Southern Jaguars Devour JSU Tigers for Key SWAC Victory, 34-14

The Southern Jaguars' offense and defense proved they were more than capable of handling Coach Prime's quick-strike Jackson State Tigers' offense. Southern took an early lead and never looked back on Saturday of the game, going up seven points off of Benn's first of two touchdowns on the afternoon. His 1-yard first-quarter touchdown was the result of an 11-play, 70-yard drive.

Southern recorded another 11-play drive and scored 3 points in the 2nd quarter on a Barajas 30-yard field goal.

Jackson State finally struck pay-dirt in 1-play with a 75-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Jalon Jones to Daylen Baldwin. JSU was down 10-7 with 6:48 remaining in the first half.

Southern increased their lead with 8 seconds left when QB Lampley tossed a 20-yard touchdown to wide receiver Williams. The drive was for five plays, 54 yards, and 37 seconds. Southern led JSU 17-7 at halftime.

AFTER HALFTIME

Jackson State could not move the football after the halftime intermission and punted to Southern. The Jaguars K Barajas split the uprights from 49 yards and led 20-7 with 11:07 in the 3rd quarter.

Jackson State's defense was starting to wear down from Southern's potent rushing attack. The Jags running back Benn ran for a 20-yard touchdown after the offense drove the ball 93 yards in 9 plays. Southern was up 27-7.

The Tigers roared back off in the 4th quarter after Jalon Jones connected with receiver Corey Reed, Jr. for an 18-yard touchdown. JSU trailed 27 -14 at 14:55 left in the game.

Jackson State's special teams unit has struggled most of the Spring session. Tiger's Lane McGregor had his punt blocked by the Jaguar's Caldwell, and the football was downed at the 2-yard line.

A play later, Southern found the endzone off of QB Skeleton's legs to increase their lead 34-14 which ended as the final score of the SWAC contest.

Southern at Jackson-State

The significant contributor of the afternoon was Southern University's rushing attack. Their backfield had 59 rushing attempts for 294 rushing yards. Southern's quarterbacks Lampley and Skelton threw only through 180 yards, one touchdown, and two interceptions on the day. Overall the southern offense was able to put up 474 yards in 84 plays on Jackson State.

Jackson State's defense was exhausted from being overwhelmed and outworked. Dennis Thurman's defensive unit had two interceptions, but that wasn't enough to turn the outcome in their favor at home. Deion Sanders' young team fell for a second-straight week in the SWAC.

Southern is 4-1, and Jackson State is 3-2 in the SWAC Spring session.

Dennis Thurman and Deion Sanders | HBCU LEGENDS

TOP OFFENSIVE PERFORMERS

Southern University's QB Lampley was 9/14 for 116 yards and 1 touchdown. Skeleton was 6/11, 64 yards passing, and 2 interceptions. Conversely, Jackson State's Jalon Jones was 17/29, 243 yards, two touchdowns, and 1 interception.

The Jaguar's running back Sims ran for 86 yards on 17 attempts. Skelton added 97 yards on 15 carries and 1 touchdown. Benn had 76 yards and 2 touchdowns.

The Tiger's star running back Alexander had a pedestrian day and had 8 carries for 40 yards. He left the game in the fourth quarter because of a lower leg injury. Wide receiver Baldwin had three receptions for 91 yards and a 75-yard touchdown.

NEXT OPPONENTS

Head coach Dawson Odom's Jaguars football team proved they have the right stuff to handle the talent in the SWAC. Southern will square off against Grambling on April 17 at 1:30 PM CT at Independence Stadium in Shreveport, LA.

Coach Prime's Jackson State squad must not fall again to qualify for the championship game. The Tigers will host Alabama A&M on April 10 at 2:00 PM CT at Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium in Jackson, MS.