MOBILE, Ala. — Central Michigan quarterback Jase Bauer scored on a 4-yard run with 18 seconds remaining, his fourth rushing touchdown of the night, as the Chippewas beat South Alabama 34-30 in the Jaguars’ homecoming game at Hancock Whitney Stadium.
South Alabama, coming off a road win at Oklahoma State, fell to 2-2. The Jaguars outgained Central Michigan 405 to 355 and rallied from a 10-point fourth-quarter deficit to take a late lead, but two South Alabama penalties on the Chippewas’ final drive kept it alive.
Fast Start for the Jaguars
South Alabama scored touchdowns on both of its first-quarter possessions, gaining 146 yards behind running backs Kentrel Bullock and La’Damian Webb. The Jaguars’ defense forced two three-and-outs and held Central Michigan to 60 yards in the opening quarter.
The Chippewas turned the game around in the second quarter. Central Michigan outgained South Alabama 104 to 36 in the period and scored two touchdowns, but a missed extra point left the Jaguars ahead 14-13 at halftime.
Chippewas Take Control
South Alabama went three-and-out to open the third quarter, and Central Michigan followed with a 10-play, 56-yard drive that took 5:35 off the clock and gave the Chippewas their first lead. Diego Guajardo’s 32-yard field goal late in the quarter cut the deficit to three.
On the first play of the fourth quarter, Bauer escaped pressure to his right, kept his balance by putting a hand on the turf and threw downfield to Jesse Prewitt III for a 70-yard touchdown that put Central Michigan ahead 27-17.
Three plays later, South Alabama quarterback Carter Bradley threw to Caullin Lacy along the right side. Lacy cut inside the defender, made the catch and outran the coverage for a 72-yard touchdown.
Late Rally, Late Answer
The South Alabama defense then forced two punts, and Lacy returned the second one 21 yards to the Jaguars’ 41 with 6:09 remaining. Webb converted a third-and-8 with a 19-yard run, and on a later third-and-2, Bullock broke a 29-yard run before being pushed out of bounds at the 1. Webb scored on the next play to give South Alabama a 30-27 lead with 2:42 to play.
Central Michigan answered. On second-and-1 at the South Alabama 48, Jaden Voisin was called for defensive holding, giving the Chippewas a first down at the 38. With Central Michigan facing fourth-and-7 at the 35, Quentin Wilfawn was penalized for unsportsmanlike conduct, an automatic first down that moved the ball to the South Alabama 20.
On third-and-goal from the 4, Bauer found a crease behind his line and scored the go-ahead touchdown with 18 seconds left.
South Alabama had one last chance. Bradley completed a 20-yard pass to Jamaal Pritchett to reach the Jaguars’ 45 with 7 seconds left. On the final play, Bradley escaped a sack while rolling right and threw deep toward Lacy, but the pass fell incomplete between the 10- and 15-yard lines as time expired.
Wommack Apologizes to Fans
South Alabama head coach Kane Wommack opened his postgame remarks with an apology.
“I want to start by apologizing to our fan base,” Wommack said. “We played with reckless emotion. We did not play in a way that represents this university well.”
“There have been a lot of people that have worked tirelessly and done it the right way to build South Alabama’s football program and the University of South Alabama, and the City of Mobile and we did not represent any of those entities well tonight,” he said. “And it goes way beyond the score.”
“We did not handle adversity well, both emotionally and from an execution standpoint,” Wommack said.
Discussing Central Michigan’s final drive and the unsportsmanlike conduct penalty, Wommack said, “We just let them completely off the hook … and we have nobody to blame but ourselves.” He added that Central Michigan had been “a very chippy team all night” and said his players had a choice to make in how they responded. “We can either make a decision that we choose the team and to sacrifice a piece of our own ego or we can react. Which is exactly what we did.”
By the Numbers
South Alabama held the advantage in most statistical categories:
- Total yards: South Alabama 405, Central Michigan 355
- Passing yards: South Alabama 254, Central Michigan 230
- Rushing yards: South Alabama 151, Central Michigan 125
- Third downs: South Alabama 7 of 13, Central Michigan 9 of 16
- Fourth downs: South Alabama 0 of 1, Central Michigan 1 of 1
- Sacks allowed: South Alabama 2 for 11 yards, Central Michigan 2 for 21 yards
- Penalties: South Alabama 5 for 49 yards, Central Michigan 4 for 30 yards
- Time of possession: Central Michigan 33:44, South Alabama 26:16
Bradley completed 17 of 27 passes for 254 yards and two touchdowns. Lacy caught six passes for 132 yards and two touchdowns, and Pritchett added six catches for 62 yards. Webb ran 18 times for 68 yards and two touchdowns. Bullock gained 65 yards on five carries despite missing much of the game after an injury on a kickoff return. Guajardo made his only field goal attempt and missed one extra point.
Bert Emanuel Jr. started at quarterback for Central Michigan and completed his only pass for 6 yards before Bauer took over after two possessions. Bauer completed 19 of 30 passes for 224 yards and a touchdown and led the Chippewas with 55 rushing yards on 15 carries, scoring all four of their rushing touchdowns. Prewitt caught 10 passes for 142 yards and a touchdown. Marion Lukes had four catches for 31 yards and nine carries for 35 yards, and Lyles Bailey ran 12 times for 27 yards.
Up Next: James Madison
South Alabama opens Sun Belt Conference play at James Madison in Harrisonburg, Va., on Saturday, Sept. 30. Kickoff is set for 11 a.m. on ESPNU. The Dukes entered this weekend 3-0, including a 36-35 win over Virginia and a 16-14 win at Troy.
