Jags Face Louisiana-Lafayette In Final Road Game Of Season
South Alabama hits the road to face Sun Belt Conference Western Conference rival Louisiana-Lafayette for their final road game of what has been a difficult and trying 2018 season.
The Jags (2-8, 1-5 SBC) enters the game with on a three game losing streak, a six game losing streak against FBS schools, and an eight game losing streak on the road since their dominating win last season at Troy. The Jags last win in the state of Louisiana was on September 7, 2013 when the Jags defeated Tulane 41-39.
The Ragin’ Cajuns (5-5, 3-3 SBC) come in after getting back to .500 with a 36-22 win over Georgia State after dropping a 26-16 decision to Troy the previous game.
Cajun running back Trey Ragas, who has had five 100-yard rushing games this season, only carried the ball four times for 32 yards against Georgia State last week but should be back and ready to go against the Jags. Raymond Calais Jr. stepped up in stunning fashion with career-high 186 yards and three touchdowns on 13 carries, including a record-breaking 92-yard touchdown run to earn SBC Offensive Player of the Week.
The Cajuns are in the midst of a three-way race for the Western Division championship with in-state rival Louisiana-Monroe currently sitting on top with a regular-season finale against them next weekend that could determine who goes to the inaugural SBC Championship Game.
South Alabama has only been competitive in the second half in two of their eight losses this season with an average score of 22.1 – 38.9. But if you take out Alabama State and limit it to FBS teams you get an average score of 19.5 – 42.4.
Cephus Johnson is expected to start again in Lafayette with Evan Orth still dealing with a shoulder injury and he’ll probably split time with Cole Garvin again. Last week against ULM, Johnson started the game and played the first and fourth quarter with senior Cole Garvin playing the second and third quarters in the 38-10 loss.
Johnson hooked up with Jordan McCray in the first quarter for a big touchdown to take an early 7-0 lead after covering a muffed punt. But the only points the Jags could muster came early in the second quarter on a 31-yard field goal.
The struggling Jaguar defense allowed 551 yards of total offense, 376 through the air. ULL rushed for 355 of their 525 total offensive yards against Georgia State last week. They came out and played inspired in the second half against Troy but eventually were worn down and crumbled.
The Jags are a 17 point underdog and rightly so with the way they have played. The fans and the coaching staff wonder if the team can make a statement in the final two games of the season or if they are going to have their worst season since the 2-11 FBS transitional season when USA played their first FBS schedule.
For the second straight week, the Jags face a team fighting to get bowl-eligible and I think the Cajuns will do it. A 17-point favorite? Unfortunately through my red, white, and blue glasses this still doesn’t look good, but again I’ll hope they surprise me.
Kickoff is at 4pm in Lafayette, LA. The game can be viewed on ESPN+ (subscription required).
Inside the Numbers:
USA Board Of Trustees Approve Phase II Of On-Campus Stadium Construction
The University of South Alabama Board of Trustees approved going forward with Phase II of the new on-campus stadium in a Saturday morning meeting.
In a rare Saturday morning Board of Trustees meeting on the campus of South Alabama, the board approved “Phase II” of the school’s on-campus football stadium construction. The bids that comprise this phase total $24.5 million of the $74 million total price tag of the finished product.
Phase II consists of the concrete cast-in-place lower bowl for seating and the shells for the press tower, athletic administration building, and underground utility work. Construction work for Phase II is expected to begin in January or February and keeps the timeline in place for opening for the 2020 season.
The location work has continued from Phase I on the location of the stadium which is adjacent to the football field house and practice facilities nestled in the northwest corner of campus.
Ever since the football program was founded the Jags have played their home games at Ladd-Peebles Stadium, which has also been home for the Dollar General bowl and its previous incarnations under different sponsors as well as the Senior Bowl. Both of which are expected to move to the new stadium.
Ladd-Peebles opened in 1948 and seats around 40,000. South Alabama has only sold out the stadium once when SEC opponent Mississippi State visited in 2014. Unfortunately the game was marred for fans as the concession vendors, typically local high school booster clubs and the like, were unable to keep up with the demand of a sold-out crowd on a hot and humid day. Additionally, the availability of water was a huge issue and led to changes for games where fans could bring up to two bottles of water per person to home games.
Phase I was approved back in May which included infrastructure work on the proposed site and preparatory ground work which included relocation of the former intramural fields, water and sewer installation.
The school’s attempt to get the entire projected green-lit hit a huge snag when it went to the Mobile City Council seeking $10 million over 20 years toward the stadium project with a lump sum reimbursal to the city once the stadium received it certification of occupancy. The hitch in the plan was when those involved in putting forth the resolution tied the new stadium to the demolition of Ladd-Peebles Stadium, which may be protected under the Alabama Memorial Preservation Act of 2017 which shields “architecturally significant” buildings over 40 years old.
There was community backlash to the commissioners on both the mentioned demolition of Ladd-Peebles and giving money to the school when city infrastructure had been neglected for many years. After forcing the council’s hand by threatening to withdraw the proposal, they finally receiving a failing vote. The school announced its “Get On Campus” initiative in August to allow the public to donate to the stadium fund directly. Since August, the initiative has only received around $348,000 in pledges. But it received a big shot in the arm when the Mobile County Commission approved $2.5 million towards the project in exchange for naming rights for the stadium’s academic center.
On Saturday, the Board of Trustees affirmed that the full stadium plan will be executed despite the lack of funding support from the city. However they will have control over the timeline and approve each phase as funding dictates.
The stadium master plan includes a large screen video board and sound system, an end-zone terrace, 16-seat suites, a club level with 800 seats, 1,500 parking spaces which Director of Athletics Joel Erdmann says is similar to what is available at Ladd-Peebles Stadium, green spaces for tailgating, and an access road from the stadium to Old Shell Road to ease traffic congestion on gameday.
Erdmann says the on-campus stadium with “change who we are.” “There is a public perception on what is considered a traditional college game day,” Erdmann said. “The majority of those traditional college game days are on college campuses. The campus comes alive and uses its geography and its buildings and green spaces. As opposed to 25,000 people going off-campus, they’re coming onto campus.” He continued by talking about the long-range impact on traditions, “People will go to the same places (on game day), and then their children will come with them and their grandchildren will come with them. The ultimately impact on this is generational.”
Below is a video that was shown at halftime of the Jaguars game against Louisiana-Monroe on Saturday as part of the announcement.
Louisiana-Monroe Spoils South Alabama’s Homecoming 38-10
Louisiana-Monroe breaks the Jags homecoming win streak at 9 after defeating USA 38-10 on Saturday, November 10, 2018.
South Alabama’s unbeaten streak in homecoming games came to an end at 9 as Louisiana-Monroe defeated the Jags 38-10.
The Jags (2-8, 1-5 SBC) started the game well, but could not muster much after the first quarter as Louisiana-Monroe (6-4, 4-2 SBC) scored 28 unanswered points after the Jags had tied the game.
ULM rolled up 551 yards of total offense, 376 of them through the air. The Jags could only muster 218 yards of total offense, with 129 of them coming through the air and a mere 89 yards rushing.
ULM’s Caleb Evans was 27-of-32 for 367 yards and two touchdowns. His favorite target was D’Marius Gillespie who caught all 7 passes thrown his way for 159 yards and a touchdown. Markis McCray had 5 catches for 41 yards. In total, 11 receivers caught passes with Jonathan Hodoh the other receiver catching a touchdown on his only catch.
Marcus Green led the Warhawks with 68 rushing yards on only two carries with a touchdown. Evans had 12 carries for 54 yards and two touchdowns.
Cephus Johnson started the game and finished 1-for-4 for 34 yards and a touchdown. Cole Garvin played the second and third quarters and went 13-for-19 for 95 yards.
Three Jags caught three passes each with Jordan McCray leading the trio with 45 yards and a touchdown.
Tra Minter led the rushing attach with 12 attempts for 61 yards. Johnson was next in line with 9 carries for 23 yards.
ULM was penalized only once for 15 yards while the Jags were flagged 5 times for 36 yards.
After being forced to punt on their opening possession, the Jags got the ball right back when Marcus Green muffed the punt and DJ Daniels recovered at the ULM 34 yard line. On the very next play Johnson threw a 34 yard touchdown pass to McCray lifting the Jags to a 7-0 lead. ULM would score the next 10 points to take a 10-7 lead into the second quarter.
USA couldn’t put the ball in the end zone early in the second quarter and settled for a 31 yard field goal by Gavin Patterson to tie the game.
The Warhawks took control of the game when they scored 14 points in the final 6:24 of the half. The Jags lined up for a 38 yard field goal attempt with 2:01 left in the first half, but the Warhawks blocked the attempt and would score with just :22 left.
ULM put a bow on it after they forced a three-and-out on the Jags first possession of the second half. Then the Warhawks only needed three plays to put another touchdown on the board with 12:34 left in the third quarter.
ULM would score on their next possession as well to get the final score of 38-10.
“I’m disappointed in the outcome of the game,” head coach Steve Campbell said after the game. “I thought the kids fought hard and that we did some good things in the first half. We had talked about starting faster and I thought we did. I hated that we gave up the touchdown right before the half with 22 seconds left, which really hurt.”
“We didn’t start the third quarter the way we wanted to, we got the ball and wanted to take it down the field and make it a seven-point game; Obviously we didn’t do that,” Campbell continued. “I was proud of our guys for fighting back and keeping them off the scoreboard for most of the fourth quarter.”
When asked about his biggest coaching concern with the way the season’s gone and only two game remaining, Campbell said: “The things that you would be concerned about have already happened. Getting beat by ULM by 28 on Homecoming is what I would be concerned about, but that has passed. What you have to do now is make sure you prepare hard and put together a good plan. We have to be able to go out and execute it against Louisiana-Lafayette and then finish strong against Coastal Carolina.”
The Jags will travel to Louisiana-Lafayette on Saturday for a 4pm kickoff against the Ragin’ Cajuns who are 5-5 and looking to get bowl eligible themselves.
Inside the Numbers:
Jags Host Louisiana-Monroe On Homecoming Weekend
South Alabama (2-7, 1-4 SBC) have been guaranteed another losing season but they have a lot yet to play for, pride. With only three games left, head coach Steve Campbell is expected to take advantage of the new red shirt rules and get freshmen some playing time down the stretch.
Louisiana-Monroe (5-4, 3-2 SBC) travel to Mobile as the first place team in the Sun Belt Conference western division and are favored to win the game by 6.5 points.
Senior starting quarterback Evan Orth left last weeks game in the third quarter with a shoulder injury which will keep him sidelined this week. Complicating things is that Desmond Trotter will not be available which will leave Cephus Johnson and Cole Garvin as the only two quarterbacks available on Saturday. Garvin has not seen playing time since arrested back in September.
The Warhawks hosted Georgia Southern and put a whipping on them 44-25. They held them to 138 yards rushing and 216 overall. The Warhawks gained 573 total yards, 236 rushing.
The Jaguar defense has played well in spurts but the offense has had problems moving the ball and putting points on the board. Then other times the roles were reversed with the offense moving the ball but the defense unable to get a stop. But the whole time the defense has been very susceptible to big plays, both through the air and on the ground.
With the injuries the number of players who are missing time with injuries and the expected use of freshmen, I don’t like the sound of how this game could play out. With a forecasted high of 56 degrees for Saturday, 55 degrees at kickoff and a quick cool off into the 40s as the sun sets may make for a small crowd and a long evening for the fans.
Keys to a jaguar win:
1. Win the turnover battle. The Jags can’t waste any possessions if they hope to win.
2. Stop the big plays. Big plays have been a bane in the side of the Jaguar defense all season. The 78 yard touchdown pass given up last week was a prime example. But giving up big double-digit yards on 3rd down is killer.
3. Score points. The most obvious of things to say, but there’s no way to win without putting points on the scoreboard. Last week they got on the scoreboard midway through the second quarter but didn’t get another score until the game was quite settled late in the fourth quarter.
I haven’t seen anything to make me think the Jags will suddenly put the last few games behind them and play up to their full potential. But I’m always open for a surprise. But right now I see the Warhawks getting their first win in three tries in Mobile and based on trends they will cover the 6.5 point spread.
Inside the Numbers:
Jags Fall To Redwolves 38-14
South Alabama allowed 31 unanswered points after tying the game and 7-each midway through the second quarter before getting a late trash-time score as the Jags fell to 2-7 on the season and 1-4 in Sun Belt Conference play.
Arkansas State’s Justice Hansen accounted for 357 total yards and four touchdowns. He threw for 332 yards while going 26-for-37 and three touchdowns. He added 25 yards on the ground and a 22 yard pass reception as the Redwolves improved to 5-4 overall and 2-3 in conference play.
Justin McInnis caught seven passes for 177 yards and a touchdown. Warren Wand rushed for 77 yards on 16 carries with a touchdown.
Evan Orth started the game after clearing the concussion protocol, which he suffered in the Jags game against Troy on October 23. Orth went 7-of-15 for 63 yards and a touchdown before he had to leave with an injury in the third quarter. Cephus Johnson went 5-of-7 for 30 yards and a touchdown in relief.
Tra Minter rushed 17 times for 88 yards. Cephus Johnson rushed for 28 yards on 12 carries as the second best runner. Minter also led the way receiving with four catches for only nine yards. Kawaan Baker hauled in three passes for a team-leading 40 yards.
Nigel Lawrence led the Jags with 17 stops after finally returning from injury and being disqualified in the first quarter against Troy. Bull Barge recorded 13 tackles.
The Jags trailed 14-7 at halftime before the Redwolves took control of the game in the third quarter with two scores. They got a big boost when a reverse throw-back pass to Hansen picked up 22 yards into the Jags red zone. Three plays later they scored.
The second score in the third quarter came after USA tried to convert on 4th and 1 at the Arkansas State 19 yard line and was unable to do so. Three plays later, on 3rd and 7, Hansen threw to McInnis near the right sideline and was able to race 78 yards to the end zone.
After going down 38-7, Johnson led the Jags on a 10 play, 68 yard drive capped off by a 5 yard touchdown pass to Jamarius Way.
If some crazy dominoes were to fall just right over the next three week, the Jags could conceivably still earn a berth in the inaugural Sun Belt Conference Championship game and bowl contention.
Head coach Steve Campbell said, “I thought we played hard in the first half and kept ourselves in the game. We had a couple of chances, but we gave up seven right before the half. It was a big series for us offensively when we didn’t convert the third-and-one and punted it. Arkansas State was able to drive down and score right before the half and that hurt, then we had the penalty on the kick return that could’ve evened up things for us heading into the locker room. They took the first drive [for a score] to open the second half and I didn’t get us ready coming out after halftime. We couldn’t really get anything going until our last drive.”
Coach Campbell’s positives from the game were, “We didn’t have as many penalties as we have in the past… We had a late hit on the quarterback and another 15-yard penalty on Arkansas State’s two first-half touchdown drives…. We didn’t turn it over. Those are some positive things that our young guys can build off of.”
South Alabama returns home on Saturday to host Louisiana-Monroe for homecoming. The Warhawks are coming off of a 44-25 win over Georgia Southern as they take control of the Western Division with a 5-4 overall record and 3-2 conference record.
Inside the Numbers:
South Alabama Looks For First Win In Jonesboro Against Arkansas State
The Jaguars (2-6, 1-3 SBC) travel to Jonesboro, Arkansas looking for the programs first win there against the Arkansas State Redwolves (4-4, 1-3 SBC).
Flash back to last year when the Jags upset the Redwolves in Mobile 24-19 and looked like they had turned the corner after a very rough beginning to the season and was making a run towards bowl eligibility.
Snapping back to this season the Jags under first year head coach Steve Campbell and the Jags have had a rough go of it. Particularly on the road where they are winless, and quite frankly have only been competitive in one game (Memphis) where the Jags were tied at 21 at halftime and was within four points going into the fourth quarter but ended up losing 52-35. USA has lost by an average score of 52-17 on the road, allowing no fewer than 48 points per road game and 522.7 yards of offense.
It’s been terrible.
Yes, one of those away games was Oklahoma State. But two of those losses came against Appalachian State and Georgia Southern. In each road game other than Memphis, the Jags trailed by double digits at halftime, including a 42-7 shocker at Appalachian State.
Despite all of this, USA still controls their destiny in the Sun Belt Conference Western Division with an opportunity to earn a spot in the inaugural SBC Championship.
Today is a key towards earning that spot.
The Redwolves come into the game battered and bruised. They have had several players miss practice this week. They’ve had five offensive skill position players among them.
But quarterback Justice Hansen continues playing as one of the best at his position in conference history. He leads the team in rushing yards and continues to be a proficient passer.
The Jags were able to get some extra rest since they played on a Tuesday night against Troy. SO instead of a normal bye week, the Jags had two “long” weeks between games. Maybe they wished they had a full bye week after the physical game they had against Troy, which they lost 23-7. Starting quarterback Evan Orth took a pounding, leaving the game late with a concussion. He finally passed through concussion protocol and returned to practice on Wednesday after sitting out much of the time since the October 23rd game.
South Alabama has a couple things they need to do in order to win this game, and they are very similar to what they needed to do against Troy. They simply have to win the turnover battle. The offense has to convert more 3rd down attempts to sustain drives and rest the defense. The defense has to show up, they have been bad all year but terrible on the road. The defense has given up big plays, both running and passing. They clamped down against Troy in the second half but they can’t go into halftime down double-digits.
Coach Campbell and his staff just cannot gamble on making a big play to give themselves momentum. The “surprise” onside kicks and the hail-mary throw with just :03 left until halftime against Troy keeps giving the momentum that the Jags were building up right back to the other team. Let the guys keep fighting, they will turn the tide, just don’t pull the run out from under then. Don’t be your own worst enemy.
South Alabama and Arkansas State kicks off this afternoon at 2pm in Jonesboro, Arkansas. The game can be heard on the Jaguar Radio Network and iHeartRadio. Video will be streamed on ESPN+ (seven day free with signup then recurring monthly fee).
Inside the Numbers:
Troy Wins The Battle of the Belt 38-14
A big first half by Troy was all that was needed by the Trojans to defeat South Alabama at home on a Tuesday night nationally televised game, 38-17.
The Jags lost the penalty battle, the two teams had the same number of penalties, seven, but the Jags were penalized for 91 yards while the Trojans had 67 yards in penalties.
Jaguar head coach Steve Campbell was glad to get the teams leading tackler, Nigel Lawrence, back for the game after missing the last two with a knee injury. However his time was short lived. On the third play from scrimmage he was flagged for targeting and disqualified for the game.
Later in the first half, on a play where the ball bounced off of Bull Barge and was intercepted by Sterrling Fisher, the replay booth called down for a review and eventually ejected Jeffery Whatley for targeting while throwing a block for his teammate.
These two targeting ejections makes five of them in the last four games.
South Alabama also lost the turnover battle. After being quite efficient in the passing game, Evan Orth threw three interceptions in the game, doubling his number for the season.
Meanwhile the Jags were able to pick off one of Sawyer Smith’s passes and was able to cover a muffed punt late in the first half.
USA had trouble weathering the early onslaught by the Trojans, allowing scores on each of Troy’s first five possessions. In most of the Jags games this season, the defense has dug deep holes and put the offense down by double-digits.
Risk taking, while it can turn the momentum in your favor if it works out, it can also backfire. That’s what happened at the end of the first half. After the Jags were stopped and Troy took a time out to force USA to punt, the punt bounced and hit a Troy returner and was recovered at the 27 yard line with three seconds left. But instead of kicking the gift field goal, Campbell and Edenfield decided to run a hail-mary style play against Troy’s prevent defense which nearly turned into pick six if it wasn’t for Tra Minter forcing the returner out of bounds at the USA 35 it would have been a touchdown.
After finding success with an onsides kick in the season opener against Louisiana Tech, the Jags have tried to catch their opponents by surprise a few times since then. Each time they were prepared for it or the bounce did not go the Jags way, but each time it gave the momenum back to the opponent. After the interception and return, the Trojan players rushed to the South endzone where a mass of Troy students were ready to receive them after an opening half score of 31-17 and a big play to lead them to the halftime break.
The second half was very different. The Jags defense tightened up and so did the Troy offense. While the Jags offense could move the ball, they couldn’t get into scoring position and when they did they threw interceptions and missed a field goal.
The only score of the second half came with 4:39 left in the game after Evan Orth threw the ball into the end zone but had it intercepted and ran back for an apparent touchdown only to have it called back to the 11 yard line due to a holding call. Two plays later the Trojans put the dagger into the heart of the Jags putting them up 38-17.
USA finished the game with 385 yards of total offense, 275 of them coming through the air. Troy gained 410 total yards, 261 through the air and 252 on the ground. But the Jaguar defense only allowed 71 total yards in the second half.
Tra Minter rushed 23 times for 99 yards to lead the Jaguar rushing attack and added 49 yards receiving on two catches. Jamarius Way caught six passes for 80 yards and a touchdown. Jordan McCray added three for 60 yards and the other touchdown.
Troy’s BJ Smith rushed 22 times for 170 yards and a touchdown. Damion Willis caught five passes for 132 yards and two touchdowns.
Despite being only 2-6 on the season and 1-3 in conference play, the Jags still control their destiny in the Sun Belt Conference Western division. They need to win out to get bowl eligible and three of those four are western division rivals each with two conference losses.
It’s not going to be an easy road with perennial contender Arkansas State coming up first followed by Louisiana-Monroe, Louisiana-Lafayette and Coastal Carolina. But if they can continue to correct things each week, then it’s not outside the realm of possibility. A 5-3 conference record with wins over all of the western conference members would hold all of the tie breakers.
Meanwhile Troy (6-2, 4-0 SBC) keeps pace with Georgia Southern and Appalachian State, both 3-0 and on a collision course on Thursday night, October 25th in a battle of conference unbeatens and a rivalry known as ‘Deeper than Hate.’
South Alabama will return to action on the road in Jonesboro, Arkansas against Arkansas State on Saturday, November 3. The game can be seen on ESPN+.
Inside the Numbers:
Battle For The Belt 2018
South Alabama and Troy will play for the “Battle for the Belt” trophy Tuesday night at Ladd-Peebles Stadium on ESPN2. | Photo credit: USA Vanguard.
Last year, the Jags traveled to Troy after the Trojans were coming off of a 24-21 over then #22 ranked LSU in Death Valley and came away with a 19-8 win in a dominating defensive performance. The Jags scored 12 points off of four Trojan turnovers and didn’t allow any points on the board until 6:16 left in the game.
This season is a bit different though. This time the Trojans (5-2, 3-0 SBC) will travel to Mobile to face South Alabama (2-5, 1-2 SBC) after an upset loss on the road at FBS transitional Liberty 22-16.
So to say that the Trojans have something to play for is an understatement. They want revenge for that Wednesday night domination at the hands of the Jaguars on national television, bring the rivalry belt back to Troy, and they also want to redeem themselves after the upset loss.
The Jags enter the game after a pleasing 45-7 get-right win over Alabama State, but only the second ‘W’ of the season for the Jags under first year head coach Steve Campbell, a Troy alum. Actually both of his coordinators, OC Kenny Edenfield and DC Greg Stewart, are also Troy alums too and they all have Division II national championship rings from their time there. Edenfield came to the Jags after a 10 year stint at Troy, the last eight as offensive coordinator.
With the win over the Hornets, the Jags hope to start a run in this second half of the season towards a berth in the inaugural Sun Belt Conference championship game. Currently, the Jags control their fate and could move into a tie for first place in the western division with a win over Troy. Meanwhile Troy looks to keep pace in the Eastern Division with conference unbeaten Appalachian State and Georgia Southern.
Quarterback Sawyer Smith will make only his second start after Kaleb Barker was lost for the season with a knee injury. The Jags defense has been susceptible to big plays and being gashed on the ground this season. By all indications the Jags will have Nigel Lawrence back, who was the teams’ leading tackler when he went down with an injury a couple games ago.
Oh and who can forget the penalties.
The Trojans are very balanced, numbers wise. They average 207.7 yards per game rushing and 205.9 yards per game passing so the Jags will have to play disciplined.
Meanwhile the Jags will look to establish the running game to take pressure off of quarterback Evan Orth and his receivers by making the Trojan defense play honest against the run. While Jamarius Way and Kawaan Baker have both had their standout moments on the season, the Jags have also developed Jordan McCray and Jahmmir Taylor into more options. Now with the return of Malik Stanley, that adds more tools for the passing game to utilize.
Tra Minter has been the workhorse in the backfield with 84 carries on the season for 263 yards and five touchdowns. Baker is the next closest rusher with 179 yards and six touchdowns.
Troy’s leading rusher is BJ Smith, with 587 yards and eight touchdowns on the season on 94 carries. He averages 6.2 yards per carry.
The Trojans have a pair of receivers in Deondre Douglas and Damion Willis who each have five touchdowns. Douglas is the receptions leader with 34 for 348 yards. Willis is not far behind with 25 catches but for 373 yards. They also have three other receivers with over 100 yards receiving on the season and they have combined for five touchdowns between them.
The keys to a Jaguar win and keeping the Belt in Mobile are three fold.
First, limit the penalties committed by the Jags. Gifting Troy with first downs or short third downs will not help a struggling defense. Penalties of aggression or frustration simply have to be avoided. If they can play cool, calm and collected they will have a big advantage right off the bat.
Second, the Jags need to withstand the early Troy onslaught. In the first quarter, they are outscoring opponents 80-21 and in the first half they are outscoring opponents 154-87. In the second half they do not score nearly as much and are actually being outscored 85-82. In USA’s lone Sun Belt win, they were down going into the second half and scored 18 points in the fourth quarter to get the win.
Third, USA must protect the ball. The Jags have put the ball on the ground 14 times and lost possession nine times to go along with six interceptions on the season. Troy under coach Brown are 5-22 when they lose the turnover battle and they are 22-1 when they win that battle.
South Alabama enters as an 11 point underdog in the game. Call it being a homer or whatever you want, but I’m picking the Jags with that spread.
By the Numbers:
Jags Win Big Over Alabama State 45-7
Offensive line coach Mike Bangtson works with the offensive line between drives early in the first quarter in South Alabama’s 45-7 win over Alabama State on Saturday, October 13, 2018.
After a tough three-game road swing which they lost all three by a combined score of 152-55, the Jags returned home for their final non-conference tilt of the season against FCS Alabama State.
The Jaguar offense started out pretty shaky on their first two drives before putting together an 8 play, 82 yard touchdown drive capped off by an 8-yard touchdown run by Tra Minter with 4:03 left in the first quarter.
Once the Jags opened the scoring, they then put touchdowns on the board on their next three possessions. The second touchdown came by way of a jet sweep by Kawaan Baker where he outran the Hornet defense to the corner of the end zone.
Alabama State got their only points of the game on one play. Kha’Dar Davis threw it up down the far sideline, the Jaguar defender went up for it but missed, then Tyrek Allen came away with it and made for the end zone with the help of his teammates making some good blocks for a 75 yard touchdown pass.
USA answered right back with a six play, 49 yard drive capped off by Evan Orth running it in from 19 yards out. The next possession, Orth rolled to his right and found McCray open for a 9 yard touchdown pass to take a 28-7 lead into halftime.
The Jaguar defense opened the second half with a 3 and out. The ensuing punt was fielded by Tra Minter at his own 25 and he didn’t stop until he found the end zone 75 yards later to make it a 35-7 game.
On the next possession, the Jags drive stalled at the Hornet 33 yard line, but Gavin Patterson put three points on the board with a career long 50 yard field goal.
South Alabama took out Evan Orth at the beginning of the fourth quarter in favor of redshirt-freshman Cephus Johnson. On his third play directing the offense, the found Jahmmir running open on a seam route and he floated in perfectly for a 56 yard touchdown for his first career touchdown throw and the final score of 45-7.
The Jags rolled up 396 yards of total offense, 185 of it on the ground. USA held Alabama State to 219 total yards of offense and only 85 on the ground. The 75 yard touchdown pass was 34% of their entire offensive output in the game.
USA still committed seven penalties for 75 yards, which is an improvement in both categories. While the Hornets committed 13 for 83 yards.
Deonta Moore led the Jags with 65 yards rushing with Tra Minter added 61 on a team high 12 attempts with a touchdown.
Orth went 12-of-15 for 155 yards and a touchdown. Johnson went 1-of-2 for 56 yards and a touchdown.
Taylor led the way with 56 yards receiving on the touchdown reception. Kawaan Baker caught two for 52 yards. Jamarius Way caught a team-high three passes for 35 yards. Jordan McCray had the other receiving touchdown with on two catches for 12 yards.
Coach Steve Campbell spoke of how well the team played against Alabama State. “It was a really good win, I’m really proud of the way the guys responded. Tonight was a total team victory. Offensively, I thought we did a lot of good things and we protected the football. We were able to sustain drives with one of them being a 13-play drive. Defensively, we played really, really well. We gave up one play, but other than that our defense played lights out. We did a lot of good things in special teams. We returned a punt for a touchdown, we forced a couple of errant punts, we hit a 50-yard field goal and we covered kicks well, so there were a lot of good things special teams wise. All three phases contributed and I can see a lot of progress. It was good to be back in Mobile.”
With the win the Jags improve to 2-5 on the season and remains 1-2 in the conference and tied for second in the Sun Belt Conference Western Division.
South Alabama will host Troy for a Tuesday Night game on October 23 on ESPN2 the the “Battle for the Belt.”
Inside the Numbers:
Jags Hosts Alabama State For Final Non-Conference Game Of The Season
While the Jaguars put together a good half of football against Georgia Southern, the Eagles were able to pull away in the second half for a 48-13 win.
USA was able to keep Shai Werts GSU option attack contained in the first half, but halftime adjustments and turnovers eventually got the best of the Jags. Add on nine penalty flags for 90 yards to go with losing two of the Jags three fumbles and two interceptions and that’s a recipe for a bad day.
But now the Jags return home after three-consecutive road games to host their final non-conference foe of the season, FCS Alabama State.
The Hornets (2-3) are coming off of their second win of the season against Alcorn State 28-25. They average 101 yards rushing and 171 yards passing per game. Not stellar numbers by far.
The only other FBS school they have faced was then ranked #9 Auburn which they were clobbered 63-9.
When the final whistle sounds and the game is over, this should go down as the Jags second win of the season. But what college football has taught us this season and every other season is that no game is certain.
Look at Old Dominion, they opened the season with a 52-10 loss to Liberty then three weeks later they upset #13 Virginia Tech 49-35 for their first and only win so far this season. And they did it with the help of their second string quarterback who threw for 495 yards and four touchdowns.
[Reader]: “But Old Dominion is an FBS school, Alabama State isn’t.
Yes, that’s true. But how many times have you seen an FCS school upset an FBS team? Well lets start with what are now Sun Belt schools with Appalachian State’s upset of Michigan and Georgia Southerns upset of Florida. Then you have The Citadel over South Carolina, Portland State over Washington State, Youngstown State over Pitt, North Dakota State’s upset of Iowa, Richmond over Virigina, North Dakota State over Kansas State, Jacksonville State over Ole Miss, and William and Mary over Virginia just to make a few.
So my point is that it happens and no game should be taken lightly.
But it is an opportunity to correct mistakes and, if all goes well, lets the Jaguars show that they are the more talented team from top to bottom. If all goes to plan, this could also let some other, less experienced Jaguar players get meaningful snaps on the field as well, such as Cephus Johnson.
There’s no spread set for the game and it’s Homecoming. Let’s get the W and get the second half of the season started the right way. Fan Fest starts at 1pm with live music and free food samples from vendors.
Kickoff is set for 4pm at Ladd-Peebles Stadium. Go Jags!
Inside the Numbers: