MOBILE, Ala. — South Alabama football lost its 2013 season opener 22-21 to Southern Utah on Thursday night at Ladd-Peebles Stadium, as Thunderbirds kicker Colton Cook made a 28-yard field goal as time expired.
It was the second straight year the Jaguars lost their opener on a late field goal. A year ago, Texas-San Antonio beat South Alabama with a field goal with 16 seconds remaining.
South Alabama overcame a 10-0 first-quarter deficit and led 21-13 early in the fourth quarter before Southern Utah scored the final nine points of the game.
Southern Utah Strikes First
The Jaguars picked up two first downs in their first three plays, but an offensive pass interference penalty on Wes Saxton wiped out what would have been a 20-yard completion and left South Alabama facing third-and-25. The Jaguars could not convert, and a 41-yard punt by Garber pinned Southern Utah at its own 23.
The Thunderbirds answered with a 12-play, 61-yard drive that ended with a 33-yard field goal by Cook.
T.J. Glover returned the ensuing kickoff 43 yards down the left sideline to the Southern Utah 48. Junior college transfer Cris Dinham opened the drive with a 4-yard run, and quarterback Ross Metheny hit Jereme Jones for 11 yards and a first down, extending Jones’ streak of consecutive games with a reception. Metheny then found junior college transfer Shavarez Smith for 13 yards to the Southern Utah 20.
The drive stalled when Zak Browning sacked Metheny for a 9-yard loss on third-and-5 from the 15, and Aleem Sunanon’s 41-yard field goal attempt went wide right.
On the first play of the next Southern Utah possession, Montell Garner was called for pass interference, moving the ball to the Thunderbirds’ 38. Quarterback Aaron Cantu then connected with Alphin on a 54-yard gain to the South Alabama 8. RaySean Martin ran for 7 yards and then 1 yard for the touchdown, putting Southern Utah ahead 10-0 with 1:16 left in the first quarter.
Bridge Puts Jaguars on the Board
South Alabama’s defense forced a three-and-out, and a 30-yard punt by Brock Miller gave the Jaguars the ball at the Southern Utah 43. Brandon Bridge took over at quarterback for the second quarter. Jay Jones ran for 11 yards and Bridge added a 12-yard run to reach the 20, but the drive stalled and Sunanon’s 37-yard field goal try was blocked. A personal foul on Chris May added 15 yards to the return, giving Southern Utah the ball at its own 44.
The Thunderbirds converted a third-and-4 with a 12-yard pass to the South Alabama 38, but on the next play Cantu was sacked and fumbled. The ball was kicked downfield before Southern Utah recovered it, resulting in a 27-yard loss. A false start pushed the Thunderbirds back to second-and-42 at their own 30, and they eventually punted on fourth-and-43 from the 29.
Glover downed the 43-yard punt, and South Alabama started at its own 28. Bridge completed a 4-yard pass to Dinham, then hit Danny Woodson Jr. for 10 yards on third-and-5. After a 4-yard Bridge run and a 13-yard completion to Smith to the Southern Utah 40, Bridge kept the ball and raced 40 yards for a touchdown. The score cut the deficit to 10-7 with 4:37 left in the first half.
Jaguars Take the Lead in the Third Quarter
Southern Utah opened the second half by converting a fourth-and-2 on a fake punt that gained 26 yards to the South Alabama 28. The Jaguar defense held, but Cook made a 37-yard field goal to put the Thunderbirds ahead 13-7 with 11:15 left in the third quarter.
South Alabama responded right away. Jay Jones opened the drive with a 9-yard run to the USA 36 and, two plays later, broke a 57-yard run up the middle to the Southern Utah 4. Kendall Houston ran for 3 yards and then no gain, and Randon Carnathan carried into the end zone, but a false start on Rush Hendrix moved the ball back to the 6. On the next play, Metheny found Jereme Jones on a slant for a 6-yard touchdown. The extra point gave South Alabama a 14-13 lead with 7:38 left in the third quarter.
The Jaguar defense then forced back-to-back three-and-outs. Starting at its own 36 with 1:23 left in the third quarter, South Alabama got three straight carries from Dinham for 4, 8 and minus-1 yards. Metheny then hit Woodson for a 33-yard gain to the Southern Utah 20, and two plays later found Woodson again down the left sideline for a 20-yard touchdown. South Alabama led 21-13 with 14:47 to play.
Southern Utah Rallies
Midway through the fourth quarter, on third-and-9 from the South Alabama 23, a Bridge pass intended for Hendrix was intercepted at the USA 43.
Southern Utah turned the turnover into points. Maleki Harris sacked Cantu for a 7-yard loss, but Cantu came back with a 44-yard completion to Griff McNabb to the South Alabama 6. Three plays later, Cantu threw a touchdown pass. The two-point conversion attempt failed, leaving South Alabama ahead 21-19.
The Jaguars went three-and-out, and Southern Utah took over with 4:43 left. Martin ran for 6 and 9 yards to midfield, and a 16-yard completion moved the Thunderbirds to the South Alabama 27. South Alabama called timeout with 42 seconds left and Southern Utah at the 22. Malik Brown ran 13 yards to the 9, and after a 2-yard loss, the Thunderbirds ran the clock down to 2 seconds before calling timeout. Cook then made the 28-yard field goal to win the game.
By the Numbers
South Alabama finished with 16 first downs to Southern Utah’s 14 and outgained the Thunderbirds 335-317. The Jaguars rushed for 187 yards and passed for 148, and they converted 5 of 14 third downs. Southern Utah passed for 183 yards, ran for 134 and converted 5 of 15 third downs.
- Rushing: Jay Jones led South Alabama with 92 yards on nine carries. Bridge added 60 yards on seven carries, Dinham had 22 yards on seven carries, Houston had 17 yards on five carries, Metheny had 11 yards on three carries and Valentin had 1 yard on three carries.
- Receiving: Smith caught five passes for 52 yards, and Jereme Jones caught five for 26 yards and a touchdown. Woodson had three catches for 63 yards and a score. Five other Jaguars caught a pass.
- Passing: Metheny completed 12 of 17 passes for 112 yards and two touchdowns and was sacked once. Bridge was 6 of 11 for 36 yards with one interception.
For Southern Utah, Martin ran for a game-high 110 yards on 23 carries. Cantu completed 13 of 24 passes for 183 yards and a touchdown and was sacked three times. McNabb caught four passes for 77 yards, and Norris had four catches for 20 yards.
Jones, Metheny React
South Alabama head coach Joey Jones credited the Thunderbirds after the game.
“I want to congratulate Southern Utah for winning the ballgame,” Jones said. “We didn’t have a ton of mistakes, but they made the plays in the fourth quarter when they had to and ended up beating us. My hat’s off to them.”
“It’s a big disappointment. Any time you lose it’s a disappointment,” Jones said. “We lost a very important ballgame tonight. We’re going to have to win some close games to have a good year, and that was one we let slip by.”
Metheny said the team would use the loss to improve.
“We’re a better football team than that,” Metheny said. “We’re going to put a better product on the field, and like I said, we’ll just go back and learn.”
South Alabama plays next on the road against Tulane at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome in New Orleans on Saturday, Sept. 7, at 2:30 p.m.
