Preview: South Alabama Travels To Arkansas State In West Division Showdown
Kickoff: Saturday, October 6, 6pm
Venue: Centennial Bank Stadium, Jonesboro, AR
TV/Streaming: ESPN+
Radio: 96.1 fm The Rocket, Sports Talk 99.5 fm, iHeartRadio App
Thunderjags on X (formerly known as Twitter): @USAThunderjags
#5 Jersey: TBA
South Alabama went to LSU last Saturday and was in the game for about three plays. Well, technically it was about nine plays, but it only took LSU three offensive snaps to really show where the game was going. On those three plays they gained 158 yards and put two touchdowns on the scoreboard.
The Jags (2-3, 1-0 Sun Belt) could never really mount a comeback after that as LSU (4-1) showed they had the bigger, stronger, faster team on Saturday night in Tiger Stadium.
The Jaguar offense protected the ball very well, the defense generated two turnovers to further bolster their turnover margin on the season to +7 after picking off Garrett Nussmeier twice in the contest. Neither Gio Lopez nor Bishop Davenport have thrown an interception this season, which makes the Jags one of only five schools who haven’t had a pass intercepted yet on the season.
Now that the Jags have concluded their non-conference slate, the focus is now on the remaining seven games that are all conference contests. Next up in Arkansas State (2-2, 0-0).
Arkansas State
The Red Wolves are led by fourth-year head coach Butch Jones. He holds a 13-28 record at ASU with a 6-18 conference record since taking over the program. The win total has improved each season under his leadership and led them to the Camellia Bowl last season (loss to Northern Illinois 21-19).
Over his 14 seasons as a head coach, Jones is 97-82 with previous stops at Central Michigan (2007-2009), Cincinnati (2010-2012), and Tennessee (2013-2017). He served as an offensive analyst and special assistant to the head coach at Alabama from 2018-2020.
Last season the Jags earned a hard-fought victory over the Red Wolves in Mobile when they needed to win two of the last three in order to get bowl eligible.
Arkansas State (2-2, 0-0 SBC) opened the season with a pair of close wins over FCS Central Arkansas and Tulsa but have lost their last two matchups at #16 Michigan (28-18) and at Iowa State (52-7).
So far this season the Red Wolves have a turnover margin of -2. They have given the ball away on 5 interceptions and lost four fumbles while the defense has taken the ball away from opponents six times by interception and only recovered one fumble.
Offense
The Red Wolves offense is under the direction of Keith Heckendorf in his sixth season at the position. He held the position for the two years before Jones took over. Under his guidance, the Red Wolves offense has put up lots of numbers through the air. True freshman Jaylen Raynor was the first true-freshman quarterback to be named SBC Freshman of the Year since 2007 and only the second in conference history. He finished with 2,543 yards passing with 17 touchdowns along with 380 yards rushing and five more touchdowns.
Raynor is 69-of-128 for 780 yards with 3 touchdowns and 5 interceptions passing and is leading the rushing attack with 143 yards on 44 carries with 2 touchdowns. Timmy McClain is 11-of-18 for 132 yards and three touchdowns in limited action, mostly when Raynor was benched against Iowa State.
Corey Rucker leads the receiving corps with 265 yards on 17 catches with 2 touchdowns. Courtney Jackson has 150 yards on 14 catches. Reagan Ealy has 140 yards on 11 catches.
Behind Raynor is Zak Wallace who has 134 yards on 40 carries with 2 touchdowns. Freshman Devin Spencer has 80 yards on 16 carries in three games. Junior Ja’Quez Cross has 61 yards on 21 carries.
| Stat | Average per game |
| Points | 21.8 |
| Total Offense | 328.8 |
| Passing Offense | 228 |
| Rushing Offense | 100.8 |
| Time of Possession | 29:28 |
| Penalty Yards | 53 |
| Stat | Cumulative for Season |
| 3rd Downs | 31-of-71 (43.7%) |
| 4th Downs | 3-of-5 (60%) |
| Red Zone Scoring Attempts | 8-of-9 |
| Red Zone Touchdowns | 6-of-9 |
| Penalties – Yards | 21 – 212 |
| Fumbles – Lost | 8 – 4 |
Coming off a bye week, the Red Wolves have a pair of offensive linemen who are trending towards returning to the lineup. Coming into the season Arkansas State expected to have a better running game but it has yet to appear.
Will they debut a more improved run game when the Jaguars come to town?
Defense
Defensive coordinator Rob Harley is in his fourth season as the defensive play caller for the Red Wolves. Statistically the defense had improved along with the results in the win-loss column. Their red zone defense improved by 82 spots in the national rankings as well as ranking 20th in the nation with an average of 6.8 Tackles for Loss per game.
Marvin Ham (R-Sr LB) and Justin Parks (Sr-Safety) pace the defense with 31 total stops each. Ham has 10 solo with a quarterback hurry, 2.5 TFL’s and .5 sacks. Parks has 15 solo, 1.5 TFL’s, a pass breakup and a forced fumble. Trevian Thomas is third on the team with 29 stops, 16 solo.
Thomas and Dontay Joyner are team co-leaders with 2 interceptions each. Two other defenders have one interception each.
Jayden Jones leads the team with 4 TFLs and 2 sacks.
| Stat | Average per game |
| Points | 33.8 |
| Total Offense | 429.8 |
| Passing Offense | 195.8 |
| Rushing Offense | 234 |
| Time of Possession | 30:31 |
| Penalty Yards | 50.3 |
| Stat | Cumulative for Season |
| 3rd Downs | 24-of-49 (49%) |
| 4th Downs | 2-of-2 (100%) |
| Red Zone Scoring Attempts | 15-of-15 |
| Red Zone Touchdowns | 13-of-15 |
| Penalties – Yards | 26 – 201 |
| Fumbles – Lost | 3 – 1 |
The Red Wolves defense also has a few players that have been out due to injuries. Unlike their offensive counterparts, their return seems to be less certain. Massachusetts transfer senior cornerback Jordan Mahoney and senior Texas A&M transfer defensive lineman Micaiah Overton are two key pieces the Red Wolves hope to return.
ASU has been susceptible to big, pass-catching tight ends. Could this be a game where Coach Applewhite and offensive coordinator Rob Ezell lean more on DJ Thomas-Jones?
Special Teams
Ryan Heicher is averaging 44.2 yards per punt attempt with 10 fair catches, 7 downed inside the 20, 4 kicks of 50+ yards and a long of 56 over his 20 kicks.
Clune Van Andel is 3-of-6 on his field goal attempts with a long of 44 yards and only 1-of-4 from 30+ yards out.
Courtney Jackson is averaging 17.5 yards per punt return over his 8 returns including one for a 77-yard touchdown.
South Alabama
The Jaguars record-setting run over the last two games came back to earth against LSU. While the Jags looked great against App State, a fellow Sun Belt program, they didn’t match up very well against one of the upper programs in the SEC.
The second half was a bit different, with the Jags scoring their only touchdown while holding LSU to only one touchdown.
This week will be more telling as the Jags return to conference play.
Offense
South Alabama couldn’t establish a running game and the LSU defense was able to routinely get pressure on Lopez and Davenport. The offensive line was outplayed at the line of scrimmage, but still look to be a really good group that have been improving week after week.
Lopez is 73-of-114 (64%) for 1,014 yards and 10 touchdowns through the air. Bishop Davenport is 27-of-45 (60%) for 276 yards and a touchdown.
Jamaal Pritchett, despite leaving the game early against LSU, still leads the team with 29 catches for 394 yards and 4 touchdowns. Devin Voisin is next on the team with 17 catches for 207 yards.
Anthony Eager has 114 yards on 5 catches with two touchdowns. He scored the only touchdown against LSU as he stepped up when Pritchett was unavailable.
Tight end DJ Thomas-Jones adds 60 yards on only 7 catches with 3 touchdowns.
True freshman Fluff Bothwell leads the team with 376 yards on 47 carries with 6 touchdowns. Kentrel Bullock has 260 yards on 39 carries with 3 touchdowns. Lopez in third on the team with 204 yards on 31 carries with 2 touchdowns.
| Stat | Average per game |
| Points | 40.6 |
| Total Offense | 468.8 |
| Passing Offense | 258 |
| Rushing Offense | 210.8 |
| Time of Possession | 31:19 |
| Penalty Yards | 58.8 |
| Stat | Cumulative for Season |
| 3rd Downs | 25-of-61 (41%) |
| 4th Downs | 5-of-8 (62.5%) |
| Red Zone Scoring Attempts | 23-of-25 |
| Red Zone Touchdowns | 18-of-25 |
| Penalties – Yards | 37 – 294 |
| Fumbles – Lost | 5 – 2 |
Defense
Blayne Myrick continues to lead the defense with 37 total stops, 12 solo, with 2 pass breakups, a TFL and a forced fumble. Jordan Scruggs is next with 25 total stops, 10 solo, with 1.5 TFL’s, a pass breakup and an interception.
Jaden Voisin leads the team with 2 interceptions and has 24 total stops, 16 solo. Scruggs, Amarion Fortenberry, Lardarius Webb Jr and Caldwell Chrystyile each have an interception.
Four Jags all share the lead with one sack each.
| Stat | Average per game |
| Points | 29 |
| Total Offense | 448.6 |
| Passing Offense | 303.4 |
| Rushing Offense | 145.2 |
| Time of Possession | 28:41 |
| Penalty Yards | 56.6 |
| Stat | Cumulative for Season |
| 3rd Downs | 27-of-64 (42.2%) |
| 4th Downs | 1-of-4 (25%) |
| Red Zone Scoring Attempts | 14-of-19 |
| Red Zone Touchdowns | 11-of-19 |
| Penalties – Yards | 31 – 283 |
| Fumbles – Lost | 5 – 3 |
Special Teams
Aleksi Pulkkinen handled all of the punting duties against LSU and is averaging 41 yards per kick with 7 downed inside the 20, 6 fair catches and 1 punt of 50 yards is his longest.
Laith Marjan is 6-of-7 on the season with a season long of 49 yards last week against LSU.
Jamaal Pritchett is averaging 28 yards per punt return over his 7 returns including one touchdown return of 62 yards.
Keys to the Game
Quarterback Pressure
In the two games prior to LSU the Jags defense generated more pressure on the quarterback and forced bad passes and even some interceptions. They didn’t allow the quarterback to hang in the pocket and wait for a receiver to get open to pick the defense apart.
Even the week before against Ohio, while they didn’t generate a lot of qb pressure, they started to generate some and it showed both on the scoreboard and on the stat sheet. Though they didn’t manage a win, they played well enough to win.
Against LSU the Jags only managed to get the slightest pressure on the qb and even then, they managed force a couple of incompletions and two interceptions.
Arkansas State is so predominantly a passing team that getting pressure on Raynor will be key to disrupt their game script and prevent them from running up-tempo to take advantage of matchups. Plus Raynor already has five interceptions on the season, the Jags could add to their interception column.
Establishing the Run
When the Jags can run the ball, their offense runs much more efficiently. The Red Wolves allow an average of almost 200 yards rushing per game. With Bullock, Bothwell, PJ Martin, and Braylon McReynolds, who we haven’t seen in a few games, South Alabama has a strong rotation of backs to keep fresh legs in the game and pound on the ASU defense.
Explosive Plays
Explosive plays have caused havoc against the South Alabama defense. In almost every game the defense has allowed an explosive play for a touchdown. Even against Northwestern State they gave up a 74-yard touchdown catch and run for the Demon’s only touchdown of the game.
Last week explosive plays doomed them from the start with a 71-yard touchdown pass and run on the first snap of the game. Then LSU’s second offensive snap they rush for 86 yards before being stopped at the 1-yard line (they scored on the very next play).
Prediction
South Alabama is a 2.5-point favorite against Arkansas State in Jonesboro. Only recently have the Jags found any success on the road in Arkansas. The Jags have won the previous two meetings in Jonesboro, however they were 0-for-4 at Centennial Bank Stadium prior to that. They’ve also won the five meetings overall between the two programs.
Arkansas State is not an easy place to play, or even to get to really. Which may be a reason why it’s a tough location to play.
While this isn’t the same Arkansas State team that the Jags have faced in Jonesboro that previous two match-ups there, they have improved somewhat.
Injury wise, the Jags are trending well this week. Jamaal Pritchett left the LSU game late in the first quarter and was in the concussion protocol returned to practice on Wednesday in a limited capacity. Cornerback Reggie Neely (ankle in the season opener) and safety Trent Singleton (R-So) transfer from Mississippi State (foot injury in preseason camp) are both expected to be available to play. Gio Lopez was pulled from the game in the fourth quarter after a sack, Applewhite explained that he got up “gimpy” so they took him out as a precaution.
I think the Jags win and cover. They have a lot to play for this season and they won’t let last week define their season.
Go Jags!
Preview: South Alabama Visits #14 LSU For Nighttime Showdown In Death Valley
Kickoff: Saturday, September 28, 6:45pm
Venue: Tiger Stadium, Baton Rouge, LA
TV/Streaming: SEC Network
Radio: 96.1 fm The Rocket, Sports Talk 99.5 fm, iHeartRadio App
Thunderjags on X (formerly known as Twitter): @USAThunderjags
#5 Jersey: TBA
South Alabama travels to Baton Rouge to play in one of the toughest environments in college football: Tiger Stadium. The Jags (2-2) are in the second game of a three-game road swing after their 48-14 dismantling of Appalachian State on Thursday, September 19th in Boone, NC. The #14 ranked LSU Tigers are looking to handle business and get to their bye week to rest and heal up.
The Jags are considered one of the hottest teams in the nation right now. Over the last two weeks they have outscored their opponents by a combined score of 135-24. Head coach Major Applewhite and offensive coordinator Rob Ezell have been making all the right calls offensively and defensive coordinator Will Windham has been doing the same on the opposite side of the ball.
Meanwhile LSU (3-1) enters the game in the second game of a three-game homestand by welcoming USA. Last week the Tigers held UCLA scoreless in the second half to pull away for a 34-17 win after taking a 17-all tie into halftime. The Tigers opened the season with a narrow loss to USC in the Vegas Kickoff Classic then followed with a closer-than-expected game against Nicholls (44-21) and a narrow victory on the road at South Carolina (36-33).
This will be the highest ranked opponent the Jags have faced since they took the field against #10 ranked Oklahoma State in 2017 and the first ranked opponent since playing #25 Louisiana-Lafayette in 2020.
LSU
LSU is led by third-year head coach Brian Kelly, who LSU hired away from Notre Dame after 12 seasons as the head guy there. He was 92-40 with the Fighting Irish after vacating 22 wins in the 2012 and 2013 seasons due to academic misconduct. He also had a record of 4-6 in bowl games after a vacated win in the 2013 Pinstripe bowl.
So far Kelly is 23-8 and 13-4 in SEC games at LSU. His career record is 286-104-2 in his 34th year as a head football coach.
Before Notre Dame, he spent 13 seasons at Grand Valley State (118-35-2 from 1991-2003), three seasons at Central Michigan (19-16 from 2004-2006), and four seasons at Cincinnati (34-6 from 2006-2009).
Getting into the stats, the Tigers have been able to generate six turnovers defensively and have forced nine fumbles overall. They have a +3-turnover margin through the first four games of the season.
Offense
Garrett Nussmeier is the Tigers’ starting quarterback going 113-of-160 (70.6%) with 13 touchdowns and two interceptions on the season.
Mason Taylor is the leading pass catcher on the team with 25 receptions for 237 yards and a touchdown. Aaron Anderson leads the team in receiving yards with 298 on 21 catches with a touchdown. Kyren Lacy is the teams leading scoring receiver with 5 touchdowns on 20 catches with 245 yards. CJ Daniels adds 199 yards on 17 catches while Zavion Thomas rounds out the double-digit receptions with 10 catches for 76 yards and two touchdowns.
The Tigers have two 100-yard rushers on the season. Josh Williams has 134 yards on 36 carries with two touchdowns while averaging 3.7 yards per carry. Caden Durham has 116 yards on 22 carries with two touchdowns while averaging 5.3 yards per carry.
Keleb Jackson has 95 yards on 26 carries while John Emery Jr has 61 yards on 10 carries.
| Stat | Average per game |
| Points | 33.5 |
| Total Offense | 418.5 |
| Passing Offense | 239.8 |
| Rushing Offense | 119 |
| Time of Possession | 27:54 |
| Penalty Yards | 83.3 |
| Stat | Cumulative for Season |
| 3rd Downs | 25-of-51 (49%) |
| 4th Downs | 2-of-5 (40%) |
| Red Zone Scoring Attempts | 17-of-20 |
| Red Zone Touchdowns | 13-of-20 |
| Penalties – Yards | 31 – 237 |
| Fumbles – Lost | 1 – 1 |
Defense
Whit Weeks leads the defense with 30 total stops, 17 solo, with 1.5 tackles for loss. Greg Penn III is second on the team with 24 stops, 10 solo, with 1 TFL and a forced fumble.
As a team the Tigers have 12 sacks with Bradyn Swinson leading the team with 5 for a loss of 45 yards with two quarterback hurries and two forced fumbles. Sai’vion Jones is right behind him with 4 sacks (19 yards) with two forced fumbles and a fumble recovery.
The defense only has two pass interceptions. Zy Alexander and Jardin Gilbert each have one pick each.
However, the Tigers have lost Harld Perkins Jr for the season due to an ACL tear. While he hasn’t put up flashy numbers, he has been a player offenses have had to account for every play. Could that be a factor in this game?
| Stat | Average per game |
| Points | 24.5 |
| Total Offense | 358.8 |
| Passing Offense | 321.3 |
| Rushing Offense | 134.7 |
| Time of Possession | 31:57 |
| Penalty Yards | 64.7 |
| Stat | Cumulative for Season |
| 3rd Downs | 17-of-46 (37%) |
| 4th Downs | 2-of-6 (33%) |
| Red Zone Scoring Attempts | 11-of-12 |
| Red Zone Touchdowns | 8-of-12 |
| Penalties – Yards | 36 – 333 |
| Fumbles – Lost | 9 – 4 |
Special Teams
Peyton Todd has handled the majority of the punting duties with an average of 40.7 yards per kick, five fair catches and two downed inside the 20. Blake Ochsendorf is averaging 37.7 yards per attempts with one fair catch and all three of his attempts downed inside the 20.
Damian Ramos is 5-of-6 on field goals this season with a long of 45.
South Alabama
After a pair of losses to begin the season, the Jags have gelled as a team and found their footing in their last two games. The offensive line, who lost a few players in summer camp for various reasons, have improved leaps and bounds over the first four games. They controlled the line of scrimmage against Appalachian State. They’ll face their toughest test yet when they take on LSU Saturday night.
Similarly, the defense has matured a lot over the first four weeks. After only returning two starters, the Jags started the season with a bit of a learning curve experience wise. They’ve improved each and every week. Over the first two weeks the defensive front couldn’t get any pressure on the quarterback, then last week they were harassing Joey Aguilar on pretty much every play.
The Jags have a +5-turnover margin on the season with only two fumbles lost while the defense has a total of 7 take-aways (4 interceptions and 3 fumble recoveries).
Offense
The offense starts with Gio Lopez, who showed that his turf toe injury is not bothering him anymore. He is 57-of-92 (62%) with nine touchdowns and no interceptions on the season.
Jamaal Pritchett continues to lead the receiving corps in receptions (26), yards (354), and touchdowns (4). Devin Voisin has 16 catches for 206 yards on the season. Jeremiah Webb adds 10 catches for 185 yards with a touchdown. DJ Thomas-Jones has 6 catches for 52 yards with three of them being touchdown receptions.
True freshman Fluff Bothwell has emerged as the Jags leading back with 359 yards on 37 carries with six touchdowns through four games. Kentrel Bullock has 204 yards on 30 carries with three touchdowns.
Both Bothwell and Bullock have recorded 100-yard games the last two games.
Gio Lopez is third on the team with 171 yards on 21 carries with a pair of touchdowns.
| Stat | Average per game |
| Points | 48.3 |
| Total Offense | 502.8 |
| Passing Offense | 267.3 |
| Rushing Offense | 235.5 |
| Time of Possession | 31:24 |
| Penalty Yards | 64.8 |
| Stat | Cumulative for Season |
| 3rd Downs | 21-of-47 (44.7%) |
| 4th Downs | 4-of-5 (80%) |
| Red Zone Scoring Attempts | 23-of-24 |
| Red Zone Touchdowns | 18-of-24 |
| Penalties – Yards | 32 – 259 |
| Fumbles – Lost | 4 – 2 |
Defense
Blayne Myrick continues to pace the defense with 34 total stops, 11 solo, with two pass breakups and a forced fumble. Jordan Scruggs and Jaden Voisin are next with 21 stops each, Voisin with 13 solo while Scruggs has 9 solo and 1.5 Tackles for loss.
The Jags defense has intercepted four passes on the season, Scruggs earned the Sun Belt Player of the Week honor with his 96-yard interception return, it would have been a 100-yard touchdown return however an App State defender pulled him down from behind with a horse collar tackle. Voisin, Amarion Fortenberry, and Chrystyile Caldwell each have one interception each.
Defensively the Jags only have four sacks on the season. Jordan Norman, Maurice Strong Jr, Courtney McBride Jr, and Tyler Thomas have collected one sack each.
| Stat | Average per game |
| Points | 25.8 |
| Total Offense | 394 |
| Passing Offense | 271.8 |
| Rushing Offense | 122.3 |
| Time of Possession | 28:36 |
| Penalty Yards | 60.8 |
| Stat | Cumulative for Season |
| 3rd Downs | 21-of-55 (38%) |
| 4th Downs | 1-of-4 (25%) |
| Red Zone Scoring Attempts | 10-of-14 |
| Red Zone Touchdowns | 7-of-14 |
| Penalties – Yards | 27 – 243 |
| Fumbles – Lost | 5 – 3 |
Special Teams
Aleksi Pulkkinen has handled most of the punting duties, he’s averaging 38 yards per kick across his nine punts with five downed inside the 20-yard line and three fair catches. Jack Martin is averaging 45 yards per kick across his three punts with one touchback.
Laith Marjan is 5-of-6 on field goals this season with a long of 39. His only miss came from over 50 yards. He’s only missed one of this 18 extra point attempts, his first attempt after halftime last week went off the left upright.
Pritchett is averaging 28 yards per return in seven punt return opportunities with one 62-yard touchdown return.
Keys to the Game
Communication
When playing in big games on the road in a hostile environment, communication is at a premium. Death Valley at night is notoriously loud with Tiger Stadium actually registering on the seismograph a couple of times in big games. When the game is on the line, the Tiger fans can get loud and raucous.
But South Alabama just played in front of a loud crowd in Boone, NC. Are they the same? No, but the team knows what to expect and they can be prepared.
With the new in-helmet communications from the sideline, getting the play onto the field is a bit easier but any pre-snap adjustments still need to be communicated. Hopefully they can stay on the same page in all phases of the game because LSU will take advantage of any miscue.
Fundamentals
Defensively the Tigers have taken the ball away from opponents six times in four games. But they have forced 9 fumbles through those same four games. But the Jags have been very surehanded on the season with only two turnovers, one of them on a muffed punt. Continuing to keep possession of the ball will be big fundamentally.
Tackling will be a big factor. The Jags cannot let LSU run through arm tackles and pick up additional yards after contact. In the first two games the Jags had problems tackling but in the last two games have been more fundamentally sound.
The offense needs to stay on schedule because the LSU defense is blitz happy on 3rd down.
“A little Magic”
Something unexpected needs to go South Alabama’s way.
South Carolina had a pick-six that would have given them the lead late, but it was called back in a poor flag on what should have been a good play (that’s a discussion for another day).
LSU hasn’t looked the best this season and struggled against Nicholls. The Tigers narrowly led 23-21 early in the third quarter before finally pulled away from the FCS program.
If the Jags can get an unexpected play or two to go their way at an opportune time it will quiet the crowd and energize the Jaguars. A little voodoo magic if you will.
Prediction
LSU opens as a 21.5-point favorite over the Jags across most of the betting odds websites.
The Tigers are thought to have better players top-to-bottom because they are an SEC program. They should, shouldn’t they?
Perhaps the Jags can catch the Tigers asleep and looking ahead to having a week off to prepare for Ole Miss. But having a week off after the Jags will perhaps keep the Tigers focused enough for a little G5 Sun Belt team from Mobile.
As much as I want to pick the Jags to win or even to cover the spread, my head tells me that the Tigers in Tiger Stadium is a very tough draw. Then play it at night after the Tiger fans have had all day to marinade and it’s a very tough draw.
I think LSU wins and covers at home but maybe the score to cover comes late so it looks like a better win than it actually was. But I would LOVE to have South Alabama prove me wrong. They’ve been doing it all season so far, why not another week…
Go Jags!
Preview: Jags Open Conference Play At App State On National TV
Kickoff: Thursday, September 19th, 6:30pm
Venue: Kidd Brewer Stadium, Boone, NC
TV/Streaming: ESPN
Radio: 96.1 fm The Rocket, Sports Talk 99.5 fm, iHeartRadio App
Thunderjags on X (formerly known as Twitter): @USAThunderjags
#5 Jersey: Devin Voisin
South Alabama earned their first win of the season and under new head coach Major Applewhite in record breaking fashion last Thursday night. The Jags (1-2) scored in all three phases of the game while setting a new single-game scoring record for the program as well as the Sun Belt Conference. It was also the highest scoring college football game since 1991, even with the fourth quarter shortened to only six minutes.
This week the Jags have an entirely new challenge when they travel to Boone, NC to take on Appalachian State (2-1) in the conference opening game for both programs.
App State
Head coach Shawn Clark is in his fifth season as head coach of the Mountaineers. He returned to his alma mater as an assistant coach for two seasons under Scott Satterfield before Satterfield left for Louisville after the 2018 season. Clark was retained by newly hired head coach Eliah Drinkwitz. But Drinkwitz would be a one-and-done as he was hired away after a 12-1 season, including a win over Power-5 North Carolina and winning the SBC Championship game, the fourth-consecutive for the Mountaineers at the time.
Clark was promoted and made his debut in the 2019 R+L Carriers New Orleans Bowl with a 31-17 win over UAB. Since becoming the head coach, he has a 37-19 record with the Mountaineers overall and 22-10 in conference play.
Clark can also boast three consecutive seasons with a win over ranked opponents: 2021 vs #14 Coastal Carolina, 2022 vs #6 Texas A&M, and 2023 vs #18 James Madison.
Last season they were 9-5 overall, 6-2 in conference play, and represented the East Division in the SBC Championship Game, though they finished 2nd in the division because newcomer James Madison was ineligible due to FBS transition rules.
Before coaching at App State, Clark served as offensive line coach for Kent State, Purdue, and Eastern Kentucky.
Offense
The Mountaineers base offense is a Pro-Tempo scheme. It has pro-style concepts with a tempo base. They will dial up and down their tempo based on their success. If they hit a big play, they will go with tempo in order to prevent the defense from substituting. They will also turn down the tempo and play methodically during some parts of the game. It’s similar to what Drinkwitz ran while in Boone.
Joey Aguilar is 72-of-124 (58.1%) for 964 yards and 5 touchdowns on the season at quarterback. He was selected as the preseason Conference Offensive Player of the Year.
Kaedin Robinson leads the receiver corps with 18 catches for 290 yards but no touchdowns. Makai Jackson isn’t far behind with 14 catches but with 164 yards and two touchdowns. Christian Horn has 11 catches for 244 yards and a touchdown. Horn also has the longest reception with 83 yards. Eli Wilson rounds out the receivers with double-digit catches with 10 for 122 yards and two touchdowns.
Anderson Castle leads the Mountaineers rushing attack with 148 yards on 33 carries with a touchdown, averaging 4.5 yards per carry. Makai Jackson has 71 yards on three carries with a touchdown. Kanye Roberts has 63 yards on 19 carries, averaging 3.3 yards per carry. Ahmani Marshall has 49 yards on 14 carries, averaging 3.5 yards per carry. Aguilar is next in line with 44 yards on 15 carries with two touchdowns.
| Stat | Average per game |
| Points | 26.3 |
| Total Offense | 456 |
| Passing Offense | 321.3 |
| Rushing Offense | 134.7 |
| Time of Possession | 31:57 |
| Penalty Yards | 64.7 |
| Stat | Cumulative for Season |
| 3rd Downs | 16-of-39 (41%) |
| 4th Downs | 1-of-2 (50%) |
| Red Zone Scoring Attempts | 10-of-12 |
| Red Zone Touchdowns | 5-of-12 |
| Penalties – Yards | 18 – 194 |
| Fumbles – Lost | 3 – 2 |
Defense
The defense is listed as a 3-4 base but tends to run more 3-3-5 and relying more on their Star safety. The Star position can be explained like a hybrid linebacker-safety position.
Linebacker Caden Sullivan (R-Jr) leads the team with 20 total stops, 9 solo, with a quarterback hurry. Safety Ronald Clarke is next on the team with 18 total stops, 9 solo.
Outside linebacker Thomas Davis leads the team with 1.5 sacks ahead of five other players each with one sack each.
Senior cornerback Seth Robertson has the only interception on the defense.
| Stat | Average per game |
| Points | 31.7 |
| Total Offense | 447 |
| Passing Offense | 269.3 |
| Rushing Offense | 177.7 |
| Time of Possession | 27:35 |
| Penalty Yards | 64 |
| Stat | Cumulative for Season |
| 3rd Downs | 14-of-38 (37%) |
| 4th Downs | 2-of-6 (33%) |
| Red Zone Scoring Attempts | 7-of-8 |
| Red Zone Touchdowns | 4-of-8 |
| Penalties – Yards | 21 – 192 |
| Fumbles – Lost | 5 – 2 |
Special Teams
Mitchell Lake handled the punting duties through the first two games with an average of 38.2 yards per kick, three fair catches, two downed inside the 20 and a long of 61 yards. Connor Maynard handled the punting duties in their latest game with an average of 44.8 yards per kick, two touchbacks, one downed inside the 20 and a long of 50.
Michael Hughes is a perfect 5-of-5 on the season with a long of 36 yards. He is also a perfect 8-of-8 on extra points.
South Alabama
After starting the season with two losses, the Jags took the opportunity to have a get-right game against FCS Northwester State last Thursday. The game was moved back to Thursday to allow for a full week of preparation for this game after it was picked up by ESPN for national broadcast.
Offense
Gio Lopez started against Northwestern State after missing the previous game with a turf toe injury. On the season he is 41-of-68 (60.3%) for 689 yards and seven touchdowns. Bishop Davenport is 23-of-37 (62.2%) for 228 yards and a touchdown.
Jamaal Pritchett leads the receivers with 20 catches for 287 yards and three touchdowns. Devin Voisin has 13 catches for 184 yards. DJ Thomas-Jones has two touchdowns on 5 catches for 42 yards. Shamar Sandgren, Jeremiah Webb, and Anthony Eager each have one touchdown catch each on the season.
Fluff Bothwell in his first career 100-yard rushing game continues to lead the Jaguars rushing attack with 243 yards on 23 carries, averaging 10.6 yards per carry, with four touchdowns. Kentrel Bullock, also coming off a 100-yard rushing game himself, has 157 yards on 19 carries, averaging 8.3 yards per carry, with two touchdowns. PJ Martin, Gio Lopez, and Jarvis Durr all have one rushing touchdown each.
Pritchett also leads the team in all-purpose yards with 416 thanks to his punt return yardage of 129 yards added in. He also has a 62-punt return touchdown.
| Stat | Average per game |
| Points | 48.3 |
| Total Offense | 514.7 |
| Passing Offense | 305.7 |
| Rushing Offense | 209 |
| Time of Possession | 30:28 |
| Penalty Yards | 63.3 |
| Stat | Cumulative for Season |
| 3rd Downs | 15-of-36 (42%) |
| 4th Downs | 3-of-4 (66.7%) |
| Red Zone Scoring Attempts | 18-of-19 |
| Red Zone Touchdowns | 13-of-19 |
| Penalties – Yards | 23 – 190 |
| Fumbles – Lost | 4 – 1 |
Defense
Blayne Myrick continues to lead the defense with 25 total stops, 9 solo, with .5 tackles for loss, a pass breakup, and a forced fumble. Jordan Scruggs has 17 total stops, 7 solo, with 1.5 TFLs and a pass breakup. Jaden Voisin has 16 total stops, 10 solo, with an interception.
Amarion Fortenberry and Chrystyile Caldwell each have one interception on the season.
Jordan Norman, Maurice Strong Jr, and Tyler Thomas all have one sack each.
| Stat | Average per game |
| Points | 29.7 |
| Total Offense | 394.3 |
| Passing Offense | 273.7 |
| Rushing Offense | 120.7 |
| Time of Possession | 29:32 |
| Penalty Yards | 65 |
| Stat | Cumulative for Season |
| 3rd Downs | 17-of-42 (40%) |
| 4th Downs | 1-of-2 (50%) |
| Red Zone Scoring Attempts | 9-of-10 |
| Red Zone Touchdowns | 6-of-10 |
| Penalties – Yards | 22 – 195 |
| Fumbles – Lost | 4 – 2 |
Special Teams
Aleksi Pulkkinen has served as the punter the last two games with an average of 37.6 yards per kick with four downed inside the 20 and two fair catches. Jack Martin averages 44 yards per kick on two punts.
Laith Marjan is 5-of-6 on the season with a long of 39 yards. He is also a perfect 12-of-12 on extra point attempts.
Keys to the Game
Pass Defense
The Mountaineers have a prolific pass offense, and it all starts with quarterback Joey Aguilar.
Aguilar was named the Sun Belt Player of the Week after throwing for 424 yards and two touchdowns in their come-from-behind 21-19 win over East Carolina.
Despite all of their yards, they aren’t putting up the points that one would expect looking at the stats sheet.
The Jags secondary hasn’t been the best in coverage this season and the defense has struggled to get pressure on the quarterback in the first two games of the season. They also allowed a 75-yard touchdown pass in the first half to Northwestern State in the 87-10 blowout.
If the Jags want to win, they have to generate pressure on Aguilar and tighten their coverage on the receivers.
Special Teams
In both losses, the Jags had miscues on special teams. Against North Texas a punt went off one of the blockers for the punter after a bad snap, that was recovered for a touchdown. A muffed punt by Pritchett gave Ohio a short field, which they turned into points as well.
Pritchett made amends for his special teams play with a punt return touchdown in the big win.
Solid special teams play may not win the game, but poor special teams play sure can lose a game.
Offensive Line
What can be said here that we haven’t already said before? Games are won on the line. Pass protection and run blocking are the fundamentals for an offense to function.
The Jags were able to get some good in-game reps for lots of players last week. Hopefully it builds confidence in the starters as well as depth on the bench.
They’ll be tested by the Mountaineers.
Prediction
South Alabama enters probably their toughest three-game stretch of football this season. With all three being road contests too.
But the goal this week is do what they need to do to go 1-0. The other games have to wait.
The Mountaineers are 7.5-point favorite at home. South Alabama took the first matchup between the two schools back in 2014 but have lost each of the four subsequent meetings, including a 31-7 loss in 2021.
The game will be nationally broadcast on ESPN and it will be the only college football game available on Thursday night. This is a huge opportunity for the program to shine and playing a good, exciting game will go a long way to further the Jaguar brand of football.
If the Jags are healthy, and they look to mostly be back healthy, they can score points. With over a 60% chance of rain and thundershowers Thursday evening, that could favor the Jags running game with Bothwell, Bullock, Braylon McReynolds, PJ Martin, and Jarvis Durr.
I think the Jags cover but fall in a very close game.
Go Jags!
Preview: Jags Host Northwestern State For Thursday Night Showdown
Kickoff: Thursday, September 12th, 6:30pm
Venue: Hancock Whitney Stadium, Mobile, AL
TV/Streaming: ESPN+
Radio: 96.1 fm The Rocket, Sports Talk 99.5 fm, iHeartRadio App
Thunderjags on X (formerly known as Twitter): @USAThunderjags
#5 Jersey: Blayne Myrick
South Alabama has to put the results of the previous game behind them quickly. They have two fewer days to prepare for this week’s opponent than a normal week of preparation.
The Jags (0-2) are looking to get their first win of the season when they host the Demons (0-2) from the Football Championship Subdivision. Both teams enter the contest winless but with a lot of football left to play this season.
Looking at the Jags remaining schedule, you can’t help but get the feeling that this is a ‘must win.’
The next three games, all on the road, are against pre-season conference favorite App State, perennial SEC power LSU, and at an improving Arkansas State. The Jags could already be looking at a very tough proposition to go bowling for their third consecutive season.
But let’s not get ahead of ourselves. The Jags have to focus on going 1-0 this week.
Northwestern State
Blaine McCorkle is in his first season as the head football coach for the Northwester State Demons. His previous position was head coach at Division III Belhaven University for the last six seasons. He built that program into winning a conference title and saw their first Division III playoff berth. They finished 2023 with a 9-2 record which capped off a three-season run where he led his team to a 24-7 record. In his first three seasons at the helm, they only won seven games, including a 3-2 record in the pandemic-affected 2021 spring season. But that was good enough for the programs first winning record since 2012.
The Blazers had not won more than 3 games in a season since 2013.
The Demons cancelled the remaining games of the 2023 season after a death on their team then their head coach resigned in the wake of it all.
Offense
JT Fayard leads the Demond offense going 17-of-45 (37.8%) for 232 yards, a touchdown and an interception. Quaterius Hawkins has appeared in one game going 4-of-5 (80%) for 57 yards and a touchdown.
Myles Kitt-Denton leads the receivers with 115 yards on four catches with two touchdowns. Twon Kines, Amaaz Eugene and Kareame Cotton have three catches each for 41, 38, and 31 yards respectively.
Kennieth Lacy leads the rushing attack with 142 yards on 16 carries with two touchdowns. Zay Davis is next with 74 yards on 19 carries. Chance Newman, listed as a TE/QB from Daphne High School, has 31 yards on 6 carries with the only other touchdown in the rushing category.
| Stat | Average per game |
| Points | 29.5 |
| Total Offense | 250.5 |
| Passing Offense | 144.5 |
| Rushing Offense | 106 |
| Time of Possession | 25:30 |
| Penalty Yards | 48 |
| Stat | Cumulative for Season |
| 3rd Downs | 5-of-25 (25%) |
| 4th Downs | 2-of-2 (100%) |
| Red Zone Scoring Attempts | 3-of-4 |
| Red Zone Touchdowns | 2-of-4 |
| Penalties – Yards | 12 – 96 |
| Fumbles – Lost | 2 – 0 |
Defense
Blake Gotcher leads the team with 34 total stops, 12 solo, with the only two sacks the defense has recorded, and a forced fumble from his linebacker position. Ara Rauls III, Cadillac Rhone, and Christian Williams are all tied with 12 total stops each. Rauls has 6 solo, 1.5 tackles for loss, and a pass breakup as a safety. Rhone also has 5 solo, .5 tackles for loss, with an interception from his linebacker position. Williams has 6 solo and 1 TFL.
Emanuel Brown is the only other Demon with an interception.
| Stat | Average Allowed per Game |
| Points | 49.5 |
| Total Offense | 543 |
| Passing Offense | 289.5 |
| Rushing Offense | 253.5 |
| Time of Possession | 34:12 |
| Penalty Yards | 84.5 |
| Stat | Cumulative for Season |
| 3rd Downs | 19-of-33 (57.6%) |
| 4th Downs | 2-of-3 (66.7%) |
| Red Zone Scoring Attempts | 8 – 9 |
| Red Zone Touchdowns | 6 – 9 |
| Penalties – Yards | 17 – 169 |
| Fumbles – Lost | 3 – 2 |
Special Teams
Reed Honshtein pulls double duty as the punter and placekicker. He is averaging 39.2 yards per punt, a long of 51, three punts of 50+ yards, with 7 fair catches, and five downed inside the 20.
He has made the only field goal he’s attempted on the season from 38 yards.
South Alabama
It’s been a rocky start to the season and head coach Major Applewhite’s tenure unfortunately. South Alabama could have won either game so far this season. In the season opener against North Texas the Jags held a lead at halftime but a disastrous third quarter shifted all the momentum their way and propelled the Mean Green towards the win.
Though Jags were still in the game with an opportunity to cut the lead to a single score late in the fourth quarter. However, an overturned turnover and a field goal put the final touches on the Jags loss.
Last week’s trip to Ohio saw the Jags defense play better, but both sides of the ball couldn’t get out of their own way and came up on the short side of the 27-20 score.
Unforced mistakes hurt them in all phases of the game. Without Gio Lopez at quarterback the offense was a bit out of sync and they didn’t call any passes downfield for whatever reason. Even the usually sure-handed Jamaal Pritchett fumbled a punt allowing Ohio to steal a possession and score. While defensively they played better overall, they just couldn’t get off the field on a couple of drives in the second half and Ohio just melted the clock.
This week is one of those weeks where you should get a win. But you still have to prepare because nothing is a given in college athletics.
Offense
Gio Lopez started game one and went 26-of-49 (53%) for 432 yards, with three touchdowns and rushed for 62 yards and another touchdown. However, we later found out that he suffered a turf toe injury and the coaches sat him out for game two.
Bishop Davenport got the nod last week and went 23-of-37 (62%) for 226 yards and a touchdown. He only accumulated 5 yards rushing after sack yardage was subtracted.
Jamaal Pritchett leads the team in catches (18), yards (264), and receiving touchdowns (2) for the Jags. Devin Voisin is the only other receiver with double-digit catches (10) and over 100 yards receiving (137). Shamar Sandgren and Anthony Eager both have one receiving touchdown each.
True freshman Fluff Bothwell leads the Jags rushing with 100 yards on 16 carries with two touchdowns. Lopez’s 62 yards, 13 carries and a touchdown are all second place in the rushing category. Kentrel Bullock has 51 yards on 11 carries. Braylon McReynolds has 27 yards on 8 carries against North Texas, he was held out of last week’s game at Ohio.
| Stat | Average per game |
| Points | 29 |
| Total Offense | 458.5 |
| Passing Offense | 329 |
| Rushing Offense | 129.5 |
| Time of Possession | 29:06 |
| Penalty Yards | 65 |
| Stat | Cumulative for Season |
| 3rd Downs | 11-of-29 (37.9%) |
| 4th Downs | 3-of-4 (75%) |
| Red Zone Scoring Attempts | 9 – 9 |
| Red Zone Touchdowns | 5 – 9 |
| Penalties – Yards | 16 – 130 |
| Fumbles – Lost | 2 – 1 |
Defense
Redshirt Sophomore Blayne Myrick leads the defense with 22 total stops, 9 solo, with .5 Tackles for Loss, and a forced fumble. Jordan Scruggs is next on the team with 16 total stops, 6 solo, with .5 TFL’s and a pass breakup.
The Jags defense has only managed two sacks through two games. Jordan Norman and Tyler Thomas each have one, Thomas’ was a strip sack that resulted in a fumble. Carlos Johnson Jr got the only fumble recovery.
Both Ricky Fletcher and Reggie Neely missed last weeks game with injuries. Currently they are both considered questionable going into this game and will likely be a game-time decision.
| Stat | Average Allowed per Game |
| Points | 39.5 |
| Total Offense | 477 |
| Passing Offense | 325 |
| Rushing Offense | 152 |
| Time of Possession | 30:54 |
| Penalty Yards | 68 |
| Stat | Cumulative for Season |
| 3rd Downs | 14-of-27 (51.9%) |
| 4th Downs | 1-of-2 (50%) |
| Red Zone Scoring Attempts | 8 – 9 |
| Red Zone Touchdowns | 6 – 9 |
| Penalties – Yards | 14 – 136 |
| Fumbles – Lost | 2 – 1 |
Special Teams
Jack Martin had an average of 44 yards over his two punts against North Texas. Last week Aleksi Pulkkinen handled the punting duties and average 38.3 yards across his seven punts, with four downed inside the 20 and two fair catches.
Laith Marjan is a perfect 4-for-4 on the season with a long of 39 yards.
Keys to the Game
3rd Downs
I want to see the Jags to play better on third down.
Defensively, the Jags must get off the field. Currently opponents are converting almost 52% of their 3rd down attempts. The Jags best defensive effort saw Ohio convert 40% of their 3rd down attempts. Obviously, this has to improve. How do you improve on it? Cause havoc. The Jags need to get into the backfield more, pressuring the quarterback, and ideally causing turnovers.
The Jags only have two sacks and seven TFL’s on the season so far. They defensive front, particularly the young linebackers (six freshmen in the group) need to help generate pressure and cause havoc.
Offensively the Jags are converting just under 38% of their 3rd down attempts. They converted 67% of their attempts against North Texas as they put up 38 points. Last week they only converted 33% of their attempts and only put 20 points on the scoreboard. That was a big drop-off. Was it due to Gio Lopez being out? Quite possibly.
How do you improve on it regardless who’s taking snaps? Staying ahead of schedule, limiting negative plays, and cleaning up the penalties. Lopez adds another dimension to the offense with his speed and ability to run which forces the defense to have to account for him running. Davenport will have to push the ball downfield more to stretch the defense and make them have to account for the deep pass.
Special Teams
Two game and special teams’ mishaps have turned into two touchdowns for the opponents. Teams who are able to score a touchdown on special teams have a high statistical likelihood to win the game.
South Alabama can attest to the validity of that stat this season.
So far this season the Jags are winless when they either allow a special teams touchdown or a turnover on special teams that leads to a touchdown.
In addition, the kickoff returners have really given the offense some poor field position to start. Some kickoff returns have not even gotten across the 20-yard line. Maybe a few more fair catches should be called and give the offense an opportunity to start at the 25 instead.
Let’s have a solid showing in all phases of special teams. Punting, punt fielding, placekicking, kickoff coverage, and kickoff returning.
Stay Healthy
It looked like the Jags were healthy coming out of the first game, but it wasn’t until the Ohio game did, we find out that Gio was unlikely to play and Braylon McReynolds was going out.
Coach Applewhite said that his “hope is” to have Lopez on the field for the Jags. He also said that McReynolds should be ready to play as well.
With the weather expected leading up to, and potentially during the game, if the additional rest for those players will have them better prepared for the remaining schedule and the Jags can win without them, I would be supportive of having them rest one more week.
Prediction
The Jags are a 37.5-point favorite against an FCS school. This shouldn’t be a problem for South Alabama. But they cannot be caught looking ahead to next week and overlooking the Demons. They need to handle business early then they can turn their focus to the next game.
Not to disparage the opponent, but the Jags are more talented and deeper than the Demons. But they should be as a FBS program vs an FCS program. But that is not always the case. This is not one of those cases.
I think the Jags will win but I’m not sure they will cover. Why? It may be a very wet and sloppy game.
Heavy rains are supposed to move through the area due to hurricane Francine. Weather models show the rain potentially being over before kickoff, but with tropical systems feeder bands could linger and bring rain during the game.
Wind could also be a factor with an unstable atmosphere.
But ultimately, I think the coaches will look to get more players into the game for experience so the 37.5-point spread may be a bit much.
Jags win but don’t cover the spread.
Go Jags!
Preview: South Alabama Travels To Ohio University For First Road Test Of Season
Kickoff: Saturday, September 7th, 6:00pm
Venue: Frank Solich Field at Peden Stadium, Athens, OH
TV/Streaming: ESPN+
Radio: 96.1 fm The Rocket, Sports Talk 99.5 fm, iHeartRadio App
Thunderjags on X (formerly known as Twitter): @USAThunderjags
#5 Jersey: Not announced yet (Last week Christopher Wallace Jr.)
South Alabama (0-1) came up on the short side of the scoreboard against North Texas. The 52-38 decision spoiled head coach Major Applewhite’s debut as the top Jaguar and their home opener. The Jags held a 19-14 lead at halftime but allowed four touchdowns in the third quarter as the Mean Green seized control of the game behind an up-tempo, big-play offense. They were also aided by a mishap in special teams that led to one of the scores.
Let’s start with the good things we saw.
Gio Lopez had a record-setting performance further showing why he was so hyped inside the program all last season. Lopez and his skill guys pretty much picked up right where they left off from the 68 Ventures Bowl. Jamaal Pritchett has elevated his game and has become the next playmaking wide receiver for the Jaguar offense. Devin Voisin was second on the team receiving and in targets in his first game back after missing almost all of 2023 with a knee injury. Braylon McReynolds, Kentrel Bullock and Fluff Bothwell are going to be a fun running back trio.
This could be the most productive offense in South Alabama history. They may need it with the way the defense played though.
Speaking of defense, the line played pretty well. They kept the UNT running game bottled up and only allowed them 104 yards and an average of 3.1 yards per attempt.
What we didn’t like.
The offensive line played better than expected but they still have a lot of work to put in. This week of practice will show us a lot about what this group can do.
While the defensive line was great against the run, they couldn’t generate any pressure on the quarterback. That allowed North Texas to pick apart the secondary for 446 yards and three touchdowns.
Going into the season, the linebackers were an area of concern.
They played decently considering the concerns but they, too, have a lot of work to put in and this week of practice will give us some insight at their ability to improve this season. Blayne Myrick had his name called a few times from his linebacker position. Most notably when the Jags turned away the Mean Green on a goal line stand.
Similar to last season’s opening game, the secondary had trouble in coverage. Hopefully the similarities to last season doesn’t stop there. Last season the secondary made a big adjustment after the first game and played much better.
It’s a cat fight!
We’ll see which cat comes out on top in a match between Jaguars and Bobcats.
The Bobcats (0-1) enter the game coming off of a season-opening loss of their own. They also had an early lead in the game but was unable to keep up with Syracuse, falling 38-22 on the road.
Ohio head coach Tim Albin is in his fourth season at the helm in Athens, OH. He was promoted to the position on July 15, 2021 after joining the program as the offensive coordinator in 2005 with former head coach Frank Solich. Previously Albin and Solich coached together at Nebraska.
The Bobcats defeated Georgia Southern in the Myrtle Beach Bowl to earn their second consecutive 10-win season, a first for the program. The bowl win was also the fifth-consecutive for the program.
Ohio University
Offense
| Stat | Stat total |
| Passing Completions – Attempts – Interceptions | 18-30-1 |
| Points | 22 |
| Total Offensive Yards | 436 |
| Passing Yards | 181 |
| Rushing Yards | 255 |
| Time of Possession | 31:28 |
| Penalties – Yards | 1 – 5 |
| 3rd Downs | 2 of 11 |
| 4th Downs | 1 of 2 |
| Red Zone Scores – Chances | 4 – 5 |
| Fumbles – Lost | 1 – 0 |
Quarterback Parker Navarro was 18-of-30 for 181 yards, one interception and sacked four times.
Coleman Owen led the receivers with 10 catches for 137 yards. Chase Hendricks had 3 for 27 yards. Four other receivers caught passes in the game with minimal yards.
Anthony Tyus III led the team with 203 yards rushing on 16 attempts with two touchdowns. Navarro added 33 yards on 16 carries of his own.
Defense
| Stat | Stat total |
| Passing Completions – Attempts – Interceptions | 27-40-1 |
| Points | 38 |
| Total Offensive Yards | 480 |
| Passing Yards | 354 |
| Rushing Yards | 126 |
| Time of Possession | 28:32 |
| Penalties – Yards | 6 – 47 |
| 3rd Downs | 9 of 15 |
| 4th Downs | 1 of 1 |
| Red Zone Scores – Chances | 5 – 5 |
| Fumbles – Recovered | 0 – 0 |
Austin Brawley led the team with 12 total stops, 9 solo, from the safety position. Blake Leake was next with seven total stops, three of them solo. Two players have one tackle for loss each, Bradley Weaver’s TFL was the teams only sack.
Pearson Tank is the only Bobcat on the season with an interception through the first game.
Special Teams
Punter Jack Wilson logged three kicks with an average of 45.3 yards per kick, a long of 50, and one downed inside the 20. Gianni Spetic went 3-for-3 on field goal attempt in the opening game with a long of 43, and made the one point after attempt.
South Alabama
Offense
| Stat | Stat total |
| Passing Completions – Attempts – Interceptions | 26-49-0 |
| Points | 38 |
| Total Offensive Yards | 582 |
| Passing Yards | 432 |
| Rushing Yards | 150 |
| Time of Possession | 30:28 |
| Penalties – Yards | 9-80 |
| 3rd Downs | 6 of 14 |
| 4th Downs | 2 of -3 |
| Red Zone Scores – Chances | 5 of 5 |
| Fumbles – Lost | 0 – 0 |
Gio Lopez was 26-of-49 for 432 yards and three touchdowns in the season opener. His longest pass completion was for 52 yards but he was sacked twice. He added 62 yards on the ground, leading the Jaguar rushing attack. His 494 all-purpose yards put him in the national lead. It should have propelled him to the Offensive Player of the Week honors for the Sun Belt, however that honor went to another player in an odd choice.
Jamaal Pritchett caught 10 of his 15 targets for 197 yards and a touchdown. Devin Voisin added 5 catches on 8 targets for 60 yards. Shamar Sandgren caught 3 passes for 37 yards and a touchdown. Anthony Eager had one catch for a 23-yard touchdown.
Fluff Bothwell was the leading rusher from the running back position with 30 yards on 6 carries with a touchdown.
Defense
| Stat | Stat total |
| Passing Completions – Attempts – Interceptions | 33-42-0 |
| Points | 52 |
| Total Offensive Yards | 550 |
| Passing Yards | 446 |
| Rushing Yards | 104 |
| Time of Possession | 29:32 |
| Penalties – Yards | 6-50 |
| 3rd Downs | 8-of-12 |
| 4th Downs | 0-of-1 |
| Red Zone Scores – Chances | 5-of-6 |
| Fumbles – Recovered | 0 – 0 |
Blayne Myrick led the team with 12 total stops, 3 solo. Jordan Scruggs was next with nine total stops, three solo as well, with a pass breakup. Maurice Strong Jr and Carlos Johnson Jr both had ½ tackle for loss in the game.
Special Teams
Jack Martin had two recorded punts in the game with an average of 44 yards per kick. However, he did have a bad snap that he dropped, then when he tried to pick it up and kick it, the ball ricocheted off of one of his blockers that led to a defensive touchdown.
Laith Marjan made both of this field goal attempts, the longest was from 39 yards out, as well as both of his point after attempts.
Keys to the Game
Defense
The defense, as a whole, needs to make a big improvement going into game two.
Point: While the rush defense looked good on paper against North Texas, how much of that was due UNT’s success through the air and not needing to run the ball?
Counter Point: The Mean Green had 34 rushing attempts for only 104 yards, an average of 3.1 yards per attempt, and the longest run was 13 yards. Did the Jags just take away the run and force a passing team to throw the ball more?
I would like to see them get more pressure on the quarterback. They need to play better in coverage (seriously, how many times have we been burned by inside slants over the last several seasons?!). I hope the linebackers get coached up some more because they have a lot of responsibility on their shoulders.
Offensive Line
I feel the offensive line played decently well overall, but they played at their best in the first half. Gio’s speed and escapability allows him to get out of the pocket and extend plays. What would have been sacks with Carter Bradley at quarterback are now running throws or scrambles for yardage.
I think they’ll improve. They’ll need to as the schedule gets increasingly difficult. With only two returning starters in the group, including a new center, it was a given that the offensive line may need some time to settle in.
Speaking of center, I lost count how many times I saw high snaps that Gio had to really reach to catch. I hope that’s just some first-game jitters
Health
I think the team came out pretty healthy from the game. The only player that appeared to get banged up was Gio Lopez. There were several runs and scrambles where he took the hit instead of sliding.
At one point he had a visible limp after some tackles. Afterwards he had some deep throws that came up a little short. He may have just put too much air underneath his throws, but you can’t help to wonder if he was having problems setting and throwing off of his plant foot.
Lopez also took a hit to the ribs and stayed down for a moment in the second half of the game.
Gio is definitely one of the linchpins in the Jaguars offense, he needs to stay healthy because there’s a lot of football left to be played this season.
Prediction
South Alabama will be tested in their first road game of the season in Ohio. While the sample size is only one game for each program, it looks like the offensive and defensive strengths for the Jags match up well against Ohio University.
The Bobcats is a predominately running team, they had 255 yards on the ground against Syracuse on the road. The Jags defense only allowed 104 yards to UNT. I don’t expect that kind of performance against Ohio, I think the Bobcats are going to get theirs. But can the defense get some stops? Can they get some pressure in the backfield? Can they cause more chaos?
The Jags roll into Ohio a 2.5-point favorite over the Bobcats.
I think this is a chance for coach Applewhite and gang to show that they’ve corrected some of the issues from the first game. But they also aren’t facing such a high-powered, fast-tempo offense this week.
I think the Jags win and cover.
Go Jags!
Preview: South Alabama Opens 2024 Season Against North Texas
Kickoff: Saturday, August 31, 4:00pm
Venue: Hancock Whitney Stadium, Mobile, AL
TV/Streaming: ESPN+
Radio: 96.1 fm The Rocket, Sports Talk 99.5 fm, iHeartRadio App
Thunderjags on X (formerly known as Twitter): @USAThunderjags
#5 Jersey: Not announced yet
South Alabama enters the 2024 season with momentum that the program has never experienced before. Though the regular season record took a step back from the 10-win 2022 campaign, the 2023 season culminated with a ferocious 59-10 defeat of Eastern Michigan in the 68 Ventures Bowl. It finally gave the school and it’s fans the long-awaited first bowl victory in program history. They unleashed some of their pent up frustration from previous bowl games with talk on the field. Though what happened after the game garnered most of the national spotlight.
However less than a month later, the entire college football world was shocked by the announcement of Nick Saban’s retirement. Less than a week later a new head coach, Kalen DeBoer, was announced at the University of Alabama, which began a series of dominoes falling across the college football landscape.
One of dominoes was South Alabama’s head football coaching position.
After only three seasons, Kane Wommack left to be the defensive coordinator at Alabama alongside his former Indiana staff-mate who had accepted the huge task of replacing a legend of college football.
In a swift but thorough search, South Alabama Athletics Director Joel Erdmann announced the selection of Major Applewhite to become the fourth head football coach in South Alabama football history. Applewhite was a clear and easy choice to make in retrospect. He had already been on staff for three seasons with Wommack, he knew the players and the program, and he knew all about the recruiting for the Jags. But in the new age of the transfer portal and players ability to enter it when their head coach leaves, it was also an opportunity to keep roster as intact as possible.
The Coaches
Long considered one of the great offensive minded coaches in the nation, Coach Applewhite helped lead an offense that set many records over the last three seasons. The 2023 offense set a program record for points scored in a single season with 430, scored 55 points or more in three games (including the 59 points scored in the 68 Ventures Bowl which itself set a program record for most points scored against an FBS opponent). They scored 55 points in back-to-back victories over Louisiana-Monroe and Southern Miss during the regular season.
This will be Coach Applewhite’s third season overall as a head coach, he previously held the position at Houston leading the Cougars to a 15-11 record with two bowl appearances and a win over nationally-ranked South Florida during his tenure.
In Coach Applewhite’s first game as head coach for the Jags, he will get to host a program that is not unknown to long time South Alabama supporters.
North Texas was a member of the Sun Belt Conference from 2001 until their departure for Conference USA in 2013. While all of the other sports programs faced the Mean Green many times, the football program only faced off on the gridiron once in what would be their final season in the SBC. It happened to be the Jags first season playing a full FBS and SBC schedule, and only their 4th season sponsoring football, as the first year of their transition. They came out on the wrong side of a 24-14 game in route to a 2-11 season, the worst season in program history.
South Alabama will finally get to renew the sports “rivalry” between the two schools and get finally host North Texas for a game in Mobile.
North Texas head football coach Eric Morris enters his second season at the helm for the Mean Green after going 5-7 in his debut season. He is one of the younger offensive minds that is making a mark for themselves in college football.
Since becoming offensive coordinator at Texas Tech in 2013, Morris has put together a top 25 offense in either FBS or FCS eight of the last 11 seasons. He’s also worked with great offensive minds like Mike Leach and Kliff Kingsbury while recruiting and coaching Pat Mahomes at Texas Tech.
Morris served as head coach at Incarnate Word for four seasons where he amassed a 24-18 record with two trips to the FCS playoffs. His first was in his first season where they lost in the first round, then again in his final season where his team went 10-3 but lost in the second round to top ranked Stephen F Austin. Between UIW and UNT, Morris served as offensive coordinator for Washington State, where they went 7-6 with a loss to Fresno State in the LA Bowl days after he accepted the head coaching position at North Texas.
The North Texas coaching staff had some offseason changes to it. They brought in Cutter Leftwich to coach the offensive line from Oregon, where he was an assistant offensive line coach. The 2023 Oregon OL was a finalist for the Joe Moore award, given to the nation’s top offensive line group. They also brought in Brian Odom to coach linebackers from USC where he previously coached inside linebackers as well as associate head coach for defense. He also filled in as interim co-defensive coordinator in 2023.
Defense is definitely where the Mean Green needs attention as you’ll see in the stats section below.
Measurables
Texas State
Let’s start what they did well.
In Coach Morris’ first season they finished 5-7 with an offense that put up some impressive numbers. They were one of only four teams who could say they had a 3,000-yard passer, a 1,000-yard rusher and a 1,000-yard receiver. They were also one of only five FBS programs ranked inside the top 25 in scoring, rushing, passing and total offense in 2023. Their offense led the AAC and was 6th in the nation in total offense (495.8 yards per game), 12th in the nation is passing (307.4 yards per game) and 21st in the nation in both rushing offense (191.2 yards per game) and scoring (34.5 points per game).
But they needed that kind of production with their defense.
The Mean Green’s defense ranked 130th or dead last in the nation in Total Defense (5,717 total yards, 6.56 yards per play, 476.4 yards per game) and Rushing Defense (3,062 yds, 255.2 yards per game, 5.63 yards per rush). They ranked 128th in the nation is scoring defense allowing 37.08 points per game. They ranked 63rd in passing yards allowed with2,655 yards for the season, 221.2 yards per game, and 8.09 yards per attempt. But who needs to pass when allowing those kinds of rushing numbers.
North Texas has 77 new players on the roster for the 2024 season, the most of any FBS program. Out of that number, 36 of them are transfers, which is tied with New Mexico State for the most transfers in FBS. A number of transfers will be starting for UNT on both sides of the ball with others sprinkled throughout the two-deep depth chart.
Listed as the starting quarterback, Chandler Morris transferred from TCU where he played in 15 games overall and started six games in 2023. In his standout game he threw for 461 yards and ran for 70 against Baylor in 2021.
Ikaika Ragsdale appeared in two games last year before suffering a season-ending injury. In 2022 he had 755 yards and 7 touchdowns.
UNT returns three of their top six receivers from last year. They combined for 93 catches, 1,235 yards and 11 touchdowns. Damon Ward Jr leads the receiver corps with 39 catches, 487 yards and 5 touchdowns a year ago. His best game came against Memphis with 8 catches for 120 yards.
Jordan Brown returns after leading the team with 83 tackles last season. They added a pair of Texas transfers to bolster their secondary along returners Jayven Anderson and Evan Jackson. Both returners were freshmen last season with Anderson finishing with 30 tackles (21 solo) and Jackson finished with 27 tackles while finishing second on the team with 3 pass breakups.
South Alabama
The Jaguar offense finished the season ranked 24th overall in total offense (440.2 yards per game, 6.38 yards per play). They were 27th in scoring (33.1 points per game), 32nd in passing (268.8 yards per game, 12.17 yards per completion), and T-48th in rushing (172 yards per game, 4.77 yards per rush).
Defensively the Jags finished 15th in the nation in total defense (313.2 yards per game), T-19th in rushing defense (113.7 yards per game, 3.22 yards per rush), T-26th in scoring defense (21.0 points per game), and 28th in passing yards allowed (199.5 yards per game, 12.47 yards per completion).
The Jags return several key players all over the field.
Offensively Gio Lopez is set up with lots of playmakers around him. He was pretty much tabbed as the quarterback of the future during his freshman season and the coaching staff used every bit of his playing time without burning a year of eligibility doing so.
Lopez will have playmakers in his pass catchers Jamaal Pritchett, Devin Voisin, Javon Ivory as well as tight end DJ Thomas-Jones. Despite losing their top receiver, Caullin Lacy, and Voisin going down with a season-ending injury in the second game of the season, the Jags return 109 receptions, 1,429 yards and 15 touchdowns between the four returners. Voisin led the 2022 receiver corps with 871 yards, was 2nd on the team with 64 catches and had five touchdowns.
Braylon McReynolds is tapped to be the starting running back to replace 1,000-yard rusher La’Damian Webb. Though McReynolds missed a huge chunk of the season due to an injury in the season-opener, he managed to see action in 5 games and rushed for 260 yards on 46 carries and adding 141 yards receiving on 17 receptions. While the numbers don’t jump off the screen as outstanding, it was his speed and elusiveness in key moments that does stand out. Kentrel Bullock, who finished 2nd to Webb with 476 yards rushing on 83 carries with four touchdowns is also back in the Jags uniform this season.
Depth at running back has been a big focus leading into the season. Expect more of a running back by committee rather than having any one running back dominating like Webb has over the past two seasons. Some of the young players will likely see some playing time too. Look for freshman #24 “Fluff” Bothwell to be one of those to see some early time and potentially make some highlights too.
The offensive line has taken three fairly substantial hits in fall camp. Mississippi State transfer Jayden Hobson left the team early in camp with the intention to join the work force. Redshirt freshman John Ward, who was the second-team right guard and was expected to eventually take over for senior Reed Buys, was medically disqualified. Most recently Lucas Taylor was medically retired from football due to a heart condition. Taylor entered camp as the Jags starting left guard.
The current starting line from left to right are Jordan Davis (R-Jr), Kenton Jerido (R-So), Malachi Preciado (R-So), Reed Buys (R-Sr), and Malachi Carney (R-So).
The Jag defense returns some names that should be familiar to fans. Wy’Kevious Thomas, Ed Smith IV, and Maurice Strong all return to the defensive line. In the secondary Ricky Fletcher, Jaden Voisin, Reggie Neely and Dallas Gamble all make their return in Jaguar uniforms.
Jack Martin returns to his punting duties while Laith Marjan takes over placekicking and kickoff duties for Diego Guajardo, who graduated.
Keys to the Game
Defense
The Jag defense is without Wommack and former defensive coordinator Corey Batoon, the architects of South Alabama Swarm D of the last three seasons. Calling the plays will be first year defensive coordinator Will Windham. Coach Windham has served on the staff each of the previous three seasons, so he’s familiar with the terminology and defensive philosophy but will be calling plays for the first time.
As for the team, the linebacker corps is probably the most concerning defensive personnel grouping.
Several of the players have seen limited action for the Jags. Many saw most of their playing time on special teams. Wolf linebacker Aakil Washington is probably the most experienced amongst the listed starters.
Offensive line
The Jags entered fall camp with three more players than they currently have. As we went over above: one left the program, one was medically disqualified, and a third was forced to medically retire.
While that is a hit on depth, some of those were either starters or expected to challenge for a starter position/be a solid second-teamer.
Similar to the linebackers, the offensive line has limited starting experience and will need to gel quickly under game pressure in order to protect Gio Lopez and give the running backs a chance.
Gio is a very mobile quarterback and is quite good at making plays, but if he’s running for his life most plays how accurate can he be?
Fundamentals
Early season games are easily won and lost based on fundamentals. After several months between seasons, with only inter-team scrimmages in the spring and fall camp attempting to simulate games, the rubber meets the road in the first game. No matter how much you try, you just cannot adequately simulate an actual game in a scrimmage. That’s why you see lots of teams try to schedule what should be an easier game to open the season.
Ball protection, pursuit angles, footwork, and execution will all be tested early and often in this game.
Prediction
The Jags have a very good test to open the season with North Texas. Perhaps a good measuring stick to gauge where the program stands to being coach Major Applewhite’s first season. It’s also an opportunity to set the tone for the season.
With the coaching changes and the personnel changes, the football program enters the season with the more open questions than they’ve had over the last couple of seasons. However, they’ll have the first three games to really solidify before South Alabama opens conference play at App State on September 19.
But they would really like to roll into Boone, NC with a 3-0 record. Each week is a one-game season. You have to focus on the game at hand, you can’t look ahead to games further down the schedule.
This week it’s North Texas and the goal is to go 1-0.
Both teams have lots of questions but maybe my red, white and blue glasses may be affecting me as I think the Jags have better skill players returning offensively. They have some solid personnel on the defensive line and secondary. So, I think the Jags pull this out, possibly in a high scoring affair. It may even come down to the final possession.
USA is a 5.5 point favorite and has been as high as an 8 point favorite leading up to the game. Maybe I’m a little too nervous about the open questions with the offensive line and linebackers. I think the Jags win, but I don’t think they’ll cover.
Go Jags!