, 2:30 pm
Venue: Hancock Whitney Stadium, Mobile, Alabama
TV: ESPNU
Radio: Sports Talk 99.5FM, 96.1 The Rocket, iHeartRadio
The struggling South Alabama Jaguars (3-5, 2-3 Sun Belt Conference) are finally returning home to host a game after a three-game road trip. Next up on the schedule are the Georgia State Panthers (3-4, 2-4 SBC).
The Panthers have also been struggling but enter the game after hard-fought 17-13 loss to Appalachian State last week in Boone, NC. The Panthers had a great opportunity to upset the Mountaineers, leading 10-3 at halftime and had only allowed 89 yards. App State’s starting quarterback was injured late in the game, but their backup led the Mountaineers on a game-winning drive.
On the other hand, the Jags were soundly defeated by Louisiana-Lafayette 38-10 last week. Carlos Davis was limited to six carries for 18 yards. The offense was held to only 145 yards passing with Desmond Trotter being sacked three times with an interception.
The final three games of the season will determine the how we will look back on this odd year that is 2020. Three of the first five games came against the worst teams on the Jaguars schedule (Southern Miss, Texas State, ULM) which are a combined 3-21 and the Jags won all three of those games.
The last three games, all on the road, have been against three of the best teams in the Sun Belt Conference and all have been loses unfortunately.
Head coach Steve Campbell and his staff are searching for ways to put points on the board. The offense has regressed and has only scored an anemic 33 points in the last three games combined. Desmond Trotter has seen almost all of the snaps lately after he and JuCo transfer Chance Lovertich were essentially playing in a rotating time shares early in the season.
However, reports this week have seemingly been confirmed with the announcement that Lovertich would not be “out indefinitely” and that it was not related to Covid-19 in an al.com report. Rumors were circulating that he had ‘opted out’ of the remainder of the season, but has not officially left the program nor has entered his name into the transfer portal. However article noted that Lovertich “has not been present at practice the last two days,” when the report was published on Wednesday. Campbell was also quoted by al.com as saying “I doubt we will see him again this year,” after the Jaguars practice on Wednesday.
His status and future with the team continues to be unclear.
Red shirt sophomore wide receiver Mo Edwards Jr entered the transfer portal, he had made appearances in four of the Jags first five games this season but did not record any pass catches.
Georgia State Offense
The Panthers are a run-first team. They average 205.1 yards rushing, 191.4 yards passing, and 396.6 total yards per game this season while scoring an average of 33.3 points per game.
Destin Coates leads the Panthers on the ground with 581 yards on 126 carries with five touchdowns. Tucker Gregg has 347 yards on 51 carries with three touchdowns. Quarterback Cornelius Brown IV has rushed for 231 yards on 72 carries with five touchdowns.
Speaking of quarterback, Brown has gone 115 of 207 for 1,340 yards, 13 touchdowns and 5 interceptions on the season. He does a good job of spreading the ball around. His leading receiver is Sam Pinckney with 29 catches for 451 yards and six touchdowns. Next in line is Cornelius McCoy with 19 catches for 221 yards and two touchdowns. Roger Carter has 15 catches for 179 yards and four touchdowns.
The Jaguars have given up big yardage lately to the run. But it depends on which Georgia State team shows up. The Panther offense didn’t look like they came out of the locker room against Coastal Carolina when they lost 51-0 and only had 106 yards of total offense.
Georgia State Defense
Again, it depends on which team shows up on game day. They were sliced and diced by Coastal Carolina’s offense, but turned around and held Appalachian State to just 13 points and 310 yards of offense.
On the season they are allowing 122 yards rushing, 324.4 yards passing, and 446.4 total yards per game. They also allow an average of 36.9 points per game.
Their leading tackler Antavious Lane has 50 total tackles, 38 of them solo, from the safety position. He adds three interceptions, six pass breakups and a forced fumble. Right on his heels is Blake Carroll with 49 total tackles, 36 solo, from the inside linebacker position with four pass breakups, three quarterback hurries, a forced fumble and a fumble recovery.
If USA is going to have a chance to get their offense back in gear and put some points on the board, Georiga State seems to be the team to do it against on paper.
Keys to the Game
Offense
Granted, this one is very broad. But when your offense has played this poorly over the last three or four games, improvement in just one key area on the offensive side of the ball is not going to make much of a difference.
Starting with the offensive line, they will be without Jacob Shoemaker and Connor Estes for the second-consecutive game due to covid and contact tracing. Desmond Trotter has been sacked 13 times in the last three games, the vertical passing game has been non-existent, and running game has been inconsistent. Hopefully the players and staff have worked on figuring out a scheme to help the offensive line play more effective this week.
The offense has not been converting 3rd downs attempts well. They have had trouble getting into the end zone. Play calling has been predictable.
All in all, the offense has to do something. It may take another pick-six by the defense to get the offense going. But at some point they have to figure something out on their own.
Red zone touchdowns
As mentioned before, the Jags offense has been in the red zone a number of times recently but only came away with field goals when they even got points. Over the last two games they have scored one touchdown in six red zone attempts and they’ve added three field goals in that same stretch.
One of those times they came away empty handed, the line of scrimmage was around the 1 yard line and Kawaan Baker lined up in the wild cat and five yards deep, but was stopped short of the goal line in an obvious play call.
They need to convert more of those red zone trips into touchdowns if they really want to contend in games and have a chance to win.
Stay healthy
Thankfully Covid has not caused a another cancellation or postponement in the program, however losing two starting offensive linemen for two games is not good.
Add in that Lovertich will not be available for this game and probably the remainder of the season. That leaves true freshman Eli Gainey as the second string quarterback if anything happens to Trotter.
Prediction
Georgia State is a 3 point favorite over the Jags at Hancock Whitney Stadium. The Panthers played well their last two games with a win over ULM and a near upset of App State. The Jags have lost their last three since their win over ULM themselves.
With the offensive line woes, missing players and general down trend in the team I think Georgia State will win outright. Will the Jags cover the 3 point spread? I think so, simply by being a home and not traveling.
Go Jags!
South Alabama End Touchdown Drought, But Not Enough Against Louisiana 38-10
South Alabama (3-5, 2-3 Sun Belt Conference) was never really in the game against the Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns (7-1, 5-1 SBC) and fall 38-10 in Lafayette, Louisiana.
The Jags entered the game missing a few players due to Covid testing and contact tracing. Jacob Shoemaker and Connor Estes, both starting offensive linemen had to miss the game and may also have to miss the Jags next game against Georgia State as well.
The Cajun’s scored on their first possession. They did the heavy lifting with seven straight runs to start the drive, followed by an incomplete pass before quarterback Levi Lewis connected with Errol Rogers for a 5 yard touchdown.
After a 3-and-out, the Cajuns return the Jaguar punt 38 yards to the Jags 26 yard line. Three plays later Chris Smith scampers into the end zone from 22 yards out to go up 14-0 with 8:19 left in the opening quarter.
Jags finally get some offense going. They start out with five consecutive runs before Trotter started throwing, including a 12 pass to Kawaan Baker on a 3rd and 9 to keep the drive alive.
USA got all the way down to the 7 yard line before they ground to a halt. Head coach Steve Campbell opted to take the 26 yard field goal to make it 14-3.
The Cajuns would put together an 11 play, 75 yard drive early in second quarter ending with a side arm pass from Levi Lewis as he was rolling to the left to Errol Rogers for a 3 yard touchdown to go up 21-3.
Finally the Jags would end their touchdown drought with a 10 play, 75 yard drive of their own spanning 3:50. The drive started with a pass interference penalty on the first play and ended with a 7 yard touchdown pass from Desmond Trotter to Kawaan Baker.
The Cajuns would answer right back with a drive of their own.
Facing 3rd and 10 at their own 22, Lewis would find Kyren Lacy for 17 yards to extend their drive. Then Chris Smith would break loose up the gut of the Jaguar defense with a 47 yard run to the Jaguar 14. Two plays later Elijah Mitchell would take it in from 5 yards out for a 28-10 advantage.
Louisiana threatened to score again before halftime but a bobbled pass was intercepted by Nick Mobley to end the threat.
The second half was all Cajuns.
South Alabama needed touchdowns and came away empty. The only real scoring threat was on their first possession of the second half. They drove down to the 16 yard line but the 4th down pass to Baker went for six yards when they needed seven.
South Alabama was outgained 506 to 268 in the game. The Cajuns threw for 252 yards and rushed for 254 yards while going 6 of 13 on 3rd down. The Jags threw for 145 yards and rushed for 123 yards and went 6 of 18 on 3rd down.
Desmond Trotter went 15-of-28 for 133 yards with a touchdown and an interception. Chance Lovertich went 3-of-8 for 12 yards.
Kawaan Baker led the Jags with six catches for 43 yards and the only touchdown. Jalen Tolbert and Cade Sutherland both caught 5 passes for 64 and 37 yards respectively.
Terrion Avery led the Jags rushing attack with 14 carries for 62 yards. Carlos Davis only carried the ball 6 times for 18 yards.
Cajun quarterback Levi Lewis went 21-of-31 for 253 yards, 3 touchdowns and an interception.
Peter LeBlanc led the Cajuns with 5 catches for 34 yards. Neal Johnson caught 3 for 40 yards. Three others caught three passes each and seven players caught one pass each.
Chris Smith led all rushers with 99 yards on 7 carries and a touchdown. Trey Ragas added 78 yards on 10 carries. Elijah Mitchell had 61 yards on 15 carries and a touchdown.
“I thought we would play better,” head coach Steve Campbell said in his post-game radio interview. “They played a lot better than we did. We had some opportunities to make plays and didn’t do it. Offensively, we didn’t stay on the field as much as we needed to, and defensively we had a hard time getting off the field.”
“We just didn’t play well,” he said.
“We just have to take each game one at a time,” Campbell said in his post-game remarks. “We have to practice well, but we practiced great this past week. For what all these guys have been through, then came out and practiced their butts off Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday. We had some issues Wednesday and they overcame them and bounced back. I don’t feel that we blinked or backed down today. We need to find a way to have a good week of practice and take that and apply it on Saturday, so that we can find a way to beat a very good Georgia State team.”
When talking about the offense’s struggle he said, “Obviously we have not come up with the answer yet. We need to keep searching and find that answer and put the ball in the end zone.”
The Jags will return home to Hancock-Whitney Stadium after playing the last three contests on the road. South Alabama and Georgia State will kick off at 3pm on ESPNU on Saturday, November 21.
Preview: South Alabama At Louisiana-Lafayette
Kickoff: Saturday November 14, 1:00 pm
Venue: Cajun Field, Lafayette, Louisiana
TV: ESPN+ Streaming
Radio: Sports Talk 99.5FM, 96.1 The Rocket, iHeartRadio
South Alabama (3-4, 2-2 Sun Belt Conference) will finish out their three-game road swing with a trip to Lafayette, Louisiana to face the Ragin’ Cajuns (6-1, 4-1 SBC).
Since Billy Napier came to Lafayette the Cajuns have steadily improved from a 7-7 (5-3 SBC), to 11-3 (7-1 SBC) which was the first double-digit win season in school history, and currently sit on top of the Sun Belt Conference Western division with their only loss being to Coastal Carolina.
They can pretty much wrap up the division this week with a win.
The Jags come into the game after a 23-6 loss at Coastal Carolina. The defense held the Chanticleers well below their season points average but the offense couldn’t muster more than a pair of field goals. They were even turned away on a 4th and goal at the 1 yard line.
Now head coach Steve Campbell and his team have dropped their last two games after a nice 3-2 start to the season and being 2-0 in conference play for the first time in school history.
However those three wins came against some struggling teams year. Their combined record is a mere 3-21.
While Desmond Trotter has seemed to have solidified his hold on the #1 spot at quarterback as we have not seen Chance Lovertich play any over the last two games, we’ve also seen Trotter get sacked 10 times over that same time span.
Carlos Davis has pretty much been the biggest ground threat by the Jaguar offense. Though Trotter can and does still run, he’s also been set back with the sack issue.
Through the air the Jags are still averaging 256.3 yards per game but, at least over the last two games, you’re not seeing a Jaguar receiver go over 100 yards receiving as you were earlier in the season.
It obvious that over the last two games the offensive line is struggling. And it’s not going to be helped by having two of their best having to sit out due to Covid and contact tracing this week. Jacob Shoemaker and Connor Estes will not be playing along with linebacker Quentin Wilfawn.
The running game is struggling, which makes the offense more one-dimensional. Trotter does not have time to let his routes develop. So you’re not seeing Jalen Tolbert or Kawaan Baker with 100+ yards and multiple touchdowns.
A one-dimension approach to the Cajuns probably will not turn out well either.
But while the offense is struggling, the defense has put up some good fights. UAB was the only game that really got out of hand.
Linebacker Riley Cole has really showed why he has earned all the accolades this season. He leads the conference with 72 tackles, 11 more than his nearest competitor who happens to be on the Cajuns defense.
Louisiana-Lafayette Offense
Seniors Elijah Mitchell and Trey Ragas picked right up where they left off last season as a pair of dynamic running backs. They have been joined by reshirt sophomore Chris Smith to make a three-headed beast of running backs. They have rushed for 5, 6, and 3 touchdowns respectively and combined for an average of 194 yards rushing per game.
Quarterback Levi Lewis manages the game well with timely connections through the air to help the offense to average 232 yards per game. With that they average 29.6 points per game.
Louisiana-Lafayette Defense
Napier’s defense loves to apply pressure and cause havoc. The team has 10 interceptions and 30 sacks on the season. That’s almost 1.5 picks and just over 4.25 sacks per game.
Linebacker Lorenzo McCaskill leads the Cajuns with 62 tackles, trailing only Riley Cole in that category in the conference.
If the Cajuns can pin their ears back and go all out for the Jaguar backfield, this could get ugly for the offense.
They allow 23.9 points per game, which is more than the Jags have allowed on average this season at 22.4.
Keys to the Game
Offensive line
The offensive line has got to play better. Allowing 10 sacks over the last two games isn’t good. Going up against a defense that has 30 sacks on the season is a recipe for disaster.
Everything an offense does starts with the offensive line. With coach Campbell being touted as an offensive line guru, some of that really needs to rub off this week if they want to continue to control their destiny in the SBC West.
Turnovers
First off, the Jags need to continue protecting the ball. They are -2 in turnovers, the fumble they lost last week to Coastal Carolina they got right back and in better field position.
They need to cause more turnovers and maybe even help jump start their offense by scoring defensively as well. The defense helped to get the offense with Devin Rockette’s 95 yard interception return for a touchdown against Louisiana-Monroe.
Red Zone Touchdowns
The offense is scoring touchdowns in the red zone only 52% of the time. They are 11-of-21. They are 18-of-21 overall in the red zone when you add the seven field goals they have settled for down there.
I felt like there were times last week when Campbell should have settled for a field goal instead of turning it over on downs. But when you are on the 1 yard line and you bring in your wildcat quarterback to take a snap in the shotgun, you’re basically telling the defense what you’re going to do. Big surprise, it didn’t work when Baker kept it and tried to run up the gut.
Let your quarterback take the snap under center, pick a gap and get that one yard for the touchdown.
Prediction
The Cajuns are a 16 point favorite at home in this game. Though they are 6-1 so far, they have only one game where they won by more than 10 points this season. That was their 31-14 season opening win over #23 Iowa State.
Also the Jags have been quite good against the spread this season.
I don’t think the Jags can get an outright win, but I do think they may cover. However with the unexpected loss of three players due to Covid, it may be more difficult. Also with an over/under of 55.5 points for the game, I’ll also take the under.
Go Jags!
South Alabama Falls 23-6 At Coastal Carolina
South Alabama (3-4, 2-2 Sun Belt Conference) put up a valiant fight against Sun Belt Conference leader Coastal Carolina (7-0, 4-0 SBC) but fell 23-6.
The Jags never led in the game and failed to convert in key situations, particularly in the second half.
USA opened with a three-and-out on their first possession and the Chanticleers seized the opportunity with a 7 play, 72 yard touchdown drive spanning 2:48 to strike first.
The Jags answered with a field goal on an 11 play, 62 yard driving consuming 5:18 off the clock.
Coastal Carolina responded back with another long touchdown drive. Covering 75 yards in 6 plays in just 2:50 was good for the second and final touchdown of the game, going up 14-3 on the Jags.
South Alabama would get on the scoreboard once more with 5:01 left in the first half on a 43-yard Diego Guajardo field goal.
Coach Campbell saw his team trading field goals for touchdowns and decided to roll the dice. Instead of opting for another field goal, they attempted to convert a 4th & 3 at the Chanticleer 32. Desmond Trotter would throw to Trent Tyre on the sideline, but he could not turn and stretch for to move the chains.
That turnover on downs would lead to the Chanticleers adding a field goal with 2:11 left in the opening half.
The Jags would get shut out in the second half but not without one prime scoring opportunity.
Facing 4th and goal at the 1, Kawaan Baker lined up in the wildcat, pretty much telegraphing that he was going to run it, the Chanticleer defense would stop him about a half yard short of paydirt. The drive spanned 17 plays, 68 yards and drained 7:23 off the clock.
Desmond Trotter played the entire game for the second-consecutive game. He went 23-of-31 for 243 yards, but was sacked five times by the Chanticleer defense.
Jalen Tolbert led all receivers with seven catches with 78 yards. Jalen Wayne led the Jags with 91 receiving yards on five catches.
Carlos Davis carried the ball 17 times for 73 yards. Terrion Avery carried four times for 27 yards. Trotter had a net -27 yards with sack yardage figured in.
The offense was a paltry 2-of-14 on 3rd down attempts, but managed to eek out a slight time of possession advantage (30:15 to 29:45).
Grayson McCall was 17 of 24 for 209 yards passing and added 72 yards rushing on eight carries.
Reese White led CCU with 81 yards on nine carries. Shermari Jones added 60 yards on 10 carries with at touchdown.
Jaivon Heiligh caught five passes for 95 yards. CJ Marable caught three passes for 21 yards and the only other touchdown.
Defensively, Riley Cole led the South Alabama defense with 15 total tackles, nine of the were solo and had a fumble recovery.
The defense held the Chanticleers to a mere 3-of-11 on 3rd down. While the Chanticleers were held below their average of 40 points per game coming into this game, they were table to exceed their total yardage average with 445 total yards of offense.
“I thought the defense played extremely hard,” said head coach Steve Campbell after the game. “Offensively I thought we played hard. We just didn’t execute once we got down in the red zone. We have opportunities to score points.”
“You’re not going to beat a good teams kicking field goals and not scoring touchdowns, especially a team that’s averaging 40 points per game.
“After the first two [touchdown] drives, I think we settles down and were able to keep them out of the end zone,” Campbell said. “They’re a very explosive offense. Our defense was able to create some turnovers for us, but offensively we had too many turnovers of our own. We’ve got to do a better job of giving ourselves a chance to win.”
With this game behind them, the Jags can now look ahead to next week’s showdown in Lafayette, LA.
“I told the guys in the locker room that, of the five teams in our division, only one has one conference loss and we play them next week,” Campbell stated. “This next game is for the sole lead of our division. If we can go on the road and beat Louisiana, we’ll own the tiebreaker over them.”
“If we want to see Coastal or App State later in the season in the championship game, we need to take care of business,” he continued. “We still control our own destiny. We need to go on the road and pick up a big win against a very good Louisiana football team.”
The Jags and the Ragin’ Cajuns are set for a 1pm kickoff on Saturday, November 14 in Louisiana.
Preview: South Alabama At Coastal Carolina
Kickoff: Saturday, November 7, 7:00pm
Venue: Brooks Stadium, Conway, South Carolina
TV: ESPNU
Radio: Sports Talk 99.5FM, 96.1 The Rocket, iHeartRadio
The South Alabama Jaguars (3-3, 2-1 Sun Belt) takes on the second leg of their three-game road swing on Saturday night when they face the #15 ranked Coastal Carolina Chanticleers (6-0, 4-0 SBC) in Conway, S.C.
The Jaguars enter the game after suffering their first conference loss of the season on the road at Georgia Southern. The Jags led most of the game but the Eagles took over the game in the fourth quarter and held off the Jags 24-17.
The Chanticleers have been one of the best stories of the season so far. They enter the game undefeated and with the highest ranking ever achieved by a Sun Belt Conference team. But the Jaguars would love to knock off another ranked opponent like they did to San Diego State a few years ago.
Currently the Jags are only 1/2 game behind division leading UL-Lafayette, who they play next weekend. Jaguar head coach Steve Campbell rightly points out that they control their own destiny right now.
Chanticleer Offense
Coastal Carolina ranks 11th in the nation with 40.3 points per game average. Their rushing attack averages 197.8 yards per game, which is good for 25th best in the nation. They have been able to run the ball with ease so far this season.
C.J. Marable leads the rushing attack with 353 yards on 93 carries with five touchdowns. But along with him are three others that are able to carry the ball with him. Reese White has 228 yards on 39 carries with three touchdowns and an average of 5.8 yards per carry, Shermari Jones has 208 yards on 43 carries and two touchdowns, and Grayson McCall has 199 yards on 48 carries with four touchdowns.
The Chanticleer passing attack averages 243.7 yards per game.
Redshirt freshman quarterback Grayson McCall returned to the lineup against Georgia State last week. He has started five games for the Chants going 77-of-111 for 1,184 yards, 15 touchdowns and only 1 interception. Fred Payton has started one game but played in 5 games this season going 17-of-33 for 271 yards, three touchdowns and two interceptions.
Jaivon Heiligh is the teams leading receiver with 30 catches for 515 yards and six touchdowns. That is right there with with the Jags top two receivers, Jalen Tolbert and Kawaan Baker.
There are four other receives who have caught double-digit passes on the season, the most prolific of them has caught 17 passes for 133 yards and four touchdowns.
The offensive line has played outstanding for the Chanticleers by only allowing five sacks through six games. That is tied for seventh nationally. They may not be very big, but they play very polished and technically sound.
Coastal Carolina Defense
The “Black Swarm” defense dominated Georgia State last Saturday in their 51-0 rout. They forced two turnovers, three sacks, and six three-and-outs.
So far for the season they are allowing an average of 21.6 points and 345 total yards per game.
The defensive line simply manhandled Georgia State. But, like their offensive counterparts, they are a huge defensive line but they play sound and are able to get after the quarterback.
The defense only allowed 106 total yards to the Panthers, who have had an up and down season so far. But that is some scary numbers for a team playing at home.
The Panthers opened the game with a 31-yard kickoff return. But when they attempted a field goal with 11:00 left in the first quarter, little did they know that they would not snap the ball again in the Chanticleer territory for the rest of the game.
Keys to the Game
Turnovers
The Jags must win the turnover game and hopefully do so with a clear majority. It starts with limiting turnovers on offense, which South Alabama has done pretty well all season. USA has only fumbled five times on the season and lost only three of them combined with only four interceptions.
Defensively the Jags have forced 11 fumbles but only recovered three of them and intercepted two passes.
Overall, that puts the Jags at -2 in turnover margin.
The Chanticleers have fumbled the ball six times and lost three of them while throwing three interceptions. Defensively they have forced 10 fumbles and only recovered three of them but they have intercepted eight passes on the season.
That puts them at +5 in turnover margin.
Offensive line
The Jags offensive line played well against Georgia Southern for about three quarters. But in the fourth quarter the Eagles started pushing the line around. It was evident with the quarterback hurries and sacks late in the game. Desmond Trotter simply had no time to throw the ball.
The Jags will be without right guard Jacob Shoemaker due to a knee injury. Left tackle Wyatt Green was hampered by an injury.
Covid
Two Jaguar defensive linemen will reportedly miss the game following positive test results. Additionally two defensive assistant coaches, two GA’s, some video crew members, and the entire equipment crew are all out due to covid.
This is not the time to be without the services of two defensive linemen, two defensive coaches and two GA’s.
Prediction
There’s a lot that is just not trending well for this game.
Playing the #15 ranked team in the nation, on the road, in a conference game. The Chanticleers rank 11th in the nation in scoring and 25th in the nation in rushing per game. Plus they are coming off of a complete dismantling of Georgia State.
South Alabama had a couple extra days to regroup and prepare after their loss to Georgia Southern.
The Chanticleers are a 17.5 point favorite over the Jags for good reason. Historically USA has not been a very good road team.
I think the Chanticleers will win the game and I think they may actually cover the spread as well.
Go Jags!