South Alabama Is More Experienced Than Many Think
The Offensive line gets set while Coach Clark directs the defense during a practice early preseason camp.
You may already know the cliche “defense wins championships.” Over the last three college football seasons you can see that a stifling defense does win championships. While South Alabama is far from that level, they do have a very experienced defense.
The team was unclassified by the NCAA in their first two years of competition so the players who joined the team were allowed to participate in games during their redshirt season. This allows them to play in all five of their seasons of eligibility.
The defense is the more experienced side of the ball. Four seniors, six juniors and a sophomore on the first team defense. The senior starters are Anthony Taylor at Jack linebacker, Jake Johnson at Mike linebacker, B.J. Scott at safety and Andy Dalgleish at nose tackle.
Junior defensive starters include Montavious Williams at tackle, Alex Page at end, Clifton Crews at Sam linebacker, Enrique William at Will linebacker, Darrius Marrow at cornerback and Tyrell Pearson at cornerback. Alonzo Long is the only sophomore starting on the defense at strong safety. Long and Pearson are both JuCo transfers.
There are five sophomore starters on the offense with five of them entering into their third season of play. They are joined by one senior, two juniors and one redshirt freshman. Trey Clark at Center is the only Senior slated in as a starter with Tremain Smith listed as a possible starter at right tackle. Junior starters are Bryant Lavender with Greg Hollinger and Corey Waldon both listed as optional starters. Sophomore starters are Drew Dearman at left guard, Shaun Artz at right guard, C.J. Bennett at quarterback and Demetre Baker at running back with Wes Saxton at tight end, Ucambre Williams at left tackle, Melvin Meggs, Jereme Jones at receiver are all optional starters.
So when the Jags hit the field on *Thursday, they will be an experienced team ready for competition. While they are not eligible for the Sun Belt Conference championship hopefully the experience on the defense, and on offense for that matter, will translate into a very competitive season.
The size and experience is what worries UTSA defensive coordinator Neal Neathery. He mentioned that Baker and Kendall Houston took turns exploiting holes opened up by the offensive line in the Jaguars 30-27 win in the Alamodome. “Both of the (backs) they played were physical, strong, in between the tackles runners. I thought it was a game where we didn’t feel great about ourselves when it was over when it comes to who was the tougher team,” Neathery said.
“Just as a unit last year they were probably the toughest, most physical offensive line we played,” Neathery said. “They were really good, and their running backs had a lot to do with that.”
* Currently the Jaguars are set to kickoff on Thursday, August 30th against Texas-San Antonio but Tropical Storm Isaac could postpone the game.
USA Media Day Coverage
South Alabama hosted their annual media day on Tuesday at the football fieldhouse on campus. They discussed the team’s progress this preseason and their expectations for the coming season.
Head Coach Joey Jones, Defensive coordinator Bill Clark and first year offensive coordinator Robert Matthews fielded questions from the media along with Seniors Jake Johnson, B.J. Scott, Trey Clark and sophomore Jereme Jones.
Below are some of the more notable questions and answers from their sessions.
Head coach Joey Jones opened media day with his opening statement. “We’re very excited about this season. Our kids have worked their tails off to get here. There’s a different look in their eyes right now, they understand the challenges we have ahead of us. And they’re competitors, they compete and want to compete with the best. It’s been very exciting to watch them during the offseason to get ready for this season.”
Coach Jones was then asked about this year’s team and how he thinks they will compete with other Sun Belt schools. “There’s no doubt that we’re better. We have better players. It’s going to be a year where we kind of feel our way through as far as knowing how good these [Sun Belt Conference] teams are. It’s a good conference, we know that. They’ve beaten some very tough teams in this country, so we understand that it’s going to be a very tough league. But we want to make a good representation for South Alabama. We want to go out and be very competitive. I want the other teams to respect us when they walk off the field. You certainly want to get to the point where you win a lot of games, but you can’t focus on that. We have to focus on the process of it.”
Jones then spoke about special teams when asked a question about it. “I think coach Perry has done a great job studying during the offseason. He went to a couple of NFL teams and picked up some great ideas, and we’re implementing those. We’ve emphasized the importance of it. I think we can help ourselves from the kind of unknown side of the game. I feel really good about where we are.”
He was then asked about the teams strength’s this season. “Our linebackers are very good football players, not that we don’t have good players at other positions. But if you look at our starters at linebacker, I think you start with Jake Johnson. He’s a great football player who I think will play in the NFL next year. He’s smart, can run and is a good tackler, he can do it all. Enrique Williams is looking really good and Clifton Crews is a very good athlete. I think those guys can compete with just about anybody.”
With the change at offensive coordinator after last season, it was only a matter of time before someone asked him about question about the offense. He spoke about their offensive philosophy. “We always want to be balanced, but if you can’t run the football then you can’t win in my opinion. You can throw the ball and win games, but you have to run the ball to be able to win championships. One thing I have noticed is that the kids have really bought in to this offense. They’re locked in when they come to meetings and go to practice. When you have that, good things are going to happen. We’re going to be successful in a lot of ways because they have bought in.”
Finally he answered a question about the quarterback position. “When I look at our players, I look at them and try to find guys who can help us win. I think both Ross Metheny and C.J. Bennett can win for us right now. The competition has been great. I think they have both sharpened each other and have made each other better. It’s good for us as a program, and it’s good as a quarterback to have the heat on you. But I think we have two guys at quarterback who have shown us they can win right now. They both fit this offense really well, and are both very similar in their traits.”
Next up was defensive coordinator Bill Clark with an opening statement for his segment. “You’re going to see a whole different set of guys on defense. Our options are opening up to a lot of guys now that we’re Division I. When you go out recruiting, those big defensive linemen go first, they are hard to find. We’ve got some guys who are undersized, but are the type of guys who play their butts off. We have to keep those guys healthy.”
Coach Clark fielded a question about practicing against an offense that will be similar to other Sun Belt teams they will be facing this season. “I think it’s key. Anytime you can go against similar people is good. You can practice as high-rate as you can, but to actually see it is its own deal. It’s going to make us a ton better. We want to be high-energy, highly-motored and we want to get off the field and get our offense the ball. When you’re guys are sucking wind, or you can’t get your subs on the field because they aren’t used to it, then that’s a problem. We’re glad we get to practice against them. It makes us a lot better.“
He also spoke about Jake Johnson and B.J. Scott as veterans and leaders on the defense. “You always count on your veterans. Everybody’s got another year, but the senior. Sometimes, as a junior, sophomore, or freshman, they think, ‘I’ll get my time.’ But a senior’s job is to say, ‘No, this is your time. This is for sure my time and I won’t get another chance.’ We want to bring [underclassmen] energy levels up to theirs. They are very good leaders. They lead by example, and they’re good people. They’ve been in big games and big stadiums. In front of a lot of people, like we saw with N.C. State, last year, people like Jake help you out there. We’re blessed to have them and we’ve got a lot of juniors that are like seniors since they’ve been with us when we started. We’ve got a pretty veteran group.”
Coach Clark revisited how he came to be with the Jags. “I tell the story all the time. Coach Jones called my office while I was in the second week of playoffs just checking in and seeing what we were doing. We talked a lot. He just mentioned that this was an opportunity and I, of course, said, ‘Hey, let’s go.’ I’d always heard about South Alabama, and through the long haul, it worked. We really feel like this is a family. I think you’ve seen us play like that. We were sitting here on a cement slab (four years ago) telling people what it was going to look like. To see the football facility, to see where we’re headed, changes at Ladd-Peebles Stadium, watching our guys grow, to finally be Division I, is pretty neat.”
Finally he spoke about the pressure to prove something. “As a high school guy, I always felt like I carried the banner for my guys. There are so many great coaches that just don’t get that opportunity, and we feel like we’re representing the kind of guys, like high school coaches who teach class in the day and coach because they’re doing what they love.”
The last of the coaches who spoke at media day is first year offensive coordinator Robert Matthews. He first spoke about the offense and what he hopes the fans will see this season. “Hopefully you’re going to see a lot of first downs and a lot of points. Offensively, we’re into the second week of camp, and we feel like we’re making a lot of progress. We have repped a ton of guys at a lot of different positions. We’re practicing really efficiently. We’ve got two team periods going at the same time, we have two 7-on-7 periods going on at the same time, and that’s helping to answer the question of depth from both an offensive and defensive standpoint. We feel like there are a lot of guys getting reps to help us this year, as well as next year. We’re in this for the long haul, not a one season and out kind of deal. Coach Jones is a Mobile native and we want this to be a proud program.”
“Hopefully, in our offense, a lot of guys are going to touch the ball. We’re rotating receivers, tight ends and running backs in and out, and we hope to snap the ball at a high rate and get it to our playmakers. That’s what this offense is about, so if Jereme is one of those guys, then he should definitely have a smile on his face. I think the kids have a good understanding of what we’re looking for. There are still certain plays that aren’t perfected yet, but I think overall the kids have put in a lot of time since spring ball through the summer, and we’ve had an efficient camp because of that. It’s more refining as opposed to re-teaching.”
Coach Matthews was then asked about the adjustment period for the players. “I think the kids are working hard. We’re getting better every week. Really, they don’t have a choice. If they want to play, they’ll do what the coaching staff asks of them. There’s a good camaraderie amongst the staff and the players, and I think it’s progressing well.”
Matthews also spoke about his growth as a coach up to his new position as offensive coordinator with the Jags. “In my first coaching job at a high school in Georgia, we ran the Wing-T offense. We were successful because we had good players and the kids believed in it. With the revolution of football as a sport, you have to score points. We utilize that philosophy using the one-back spread. I’ve been fortunate to have been around some really good coaches, and some really good guys that are prolific coaches have mentored me. Coach Jones has been involved in some good offensive schemes himself. I think we’ve done a really good job of meshing those ideas together and just putting together a product that will help us win.”
He was later asked about the quarterback competition during camp this year. “It’s been really fun to have a bunch of different guys working in that position. You have to have depth at that position. C.J. has been here and he’s played some games, and he’s getting better every day. Ross brings a different perspective, because he’s been in a different program, and Fetner and Peavey have all been working hard and they’ve all gotten better. That’s a testament to us getting guys a lot of reps during practice because you want to build depth.”
“You never want to look at it this way, but you’re always one play away from whoever the number two is to being a starter for the remainder of the season. You better prepare for it because it’s the reality of what could happen. It’s hard to compare from last year because they’re two different offenses. Everybody asks, ‘What about C.J. from last year?’ I’m not worried about C.J. from last year. I’m worried about C.J. and how the rest of the guys are doing right now. He comes to work every day and he’s being a good leader and he’s working hard at this offense. I think he’s progressing.”
Senior linebacker Jake Johnson was first up for the players. He first spoke about the progress of the defense so far during camp and the expectations on the season. “We’re a lot better at this point in camp than we were this time last year. We’re more complex on defense, which is good so we don’t look the same out there every play. We have a lot of players stepping up, a lot of new defensive linemen, Jesse Kelley. He’s 19 years old and is really stepping up at nose tackle. We also have a couple of corner backs who have stepped up. Alonzo Long has done well. We’re really looking good halfway through camp.”
He was asked about how important it is for the defense to establish a personality on defense. “I think it’s real important. The intensity that you bring now during camp is going to translate in the games. We try to bring a high intensity, a high motor, a high effort everyday from every position, so that when the game comes, we are so used to going at that speed and that intensity and that is the face of our defense.”
Johnson was asked about the overall attitude of the defense this season as compared to previous seasons. “Our attitude is a lot better. We seem to be a lot more focused. We watch a lot more film and have a lot more meetings. Like I mentioned earlier, we aren’t running the same scheme. We have gotten more complex in some of the things that we have run in the past.”
He was also asked about how being exposed to the spread offense in practice will help the defnese when they start conference play. “The spread attack is what a majority of the teams in the Sun Belt are running. (Seeing the spread in practice) is going to help us get conditioned. Having seen it so much in practice, we are going to be prepared for it. It also really helps out the defensive backs. They’re getting so much work, not just on defensive drills, but they are working on so much man coverage, that I feel it’s going to help them in the games. I think it’s going to help us out greatly.”
Senior defensive back B.J. Scott spoke about the progress of the defense so far during camp and what expectations he has for the season. “Midway through camp, we have some players with some dings who are a little banged up and we’re trying to get them back as fast as we can, but I think our defense is looking good this year. We’ve prepared ourselves throughout camp.”
Scott also spoke about the improvements made in the secondary, also mentioning Alonzo Long as well. “We are more athletic at the corner position. Alonzo Long has really stepped up and is looking really good. Tyrell Pearson is doing a great job for us as well.”
Finally, he was also asked about facing the spread offense in practice. “Seeing a hurry-up tempo offense at practice makes the secondary and the defense as a whole get to the line and call our coverage in the secondary a lot faster. It helps us, just as much as it helps the offense.”
Senior center Trey Clark spoke about the progression of the offense in camp. “Right now we’re just working hard and staying focused on each practice right now. It’s going to be tough and it’s going to be hot. I think it’s really important for us as a team to stay focused on each practice, improve on the fundamentals and get the ins-and-outs of our offense worked out before the first game.”
Clark was asked about the conditioning of the team. “The new offense we run is very fast paced and high tempo. That demands great conditioning. With our offseason, summer workouts and fall camp, I think we’re really making strides in that area.”
When asked about the state of the offensive line, he said: “Our strengths are our ability to play fast and utilize our athleticism. As far as our weaknesses, we have to get better at our pass protection and learning to play together. We have some guys that are stepping into starting roles, so getting used to playing next to one another is going to be important for us.”
Finally he spoke about the new starters on the offensive line. “We have several linemen that have stepped up this camp, especially Drew Dearman, Shaun Artz and Chris May. They’ve all done an outstanding job. We also have a transfer, Perry Meiklejohn, who has done a great job. For the returners, it will be important for us to bring them along a little bit, but for the most part, they’re doing a great job and have stepped up. I’m here to help them any way I can, but they’ve done a great job in learning the offense and working to improve every single day.”
Sophomore wide receiver Jereme Jones also answered the question about the progression of the offense in camp. “It’s progression really well. We have a dynamic offense. We go through our bumps and bruises, but overall I think we’re doing what doing we have to do to be where we want to be at the end of the season.”
Jones was also asked about the conditioning of the team. “We do a lot of conditioning, but it’s not suicides or gassers, we do it while we’re doing plays. We do fast-tempo things like getting lined up fast, just like we would do in a real game.”
Specificially, Jones was asked about the receivers transition to the new offense was progressing. “When we first started in the spring it wasn’t easy. We had to really study the playbook, learn the plays and watch a lot of film. But when the summer came around, we knew what we had to do and where we needed to be. When the fall came, it wasn’t a big learning curve. Instead of having to learn, we just executed.”
Finally he was asked about the quarterbacks. “C.J. was doing a lot of what he’s doing now in practice, last year, it just didn’t correlate to the field like it was supposed to. C.J. is throwing the ball the way he’s supposed to, leveraging the ball the way it needs to be. Ross is a good quarterback too. He does a good job of running the offense. He’s similar to CJ, he leverages the ball well and puts it where it needs to be. There’s going to be some competition this year.”
Jags Return To Field After Scrimmage
Quarterback CJ Bennett prepares to take a snap in the light rain at the Jaguar Practice Facility.
The Jaguars returned to the practice field on Monday to begin their second full week of practice as they are only 16 days away from their 2012 season opening game against Texas-San Antonio. After their day off on Sunday, Coach Jones thought they opened the second week with another strong effort after a rest day.
The practice on Monday spanned about two hours in full pads. Most of the first hour focused on individual skills drills before progressing to skeleton passing drills then full 11-on-11 team drills in the second half of practice.
The skeleton drills focused on open field and red zone plays while the 11-on-11 drills focused on the base playset. In the first four plays of team drills sophomore C.J. Bennett completed passes to four different Jaguar receivers.
Bennett and Metheny both found open receivers and enjoyed good protection as the offensive line only allowed two sacks during team drills. Jereme Jones hauled in an impressive one-handed touchdown pass. Wide receivers Cameron Broadnax and T.J. Glover both added some very nice catches as well. Kendall Houston and Senior Brandon Ross stood out amongst the running backs in individual drills.
Defensively the secondary allowed some receivers to get open during the skeleton drills. Safety Charles Harris broke up two passes while his counterpart B.J. Scott continues to be a vocal leader on the field. During individual drills Montavious Williams and Lucas Melo almost flipped a sled.
Also, the Jags got a visit from former Jaguar receiver Courtney Smith during practice.
“I thought it was great, it was one of our better practices,” Jones said after practice. “The kids came out ready to go and were mentally sharp. I told them that if we can practice like this, we’re going to be a pretty good football team. But we have to continue to do that. They can’t worry about what happened in the scrimmage, on the last play or last week, all they can do something about is what is ahead of them. The kids understand that, and if they take each day and get better we will have a shot.”
“This week is a tough week, the second week of camp. There is no school and no game coming up this weekend, so we have to make sure it is a good work week,” Jones explained. “We’re going to finish this week getting a ton of reps, next week we will start backing off and focusing on quality reps. We just need to throw a lot at them and see what they can do.”
After Saturday’s scrimmage the coaching staff reviewed the scrimmage video and Coach Jones said he was pleased with what he saw. “I was real pleased, I thought there were some good things offensively. We executed much better, the offensive line is really starting to come along and the quarterbacks understand the offense,” he said. “Defensively we are real banged up right now, a bunch of starters are out but will be back by the middle of the week. Once we get all those guys out there I feel really good about what we are doing defensively.”
The players and coaches will return to the practice field on Tuesday morning at 7:40am and will keep that schedule all this week leading up to an 8am scrimmage on Saturday at Ladd-Peebles Stadium.
South Alabama’s Scrimmage Goes Well
Wide Receiver Bryant Lavender waits on the ball during Jaguars preseason camp.
South Alabama’s first scrimmage of the season saw the ball flying through the air early and often on Saturday. Four quarterbacks combined to go 27-of-39 for 280 yards. The offense scored four touchdowns and a field goal during the hour-and-a-half scrimmage at the Jaguar Practice Facility.
Seventeen different Jaguars notched at least one pass reception during the scrimmage. Freshman Cameron Broadnax caught three for 35 yards and Greg Hollinger had a scrimmage-high 43 yards on two receptions. Jereme Jones, Bryant Lavender and Wes Saxton all hauled in multiple pass receptions as well.
Defensively, Ben Giles and Bryson James lead the first-team with six tackles each. Anthony Taylor added four more himself with 1.5 of them being tackles-for-loss. Terrell Brigham and Phillip Press both added five tackles with Jesse Kelley leading all players with eight total tackles in the scrimmage.
C.J. Bennett lead the retooled offense on an 11 play, 65 yard drive to open the scrimmage. Facing third-and-two, Bennett found Lavender for an 18-yard completion to cross midfield and to keep the drive alive. That gain was followed up with a 12-yard gain by freshman Terrance Timmons. After Bennett threw his only incompletion on the opening drive, he found T.J. GLover for 24-yards to set up Demetre Baker’s one yard touchdown run. Bennett went 4-of-5 on that opening drive and would end the scrimmage with 90 yards passing.
Both Baker and Timmons would finish the scrimmage with 26 yards rushing with the entire backfield totalling 124 yards on the day.
Transfer quarterback Ross Metheny lead the offense down the field on his drive to get into field goal range. He had completions to Saxton for 13 yards and Broadnax for 15 yards. However the drive would stall at the 32 yard line. Metheny would throw for 106 yards total in the scrimmage.
After Metheny’s drive, the Jaguar defense would tighten up and in the next four drives the offense would not allow the offense to get past the defense’s 45 yard line. Before the mid-scrimmage break, Julien Valentin would cap off a 10-play, 65-yard drive with a two-yard touchdown run.
After the break, Metheny would lead the offense’s next possession. he would use three consecutive completions to drive inside the defense’s 10 yard line. He would then find Hollinger in the end zone for an eight yard touchdown.
Hollinger would also set up the final touchdown of the scrimmage. He would haul in a 35-yard pass from Bennett to set up Kendall Houston for a five-yard touchdown reception.
Aleem Sunanon added a 43 yard field goal to round out the scoring in the first scrimmage of the preseason.
“Overall it was good,” said head coach Joey Jones after the scrimmage. “The offense came out and made some plays today when they had to. Right now we’re beat up on defense, we held out three starters inside and some other guys are banged up, but I know that we are going to be really, really good. We have some great athletes over there, and once we get those guys back we’re going to be in great shape.”
“It’s tough to know exactly how each individual did,” Coach Jones continued. “What we are looking to do is find our depth chart, the guys who we are really going to give reps to. We’ll know more after watching film. It was a good day overall, but I was a little disappointed in special teams. We have to practice better there. It’s almost like we came out here for an offensive and defensive scrimmage and we weren’t ready for special teams. We’ve got to change that, and that starts with me.”
Coach Jones responded to a question posed asking if the break on Sunday will help to rest and rejuvenate the players. “There’s no doubt about it,” he responded. “We’re nine days into camp, the guys are pretty beat up right now. They need a day off, which will be good. We’ve got to be smart about what we do. We’ve had a good physical week, they need some time off.”
The players had Sunday off before returning to the field on Monday morning to continue preparation for the 2012 football season.
South Alabama Completes First Two-A-Day Practice
Head Coach Joey Jones speaks to his team after the conclusion of the Jaguars first practice of preseason camp.
Thursday morning, the Jags completed an hour-and-a-half practice session. It was the first half of the Jags first two-a-day scheduled for preseason camp.
They opened practice with special teams work before they broke off and went into individual group position drills. Later in the practice the offense and defense worked against each other. Kendall Houston notched a touchdown running the ball and C.J. Bennett found Jereme Jones for a touchdown pass as well.
The morning session had lots of emphasis on routes. Receivers were tasked with getting seperation from defenders in certain instances, improvising routes on the fly. Nathan Sassaman bumped a defender on a fly route and caught a pass for a touchdown.
During the full team drills, the defense caused problems. C.J. Bennett had problems finding players and had at least three interceptions. A string of three pass defenses in a row was followed by an interception by a defensive lineman. Enrique Williams had an impressive stop on Demetre Baker up the middle. Eddy Cabrera notched a couple of pass breakups.
Ross Metheny had similar problems as Bennett did, but did showcase some impressive scrambling ability. Corey Besteda continued to impress observers with a behind the back, one-handed catch.
The staff closed the practice with more special teams work followed by conditioning drills.
“I thought we came out with a great attitude this morning,” said head coach Joey Jones. “We looked real sharp. I was pleased with it overall. They worked and had a good session with the offense going against the defense. I thought we achieved what we needed to achieve today. We have to come back out this afternoon and be ready to go. There’s nothing easy about it, we just have to suck it up and go.”
He continued by saying, “We have to fight through the tough things. Toughness is one of the three things we talk about. We have to practice toughness to be tough, so that’s why we do it.”
The Jags returned to the Jaguar Practice Facility for a 4:30pm practice session. The second half of the Jaguars two-a-day practice saw some emphasis on running backs working on holding blocks on passing plays.
After a session of 11-on-11 work, the team moved to red zone passing plays. Bryant Lavender and Greg Hollinger made some great catches against the Jaguar defenders.
The team also practice a two-minute drill for the first time this preseason. The first string, led by Bennett, failed to convert on 4th down at the 34 yard line. The second string, led by Metheny, drove down to the 26 yard line with ten seconds left before having to settle for a field goal.
Kicker Michel Chapuseaux kicked for the first time this preseason. Both he and Aleem Sunanon were kicking well from 40+ yards out. Chapuseax nailed a 47 yard field goal in a hurry-up situation with 3 seconds remaining.
The Jags will return to the practice field for a lighter practice session as they prepare for their first scrimmage of the preseason on Saturday. The Saturday scrimmage will be closed to the public.
Blue Squad Comes Out On Top In Red & Blue Spring Game
Coach Tommy Perry coaching the running backs during halftime of the Red & Blue Spring Football Game on March 24, 2012.
South Alabama unveiled their new offense to much fanfare on a beautiful Saturday afternoon at Ladd-Peebles Stadium. With sunny skies and a slight breeze, the Jags took the field to wrap up their fourth spring practice and their first preparing for a full FBS schedule.
Both squads began the game by trading interceptions. But the Blue squad would earn the first points of the game after a six play, 61-yard drive was capped off by a three-yard touchdown by Demetre Baker. Baker got the drive in gear with a nine-yard run then Bennett would complete three consecutive passes to Jereme Jones, Tyrome Bivins and Baker to move the ball down to the 10 yard line. Baker would then run for seven yards followed by the three-yard touchdown run.
The Red squad would answer with a 31 yard Michel Chapuseaux field goal late in the first quarter. The drive spanned 11-plays with Trey Fetner going 4-for-4 for 44 yards and walk-on freshman Terrance Timmons added 42 all-purpose yards with an 18-yard gain to begin the drive and a 22-yard catch to keep the drive alive on third-and-13.
The Red squad would see it’s only lead of the game after Julien Valentin scored with about three minutes left in the first half. After seemingly being stopped after a short gain, Valentin popped out and the defense thought he was down, however none of the referees blew the whistle and ended up scoring on a 45 yard run. “It was a freaky play,” Valentin explained after the game. “I don’t know where it came from but I had to just keep fighting and keep going. The next thing you know I’m in the open field and the ref is running with me, so I just ran as hard as I could to the end zone.”
Chapuseaux would tie the game for the Blue Squad after connecting on a 28 yard attempt with 41 seconds left in the half. Bennett would go 5-of-6 on the drive to move the team 64 yards in eight plays. He would connect with J.J. Keels twice with the second completion going for 35 yards before the drive stalled out at the 11 yard line.
After a short break and an opportunity for coaches to talk with players on the sidelines, the game continued.
The only score of the second half was by the Blue Squad’s Tyrannace Brazil to cap off a 12-play 80 yard drive spanning 4:58 on the clock. The Blue squad would take over the ball with 45 seconds left in the third quarter with Brandon Bridge at quarterback. Bridge would connect with Jereme Jones on the first play for a 16 yard gain. Later a 20-yard pass to Brazil would move the ball across mid-field for another first down. Bridge would find Wes Saxton for a 10-yard completion on fourth-and-1 at the 35 yard line. Bryant Lavender would make a nine-yard catch at the 14-yard line, but would be injured on the play as the back of his head would be struck by a players knee as he went down. The referees would flag it as a late hit personal foul to move the ball to the 7-yard line. Two plays later, Brazil would score to give the Blue squad a 17-10 lead.
The Red squad had the tying score in it’s sights on the next possession. Myles Gibbon would find Anthony Ingram open for a 67-yard gain after a blown coverage by McGaskin, but Ingram’s failure to secure the ball all the way into the endzone would let McGaskin make up for it by punching it out at the one yard line and having it go out of the back of the end zone for a touchback and possession going to the Blue squad.
The Blue squad would go three-and-out on their possession. After moving the ball for a simulated punt, Trey Fetner would be sacked by Byron Sneed for a loss of six yards. Then Charles Watson would stop Austin Powell short of the first down on a fourth-and-12 at the Red Squad’s 43 yard line to seal the game.
Keels, Bivins and Lavender all ended the game with three catches each to lead the team. Keels would rack up the most yards of the three with 52. Jones and Baker would each add two catches for the game as well. Bennett would go 11-of-14 for 128 yards and Brandon Bridge went 4-of-7 for 55 yards. The Blue squad would gain 192 of it’s 217 total yards through the air.
Valentin rushed 10 times for 88 yards and added two catches for 10 more yards. Anthony Ingram had four catches for 98 yards. Valentin and Ingram shared the game-high honors for all-purpose yards. Terrance Timmons added 50 yards and 24 yards more on two catches.
Fetner went 7-of-14 for 69 yards and Myles Gibbon went 3-of-5 for a team best 84 yards. The Red Squad gained 163 yards passing and 131 on the ground for 294 yards of total offense.
Qudarius Ford, Darrius Morrow and Andrew Philon all shared team-high honors for the Red squad with five tackles each. Justin Walker added four tackles and Cordivido Grive, Desmond LaVelle and Pat Moore all adding three tackles each. Moore would have a game-high of 1.5 tackles for loss.
Jake Johnson lead the team with six tackles and added an interception on the Red Squad’s first snap of the game. Dylan Hutto added five tackles with Davin Hawkins and Dionte McDuffy both added four tackles each. Logan Bennett, Jonathan Cameron, Robert Terrell, Charles Watson and McGaskin all added three tackles each. Logan Bennett would spend lots of time on the sidelines before leaving before the end of the game due to a possible concussion.
“We talked and bickered back and forth all week,” said C.J. Bennett. “It’s kind of fun going against each other and putting the pads on for real. In practice, they [the coaches] always want to stop you. It was a friendly game, I thought everyone played well, and the Blue team came out on top. I think the offense is coming along great, as you saw here we are capable of some long drives and getting that ball moving. If we take care of the ball, I think we have big things ahead of us.”
“I thought we did well, we’ve come a long way since the first practice of the spring,” said Jake Johnson after the game. “But we still have leaps and bounds to get better. I was impressed with a lot of the guys, we were mixed and matched but we all showed great ability out there.”
Coach Jones spoke after the game. “We kept both teams handcuffed, the defense could run a couple of fronts, the offense could only run so many plays,” Jones said. “We achieved what we wanted to, I don’t think anyone was hurt badly. Our evaluations through the first 14 practices were really what it was all about, we know where we are.”
When asked about the possible tying touchdown for the Red Squad late in the game, coach Jones answered, “It looked like he got stripped. That’s a lesson on both sides of the ball. On offense, securing the ball all the way across the goal line is paramount, and defensively to never give up. That was a great play to never give up.”
Defensive Coordinator Bill Clark was pleased with the defense in the game. “We didn’t blitz and we were in man coverage all day. We didn’t want to show anything.” With just over five months until the first game, they didn’t want to give anything away to upcoming opponents.
With spring practice over, we now have to wait for fall camp to begin and football season to arrive. South Alabama will open the 2012 season, their first playing a full FBS schedule and playing a full Sun Belt schedule, when they host Texas-San Antonio on Thursday night on August 30th.
Recap Of South Alabama’s First Scrimmage
Head coach Joey Jones working with the field goal unit during South Alabama's Scrimmage on Saturday, March 3, 2012.
South Alabama held it’s first scrimmage on Saturday in front of some 200-plus visitors. The visitors were high school Juniors who are on the Jaguars recruiting radar for the upcoming class. This was their opporutinity to see campus, tour the facilities and also see the Jaguars in action.
In the scrimmage, Demetre Baker scores two of the four touchdowns on the day while leading the runningbacks with nine carries for 42 yards. On the first scoring drive, C.J. Bennett was 3-of-4, all three completions went to Bryant Lavender for gains of 14, 6 and 25 yards respectively. Lavender’s last reception of the drive moved the Jags inside the 10 yard line and setting Baker up for his touchdown. Terrance Timmons also had a 14-yard rush on the drive.
The second scoring drive saw Bennett connect with Anthony Ingram for an 11-yard catch to begin the drive. On third down and needing one yard to move the chains, Bennett would find Kennedy Helms for a 30-yard completion which would set Baker up for his second touchdown.
C.J. Bennett would end the day going 11-of-17 for 114 yards while adding two runs for nine yards. Trey Fetner would end the day 4-of-7 for 60 yards while working with both the first and second team guys. He would lead the second-team on a 11-play 55-yard drive. He completed two passes to Saxton to move within the ball inside the 30-yard line. Baker would run four consecutive times to get the ball down to the two yard line. A false start penalty would back them up, but Fetner would find Jereme Jones just inside the endzone on the right side for the touchdown. Fetner commented after the scrimmage saying, “Actually, that wasn’t part of my progression. I saw a hole real quick, and I tried to get it in there. It was a mistake, but a good one, so we’ll take it. I did a decent job today, but the line and receivers did a great job. There’s still a lot of room for improvement, though.”
Other scores on the day was a 45-yard field goal by Michel Chapuseaux and a one-yard touchdown run near the end of the scrimmage by Julien Valentin. His touchdown would cap off an 11-play 40-yard drive by the third team offensive unit.
The Jaguar defense gave up 306 yards on 109 plays, which was an average of less than three yards per play. Ben Giles ended the scrimmage with nine total tackles and a pass break-up which was nearly an interception. Charles Harris and Desomnd LaVelle both added six tackles of their own and Randon Carnathan had five tackles. Will Thompson posted five-and-a-half tackles for loss and three sacks while Pat Moore totalled four-and-a-half tackles for loss and four sacks. Ceasare Johnson added five tackles and one-and-a-half sacks. Eddy Cabrera had the only takeaway by recovering a fumble late in the scrimmage.
Bryant Lavender lead the wide receivers with five receptions for 57 yards. While Ingram catching two passes for 39 yards and Wes Saxton also catching two for 25 yards.
“I’m excited about the new offense,” said Demetre Baker after the scrimmage. “I think I’ve still got a lot of things to work on, definitely some reads now that we are not running a lot of power-I. I never will be pleased, though, because I think that every day I can come out here and get a little bit better, run a little harder, make better cuts and read my blocks better.”
Coach Jones commented after the scrimmage by saying, “I thought Demetre had a good day running the ball. He ran real powerful today, he didn’t have any extremely long runs, but he had a lot of five- and 10-yard runs, fighting for tough yards.”
“I believe we are much further along than I thought we would be at this point with the operation of the offense, because the kids have bought in and the staff has done a tremendous job coaching it,” continued Jones. “When they go out on the field they understand what it going on, but it is going so fast they make a mistake or two. But I’m real pleased, because it puts a lot of pressure on the defense when you snap the ball extremely fast.”
Speaking about the depth on both sides of the ball, coach Jones had this following quote. “With the ones on both sides of the ball it was a back-and-forth slugfest. What I see when I look at the offense and defense is a lot more depth on defense. When you put the twos out there there is not a lot of change, but when you put the twos out on offense there is. One of the things we have to work on is our depth offensively.”
Defensive Coordinator Bill Clark commented about the defense after the scrimmage was over. “We saw a lot of good things, and we saw some things we have to get better at,” he said. “sometimes that tempo really shows you some things. A lot of guys did a lot of good things, although you won’t know that exactly until you see the film, but we had some guys on the twos who really looked good. That depth chart may be changing next week.”
New offensive coordinator Robert Matthews commented on what he saw from the offense during the scrimmage. “I saw some good things, though I thought we made too many pre-snap penalty mistakes,” he said. “We had some false starts that are unacceptable. We are getting a lot of guys reps, we had seven quarterbacks take snaps today, which makes it hard sometimes with continuance but at the same time its good for our evaluations.”
The most resounding statement by Coach Jones was, “Today was a very big day regarding our depth chart where those guys could prove themselves. After this Thursday, the bulk of spring training will be over.”
South Alabama only has three more practices prior to spring break with the first being at 4pm on Sunday. The Jags are scheduled to work out in just shorts. Following that, they will return to the field on Tuesday in shells then in full pads on Thursday for their next scrimmage.
Jags down MVSU 35-3
A bad snap caused a big loss for the Delta Devils.
Thursday nights matchup against Mississippi Valley State was a bit of a mismatch. The short week didn’t make much difference as the they won 35-3 in a cold breezy game at Ladd-Peebles Stadium.
With injuries to Jereme Jones and B.J. Scott, J.J. Keels handled the lone kick return duties against the Delta Devils. Keels showed he was ready for this opportunity very quickly in the game. After forcing the Delta Devils to punt, Keels would take the punt off of a bounce and return it 45 yards to the two yard line. Keels would not be able to take it into the end zone on the first down play, but Houston would on the next play though.
He would also take the opening kickoff of the second half 100 yards for a touchdown to get his first touchdown as a Jaguar. Earlier in the second quarter, Keels would break a 25 yard run down to the Delta Devil one yard line, where he stepped out of bounds before scoring. Again Houston would put the ball in the end zone.
Every time the Delta Devils threatened to score, they would make a mental mistake and break their momentum, it would allow the Jaguars defense to stiffen and force a stop.
The defensive front, particularly the starting three, were in the backfield all night. Romelle Jones regularly beat his man but Delta Devils linemen did good to knock him off his rush from time to time. Ben Giles had a career night with nine tackles.
It was another game where the Jags could go deep into their bench and get other players some playing time and experience in game situations. But the Jags also tried out some new wrinkles in their goal line package and successfully scored a couple times in that situation.
Coach Jones commented after the game, “It was big for J.J. to come in there as a true freshman and make those types of plays. We lost B.J. and Jeremé, so we have gotten thin in our return game. I thought he stepped up and did really well. That [the kickoff return] was a big play in the game.”
“I thought we played really sound in the first half,” Coach Jones said. “The defense gave up a little yardage in between the 20s, but got stiff down there toward the goal line. The offense had a short field a couple of times, then we had an 80-plus yard drive in the first half, which is big. The special teams played well — the return game was good and we kicked the ball well. Overall I am real pleased with the game.”
“We are kind of a methodical football team, we don’t have big-play guys on offense,” he continued. “J.J. came in and sparked us in the return game, and he had a couple of good runs. But we are the kind of team that if we don’t make mistakes and have a lot of penalties, we have a chance to beat a lot of people. When we play like we did tonight then we end up on the winning side, so we just need to keep that up.”
The Jags have a week off before their final game of the season when they host Cal Poly on Saturday, November 19. The game can be seen locally on UTV44 and nationally on ESPN3.com and will kick off at 4pm.
Jags blue out the Reddies 28-3
Myles Gibbon encouraging the team as they go to the sideline to start the game.
South Alabama rebounds from turnover fueled, double-overtime loss at Georgia state to force a school record seven turnovers in a 28-3 win over Henderson State. Demetre Baker and Jordan Means combined to account for 22 of the 28 points for the Jags while donning their all blue uniforms for the first time.
Last years game was much closer with the Jags icing the game with a late field goal to win 37-31. But the rematch was never in doubt really. Both teams went three-and-out on their first possessions, but Enrique William’s interception on the Reddies second drive got the offense in gear. They started at the HSU 25 and have first and goal on the two yard line, but three consecutive rushes, two by Houston and one by Baker could not get the ball into the end zone thus they would settle for the field goal.
On the Reddie third possession, Clifton Crews would force a fumble on their first play which would be recovered by Gabe Loper setting up Demetre Baker to rush for 16 and 7 yards respectfully for a touchdown to go up 10-0 in the span of about three minutes.
Then on the fourth Reddie possession, they would line up in the punt formation but would fake it and run but would be stopped short of the one yard they needed for the first down. This gave the Jags the ball at the Reddie 29 yard line. Baker would take it into the end zone again for his second touchdown of the game. What looked like a bad snap would be handled by Taylor Noon and pitched to Jordan Means to run with, but he would be caught failing to convert. This left the Jags leading 16-0 with 1:57 left in the first quarter.
After a HSU punt on another three-and-out, the Jags would start at their own 27 yard line. Jereme Jones would almost get caught for a loss, but would break a 65 yard run down to the Reddie 8 yard line before being tackled out of bounds. Jones would be injured on the play and taken to the sideline and eventually to the locker room.
The Jags would again fail to punch it in with 1st and goal from the Reddie 4 yard line on three consecutive runs by Baker. The Jags would settle for a field goal by Means what was shorter than an extra point to go up 19-0 with 12:52 left in the 2nd quarter.
Henderson State would finally move into Jaguar territory and get as far as the 43 yard line before the drive fizzled out and forcing a punt which was downed at the Jaguar 14 yard line.
The Jags Paul Bennett would catch a good pass from CJ Bennett but would fumble it to the Reddies at the Jaguar 42 yard line. But on 3rd and 6 on the Reddies possession, the Jags would force a fumble and Romelle Jones would recover it at the Jaguar 44 yard line.
The Jags would then march 56 yards in nine plays with CJ Bennett running it in from 9 yards out to cap off the drive. Means’ PAT would be blocked leaving the Jags lead 25-0 with 4:15 left in the 2nd quarter.
Henderson State would start at their own 32 yard line after a short kickoff was fair caught at their 32 yard line. The Reddies would then begin driving into Jaguar territory getting down to the 37 yard line. But the defense would hold on 4th and 11 at the Jaguar 42 to get the ball back.
The Jags would then use their hurry-up offense to try to put points on the board before halftime. Bennett would find Lamontis Gardner for 3 yards on first down. The Jags would call a time out with 41 seconds left in the 2nd quarter. Bennett would find Bryant Lavender for 8 yards and a first down at the HSU 47 with the Jags calling their 2nd time out of the half.
Bennett would find Corey Waldon for 13 yards down to the Reddie 34. Bennett would rush the offense up to the line and spike the ball to stop the clock. Bennett would tuck the ball and run for 6 yards before stepping out of bounds at the Reddie 28 yard line. After an incomplete pass on 3rd down, Means would line up for a 45 yard field goal into the wind with 9 seconds left until halftime. His kick would just barely make it over the crossbar giving the Jags a 28-0 halftime lead.
Henderson State would add a field goal with 33 seconds left in the 3rd quarter to break the shutout, however that would be the only score in the second half.
The first part of the second half was really sloppy for the Jags. After playing a penalty free first half, they would lose some composure in the second half.
It did give Coach Jones and the team to go deeper into their depth chart for a second time this season. At one point, there was only one starting player in the lineup on offense. JJ Keels saw plenty of time at running back and Greg Hollinger got more time than he had all season as well.
Romelle Jones continues to play like a beast on the defensive line. The secondary is playing thin without Damond Smith and BJ Scott. Jereme Jones suffered a bit of a hyper extension to his shoulder but is okay. We probably will not know if he is able to go on Thursday until Tuesday’s radio show.
Drew Dearman has been seeing more playing time on the offensive line and the coaches seem to be quite comfortable with his play. He did a great job on Saturday.
Coach Jones had the following to say at his post game press conference. “Those takeaways were big and we had a short field on offense a good bit tonight, and that’s always a good thing. I thought we really played a good game defensively for the entire game. We didn’t give up any big plays, and if we don’t do that then we are going to be very hard to score on. They did that tonight and I was proud of them.”
“We were prepared, the coaches had them prepared and we had a good week of practice,” he continued. “We match up with teams that are in the spread formation pretty well. I think our athletes fit the spread defensively, and we had a good pass rush tonight. That’s one thing we haven’t had in a while. We put pressure on the quarterback, and we were hitting them and trying to knock the ball loose.”
The Jags defense held the Reddies to 155 yards passing and a mere 55 yards rushing for only 210 total yards. While the Jags offense racked up 252 yards rushing and another 123 yards through the air for 375 for the game. The Jags also held a 37:06 to 22:54 time of possession advantage as well.
Demetre Baker had his first 100+ yard rushing game with 113 yards on 20 carries. Jereme Jones ran once for 65 yards, Myles Gibbon ran 7 times for 27 yards. JJ Keels ran 12 times for 27 yards. While Kendall Houston only carried the ball three times on the opening drive for four yards and that was his game.
CJ Bennett went 11-of-18 for 101 yards with one interception for the game. Myles Gibbon went 4-of-8 for 22 yards and no interceptions. Corey Walden and Bryant Lavender both caught three passes each. Waldon had 35 yards and Lavender had 26 yards.
The Jags have a quick turn-around as they host Mississippi Valley State on Thursday night with kickoff scheduled for 6:30pm at Ladd-Peebles Stadium. The Jags will be dressed out in their white uniform, so the athletic department is asking the fans to wear white to the game.
Jags end two game skid with 30-27 double-overtime victory
Coach Jones looks on as Demetre Baker looks to the sideline before blocking for a field goal attempt.
South Alabama went on the road for their third consecutive game this season and came away with a 30-27 double overtime victory over Texas-San Antonio to end their two game losing skid.
The Jags got on the board early after forcing UTSA to punt on their first series. Starting at their own 22 for their first drive, C.J. Bennett and Lamontis Gardner would spark the offense with a 35 yard pass. Then the Jags would methodically continue marching until Kendall Houston would put the ball in the end zone from the one yard line to cap off a 12 play, 78 yard drive that spanned 7:24 on the clock.
The Roadrunners would answer back on their next possession. After driving 25 yards out to mid field as the first quarter ended, they would open the second quarter with a 50 yard pass from Soza to Okotcha to tie the game at 7 each.
Again sparked by big offensive plays, the jaguars would respond on their ensuing possession. Bennett would find Gardner again for 11 yards to start the drive. Then would be forced to burn a time out when the play clock was running down. Coming out of the time out, Bennett would hit Kevin Helms for a 32 yard gain to go from the Jag 33 yard line to the 35 of UTSA. From there, the jags would have to settle for a 48 yard field goal by Jordan Means to retake the lead 10-7.
Not to be outdone, UTSA would mount their own drive but would stall at the Jaguar 31 yard line and also settle for a 48 yard field goal to tie the game again at 10 apiece.
The Jags next possession would start at their own 20 yard line and would drive out to the 43 before Kendall Houston would be hit in the backfield and fumbled the ball which would be recovered by UTSA at their own 48 yard line. Soza would connect with Kam Jones for 51 yards to the USA 1 yard line. Okotcha would take it in on the next play to take the lead over the Jaguars 17-10 with 2:54 left in the first half.
On the kickoff, Jereme Jones would find a seam and return it 55 yards to the UTSA 26 yard line before being forced out of bounds. However the defender would be flagged for a personal foul for a half-the-distance penalty to start the Jags at the UTSA 13 yard line. However the Jags offense never found forward gear. Houston would lose a yard on first down. Then an incomplete pass to Corey Waldon would bring up third and 11 going into the Roadrunner student section.
Brian Krauskopf would be flagged for a false start putting the Jags facing 3rd and 16 from the UTSA 19 yard line. After a time out, Bennett would float a lob pass towards the end zone which would be intercepted by UTSA ending the Jags hopes of tying the game before half time.
After running a few plays, the Roadrunners allowed the clock to run down and go into halftime with a 17-10 lead.
South Alabama would receive to open the second half and start at their 30 yard line. Houston would rush for no gain and five yards on back-to-back rushes to open the series. Then facing 3rd and 5, the Jags would burn their first time out of the second half with 13:33 left in the 3rd quarter when the play clock was running down again. Following the time out, Krauskopf would be flagged for another false start backing them up to the 30 and face a 3rd and 10. Bennett would find Gardner for six yards and would be forced to punt.
The Jags defense would hold the roadrunners to a three and out and force a punt. USA would be flagged for holding after the punt and would start their possession on their own 24 yard line. After a one yard run by J.J. Keels, Bennett would complete back to back passes. The first to Bryant Lavender for 17 yards then to Gardner for 18 yards to get into UTSA territory.
Keels would rush for no gain, then Bennett would be flagged for intentional grounding even though he was hit as he was trying to deliver the ball. After the 11 yard loss and loss of down, the Jags faced 3rd and 21 at their own 49 yard line. But Bennett would find Jereme Jones for 30 yards to get the first down at the UTSA 21 yard line. Demetre Baker would take it in from there to tie the game at 17 each with 8:09 left in the third quarter.
UTSA would start from their own 20 yard line after the kickoff. They would move down the field fueled by key long plays. The first was on 3rd down for 21 yards and a 16 yard pass on 4th and one at the Jaguar 46 yard line. However the defense would come up big and force a Soza fumble at the Jaguar 10 yard line which was recovered by Charles Harris.
Houston would end the quarter with three consecutive rushes for 6, 8 and 5 yards respectively.
As the drive continued to begin the 4th quarter, the Jags would again have to burn a time out when the play clock was running down with 13:20 left in regulation. Eventually the UTSA defense would hold and force a Scott Garber punt which would be downed at the 1 yard line.
The Roadrunners would move the ball out to the 25 yard line before a mishap on the snap would occur and be recovered by Soza back at the 3 yard line to face a 3rd and 32. A six yard pass would give the punter a little breathing room. Jereme Jones would field the punt at the UTSA 48 yard line.
Bennett would run for 10 yards and a first down to start the drive, but would then stopeed and forced to punt at the UTSA 44 yard line.
With 4:18 left in the game and UTSA in possession of the ball at their own 24 yard line, they began running the ball and the clock to set up a game winning score. Soza would start the drive with a 9 yard pass. Then Okotcha would run for eight yards and a first down. Soza would thrown on first down again, this time for five yards to their won 46 yard line. Then UTSA would rush four consecutive times to move the ball and continue winding the clock. Okotcha would go for five yards. Then Harrison for 18 to the USA 31 yard line but would go out of bounds to stop the clock.
Then Kam Jones for four more yards and again go out of bounds. Okotcha would rush for 6 yards and a first down to the USA 21. Kam Jones would try to throw the ball on first down but Gabe Loper, filling in for suspended Damond Smith, would be flagged for pass interference putting the ball on the USA 6 yard line with 1:12 left in the game.
Soza would be caught for a loss of 6 yards to the 12 yard line by Jake Johnson. Okotcha would rush on the right side for three yards to the 9 yard line. UTSA would take a time out with 3 seconds left on the clock to attempt a game-winning field goal. Coach Jones would take the Jags final time out to try to ice the kicker.
The 26 yard field goal attempt would be blocked by Randon Carnathan sending the game to overtime for the first time in Jaguar history.
USA would get the ball first to start overtime and would keep it on the ground. Baker would rush for 10, 2 and 12 yards to get the ball to the 1 yard line. Ellis Hill would take it in on the next play and Jordan Means would add the PAT to take the 24-17 lead.
UTSA’s ensuing possession would start with a false start. But Soza would hit Kam Jones for a 30 yard touchdown pass and add the PAT to tie the game at 24 and go into the second overtime.
UTSA would have the ball first and Okotcha would be dropped for a loss by Jake Johnson on the first play. Soza would rush for one yard then throw and incomplete pass as he was hurried by Montavious Williams. Ianno would kick a 43 yard field goal to take a 27-24 lead.
Demetre Baker would scamper 25 yards on the first play of the Jaguars possession to score the game winning touchdown for the final score of 30-27.
UTSA would outgain the Jags overall 409-351 and through the air 263-196. But the Jags would outgain them on the ground 175-146.
Demetre Baker would lead all rushers with 88 yards on 11 carries and two touchdowns. Houston would gain 74 yards on 19 carries and a touchdown. Soza would be the leading rusher for UTSA with 70 yards on 15 carries.
C.J. Bennett went 11-of-17 for 176 yards and one interception while Soza was 15-of-22 for 263 yards and two touchdowns. UTSA’s Kam Jones would lead all receivers with 103 yards on five catches with a touchdown. Lamontis Gardner would lead the Jags with 70 yards on four catches.
UTSA held the ball longer, 33:51 to the Jags 26:09.
After the game Coach Jones had this to say. “We have a fighting spirit about us. It looked kind of bleak there for a minute when they had the ball down on the five-yard line. But we rushed through and sacked the quarterback and we block a kick, so they never quit. It was a big win for our program. I’m just so proud of them for fighting. We lost two games on the road, and to have another road game right behind them and to come back and win was real big for us.”
“I want to congratulate UTSA. I thought they came out and played a tremendous game — it was a big game for them,” Coach Jones also stated. “The crowd was into it; it was that typical home atmosphere. They had a great game plan and great coaching, and probably deserved to win the game in some ways. But on the other side of it, we said at halftime we were not going to quit.”
“We came prepared and had a good game plan. Good things happen when you fight your tail off,” said running back Demetre Baker. “Their defense was big and solid. I didn’t think they were very fast sideline-to-sideline, but they were much bigger physically.”
Linebacker Jake Johnson spoke highly of the roadrunners. “For a first-year program, they are a heck of a team. They had some great players and had a good game plan against us. I’m glad we came out on top. We had a few mistakes here and there, but that is all correctable. I’m just glad we got out of Texas with a win.”
South Alabama returns to Mobile for their first home game in five weeks when they host Tennessee-Martin for homecoming. The game will kick off at 2:30pm, earlier than normal, since it will be aired live on UTV44, Comcast Sports Southeast and nationally on ESPN3.com.