MOBILE, Ala. — Jalen Tolbert caught a school-record four touchdown passes, including the game-winner with 1:18 remaining, and South Alabama beat Arkansas State 34-30 on Friday in the Jaguars’ final game at Ladd-Peebles Stadium.
The win snapped a nine-game losing streak for South Alabama. Tra Minter ran for 106 yards and a touchdown and became the first player in program history to rush for more than 1,000 yards in a season. Desmond Trotter threw for 279 yards and four touchdowns.
Tolbert Strikes Early
Arkansas State scored first when Layne Hatcher threw a touchdown pass to Brandon Bowling for a 7-0 lead. Trotter answered with first-quarter touchdown passes of 21 and 29 yards to Tolbert, giving South Alabama a 14-7 lead.
Neither team scored again in the first half. A would-be third Tolbert touchdown in the second quarter was wiped out by an illegal man downfield penalty, and South Alabama was also penalized after Tolbert flipped the ball at an Arkansas State defender. Head coach Steve Campbell then drew an unsportsmanlike conduct flag for arguing with officials. The sequence cost the Jaguars 35 yards in penalties.
Back-and-Forth Second Half
Arkansas State opened the second-half scoring with a 23-yard field goal with 10:50 left in the third quarter to make it 14-10. Minter scored on a touchdown run with 6:03 left in the quarter, but Diego Guajardo’s extra point was blocked, leaving South Alabama ahead 20-10.
Omar Bayless, the nation’s leader in receiving yards, caught a 10-yard touchdown pass to cut the margin to 20-17. Trotter and Tolbert connected on a 31-yard touchdown on the first play of the fourth quarter for a 27-17 lead, but Hatcher scored on a 1-yard run with 12:29 remaining to pull the Red Wolves within three.
Arkansas State added field goals of 40 and 20 yards and took a 30-27 lead with 3:51 left.
Minter Keeps the Winning Drive Alive
On South Alabama’s go-ahead drive, Trotter threw to Minter in the flat on fourth-and-8, and Minter gained 11 yards for a first down. A few plays later, Minter turned another short throw from Trotter into a 17-yard gain that was ruled a run. Trotter then found Tolbert for the go-ahead touchdown.
Arkansas State got the ball back, but a strip sack returned possession to South Alabama with a little more than a minute left. Facing fourth-and-1 with the Red Wolves out of timeouts, Campbell chose to go for the first down rather than attempt a field goal. Minter picked up the yardage, allowing South Alabama to run out the clock.
By the Numbers
- South Alabama gained 495 total yards, with 279 passing and 216 rushing, and had 26 first downs.
- The Jaguars converted 5 of 16 third downs and all four of their fourth-down attempts.
- Arkansas State gained 437 yards, 342 passing and 95 rushing, with 21 first downs. The Red Wolves were 8 of 18 on third down and 0 of 2 on fourth down.
Trotter completed 20 of 31 passes and added 58 rushing yards on 14 carries. Minter had 106 yards on 21 carries. Tolbert finished with five catches for 144 yards and four touchdowns, and Kawaan Baker caught five passes for 62 yards.
For Arkansas State, Hatcher completed 23 of 38 passes for 342 yards and two touchdowns. Kirk Merritt caught nine passes for 121 yards, and Bayless had four catches for 98 yards and a touchdown. Jamal Jones led the Red Wolves with 61 rushing yards on 16 carries.
Campbell Reacts
“I’m very proud of the way our guys played tonight,” Campbell said. “I think we played complimentary football tonight; all three phases played about as well as we’ve played all year.”
“It means a lot, because you want to get the win for the players,” he said. “You want them to know what you’re telling them is right and that they believe that. We tell them to keep chopping wood and sooner or later it’s going to turn.”
Season Ends at 2-10
South Alabama finished the season 2-10 overall and 1-7 in the Sun Belt Conference, its worst record since its 2012 transition season to the FBS. Campbell is 5-19 in two full seasons as head coach.
The coaching staff now turns its focus to recruiting ahead of the early signing period, which begins Dec. 18. South Alabama will play its home games at the new on-campus Hancock Whitney Stadium beginning in 2020.
