Harris Suspended for First Half Against Georgia State
Maleki Harris, a senior from Cordova, Alabama, who forced two fumbles against Mississippi State and earned Defensive Player of the Week on Monday, September 15, 2014, was suspended for the first half of the Georgia State game. | Photo: usajaguars.com
South Alabama’s Maleki Harris will have to sit out an extra half of football against Georgia State as punishment for his actions after being ejected for targeting against Appalachian State.
Harris was ejected in the first half of the Jaguars 47-21 win over Appalachian State last weekend and, by rule, he would have been eligible to start against Georgia State on October 18. However, after reviewing the film, head coach Joey Jones made the decision to suspend his for the first half against the Panthers.
“Upon reviewing the film, we do not condone Maleki’s reaction to the crowd after committing a targeting foul in the Appalachian State game,” Jones told AL.com. “He understands that he made a mistake and that what he did doesn’t represent the University of South Alabama in a first-class way. Maleki has been a model student-athlete for the past four years. We are confident that he will learn from this as he moves forward.”
Harris is team’s second-leading tackler with 36 stops this season, 16 solo, four tackles for loss, two pass breakups, two forced fumbles, an interception and a quarterback hurry.
“I commend South Alabama head coach Joey Jones and director of athletics Dr. Joel Erdmann for taking institutional action,” Sun Belt Conference commissioner Karl Benson said. “This clearly demonstrates that the South Alabama athletics program is committed to the values of sportsmanship and fair play.”
The Jags (3-2 overall, 2-1 SBC) has an open date this weekend and will return to action on Saturday, October 18 at Ladd-Peebles Stadium for homecoming against Georgia State. Kickoff is scheduled for 6:30pm.
USA Football Announces Finalization of 2016, ’17 Non-Conference Schedules
South Alabama Players thanking the fans for their support after a narrow defeat on the road in Knoxville, TN in 2013.
The University of South Alabama Athletcs announced that they have finalized their 2016 and 2017 non-conference football schedules.
The 2015 schedule, which was already finalized, includes a season opener at home against Gardner-Webb on September 5, at Nebraska on September 12, at UAB on September 19 and hosting North Carolina State on September 26. While the conference schedule has not been finalized with dates, they will be playing Appalachian State, Arkansas State, Idaho, ULL, Georgia Southern, Georgia State, Texas State and Troy.
The 2016 schedule has the Jaguars opening their season in Starkville to face Mississippi State to complete their three-came contract. Hosting UAB on September 10 and Nicholls State on September 24, then on the road against LSU on October 15.
The 2017 schedule has the Jaguars opening against Ole Miss in Oxford on September 2, Hosting Oklahoma State on September 9 and Alabama A&M on September 16, then traveling to Louisiana Tech on September 30.
The complete list of dates on the future schedules (but time and date may be subject to change):
- 2015: September 5 hosting Gardner-Webb, September 12 @ Nebraska, September 19 @ UAB, September 26 hosting North Carolina State, App St, Arkansas St, Idaho, ULL, @ Georgia Southern, @ Georgia State, @ Texas State, @ Troy.
- 2016: September 3 @ Mississippi State, September 10 @ UAB, September 24 hosting Nicholls State, October 15 @ LSU
- 2017: September 2 @ Ole Miss, September 9 hosting Oklahoma State, September 16 hosting Alabama A&M, September 30 @ Louisiana Tech
- 2018: September 1 hosting Louisiana Tech, September 8 @ Oklahoma State
- 2019: August 31 @ Nebraksa, September 28 @ Tulane
- 2020: September 5 @ Southern Miss, September 19 @ Oklahoma State, October 10 hosting Tulane
- 2021: September 4 hosting Southern Miss, September 11 @ Bowling Green
Monday Press Conference
Head coach Joey Jones, sophomore defensive back Roman Buchanan and offensive lineman Chris May met with the media on Monday to recap the Jaguars win over Appalachian State and to discuss their open date this weekend.
Coach Jones
“I think (the open date) comes at a good time,” Jones said about the open date on Saturday. “We do have some guys banged up — I think there are 17 or 18 in the training rooms with a variety of injuries — and although most of them would be okay it’s good that we have a little time to rest. It’s good for the coaches too to be able to stop and reflect a little bit and see how we need to get better fundamentally. We get caught up in schemes so much during the season that sometimes you forget about fundamentals.”
“We’re a better football team, there is no doubt about that,” Jones said about his teams progress through five games. “Can we be a lot better than this? Yes. When you have games like that [Saturday at Appalachian State] you tend to look at it through rose colored glasses but I don’t. I know there are some areas we can improve on. If we continue to work on those and take those lessons to heart, and learn from our mistakes, we can become a great football team. We’re playing better, but by no means are we playing as good as we can play.”
“We’re going to start working on the game plan for Georgia State,” Jones said bout what the team will work on during their off week. “But more of our practice will be focused on fundamentals as opposed to team periods — today was almost a fully fundamental day, and we worked on a couple of special teams to try and improve there.”
“I bet they are going to sleep in because we get them up 5:30-6 a.m. every morning,” Jones said about what the players will do with the open weekend. “They have a couple days to do that [with the school on Fall Break] and enjoy that time while letting their bodies recuperate. As coaches we push and push, we always want to drive them to be the best, and sometimes we probably work them too hard. A good time to rest is a good thing for their bodies and their minds. I know when I played it was nice to have an off week, to sit back and watch other games on a Saturday and enjoy being a real fan.”
“I have greater expectations than the way we are playing right now to be honest with you, I think we can play even better,” Jones commented on the offense’s performance over the last two games and what he has expected out of them. “There are some things we could’ve done better the other night. Have we improved from the first of the year? Yes, that’s obvious.
“I think consistency is the key to execution on offense. When you look at those first couple of games — and granted, we played some really good football teams in Mississippi State and Georgia Southern — we struggled with some little things, but I knew they were things we could fix. A great offense is about execution, you have to execute the plays; if you throw a five-yard pass you have to block, throw it and catch it — it’s fairly simple. But if one of those three things breaks down then the play is no good.
“It just comes down to what we do, so during that time focused on us, and I think that made us better. And guys took ownership at each position after I challenged them, they have stepped up their play and are playing to the level I think they can play at. Therefore, the offense is playing much better.”
Offensive lineman Chris May:
Kickoff Time Set for South Alabama Versus Georgia State
South Alabama’s homecoming game against Georgia State on Saturday, October 18 will kickoff at 6:30pm as announced by the Sun Belt Conference office on Monday.
The Jags (3-2, 2-1 SBC) has an open weekend after back-to-back conference wins on the road against Idaho and Appalachian State.
Georgia State (1-4, 0-2 SBC) will host defending Sun Belt co-champion Arkansas State this weekend after they fell to the other co-champion of the conference from last season, Louisiana-Lafayette.
This is the fourth time the Panthers and Jaguars have met on the football field with the Jaguars leading the series 2-1 after a 38-17 win in the Georgia Dome last season.
The game will be televised on ESPN3.
Troy Announces Retirement of Blakeney at End of Season
Larry Blakeney at a press conference in Troy earlier this year. | Photo: wn.com
Longtime Troy head coach Larry Blakeney is set to announce his retirement at the end of the season in a press conference on Monday. He informed his team after their Sunday practice.
Blakeney is the second-longest tenured active coach in the FBS ranks only behind Frank Beamer. He had seven playoff appearances in eight seasons as an FCS coach, including an undefeated regular season in 1995, with three wins over BCS teams. He won eight conference championships including five straight Sun Belt titles from 2006-2010. He has an overall record of 175-109-1.
But after the 2010 season there are different numbers that describe his team. Since 2010 he has not had a winning season and is 14-27 and 0-5 start this year, the first 0-5 start since the 1982 season for Troy, which includes a loss to FCS Abilene Christian, and an FPI ranking of 125th in the country.
Blakeney coached high school teams after graduating from Auburn and spent over a decade on the plains as an assistant. He arrived in 1990 to be the head coach at Troy as they were preparing to move up from Division II to FCS.
In 2001 Troy again moved up, this time to FBS and knocked off Mississippi State that fall to formally announce their arrival.
Three years later was arguably the pinnacle of Blakeney’s career. Troy hosted the #17 ranked Missouri Tigers at Veterans Memoral Stadium for a Thursday night ESPN2 game in 2004. They would knock off the Tigers 24-14 in front of the largest crowd in Troy history.
“We don’t have to beat them 365 days,” he told the Associated Press after the game. “We just have to beat them for one 60-minute segment of history. For that one 60 minutes, Troy was better than Missouri.”
In 2007 they stunned Oklahoma State in Troy. His program produced NFL stars DeMarcus Ware, Osi Umenyiora, Jerrel Jernigan, Leodis McKelvin, Cameron Sheffield, Sherrod Martin, Levi Brown and Jonathan Massaquoi. He was awarded the Sun Belt Conference 10th Anniversary Most Outstanding Head Coach award.
But after the 2010 season things began to fall apart. In 2011 the Trojans wen 3-9 and have not been above .500 since.
South Alabama Wins Big Over App State, 47-21
South Alabama’s offense posted season-high totals for points and yards behind Brandon Bridge’s career night against Appalachian State.
Bridge completed 19-of-28 attempts for 339 yards and three touchdowns as the Jaguar offense gained 582 yards of total offense, the second-most in school history, as they defeated the Mountaineers 47-21 at Kidd Brewer Stadium.
Bridge’s 339 yards passing ranks as the second-highest individual game total behind Ross Metheny’s 360 yard performance. His 362 yards of total offense also ranks second in the school’s record books, also behind Ross Metheny who holds the record with 365 yards.
Shavarez Smith led the way with six catches for 133 yards, his first 100-yard game since last year’s game against Georgia state, and two touchdowns. Xavier Johnson led the rushing attack with a career best 70 yards on 10 carries. Jay Jones added 67 yards on 12 carries and Terrance Timmons rushed four times for 60 yards and a touchdown.
Terrell Brigham led the defense with eight stops as the Jaguars only allowed 33 yards in the first quarter and 169 yards in the first half. Roman Buchanan, Desmond LaVelle and Demarius Rancifer added seven stops each. Jesse Kelley also had a career day with six stops including a half sack.
The Jags got on the board first when Bridge scored on an eight-yard run. After two Grant McLaurin field goals, Bridge would hit Shavarez Smith for a 67 yard touchdown to take a 20-0 lead midway through the second quarter.
The Mountaineers would get on the board late in the second quarter on a 20 yard pass to Malachi Jones after earlier on the drive Maleki Harris was ejected for targeting.
The Jaguars would come out in the third quarter determined to put the game away without the third-quarter lull they have had in previous games.
Each Jaguar possession in the third quarter would go for touchdowns, each drive taking only six plays. The first possession started at the Jaguar 25 yard line after the opening kickoff was downed for a touchback and ended with a 43 yard touchdown by Bridge to Danny Woodson to extend their lead to 26-7 after McLaurin’s extra point attempt failed.
The second possession started at the Jaguars 38 after the Mountaineer punt and would end with a 14-yard touchdown pass from Brandon Bridge to Shavarez Smith. Aleem Sunanon’s extra point was good this time to put the Jags up 33-7. The third and final possession of the quarter would start at the Jaguar 43 and ended with Terrance Timmons scampering in for a 30 yard touchdown to put the Jags up 40-7 going into the final quarter of play.
USA started substituting heavily to start the fourth quarter. After being forced to punt, the Mountaineers would muff the punt and Xavier Johnson recovered it at the App State 35 yard line to set up the final Jaguar scoring drive. After three consecutive runs by Timmons, Berron Tyson would take his first carry as a Jaguar into the end zone for a 47-14 lead with 10:10 left in the game.
“The defense comes out ready to play every game,” head coach Joey Jones explained. “[Defensive coordinator] Coach [Travis] Pearson and his staff do a great job with them. They just motivate their players; they just get after it. But when they come out and play that well early, it sets the tone and it lets the offense get rolling.”
“I am very proud of this football team,” Jones continued. “Last week we travelled across the country to play Idaho and played a good game. And we came here this week to Appalachian State where they have a lot of tradition. They have great facilities here. It’s a great venue, and our kids played extremely well. They have that look in their eyes right now, and they are understanding what it takes.”
Appalachian State falls to 1-4 overall and 0-2 in conference play in what was their worst home loss since 1984.
South Alabama heads into their off week with a 3-2 record overall and 2-1 record in Sun Belt Conference play. They return to Mobile on Saturday, October 18 when they host Georgia State (1-4, 0-2 SBC) for homecoming. Kickoff time has not yet been determined.
Know Your Stadiums – Kidd Brewer Stadium
Ariel photo of Kidd Brewer stadium taken in 2009 | photo: wikipedia.org
We like to spotlight the story and history behind any new stadium that the Jaguars are set to visit. This week the Jags travel to Boone, NC to face the Appalachian State Mountaineers at Kidd Brewer Stadium, AKA ‘The Rock’.
Appalachian State plays their home games at Kidd Brewer Stadium located in Boone, North Carolina on the campus of Appalachian State University. It is a multipurpose stadium nicknamed “The Rock” and sits at a height of 3,280 feet above sea level. In addition to being home to the NCAA FCS Champion football team for 2005-2007, it serves as the home for the Field Hockey and Track and Field teams. It has undergone several changes in its history.
The stadium officially opened on September 15, 1962 as Conrad Stadium in honor of former University trustee and R.J. Reynolds executive William J. Conrad. It was constructed as a 10,000 permanent seat stadium and would hold the same capacity through 1978.
In 1970 it would be the first stadium in the Carolina’s to install artificial turf when Astroturf was installed. The first game on the new artificial turf was against Elon on October 3, 1970.
Following the 1978 season the stadium saw its first expansion which added 8,000 seats. A year later it would host the second college football game to ever be televised by ESPN when the Mountaineers played the Western Carolina Catamounts for the Old Mountain Jug.
In 1995 an extensive renovation and restoration project was undertaken on the original 10,000 seats which readjusted the seating capacity down to 16,650 from 18,000.
In 1999, they installed the “AppVision” video board and followed that in 2001 with an enlargement of the video board.
In 2003, they were again first to install FieldTurf which is still in use today.
After the 2006 season the press box was removed and replaced by a 100,000 square foot stadium complex which houses strength and conditioning and athletic training facilities for all of the Mountaineers 20 varsity sports. It also houses extensive locker rooms, academic, office and meeting spaces for student-athletes, coaches and administrators.
On the stadium’s west side they also added 18 luxury suites, 500 club seats and the Yosef and Chancellor’s Box areas.
In 2008 an additional 4,400 seats were added to the east side which increased seating to 20,150. The premium seating, which included the suites, club seats in the Yosef club and Chancellor’s area expanded the seating to 21,650.
In 2011 an additional 1,500 seats were brought in to expanded to 23,150 and finally in 2012 the temporary section was expanded to reach the current capacity of 24,050.
On September 3, 1998 the stadium was renamed in honor of Kidd Brewer, one of the most successful head coaches in Mountaineer football history. He served as head coach from 1935-1938 and had a 30-5-3 record in four years. His 1937 team was unbeaten and did not allow a score in the regular season.
From 2003 through October 20, 2007 the Mountaineers held a 30 game winning stream, the longest in Division I at the time, before losing to Georgia Southern. Their last home loss prior was to Maine on November 20, 2002.
The largest crowd to take in a game at the stadium was recorded on October 9, 2010 when 31,531 came for the Mountaineers win over Elon 34-31.
South Alabama and Appalachian State will kickoff at 5pm CDT on Saturday in Boone. The game can be seen on ESPN3.
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- Panoramic view of the stadium. | Photo: panoramio.com
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- A snowy Kidd-Brewer Stadium played host to a NCAA Division I Football Championship playoff game between Appalachian State and Western Illinois on December 4, 2010. | Photo: wikipedia.org
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- A view of the east seats from 2011. | Photo: wikipedia.org
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- A view of Howard’s Knob and the Appalachian State University campus as seen from the West End Seats. | Photo: wikipedia.org
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- A promotional image showing Conrad Stadium in 1962 leading up to the 50th Anniversary of the stadium. Photo: hcpress.com
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- Ariel photo of Kidd Brewer stadium taken in 2009 | photo: wikipedia.org
South Alabama at Appalachian State: Preview
South Alabama showed improvement on offense last week against Idaho but will they play that good against a better opponent this week in Appalachian State? That is the question that most people what to see answered this week.
The offense entered the game last week after only scoring nine points in their previous two games and only 16 points in the previous 10 quarters of play. They came out and score 13 points on offense in the first half against Idaho, the defense had a pick-six to account for the other touchdown in the first half.
In the second half the offense came out of the locker room strong with an early touchdown but about midway through the third quarter until the beginning of the fourth quarter, the offense struggled. Two turnovers on back-to-back possessions could have been more costly than they were. The first turnover was an interception at the USA 30 yard line which the Vandals converted into seven points. The second turnover was a fumble at the USA 44 yard line which resulted in a missed field goal attempt after the Vandals drove into the red zone, but shot themselves in the foot with a penalty and a sack.
Next up are the Mountaineers.
Appalachian State joined the Sun Belt Conference over the summer along with Georgia Southern from the FCS ranks. While the latter has enjoyed some very good success, the Mountaineers have struggled to a 1-3 record overall and dropped their first conference game against rival Georgia Southern. But that record does not show how well they have played overall.
The Mountaineers lost to Michigan in Ann Arbor but they kept the game very close for most of the first half, but the game ended in a blow out for the Wolverines who relished it for revenge for what many consider the biggest upset in recent history.
The turned around and blew out an unknown team then traveled to Southern Miss and lost on a blocked extra point. Then they had to turn around and put the Southern Miss loss behind them and prepare for Georgia Southern on a short week for a Thursday night game.
Statistically their offense ranks well in the conference. They are in the top 5 in six categories, much better than the Jaguar offense ranks currently.
Read more
Monday Press Conference
Head football coach Joey Jones, sporting his freshly grown goatee, and the South Alabama Football team held their weekly press conference ahead of this weeks Sun Belt Conference game against another conference newcomer in Appalachian State. Jones was joined by cornerback Qudarius Ford and wide receiver Shavarez Smith to review the Jags win over Idaho and preview the game versus Appalachian State.
“I’m real proud of our young men and how we played Saturday,” Jones said about his team’s win over Idaho. “It was a total team effort. We played better offensively. We were more consistent, and we have to continue to improve there. Defensively, we played with great tenacity – just getting after the quarterback and guys covering downfield. It was a pretty impressive showing. We were backed up a couple of times where they had the ball inside our 20-yard line and came away with three points in two or three times. I was real proud of our guys. Special teams is an animal I have been real proud of. Our punter (Brandon McKee) is kicking the ball well and we are covering well. We almost busted another kickoff return, so we’re playing sound special-teams wise.”
“He won the job last week”, Jones said about placekicker Grant McLaurin. “We talk about it all the time – your job is on the line every week. He came out and kicked a 44-yard field goal right before the half; he kicked extremely well. I was real pleased with him. He had a cool nature out there and didn’t go out there with any panic. I was real proud of how he kicked on Saturday.”
“Our defensive line is playing really well,” Jones said about the defense. “Those guys are tough; they can rush the passer and play against the run. It starts there. Our linebackers are playing well right now, and our secondary is covering. Our defense is pretty good. We are starting to create some depth behind the starters, and the defensive staff is doing a great job coaching them. They are playing hard and believe in what they’re doing.”
“Our guys look forward to performing on the field,” said Jones about his teams performance on the road, where both of their wins on the season have come. “The goal we had at the beginning of the year was to play well on the road, and we’re starting to get that done. We have to continue to do that this week against a really good Appalachian State team.”
Jones then gave a brief glimpse at Appalachian State. “They are very athletic defensively. They have guys who fly around to the football. Offensively they run a system similar to us. Their quarterback, Taylor Lamb, is a good, young quarterback who really places the ball well. They have some good receivers and an experienced offensive line. They are a good quality football team for sure.”
Senior cornerback Qudarius Ford spoke about both the Jaguars win over Idaho and their upcoming test, Appalachian State.
“It was a big win for us because it gives us confidence going into these next conference games,” Ford said. “We needed that boost in confidence, and just needed to get things rolling. Defensively, we need to play physical and just eliminate the mental errors.”
“They (defensive front) made it real easy for the defensive backs,” Ford continued talking about the defensive front’s play against the Vandals. “They got so much pressure on the quarterback that he didn’t have a lot of time to look for a receiver to throw the ball to. They did a great job, and I know they will continue to do so.”
The Jaguar defense came away with seven sacks and a pick 6 against Lineham and the Vandals.
“(Defensive coordinator) Coach (Travis) Pearson does a good job of just simplifying the game for us and letting us play faster,” Ford observed about the defensive teams play this season. “The thing is we just have to stop the mental errors. That’s really what has been hurting us this season. If we just capitalize on the big plays and be consistent then we’ll be alright.”
“We just have to eliminate the big plays and play physical with them,” Ford said about this weekends matchup against the Mountaineers this weekend. “We are going to prepare for them like any other team.”
Senior wide receiver Shavarez Smith helped the Jaguar offense record 429 yards of total offense, 100 yards more than their average entering the game.
“A win is always a positive thing for a football team,” Smith said about the teams win over Idaho. “It gives us confidence. We play to win, so getting a win is always rewarding because we work so hard during the week. Our goal is to win this conference, and winning that game last weekend was a big stepping stone toward that. We don’t want to lose any more games, period. And we definitely don’t want to lose any more conference games because our goals are well within reach. We are going to try to make sure we keep making stride toward those.”
“Every game as an offense you gain some experience, knowledge and a little more wisdom as far as the game is concerned itself,” he said about the offensive unit. “We also gain a little more chemistry. You can tell by watching our past game that we looked a little better out there from a chemistry standpoint. We are just going to try and build off of what we accomplished last game.”
“We have guys who can make plays. It’s good to see people stepping up and doing that,” he said concerning the depth and wide receiver play of the Jaguars. “We’re trying to give (quarterback) Brandon (Bridge) targets and make him more comfortable throwing the ball. Anytime you can have an offense with multiple weapons, it obviously makes you more dangerous.”
The Jags had a rash of dropped passes in their losses to Mississippi State and Georgia Southern. The receiver corps played much better against Idaho as Bridge went 15-of-25 with few outright drops compared to the previous two games.
“They pursue pretty well defensively; they do a good job of running to the play,” Smith said about Appalachian State. “We are going to have to make sure we protect the ball and finish off our runs with physicality. It’s our job to execute offensively.”
The Jaguars and the Mountaineers kickoff at 5pm on Saturday in Boone, NC. The game will be televised on ESPN3 and, as with every Jaguar football game, play-by-play and color commentary on the radio on 99.9FM and streaming online via iHeartRadio.
South Alabama Defeats Idaho 34-10
Brandon Bridge completed six of his first seven passes including a 51 yard strike to Claude Garrett as the Jaguars came away with a 34-10 win over the Idaho Vandals in Moscow, ID.
The Jaguars offense seemed to correct the problems that had plagued them the last two games as they put up 429 yards of total offense against the Vandals. Bridge went 15-of-25 for 196 yards, a touchdown and an interception. He completed passes to seven different receivers, his favorite in the game was Shavarez Smith who caught 6 passes for 44 yards. Wes Saxton caught three for 18 yards and Jereme Jones caught two for 11 yards. Claude Garrett caught his first touchdown pass as a Jaguar, his only catch of the game.
Jay Jones went for 108 yards on 18 carries, his second 100 yard game of the season but his first since the season opener against Kent State. Brandon Bridge added 71 yards, including a 54 yard touchdown run, on six carries.
“We got a lot better, but we have to continue to improve,” head coach Joey Jones said about his offense. “I’m never satisfied, we’re going to get there. But I thought we were a much‐improved offense this week. I think we are honing in on what we are good at, and the coaching staff is doing a good job of calling plays we are good at running. We have to continue to do that and continue to get better.”
Qudarius Ford led the defense with nine stops, Demarius Rancifer added seven stops and a sack filling in for injured Jaguars. Montell Garner had five stops, a sack and an interception returned 59 yards for a touchdown. In all, the Jaguar defense sacked redshirt freshman Matt Linehan seven times.
“Our defense is playing hard,” Jones observed. “They are getting after it, and that’s the way we play defense here at South Alabama. Our defensive front did a great job. The guys covered well, the linebackers were fitting holes – it was a total team effort. All of the coaches did a great job. (Defensive coordinator) Coach (Travis) Pearson and his staff did a heck of a job. When you play defense like that then you have a chance. That is one of the best offenses in the league, and we did a great job stopping them.”
USA opened the scoring with under four minutes left in the opening quarter with Bridge’s strike to Garrett. Then 36 seconds later Garner would pick off Linehan and take it to the house to give the Jaguars a 14-0 lead.
The Jags would add a 19 yard field goal by Grant McLaurin to go up 17-0 with 8:41 left in the second quarter.
The Jaguar defense would force the Vandals to attempt a 40-yard field goal, but the kick would sail wide left with 2:03 left in the half.
Head coach Joey Jones was content to go to the locker room with a 17 point advantage but the Vandals would open the door with an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty after stopping the Jags on third down which gave USA a first down at the 41 yard line and plenty of time to get into scoring position. Bridge would connect with Smith for back-to-back completions, with the last going 10 yards and out of bounds at the Idaho 27. McLaurin would drill the 44 yard attempt to give the Jags a 20-0 lead at the half.
The Jaguars would only need three plays to get back onto the board again. Facing third and 1 at the USA 46, Bridge would call his own number and sprint 54 yards untouched for the touchdown to go up 27-0 with only 1:26 off the clock.
But then Idaho started a comeback attempt.
The Vandals would start at their own 16 and drive down to the Jaguar 11 before penalties backed them up and forced them to kick a 37 yard field goal to cut the Jaguar lead to 27-3 with 6:54 left in the third quarter.
On the first play of the Jaguars next possession, Bridge’s pass intended for Jereme Jones would be picked off at USA’s 30 yard line. Then back-to-back defensive holding calls would set up Linehan find Joshua McCain for a 10 yard touchdown to further cut the Jaguar lead to 27-10 with 6:25 left in the third quarter.
The Vandals would get the ball back two plays later when the referees ruled that Kendall Houston fumbled the ball at the USA 44, but the replay seemed to show that he was down before the ball came out. Again the Vandals would get deep into Jaguar territory at the 10 yard line but a penalty followed by a Jerome McClain sack would stall the drive at the Jaguar 23 forcing another field goal attempt, which Rehkow would again miss left from 40 yards out with 3:18 left in the quarter.
The Jaguar defense would sack Lineham for a 12 yard loss on a 4th and 2 at the Jaguar 43 to set up the Jaguars final score of the game. After a scramble for no gain, Bridge would find Antonio Carter for a 27 yard gain to the Vandal 18, then Jay Jones would cover the final distance on the next play to give the Jags the final score of 34-10 with 8:00 left in the game.
The Jaguar defense would sack Lineham three times and intercept him in the Vandals last two possessions of the game to close out the game.
“I thought the guys really adapted well after coming out here on the road with a four‐hour plane ride,” Jones said after the game. “We were ready to play when we started the football game. We just played with more fire and passion, and you have to do that. We played smart early and started off on a good note, and I think that propelled us through the end of the game.”
Next up the Jaguars (2-2, 1-1 SBC) will travel to Boone, NC to face conference newcomer Appalachian State (1-3, 0-1 SBC).