MOBILE, Ala. — South Alabama committed four turnovers while Middle Tennessee had none, and the Blue Raiders beat the Jaguars 20-12 on Senior Day on Saturday at Ladd-Peebles Stadium.
The Sun Belt Conference win moved Middle Tennessee to 5-1 in league play, putting the Blue Raiders in a tie atop the standings with Arkansas State.
Seniors Lead the Defense
Two seniors playing their final home game led the South Alabama defense. Jake Johnson made 15 tackles, matching his season high, and B.J. Scott added 11, tying his career best. Terrell Brigham and Alex Page each finished with 10 tackles.
Jones on Turnovers: “We Can’t Do That and Win”
South Alabama head coach Joey Jones said ball security decided the game.
“We can’t do that and win,” Jones said. “We talk about it and work on it. It’s just part of the game that happens sometimes. But the bottom line is if we don’t take care of the ball, we’re not going to win. That’s very simple. We have to do that to have a chance to beat these teams.”
Jones praised his team’s effort. “I’m awful proud of the way our kids fight,” he said. “They continue to do that. We’re just not quite finishing games and making plays at the end. But I’m real proud of our young men. That is a team that’s probably going to play for the conference championship. The positive is that we’re close to playing with those teams. The negative is we’re not making enough plays in games to win, and we have to do that. I’m proud of the way they’re fighting. They certainly aren’t giving up, and are representing the University of South Alabama in a positive way.”
First Half
For the fourth straight game, South Alabama scored first. The Jaguars opened with a 14-play, 74-yard drive that ended in a 19-yard field goal. Quarterback Ross Metheny converted the drive’s first third down with an 8-yard completion to Jereme Jones on third-and-2, extending Jones’ streak of consecutive games with a reception.
Middle Tennessee responded with three plays of 20 or more yards in a four-snap span and took the lead with just over five minutes left in the first quarter. A week earlier against North Texas, the South Alabama defense had allowed only two plays of 20-plus yards all game.
The Jaguars moved inside the Middle Tennessee 10 twice in the second quarter, but both drives ended in interceptions, by Harley and T.T. Barber.
The Blue Raiders kicked a field goal with just over two minutes left in the half for a 10-3 lead. South Alabama answered. Middle Tennessee appeared to have forced a three-and-out, but a running-into-the-kicker penalty gave the Jaguars a first down. On the next play, Metheny found Bryant Lavender along the left sideline for 22 yards, and Michel Chapuseaux kicked a 45-yard field goal in the closing seconds to make it 10-6 at halftime.
South Alabama held the ball for more than 18 minutes in the first half but had possession for only about eight minutes in the second half.
Second Half
Middle Tennessee opened the third quarter with a 10-play, 75-yard drive that took more than five minutes. Quarterback Logan Kilgore capped it with a 6-yard touchdown pass on a slant for a 17-6 lead.
The Blue Raiders forced a fumble at the South Alabama 41 on the Jaguars’ next series, but the defense held, and a 35-yard field goal attempt went wide left.
Metheny opened the next drive with a 12-yard completion to Jones, who left the game with a concussion after the catch. Following the injury timeout, Metheny connected with Gabe Loper down the left sideline for 45 yards to the Middle Tennessee 20, then threw an 18-yard touchdown pass to Corey Besteda. The two-point conversion attempt failed, leaving the score 17-12 with under four minutes left in the third quarter.
Middle Tennessee added a field goal, and South Alabama could not mount another scoring drive.
By the Numbers
Middle Tennessee outgained South Alabama 445-338, including 212-149 on the ground and 233-189 through the air. Both teams ran 70 offensive plays, and the Blue Raiders held a 33:31 to 26:29 edge in time of possession.
- Rushing: Terrance Timmons led South Alabama with 76 yards on 18 carries. Metheny ran 11 times for 32 yards. Kendall Houston had 22 yards on seven carries before an ankle injury kept him out for the rest of the game, and T.J. Glover ran four times for 19 yards.
- Passing: Metheny completed 17 of 30 passes for 189 yards with one touchdown and three interceptions.
- Receiving: Jones led the team with six catches for 53 yards. Lavender had three for 41, Besteda two for 29 and Timmons two for minus-1. Loper caught one pass for 45 yards, Wes Saxton one for 11, Glover one for 8 and Houston one for 3.
Stockstill: “We Got Exactly What We Thought”
Middle Tennessee head coach Rick Stockstill said he expected a close game.
“I told our players before the game and told them at half time that nobody should be surprised by the score of the game. We knew it was going to be a 60-minute game,” Stockstill said. “We knew that South Alabama was good on defense and that nobody had really run past them or blown them out. All of their games had been close, so we knew it was going to be this type of game. We practiced for this type of game and we got exactly what we thought we would get.”
Up Next
South Alabama closes the season with two road games, beginning next Saturday at Louisiana-Lafayette. Kickoff is set for 4 p.m., and the game will be shown on ESPN3.
Update: Turnovers a Season-Long Problem
The four turnovers against Middle Tennessee, three interceptions and a fumble, continued a season-long trend for South Alabama. The Jaguars have thrown 14 interceptions and lost 15 fumbles this season and rank last in the Sun Belt Conference in turnover margin. South Alabama entered the game at minus-9 in turnover margin and left at minus-13.
The Jaguars have committed four turnovers in five games this season: losses to UTSA, Troy, Florida International and Middle Tennessee, and a win over Nicholls State.
“It’s always frustrating because you coach and you work every day to not turn over the ball and when you do bad things happen,” Jones said. “But even with all that we had a chance to win the game. If we make a drive in the fourth quarter, we’ve got the ball with three minutes left. But we don’t drive down and score and (turnovers were) obviously a big part of the game.”
Asked whether close losses add to the frustration, Jones said, “Sure. Let’s be honest. If we were playing horseshoes we’d be in pretty good shape because we’ve been close a lot. But we’re not. We’re in a game where you’ve got to win on the scoreboard to win the ballgame and we haven’t done that. So it’s frustrating from that standpoint.”
South Alabama plays next at Louisiana-Lafayette, with a 4 p.m. kickoff to be streamed on ESPN3.
