MOBILE, Ala. — South Alabama is 3-0 in its first season under head coach Kane Wommack, putting the Jaguars halfway to the six wins needed for bowl eligibility with nine games remaining on the 2021 schedule.
The Jaguars head into an open week before opening Sun Belt Conference play. Eight conference games and a nonconference trip to Tennessee remain.
Wommack’s Approach
Wommack, who previously served as South Alabama’s defensive coordinator, has repeatedly described his program’s approach as a “neutral mindset”: putting the previous play aside and focusing only on the next one. The philosophy is similar in concept to the emphasis on controlling the present that other programs use, such as Nick Saban’s “process” at Alabama and P.J. Fleck’s “Row the Boat” at Minnesota.
October: Four Sun Belt Games
Oct. 2 vs. Louisiana. The Ragin’ Cajuns are in their fourth season under Billy Napier, who has led the program to back-to-back 10-win seasons. Louisiana spent part of last season ranked in the Top 25. This season, the Cajuns needed a late finish to beat FCS member Nicholls State 27-24 in week two. Louisiana plays at Georgia Southern before traveling to Mobile, while South Alabama will be coming off its open date.
Oct. 9 at Texas State. The Bobcats have not won more than three games in any of the last several seasons. South Alabama and Texas State have met six times since 2013, with each team winning three games and neither winning on the other’s home field. Texas State will have an open week before the game.
Oct. 14 vs. Georgia Southern (Thursday). South Alabama is 0-7 all-time against Georgia Southern, though recent games have been close. The 2019 meeting went to two overtimes before the Eagles won 20-17. Georgia Southern opened this season with a 30-25 win over Gardner-Webb, then lost 38-6 to Florida Atlantic and fell last week to No. 20 Arkansas. The Eagles will play a 7 p.m. Saturday game at Troy before making the trip to Mobile on a short week. The Jaguars will also have a short week but will play at home.
Oct. 23 at Louisiana-Monroe. The Warhawks took their open date in the second week of the season. They opened with a 35-point loss at Kentucky and then beat Jackson State, the FCS program coached by Deion Sanders, 12-7, scoring all of their points on four field goals. ULM went 0-10 in 2020, a season in which players missed games because of COVID-19. South Alabama is 0-3 all-time in games played in Monroe.
Oct. 30 vs. Arkansas State. Arkansas State hired Butch Jones to replace Blake Anderson. Jones and offensive coordinator Major Applewhite both previously worked as analysts at Alabama. The Red Wolves finished 4-7 in 2020 and missed a bowl game for the first time since 2010. This season they have beaten FCS member Central Arkansas, lost a 55-50 game to Memphis and lost 52-3 at Washington. Last season, South Alabama won in Jonesboro for the first time in five tries.
November: Three Straight Road Games
Nov. 6 at Troy. The Battle for the Belt opens a stretch of three consecutive road games. Troy has won the last three meetings and four of the last five. South Alabama’s only win in that span came in 2017, when Wommack was the Jaguars’ defensive coordinator. Troy is 2-1 this season with wins over Southern (55-3) and Southern Miss (21-9) and a 21-13 loss to Liberty. The Trojans finished 5-6 in 2020 after their season finale against ULM was canceled. Troy will play a Thursday night game against Coastal Carolina before hosting South Alabama.
Nov. 13 at Appalachian State. South Alabama is 1-3 all-time against the Mountaineers. The Jaguars’ only win was a 47-21 victory in Boone in 2014, and App State won the 2018 and 2019 meetings by a combined 82-10. This season, Appalachian State beat East Carolina, lost 25-23 at No. 22 Miami and beat Elon. On Thursday night, the Mountaineers beat Marshall 31-30, kicking a fourth-quarter field goal after a missed Marshall field goal and holding on late. Marshall scored 10 points off two App State turnovers.
Nov. 20 at Tennessee. South Alabama will face its only Southeastern Conference opponent of the season. The teams last met in 2013, when Tennessee won 31-24 at Neyland Stadium after South Alabama briefly held the lead. The Jaguars reached fourth-and-goal at the Tennessee 8-yard line late in that game before an interception ended the threat. Tennessee opened this season with a 38-6 win over Bowling Green. The Volunteers will host Georgia, currently ranked No. 2 nationally, the week before facing South Alabama.
Nov. 26 vs. Coastal Carolina. The regular season ends at home the day after Thanksgiving. South Alabama and Coastal Carolina have split two meetings. The Jaguars won 31-28 in Mobile in 2018, and the No. 15 Chanticleers won 23-6 in Conway last season. Coastal Carolina is 3-0 this year after wins over The Citadel (52-14), Kansas (49-22) and Buffalo (28-25).
The Road Ahead
To reach six wins, South Alabama needs three victories from its final nine games. All five of the Jaguars’ October games are against Sun Belt opponents, and the November slate includes road games at Troy, Appalachian State and Tennessee before the home finale against Coastal Carolina.
South Alabama plays its home games at Hancock Whitney Stadium on campus in Mobile.
