MOBILE, Ala. – Following a 35-13 defeat at the hands of North Carolina State last weekend — the program’s first loss in 20 games and two-plus seasons — there are questions that the University of South Alabama football team will be looking to answer Saturday. The most important will be, can the Jaguars bounce back with another tough opponent in line?
Judging by the reaction of coaches and players following the loss to the Wolfpack, Jag fans don’t need to worry about their team.
“We are hungry — we want it. We feel like we let ourselves down,” Corey Waldon observed. “We had a meeting as a team after the game, and we felt like that it was on us to win that game and we let it get out of reach. It’s on us to go into practice this week hungry and get better.”
“We played a great game. The effort and all of those things we talked about were there,” Jaguar head coach Joey Jones added. “We didn’t panic and went in and played well, but we didn’t make enough plays to win the game so we have to focus on fixing any flaws we had. We’re looking at ourselves honestly and trying to fix those things; I told the guys that this week I want to fix those things and really get better.
“They know they played well and stepped up to the challenge, but they also know we better get better because Kent State is a really good football team who has played some really good teams. And to be ready for those guys, we better fix those errors.”
The Jags and Golden Flashes will kick off at 2:30 p.m. Central time in Kent, Ohio, with live video of the game available for free at www.kentstatesports.com. The USA coaching staff will be wearing Coach To Cure MD patches this week to raise awareness and funding for Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy research as part of a program between Parent Muscular Dystrophy and the American Football Coaches Association.
Against the Wolfpack, Kendall Houston recorded 117 yards on 18 carries and added a 13-yard reception as USA outgained NCSU 104-95 on the ground. Waldon and Jeremé Jones each had a career-high five receptions, with the former leading the team with 57 yards, as C.J. Bennett completed 17-of-32 attempts for 182 yards. Defensively Jake Johnson and Charles Harris both had eight total stops, with Johnson recording two for loss and recovering a fumble as well.
Johnson and Harris, along with Enrique Williams, pace the Jag defense with 22 tackles each. B.J. Scott has collected 20 stops — including a team-high 14 unassisted — Ken Barefield has an interception, a sack and a forced fumble to go along with 13 total tackles, and Andy Dalgleish leads the defensive line with 13 stops. As a unit, USA is allowing 125.7 yards per game and 3.2 yards per carry on the ground, and 299.2 yards per contest overall; the Jaguars, in fact, rank in the top 25 at the NCAA Football Championship Subdivision level in total and scoring (17.7 ppg) defense.
The rushing attack, led by Houston’s 238 yards and 5.7 yards per attempt, is averaging 171.3 yards per outing, while Bennett has thrown for 477 yards and completed 56.7 percent of his attempts. Waldon, Bryant Lavender and Jones have all caught at least eight passes — Lavender heads the group with 135 yards and 15 per reception — while Corey Besteda collected his first two receptions of the year for 33 yards against the Pack.
Demetre Baker has 211 all-purpose yards, with 139 of those coming on the ground and 72 on kickoff returns; he scored the Jaguars’ only touchdown last weekend with an eight-yard rush in the third quarter to make the score 21-10 at the time. Jones has added 66 kickoff return yards and 37 more running back punts. Jordan Means connected on two field goals for the first time in his career at N.C. State, including a 46-yard effort to put the Jags on the board that was the longest in school history, while Scott Garber averaged 41.8 yards per punt with two downed inside the 20 last time out.
The Golden Flashes enter play 0-3 under first-year head coach Darrell Hazzell, but two of those contests have come on the road at second-ranked Alabama and Kansas State. Though they’ve been outscored 105-19, they have allowed just 325.3 total yards per contest; the defense forced five Crimson Tide turnovers in the opener, then limited Louisiana-Lafayette to only 159 yards of total offense the next week. Offensively, on the other hand, KSU is averaging 60.3 yards rushing and 98 passing while averaging less than two-and-a-half yards per play.
Roosevelt Nix has three-and-a-half stops behind the line of scrimmage to pace the team in the category one year after he had 20 to become the first freshman ever to be named the Mid-American Conference Defensive Player of the Year. Luke Batton has a team-best 24 total stops, while C.J. Malauulu has posted 15 tackles with two-and-a-half of those for loss. Josh Pleasant has recorded two of the Golden Flashes’ five interceptions and broken up three other passes as well, as the secondary has helped KSU to top-20 Football Bowl Subdivision rankings in pass (15th) and pass efficiency (18th) defense.
“They are pretty fast on defense and their defensive backs are good,” stated Waldon. “I just feel like it’s on us to step up and make the plays, play a good game and play South Alabama football. We feel like we have an opportunity to do some great things. And we are going to take a lot from the mistakes we made last game, and just go to work.”
Last time out against K-State, KSU recorded 118 rushing yards behind an 18-carry, 72-yard performance from 260-pound true freshman Trayion Durhman. Sam Kirkland and Justin Thompson combined for nine of the Golden Flashes’ 11 catches last weekend, as they lead the team with 14 and nine, respectively, on the season — no other player has more than four through three games.
Spencer Keith is 46-of-103 passing for 294 yards, though, as the unit is among the bottom seven at the FBS level in rushing , passing, pass efficiency, total and scoring offense.
Matt Rinehart is averaging 42.3 yards per punt and Freddy Cortez hasn’t missed a kick — he’s made a field goal and two extra points — to highlight KSU’s special teams game. Eric Adeyemi has a team-best 265 all-purpose yards, with 225 of those coming on 12 kick returns.
“We are very aware that they can be a very good offensive football team,” Jones commented. “They are known for their defense. They were top five in the country last year against the running game, and they have one of the best players I have seen in Roosevelt Nix on the defensive line — he was a preseason All-American. He is undersized, but can really play. Alabama didn’t block him, so we have to be ready for those guys [Kent State’s defense] because they are really good.”
Sounds like the Jaguars won’t be caught up in the results of their first-ever game against an NCAA FBS opponent when the opening kick is in the air in Kent.
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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