Yam Banks intercepted two passes, returning one for a touchdown, and recovered a fumble Saturday as South Alabama forced five turnovers and beat Louisiana Tech 38-14.
The Jaguars finished their non-conference schedule at 3-1, halfway to bowl eligibility. Louisiana Tech fell to 1-3.
Fast Start
South Alabama nearly scored on the opening kickoff, but Braylon McReynolds’ 93-yard return for a touchdown was wiped out by a personal foul for an illegal block.
The Jaguars needed only six plays to cover 80 yards on their first possession. Jalen Wayne caught consecutive passes for 19 and 18 yards, La’Damian Webb ran 25 yards into the red zone, and Carter Bradley threw a 3-yard touchdown pass to Lincoln Sefcik for a 7-0 lead.
The defense forced a three-and-out without allowing a yard, and Caullin Lacy returned the ensuing punt for a touchdown down the right side to make it 14-0 just 3:50 into the game.
Louisiana Tech scored early in the second quarter when Smoke Harris got behind the secondary for a 52-yard touchdown catch, cutting the lead to 14-7. The Bulldogs turned the ball over on each of their next four possessions.
Diego Guajardo kicked a 24-yard field goal for a 17-7 lead, and Ke’Shun Brown intercepted a pass to help keep that margin through halftime.
Defense Takes Over
South Alabama scored less than a minute into the second half. On second-and-6, Banks stepped in front of a Parker McNeil pass toward the right sideline and returned it 24 yards for a touchdown and a 24-7 lead.
Three plays into Louisiana Tech’s next possession, Jamie Sheriff sacked quarterback Matthew Downing for a 14-yard loss and forced a fumble, which Banks recovered.
On third-and-8, Bradley threw to Lacy for a 19-yard touchdown that made it 31-7 with 11:06 left in the third quarter.
South Alabama drove to the Louisiana Tech 28 as the third quarter ended, and on the first play of the fourth, Bradley found Webb for a touchdown and a 38-7 lead with 14:42 remaining.
Louisiana Tech put together an eight-play, 80-yard drive for its final touchdown with 10:59 left. South Alabama’s reserves nearly scored in the closing seconds, but a holding penalty nullified the play.
Targeting Ejection and Penalty on Wommack
During Louisiana Tech’s final scoring drive, defensive end Brock Higdon got around his blocker and made contact with McNeil from behind just as the quarterback released the ball on a third-down play. After the play, officials stopped the game for a review and ejected Higdon for targeting.
South Alabama head coach Kane Wommack objected to the call and was flagged for unsportsmanlike conduct.
“There are times where you’ve got to send a message to your football team, that their head coach is going to stand up for them when they’re playing their tails off at the end of the game,” Wommack said. “The call was the call. They had their reasons for the call and I’m not going to argue it, but my job is to stand up for my football team when our guys are playing hard, and that’s exactly what I did. Not going to apologize for that. However, certainly I recognize that that’s unprofessional, but a message had to be sent.”
Because the ejection came in the second half, Higdon is required to sit out the first half of South Alabama’s next game, at Louisiana-Lafayette. Wommack said the staff will review the film and use the NCAA’s new appeal process for targeting suspensions if it believes an appeal is warranted.
What They Said
“That was a statement game in my mind,” Wommack said. “I’m really pleased with where we are to the point. We’ve got to continue to work the momentum and build the consistency in our program that we’re looking for.”
Asked whether there were things to improve on, Wommack answered, “Absolutely.”
Banks said the defense was locked in during practice after the previous week’s loss to UCLA.
“Coaches told us we’re too good not to be taking the ball away from people,” Banks said. “That was our main focus this week.”
By the Numbers
South Alabama totaled 389 yards, 214 passing and 175 rushing, with 23 first downs. The Jaguars converted 5 of 10 third downs and scored on three of four red zone trips, with the only miss coming on the final possession. Louisiana Tech held a slight edge in time of possession, as South Alabama had the ball for 28:51. The Jaguars were penalized 14 times for 131 yards, eight of the penalties coming in the first half.
- Bradley completed 14 of 21 passes for 178 yards and three touchdowns, with one interception. Desmond Trotter was 3 of 4 for 36 yards in relief.
- Webb ran 14 times for 75 yards, and McReynolds added 51 yards on seven carries.
- Lacy led South Alabama with three catches for 40 yards and a touchdown. Wayne had two catches for 37 yards, both on the opening drive. Webb and Sefcik each had one catch, both for touchdowns.
- Sheriff led the defense with five tackles, 1.5 tackles for loss, a sack and a forced fumble. Trey Kiser had five solo tackles, including a sack.
- Banks finished with one tackle, two interceptions, a fumble recovery and three pass breakups.
Louisiana Tech gained 308 yards, 251 passing and 57 rushing, with 17 first downs. The Bulldogs went 3 of 12 on third down and 2 of 3 on fourth down and scored on one of three red zone trips.
- McNeil completed 19 of 34 passes for 251 yards and two touchdowns, with four interceptions, and was sacked twice.
- Tre Harris had six catches for 85 yards, Smoke Harris had four for 84 yards and a touchdown, and Griffin Hebert caught five passes for 49 yards and a touchdown.
- Greg Garner ran seven times for 51 yards, and Marquis Crosby had 21 yards on 10 carries.
Up Next
South Alabama opens Sun Belt Conference play at Louisiana-Lafayette on Saturday, Oct. 1. Kickoff at Cajun Field is set for 4 p.m.
