Game 2
South Alabama Jaguars (0-1, 0-0 Sun Belt)
vs. #10 Oklahoma State Cowboys (1-0, 0-0 Big 12)

Friday, Sept. 8, 2017 • 7 pm CDT
Ladd-Peebles Stadium (33,471 capacity/Field/Turf)
Mobile, Ala.

Media Information
Television
ESPN2
Adam Amin (pxp)
Dusty Dvoracek (analysis)
Molly McGrath (sideline)
Radio
USA Football Radio Network
(flagship 96.1 FM/99.5 FM The Jag in Mobile)
J.D. Byars (pxp)
Pat Greenwood (analysis)
Tommy Hicks (sidelines)
On the web
• Live Twitter updates available at:
@USAJaguarSports
• Live stats available at:
http://statb.us/b/186983
• Live audio available at:
http://www.iheart.com/live/995-the-jag-mobile-7117/

Game/Promotions Information
• Pep Rally: "Jag Night On Dauphin" (Thursday 7-10 pm)
• Special: White Out (Jaguar fans encouraged to wear white)
• Clear Bag/Water Policy: Click http://jaguarathleticfund.com/clear for all information
• Tickets: $30 ticket price; available online at www.usajaguars.com or by phone by calling (251) 461-1USA (1872)
• Shuttles: The Wave shuttle service starts from Shoppes at Bel Air (pick up from JCPenney/Target parking area) 4 hours prior to kick; $2.50 round trip; continuous service until 90 minutes after game
• Parking: Opens at 8 am
• FanFest: Begins at 4 pm; live entertainment and free food from vendors include Raising Cane's, Sonny's BBQ, Texas Roadhouse and Moore's Marinade
• Jag Prowl: Begins at 4:45 pm from the Southwest corner of the Ladd-Peebles Stadium parking lot
• Gates: Open two hours prior to kickoff

The Coaches
South Alabama
Joey Jones (Alabama '89)
Record at USA — 48-43 (9th season)
Career record — 51-50 (10th season)
Career Sun Belt record — 15-24
Record vs. OSU — 0-0
Record vs. current B12 members — 0-0

Oklahoma State
Mike Gundy (Oklahoma State '90)
Record at OSU — 105-50 (13th season)
Career Record — same
Record vs. USA — 0-0

The Rankings
South Alabama
Associated Press — n/a
Amway Coaches — n/a
Sagarin — 109th

Oklahoma State
Associated Press — 10th
Amway Coaches — 11th
Sagarin — 12th

Series History
Overall: First meeting
In Mobile: n/a
In Stillwater: n/a
Neutral: n/a
Series Streak: n/a
First Meeting: n/a
Last Meeting: n/a

Opening Kick
• The Jaguars open a three-game homestand — their first in the same season since closing out the 2011 campaign with three straight contests at Ladd-Peebles Stadium — against Oklahoma State Friday night.
• The Cowboys are the second ranked team to visit South since the start of last season, as Jags defeated then-No. 19 San Diego State, 42-24, on Oct. 1 a year ago.
• This will mark USA's first-ever game against an opponent from the Big 12 Conference.
• It's the first of a three-game agreement between the two programs, with South scheduled to visit Stillwater on Sept. 8 next year as well as Oct. 16, 2023.
• Last year's season-opening victory at Mississippi State was the Jaguars' first in nine tries against a member of a Power 5 conference.
• It's the second time in the last four years that South will face a Power 5 school in its home opener after facing MSU in its initial home game in 2014.
• The Jaguars have a 6-5 mark all-time in weekday contests; the first 10 of those games were all played at Ladd-Peebles Stadium while the most recent match-up was at the NOVA Home Loans Arizona Bowl last season.

Notes From The Last Top-25 Meeting
• South earned its first-ever victory over a nationally-ranked foe with a 42-24 defeat of No. 19 San Diego State at Ladd-Peebles Stadium on Oct. 1 last fall.
• The Jags trailed the Aztecs 24-21 at the start of the fourth quarter but scored three touchdowns in the final 12 minutes to score the upset.
• USA won despite being without the services of its starting offensive backfield with both Dallas Davis and Xavier Johnson sidelined due to injury.
• Making his collegiate debut (it was in fact his first playing time since his senior year of high school in 2013), Cole Garvin was 16-of-21 passing for 242 yards and three touchdowns and was named the Sun Belt Conference Offensive Player of the Week after the contest.
• The performance — which was capped by Devon Earl's 80-yard fumble return for a score with just over four minutes to go in the game — marked the first time in program history that USA posted 40-plus points in consecutive contests against NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision opponents.

Liking Ladd
The Jags are just 4-4 in home openers in the program's first eight seasons of competition, but overall have a 36-15 (70.6%) mark at Ladd-Peebles Stadium.  That included a 5-2 record at home a year ago that was highlighted by the SDSU victory, which was USA's first-ever over a nationally-ranked opponent.  In fact, the Jaguars won all three of their non-conference contests in Mobile in 2016.

Big Plays Break It Open
Trailing Ole Miss 13-10 at the break last week in the season opener, the Rebels reached the end zone on three plays of 70 or more yards while outscoring South 27-3 in the third quarter en route to the victory.  That was as many touchdowns covering 70-plus yards as the Jaguars allowed in 13 contests during the 2016 campaign.

On The Clock
USA was down 10-0 when its third possession of last week's game began on its own two-yard line. The Jags proceeded to march 95 yards in 19 plays — using nine minutes and 39 seconds of clock — before Gavin Patterson scored the team's initial points of the year with a 20-yard field goal.  That was the longest drive in school history in number of plays and time used; the previous longest scoring march used seven minutes and 24 seconds in a 30-27, double-overtime win at Texas-San Antonio on Oct, 8, 2011.

Third-Down Thud
The Jaguars were just 1-of-10 on third-down conversions against the Rebels, which was their lowest rate of success moving the chains since going 1-of-12 (8.3%) in a 45-10 loss at Arkansas State on Nov. 8, 2014.  It was, however, the first time South has lost when making the line to gain on third down less than 30 percent of the time since falling to Troy on Oct. 20 last fall, as the Jags defeated both Georgia State and Presbyterian despite going 3-of-13 and 3-of-11 in those outings, respectively.

Reaves Shines Against Rebels
Jeremy Reaves tied for game-high honors in the Jaguars' season-opening game at Ole Miss on Saturday, posting eight total stops while also breaking up a pass.  The senior was credited with a personal-best two tackles for loss — the first time he's had more than one in nearly a year — including the first sack of his collegiate career.  With the effort Reaves became the fifth player in USA history to surpass 200 tackles in a career.

Garvin Guides Jaguar Offense
Garvin accounted for 222 yards of total offense and a career-high-tying three scores against Ole Miss in South's season opener on Saturday, guiding a Jaguar offense that recorded 25 first downs, did not turn the ball over and averaged five-and-a-half yards per snap.  In addition to completing 19-of-31 attempts for 204 yards through the air, he reached the end zone twice in the final quarter to become the first Jag quarterback to rush for multiple scores in a game since Cody Clements achieved the feat in a win over Idaho on Nov. 7, 2015.

Punting Not A Problem
Corliss Waitman's average of 46.4 yards per punt was the best of his career in a game in which he has kicked more than once, with the performance ranking eighth on USA's game record list (minimum four).  Not only did he have one kick end inside the Rebel 20-yard line, but with three punts resulting in a fair catch the sophomore's efforts helped the Jaguars post a net average of 45.00 — that's over five yards per punt better than the mark South recorded last fall when it led the Sun Belt Conference and ranked among the top 25 nationally in the category.

Fine First Start
In his first game in nearly a year, LB Riley Cole shared game-high honors in tackles with Reaves after collecting eight in his first collegiate start.  The redshirt freshman was credited with four total stops in three appearances last fall before suffering a season-ending injury.

Slot Machine
Sa'Mory Collier and Sam Harris led South with four and three catches, respectively, at Ole Miss with both recording career-high totals in the category.  The former equalled his reception total in 11 appearances last fall after joining the program as a junior-college transfer, while the latter fell one catch shy of accomplishing the same feat; he hauled in four passes for 41 yards a year ago in eight contests.