JONESBORO, Ark. | The South Alabama Football team became bowl eligible and stayed in the hunt for the Sun Belt Conference West Division title Saturday as the Jags picked up a 31-3 league victory over Arkansas State at Allison Field at Centennial Bank Stadium.

With the win, South Alabama (6-2, 3-1 SBC) became eligible for the postseason with the win and moved to a half game behind Troy and tied with Southern Miss for second in the divisional standings. Arkansas State feel to 2-7 overall and 1-5 in conference play with the loss.

La'Damian Webb rushed for a career-high 162 yards on 28 carries and three scores and averaged 5.8 yards per carry. Webb set the tone on the very first play of the game as he scampered for 69 yards and moved the ball inside the red zone.
 
The Jag defense held Arkansas State to 158 yards of total offense and -19 yards on the ground, while 12 of the Red Wolves' 15 offensive drives were limited to 12 yards or less including five in negative figures.

James Miller led the way with eight stops – three solo – and was credited with 0.5 a sack and 1.5 tackles for loss. Jamie Sherriff also had 1.5 sacks, including a safety, while Wy'Kevious Thomas added a sack, 1.5 tackles for loss and forced a fumble. Darrell Luter Jr. was credited with four tackles and a pair of pass breakups.

Postgame Notes

• Captains: (5) Jack Brooks – P, (9) Devin Voisin – WR, (48) Gi'Narious Johnson – DL 
• Attendance: 11,714
• Start Time: 3:05 pm | Time of Game: 3:16
• The three road victories by South Alabama this season tie the 2014 club for most in a single season
• Saturday's game marked the 11th all-time series meeting between the two clubs and sixth in Jonesboro
• South has won four straight and five of the last six in the series 
• The three points allowed to the Red Wolves are the fewest scored by Arkansas State in the series (13 – 2021) 
• Webb's 69-yard run on South's first offensive play of the game eclipsed his previous career long of 54 yards set on October 17, 2020 vs. North Carolina while he was at Florida State
• The 69-yard rush is the first of 60-plus by a Jag since Xavier Johnson's 70-yard run versus Presbyterian (11/19/16)
• Ja'juan Townsend's blocked punt with 7:54 in the first quarter was the first by the South Alabama special team unit since Davyn Flenord did so at Memphis (9/22/18)
• The safety registered by the combined sack of Miller and Sheriff with 2:45 remaining in the second quarter was the first by the program since Jordan Beaton's sack vs. Jackson State (9/7/19)
• The touchdown drive on the first possession of the second half was one play (13) shy of tying for longest drive this season as the Jags had 14-play scoring drives against Nicholls and at Central Michigan
• The final 11-play drive that covered seven minutes, 16 seconds marked the longest drive time wise for the Jags this fall
• All 11 plays on the drive and all 52 yards recorded were on rushes by Webb
• The 11 tackles for loss recorded by the Jaguar defense were a new season high (9, vs. Louisiana Tech), and the four sacks tied for a season high in the category and are tied for seventh-most in a game
• The 11 tackles for loss tied for the fourth-highest total in a single game and were the most by the Jag defense since being credited with 11 at Texas State last fall
• The 1½ sacks by Sherriff tied a career high
• The 158 yards of offense allowed by South were the fifth fewest given up by the defense and marks the second time this season that the Jaguars have held the opponent below 200 yards of total offense (165, vs. Nicholls)
• The -19 rushing yards allowed were three shy of matching the single-game record of -22 recorded by Fork Union [Va.] Academy (10/31/09
• The -19 rushing yards were the fewest allowed to a Division I opponent, besting the previous mark of 9 rushing yards allowed at Bowling Green last season
• DJ Thomas-Jones career highs in receptions (4) and yards (48)
• Webb now has scored 10 total touchdowns this season – nine rushing and one receiving
• The nine rushing touchdowns moves Webb into eighth place on the career list in the category, passing Tyreis Thomas (2015-16) and Jay Jones (2013-14) 
• The nine rushing touchdowns by Webb are also seventh-most in a single season
• With his 162 yards, Webb recorded his third collegiate game of 100 or more yards and his second this fall
• The rushing total was also the sixth-highest single-game mark by a back and the most since Tra Minter's 189-yard performance vs. Jackson State (9/17/19)
• The three-touchdown game also marked the Webb fourth multi-rushing touchdown game of his career and his third of the 2022 season
• The three touchdowns by Webb also tied a single-game record for rushing scores with Walker (vs. Alcorn State), X. Johnson (vs. New Mexico State – 12/3/16) and Brandon Ross (vs. Louisburg [N.C.] – 10/17/09)
• Webb's three games of two or more touchdowns are the most by a Jag running back since Xavier Johnson had three multi-touchdown games during the 2016 season
• The three touchdowns by Webb also tied a single-game record for rushing scores with Walker (vs. Alcorn State), X. Johnson (vs. New Mexico State – 12/3/16) and Brandon Ross (vs. Louisburg [N.C.] – 10/17/09)
• Jalen Wayne (23) and Caullin Lacy (20) both extended their consecutive game streaks with a catch versus Arkansas State
• Wayne's streak of 23 streak games tied Kawann Baker (8/31/19 - 11/28/20) for fifth longest streak
• ]Wayne also moved into eighth on South Alabama's career all-purpose yards list as he now has 1,741 for his career
• His touchdown catch moved him into a tie with Jamarius Way (2017-18) for sixth as he now has 11 for his career
• With his three receptions, Lacy (97) moved into eighth all-time on the career receptions list at South, passing Wes Saxton (96 – 2012-14)
• Luter Jr. now has 17 pass breakups for his career and moving him into fourth in the category

How It Happened
First Quarter

• 7-0 (12:46) – USA – Webb 3-yard touchdown run (5 plays, 84 yards, 2:01)
• 14-0 (4:02) – USA – Carter Bradley 49-yard touchdown pass to Wayne (2 plays, 54 yards, 00:41)
• 14-3 (1:24) – ASU – Dominic Zvada 32-yard field goal (8 plays, 61 yards, 2:38)

Second Quarter

• 16-3 (2:45) – USA – Sack by Miller and Sheriff

Third Quarter

• 24-3 (5:18) – USA – Webb 1-yard touchdown run [Two-point conversion Good – Bradley pass to Thomas-Jones] (13 plays, 61 yards, 6:13)

Fourth Quarter

• 31-3 (1:34) – USA – Webb 1-yard touchdown run (11 plays, 52 yards, 7:16)

Up Next
South Alabama will play its second-straight road game as it travels to Statesboro, Ga., to face Georgia Southern. Kickoff versus the Eagles is set for 3 p.m. (CT) at Allen E. Paulson Stadium.

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