MOBILE, Ala. – The University of South Alabama football team faced a beefed up schedule with all four-year schools in its second season of competition, but the end result was the same.
Courtney Smith set school game records with 10 catches for 141 yards and Justin Dunn posted seven tackles including a sack for the defense to lead the Jaguars to a 31-14 victory over Arkansas-Monticello Thursday at Ladd-Peebles Stadium, capping their second straight undefeated campaign.
They were two of the 12 players honored prior to kickoff as part of the Jags’ first-ever Senior Day ceremony, and part of a group that finished their collegiate careers with a 17-0 mark at USA after the Jaguars went 10-0 in 2010.
“I wasn’t worried about getting the ball. I was thinking about when the clock expired, there would be no more South Alabama football for me,” Smith said. “I don’t know if it was the coverage, but my coach just kept giving me the ball and I just kept making plays for my teammates. Without the offensive line and the quarterbacks, no one would see me catch the ball, so I want to thank them.”
“Courtney has been the face of our program in some ways. He came in and has done a tremendous job,” observed USA head coach Joey Jones. “It’s great that he can go out on a note like that. But most of all, I’m just proud of Courtney and the type of person he’s become. He has become a leader; he was voted one of our captains this morning by the team. I’m real proud of him for the character he’s shown.
“Some of the things they ran defensively gave us some opportunities to get him the ball. It just worked out that way tonight.”
“He had a big game for us and it was good to send him off the right way,” added freshman quarterback C.J. Bennett. “All the seniors are leaders and have brought so much to this program. For the seniors to have had a game like that and keep them undefeated, there is nothing more that you can ask for.”
The Jags outgained the Boll Weevils (4-7) 400-308, picking up 228 yards while scoring 24 points after the break. Smith became the first player in the program’s history to catch 10 balls in a game, with the yardage total surpassing the previous mark he set in an Oct. 31 win over Fork Union (Va.) Military Academy last fall. C.J. Bennett finished 16-of-29 passing for 222 yards while throwing for a pair of scores, and Kendall Houston recorded his fifth 100-yard game of the year with 104 yards on 16 carries.
Jerron Mitchell would lead USA with eight stops, breaking up a pass as well, with Ken Barefield matching Dunn with seven tackles. Randon Carnathan, Charlie Higgenbotham and Enrique Williams chipped in with six tackles each — it was a career-high total for Carnathan — Jake Johnson was credited with five stops and two of Andy Dalgleish’s career-best four tackles were behind the line of scrimmage.
Scott Buisson recorded 193 yards of total offense for UAM, rushing for a team-high 91 on 19 carries while going 6-of-13 passing for another 102. Nakita Myles rushed for 70 yards and Greg Taylor added 53 to help the Boll Weevils finish with 206 rushing yards.
“We knew they had a good option attack coming into the game. Their quarterback having the most yards in the state of Arkansas was one of the stats our coaches threw out today before we started to play,” Dunn recalled. “We knew he was going to be a good athlete, and an option attack is all about assignments. We came out at first, made little adjustments here and there and it cost us on some of our assignments. We came back toward the end, got it figured out and took care of all of our assignments.”
Carlton Johnson led all players with 14 tackles, intercepting a pass also, with Vincent Jackson adding 10 stops and Royel Johnson nine for UAM.
T.J. Glover returned the opening kickoff of the second half 60 yards, and after the Jags moved the chains with a 16-yard run from Houston Lawson McGlon converted a 27-yard field goal that extended USA’s 7-0 advantage at the half.
Taylor helped UAM get on the board on the ensuing possession, reaching the end zone from 34 yards out — after he appeared to be trapped in the backfield, he broke free and went down the right sideline for the touchdown.
USA needed less than two minutes to answer with a touchdown of its own. The drive began at the USA-40 with Santuan McGee taking the snap in a shotgun formation; he handed off to Glover coming across the formation in motion, who pitched to Bennett. The latter dropped back and completed a 43-yard pass to Smith, and four plays later Bennett connected with Kevin Helms on a four-yard touchdown pass.
Barefield’s interception and 15-yard return didn’t lead to any points for the Jaguars, but with the Boll Weevils facing fourth-and-one from the USA 46-yard line with less than three-and-a-half minutes to go in the third quarter Myles was dropped for a three-yard loss to give USA the ball a yard shy of midfield. Glover gained nine yards, and then Houston added a 38-yard carry down the right sideline to set up his own four-yard score with two-and-a-half minutes left in the period, extending the advantage to 24-7.
The Jaguars got another stop on fourth-and-inches — this time by Dalgleish — to regain possession, then would drive 58 yards in 10 plays before Glover scored on a six-yard run to make it a 31-7 contest with under 11 minutes remaining. After a late interception, the Boll Weevils closed out the scoring on a five-yard pass from Buisson to Taylor with one-and-a-half minutes to go.
“Arkansas-Monticello had a great game plan,” Jones stated. “We came out the second half and adjusted. I was real proud of the coaches making good adjustments, and also for the players for not panicking out on the field.”
“I think that South Alabama just stuck to the run,” explained UAM head coach Gwaine Matthews. “They looked at the drive charts and saw that our defense had been out there a long time. We don’t have a lot of players and they just stuck to their guns; South Alabama does a tremendous job of running the football. In the end their numbers and physical play got us, and I give all the credit to them.”
The Jaguars had the contest’s first scoring opportunity midway through the second quarter, but McGlon’s 38-yard field-goal attempt sailed wide right. USA had moved 42 yards in seven plays aided by a pair of 15-yard penalties on the Boll Weevils — one for pass interference, one for a facemask. The two teams traded punts before UAM struck with a 54-yard pass from Buisson to Joseph Lockwood to move into the red zone, however Josh Chestang caught Lockwood for a six-yard loss to set up third-and-long, and after a two-yard completion Taylor Pontius saw his field-goal attempt from 32 yards go wide right.
USA answered by moving 80 yards in 10 plays and two-and-a-half minutes before Bennett found Jeremé Jones for a six-yard touchdown catch 21 seconds before the intermission. The march started with a 28-yard pass to Houston on second down, with Bennett hitting Jones for a gain of 16 more to move the Jaguars across midfield. On second-and-10 from the UAM-24, Bennett connected with Smith on a slant pattern to pick up 16 yards; the freshman quarterback would follow with a two-yard carry before throwing to Jones in the back corner of the end zone on third-and-goal.
It was the first time that the Jags haven’t scored in opening quarter since defeating Georgia Military J.C. on Oct. 10 last year, and the longest an opponent has kept USA off the scoreboard.
“I think it’s tremendous that these young men have put together two seasons like that back-to-back. It really speaks for their character and the hard work they put into it,” stated Jones. “My staff has done a tremendous job; they’re a great staff and really know the game and love the players. The biggest thing I see about our team right now is we have a belief in each other. When you believe in each other, great things are going to happen. That started a long time ago, and over time it has gotten better and better.”
“I didn’t know what to expect when I came here,” Higgenbotham commented. “Looking back, it was the scariest day of my life. I didn’t know anyone here. It has been an amazing experience, and it’s a sign that something really special is happening here. This team has really come together in two years, and people don’t realize how hard that is. My challenge to the team is for them to keep it going.”
The Jaguars will open the 2011 campaign on Thursday, Sept. 1 against West Alabama at Ladd-Peebles Stadium, with kickoff time to be determined at a later date.
For more information about South Alabama athletics, check back with www.usajaguars.com. Season tickets for all Jaguar athletic events can be purchased by calling (251) 461-1USA (1872).
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USA-Arkansas Monticello box score
USA-Arkansas Monticello photo gallery
