SWAC Week 4 Review:
Charles Wells, SWAC Contributor | September 29, 2015
Saturday, September 26
Georgia 48, Southern 6
Southern University dropped its second game of the season falling to No. 7 Georgia 48-6 Saturday afternoon at Sanford Stadium. It was the first ever meeting between the two schools and only the fifth time that a Southeastern Conference opponent has faced a school from the Southwestern Athletic Conference. The Jags were competitive for a half but couldn’t generate points.
Lenard Tillery’s 16-yard scoring run for the Jaguars (2-2) would be Southern’s only score of the day. He went on to lead the team’s ground attack with 82 yards on 19 carries. The Bulldogs’ only points in the second quarter came on a field goal. Georgia quickly stretched the 20-6 halftime lead with four third-quarter touchdowns.
Roshaud Turner led Southern on defense with eight tackles. Daniel Brown and Mikale Jenkins each earned a sack each. Southern play makers Austin Howard and Willie Quinn were both held in check. Howard was 8-of-19 for 68 yards while Quinn caught only three passes for 20 yards.
Nick Chubb ran for 131 yards and two touchdowns and also caught a TD pass for Georgia. His 12 consecutive 100-yard rushing games tied him with Herschel Walker. Southern surrendered scores to Chubb from runs of nine and 49 yards in the third quarter. He scored on a 24-yard pass from Greyson Lambert in the first quarter. Even with this result the Jags will remain a contender in the SWAC West.
Alabama A&M 28, Arkansas-Pine Bluff 9
Tevin McKenzie scored three touchdowns and Alabama A&M beat Arkansas-Pine Bluff 28-9 on Saturday at Louis Crews Stadium. The Bulldogs got off to a sluggish start, trailing 9-0, McKenzie scored on a 29-yard run in the second quarter and caught third-quarter scoring passes of 14 and 34 yards from De’Angelo Ballard.
Ballard’s third touchdown pass, a nine yarder to O’Darius Williams, capped the scoring. Ballard completed 20 of 30 attempts for 353 yards. McKenzie hauled in six catches for 91 yards, plus his one rushing attempt for a score. Harvey Harris led the Bulldogs with 131 yards rushing on 14 carries while DeVon Johnson finished with 105 yards receiving on two catches.
The Golden Lions took their early lead on Marcus Terrell’s 16-yard pass to Brian Handley and a 23-yard field goal by Jamie Gillan. The two teams combined for 947 yards offense, 545 by AAMU. The Golden Lions continue to struggle to find their way, meanwhile the Bulldogs are shaping up to be a dark horse challenger in the SWAC East.
Alcorn State 47, Concordia 7
John Gibbs, Jr. threw two touchdowns as Alcorn State defeated Concordia-Selma 40-7 on Saturday at Jack Spinks Stadium. The Braves got the easy victory they were looking for and now can head into the full SWAC schedule with a 3 game winning streak.
Gibbs threw for 198 yards for the Braves (3-1). Darryan Ragsdale rushed for 136 yards and a touchdown and Jordan Payne caught a pair of scoring passes. Marquis Warford ran for a touchdown in the first quarter and caught a 62-yard pass from Gibbs for another score just before the break and the Braves led 13-0 at halftime.
Ragsdale’s score came on the Brave’s first possession of the second half on an 85-yard run. Then Gibbs hit Payne from 69 yards for another touchdown and the Braves led 26-0 with 8:45 left in the third quarter. Alcorn State posted eight sacks during the game and kept Concordia, of the USCAA, from scoring until late in the fourth quarter when Jarvis Chambers threw a 32-yard touchdown.
Grambling State 70, Prairie View 54
Even though I predicted a high scoring affair, even I was surprised at the point total. Defense was nowhere to be found in the Big D. Johnathan Williams threw six touchdown passes and ran in another to lead Grambling State to a 70-54 win over Prairie View at the Cotton Bowl in the annual State Fair Classic.
Martez Carter returned two kicks for touchdowns and had a 10-yard TD run in the fourth quarter to cement the win for Grambling State (2-2, 2-0). Williams completed 20 of 33 passes for 429 yards and had two interceptions. Chad Williams racked up 193 yards on seven catches and two touchdowns, including an 83-yard grab in the first quarter. Chester Rogers had 114 yards with three catches – two for touchdowns. Lovett Gibson also hauled in a touchdown pass.
Prairie View (2-2, 2-1) tied the game early in the first quarter at 7-7 when Nick Pitre snagged an 8-yard touchdown throw from Trey Green, who completed 29 of 55 passes for 414 yards, four TDs and an interception. But the Tigers quickly retook control with 21 unanswered points. PVU slips behind Southern and Grambling in the standings but the Panthers will be dangerous for any SWAC team this season. The G-Men have found their offensive stride but the D will have to improve.
Alabama State 45, Mississippi Valley State 15
As I stated in my preview, Valley is the cure for what ails ya, and the Hornets got the easy victory. Ellis Richardson rushed for three touchdowns and passed for two more to lead Alabama State to its first victory, 45-15 over Mississippi Valley State on Saturday night at Rice-Totten Stadium.
The Hornets (1-3, 1-2) rolled up 444 yards offense in picking up their sixth consecutive victory over the Delta Devils (0-4, 0-3). Richardson was 11-of-18 passing for 127 yards with touchdown throws to Joshua Davis and Wyndell Archie. He was intercepted twice. Richardson rushed for 98 yards on 17 carries, including a 41-yard score early in the fourth quarter for a 38-9 lead.
Richardson scored on a three yard run then threw a nine yard scoring pass to Davis in the first quarter. David Albert added a field goal for a 17-3 halftime lead. The Hornets’ Alex Anderson rushed for a nine yard score in the third quarter. Booker Chambers reached the endzone twice with a touchdown run and reception for the Delta Devils. This will be a long season for the Delta Devils as they have yet to get into a flow on either side of the ball.
Jackson State 34, Texas Southern 30
This was a do or die Tiger battle, neither team could afford to come up short. Jackson State faced the possibility of a long losing streak if they didn’t get the win. TSU’s schedule would get tougher after this one. La Montiez Ivy completed 22 of 27 passes for 370 yards and three touchdowns, and Teddrick Terrell had a sack in the closing seconds to help Jackson State beat Texas Southern 34-30 on Saturday night.
Devin Fosselman and Dan Williams each had six receptions and a touchdown. Fosselman finished with 129 yards receiving and Williams added 124 for Jackson State. Ivy connected with Fosselman on a 30-yard touchdown pass, on third-and-10, to give JSU a 34-24 lead with 4:17 left.
Texas Southern (2-2, 1-2) answered with a five-play, 57-yard drive during which Averion Hurts either passed or ran on every play – that was capped by a 10-yard scoring pass to Derrick Griffin with 2:40 to play, but the PAT attempt by Eric Medina was blocked by Brandon Maiden. JSU went three-and-out, but TSU had just 32 seconds and no time outs and Terrell’s sack sealed it.
Week 4 Football Players of the Week
Offensive Player of the Week
Johnathan Williams
Grambling State
Quarterback
It was a banner day for Grambling’s senior quarterback, as he tossed for 429 yards on 20-of-33 passing and six touchdowns in leading the Tigers to a 70-54 shootout victory over Prairie View A&M during the Southwest Airlines State Fair Classic. Williams also ran for another score, accounting for seven total touchdowns in the contest.
Defensive Player of the Week
Teddrick Terrell
Jackson State
Defensive End
Terrell stuffed the stat sheet for Jackson State, racking up seven stops, including two sacks and 2.5 tackles for loss in Jackson State’s 34-30 win over Texas Southern. Terrell’s second sack came on the last play of the game, snuffing out Texas Southern’s comeback attempt in the final seconds.
Special Teams Player of the Week
Nick Carden
Alabama A&M
Punter
Carden averaged 41.3 yards per punt attempt in the Bulldogs’ 28-9 win over Arkansas-Pine Bluff. Carden twice pinned the Golden Lions’ offense inside the 20-yard line, also unleashing a 54-yard punt during the contest.
Newcomer of the Week
De’Angelo Ballard
Alabama A&M
Quarterback
Ballard claims his second-straight SWAC Newcomer of the Week award after another 300-yard, three-touchdown outing. Ballard threw for 353 yards on 20-of-30 passing to lead the Bulldogs to victory over Arkansas-Pine Bluff. He also chipped in 30 yards rushing in the contest.
