MOBILE, Ala. — South Alabama overcame an 11-point halftime deficit and got two fourth-quarter interceptions from senior cornerback Tyrell Pearson, the second in the end zone as time expired, to beat Western Kentucky 31-24 on Saturday night at Ladd-Peebles Stadium.
Trey Fetner scored the go-ahead touchdown with 1:38 remaining. The Jaguars improved to 2-1 overall and 1-0 in the Sun Belt Conference, while Western Kentucky fell to 1-2 and 0-1.
Pearson had not played in the previous 11 quarters before entering in the fourth quarter. His first interception set up the winning score, and his second ended the game.
Hilltoppers Build Early Lead
Western Kentucky opened the game with a five-play, 79-yard touchdown drive that took 2:40. South Alabama answered with a 10-play, 75-yard drive. Ross Metheny completed passes to Jereme Jones for 18 yards, Wes Saxton for 7 and Danny Woodson Jr. for 9, ran for 13 yards and hit Shavarez Smith for 15 to reach the Western Kentucky 9. On fourth-and-goal inside the 1, after a timeout, Metheny scored on a quarterback sneak to tie the game 7-7.
The Hilltoppers responded with a 15-play, 73-yard drive that consumed 7:34 and gave them a 14-7 lead.
Early in the second quarter, Metheny connected with Saxton for 37 yards to the Western Kentucky 31. The drive stalled at the 25, and Aleem Sunanon kicked a 42-yard field goal to make it 14-10.
Romelle Jones sacked Brandon Doughty for a 12-yard loss on the next Western Kentucky possession, forcing a punt. Western Kentucky later put together a six-play, 68-yard drive that ended with a 20-yard touchdown pass and a 21-10 lead with 5:47 left in the half.
South Alabama’s next drive reached the Western Kentucky 43, where the Jaguars faced fourth-and-1. After a timeout, the snap in punt formation went to Fetner, whose pass to Jereme Jones fell incomplete, turning the ball over on downs with 3:20 left before halftime.
Bridge Sparks Comeback
T.J. Glover fumbled the second-half kickoff forward after a 25-yard return, and Desmond LaVelle recovered for South Alabama at the 39. Brandon Bridge entered at quarterback, completed a 15-yard pass to Corey Waldon and a 24-yarder to Saxton, and Sunanon converted a 43-yard field goal to cut the lead to 21-13 with 11:35 left in the third quarter.
After the defense forced a punt, South Alabama started at its own 11 with 8:59 left in the third. Bridge ran 23 yards on third-and-6, found Bryant Lavender for 6 yards and connected with Jereme Jones for 25 yards to the Western Kentucky 34. On third-and-4 at the 28, Bridge hit Jones for 7 yards, and on third-and-8 he scrambled 15 yards to the 4. Jay Jones ran in from there to make it 21-19.
South Alabama went for two on a trick play. The snap went to a running back, who lateraled to Jake Howton, and Howton threw to a wide-open Metheny in the end zone to tie the game 21-21.
Romelle Jones and Clifton Crews combined on a 12-yard sack of Doughty at the South Alabama 27 to end the third quarter. South Alabama held a 9:01 to 5:59 time of possession edge in the period.
Trading Field Goals
Western Kentucky’s Garrett Schwettman kicked a 44-yard field goal for a 24-21 lead with 14:47 remaining.
The ensuing kickoff went out of bounds, giving South Alabama the ball at its 35. Bridge scrambled 26 yards to the Western Kentucky 39, Jay Jones added 12 yards, and Sunanon made a 37-yard field goal to tie the game 24-24 with 12:28 left.
Anthony Wales returned the next kickoff 30 yards to the Western Kentucky 45. Hilltoppers coach Bobby Petrino later went for it on fourth-and-2, but the pass fell incomplete, giving South Alabama the ball at its own 47 with 10:25 to play.
Metheny returned and hit Smith on a leaping 50-yard catch to the Western Kentucky 3. Kendall Houston appeared to score, but after a review the ball was placed just short of the goal line. Metheny was stopped on third down, and Sunanon’s 17-yard field goal attempt from the right hash missed to the right, leaving the game tied.
Pearson Seals It
Alex Page intercepted Doughty at the Western Kentucky 42 with 4:24 remaining, but Western Kentucky forced a fumble by Jereme Jones and recovered at its own 17 with 2:59 left.
After Doughty completed a 29-yard pass on third-and-10, Pearson jumped the next throw and returned it to the end zone. He was flagged for unsportsmanlike conduct for celebrating before crossing the goal line, negating the touchdown and moving the ball back to the 16 with 2:12 left.
Jay Jones gained 2 yards, forcing a Western Kentucky timeout. Metheny ran 12 yards to the 2 and got out of bounds, and Houston gained a yard before another timeout. Fetner then scored to put South Alabama ahead 31-24 with 1:38 to play.
Western Kentucky returned the kickoff to its 34, and pass interference penalties on Montell Garner and Maleki Harris helped the Hilltoppers reach the South Alabama 13. Page and Pat Moore pressured Doughty into incompletions, and on fourth-and-10 with five seconds left, Pearson intercepted Doughty in the end zone to end the game.
By the Numbers
- Western Kentucky outgained South Alabama 427-414, including 282-270 through the air and 145-144 on the ground.
- The Hilltoppers had 26 first downs to South Alabama’s 18 and ran 74 plays to the Jaguars’ 66.
- Western Kentucky converted 9 of 17 third downs; South Alabama converted 5 of 13.
Metheny completed 11 of 15 passes for 193 yards. Bridge was 5 of 11 for 77 yards and ran for 42 yards on six carries. Jay Jones led the Jaguars with 49 rushing yards on 11 carries.
Saxton caught four passes for 91 yards, Smith had three for 72 and Jereme Jones had four for 68.
Qudarius Ford led the defense with 12 tackles, and Enrique Williams added 11. Crews had six tackles and half a sack, and Romelle Jones had four tackles, including 1.5 sacks.
What They Said
“The game was as exciting as it gets. I can’t take any more of those kind of games,” South Alabama coach Joey Jones said. “That’s three in a row that have come down to the last play. But I’ll take the win.”
“I’m so excited for our guys, they fought through until the end,” Jones said. “Last year we weren’t making plays at the end of the game, this year we are.”
Jones called it the biggest win of his tenure. “Western Kentucky is a great football team. We knew that coming in,” he said. “For us to come out on the winning side against those guys is definitely the biggest win we’ve had since I’ve been here at South Alabama.”
“I think we executed at a higher level tonight, offensively,” Metheny said. “Going in tonight I think we had a better game plan and to be able to respond to adversity the way we did.”
“That’s a tough loss, we had our opportunities to win the game,” Petrino said. “We had our chances at the end, we dropped a couple of touchdown passes and threw an interception, so we just didn’t get it done.”
Up Next
South Alabama has an open week before visiting Tennessee at Neyland Stadium in Knoxville on Sept. 28.
