SAN MARCOS, Texas — Texas State kicker Jason Dann made a 41-yard field goal with four seconds remaining Saturday, capping a drive extended by a 51-yard completion on fourth-and-24, as the Bobcats edged South Alabama 33-31.
The Jaguars rallied from an 11-point halftime deficit, scoring 28 points in the second half and 21 in the fourth quarter, and took their only lead of the game with 1:32 remaining before Texas State answered.
The loss dropped South Alabama to 3-4 overall and 1-2 in the Sun Belt Conference.
Fourth-Quarter Exchange
South Alabama tied the game with 13:10 left in the fourth quarter when quarterback Ross Metheny threw a 13-yard touchdown pass to Shavarez Smith.
Texas State moved back in front on a 37-yard field goal with 7:56 to play. On the Jaguars’ next possession, Justin Iwuji intercepted Metheny and returned the ball 29 yards for a touchdown, putting the Bobcats ahead 27-17.
Metheny answered with 5:20 left, finding Danny Woodson for a 42-yard touchdown that cut the deficit to 27-24. Texas State responded with its third field goal of the game, taking a 30-24 lead with 2:22 remaining.
Metheny and Woodson connected again on the next drive, this time on a 43-yard touchdown pass. The extra point gave South Alabama a 31-30 lead with 1:32 left.
The Winning Drive
Texas State quarterback Tyler Jones moved the Bobcats to their own 40-yard line for a first down and then hit Jafus Gaines on a 6-yard slant before spiking the ball. Jones found Gaines again for 5 yards and an apparent first down, but an offensive pass interference penalty pushed Texas State back to its own 31, setting up third-and-19.
Maleki Harris broke up a pass over the middle on third down, and a false start moved the Bobcats back to fourth-and-24 from their own 26-yard line. South Alabama used its final timeout to set its defense.
Jones then threw deep down the right sideline to Ben Ijah, who caught the ball for a 51-yard gain to the South Alabama 23. After a 1-yard loss on a running play, Texas State called its last timeout with eight seconds left, and Dann converted from 41 yards for his fourth field goal of the game.
Final Play
Texas State was flagged for unsportsmanlike conduct after the field goal, moving its kickoff back 15 yards, but the kick still reached the end zone for a touchback.
South Alabama’s first pass from its own 25 fell incomplete intended for Jereme Jones, leaving one second on the clock. On the final play, Jones caught a pass and the Jaguars began a series of laterals involving Metheny, Jones, Smith and Cris Dinham. The play ended when Smith fumbled and Texas State recovered at the South Alabama 43.
By the Numbers
Texas State outgained South Alabama 452-409 in total offense. The Bobcats rushed for 234 yards and passed for 272, while the Jaguars ran for 109 yards and threw for 300.
Texas State ran 79 plays to South Alabama’s 65 and held the ball for 37:21, compared with 22:39 for the Jaguars. South Alabama converted 4 of 13 third-down attempts and 1 of 2 on fourth down. Texas State converted 8 of 17 third downs and both of its fourth-down tries.
Individual Statistics
Metheny completed 27 of 43 passes for 300 yards and three touchdowns, with one interception. Brandon Bridge did not play.
Dinham led the Jaguars on the ground with 54 yards on four carries. Metheny ran for 40 yards on 10 attempts and scored the team’s only rushing touchdown, and Jay Jones added 15 yards on five carries.
Woodson caught five passes for 118 yards and two touchdowns. Wes Saxton led the team with 10 receptions for 89 yards. Jereme Jones caught four passes for 50 yards, Smith had three catches for 41 yards, Jay Jones made three receptions for 6 yards and Bryant Lavender caught two passes for 7 yards.
On defense, Enrique Williams led South Alabama with 13 tackles, including one tackle for loss. Qudarius Ford made nine tackles, eight of them solo. Montell Garner had the Jaguars’ only interception. Pat Moore recorded two sacks for 18 yards of losses, and Montavious Williams had one sack for 14 yards.
Jones: ‘They Outplayed Us’
South Alabama head coach Joey Jones said Texas State controlled most of the game.
“I thought they outplayed us for three quarters,” Jones said. “They controlled the game. We fought our way back into it and had a chance to win it. We had them on fourth-and-long and they convert it.”
“We didn’t do anything offensively in the first half,” he said. “We can’t fall behind that much and expect to win ball games.”
Jones said he told his players afterward that they must finish games. “We went ahead with a minute-and-a-half left, we just had to find a way to stop them,” he said.
Romelle Jones Injury Update
Senior defensive lineman Romelle Jones was injured in the first half on a chop block, for which Texas State was penalized. He attended the team’s conditioning workout Sunday, and further test results were pending. He is listed as day-to-day.
“The report I got was fairly negative,” Joey Jones told AL.com on Sunday. “I think we’re going to get some more tests run, but he seems to be walking pretty normally and I think he should be back sooner than we thought originally.”
Up Next
South Alabama returns to Ladd-Peebles Stadium in Mobile to face Arkansas State on Saturday in the program’s annual Hall of Fame game. Kickoff is set for 6:30 p.m., and the game will be shown nationally on ESPN3.
