South Alabama overcame three first-quarter fumbles and a final Texas State drive that reached the Jaguar 4-yard line to beat the Bobcats 24-20 on Saturday night, earning its sixth win and bowl eligibility in its Sun Belt Conference finale.
The win moved South Alabama to 6-4 overall and 5-3 in Sun Belt play. Texas State fell to 5-5 and 3-3 in the conference.
Hunter Vaughn, who entered the week as the Jaguars’ third-string quarterback, made his first career start when Brandon Bridge was not ready to return. Vaughn completed 20 of 28 passes for 182 yards with a touchdown and an interception and ran for another score.
Three Early Turnovers
South Alabama fumbled on three straight possessions in its own territory in the first quarter, and Texas State turned them into 10 points.
The first fumble came at the Jaguar 44. The Bobcats converted a third-and-12 with a 16-yard completion and finished the drive with a touchdown. On South Alabama’s next series, Jerrid Jeter-Gilmon forced a fumble by Xavier Johnson, who was injured on the play and did not return. Texas State took over at the Jaguar 33, but the South Alabama defense held, and the Bobcats kicked a 41-yard field goal for a 10-0 lead late in the first quarter.
On the ensuing kickoff, the ball was knocked loose from returner T.J. Glover and caught in the air by a Texas State player at the Jaguar 28. The defense again held. Theo Rich dropped a Bobcat ball carrier for a two-yard loss on third-and-1, and Texas State missed a 38-yard field goal wide left.
“We had three turnovers in the first quarter, and that wasn’t good, but we were only down 10 points,” South Alabama coach Joey Jones said. “I felt pretty fortunate to be in that situation. The defense came out and fought as they always do.”
Trick Play Puts Jaguars on the Board
South Alabama scored with about 10 minutes left in the first half, capping an eight-play, 56-yard drive. Terrance Timmons gained 29 yards on the drive and moved the chains twice, and Vaughn kept the possession alive on fourth-and-3 with a seven-yard completion to Jereme Jones. Vaughn then tossed a lateral to Jake Howton, who threw back across the field to Vaughn, and the quarterback went 28 yards untouched for the touchdown to make it 10-7.
Texas State restored its 10-point lead with just over four minutes left in the half when tight end Lawrence White got open on a seam route for a 46-yard touchdown catch.
Kendall Houston’s 31-yard run set up a career-long 46-yard field goal by Aleem Sunanon with 1:16 left in the half, and Texas State led 17-10 at the break.
Second-Half Adjustments
South Alabama held Texas State to 115 yards and three points after halftime.
“Our offensive and defensive staffs did a great job of making adjustments in the second half,” Jones said. “Our kids never gave up, and never had a look in their eyes that they were done.”
The Jaguars received the second-half kickoff and needed four minutes to tie the game. Vaughn converted a third-and-13 with a 14-yard pass to Braedon Bowman, then found Bowman again for 45 yards to the Texas State 9. Two plays later, Vaughn hit Danny Woodson II in the back corner of the end zone for his first career touchdown pass, tying the score at 17.
South Alabama took the lead with just over 12 minutes left in regulation on a 10-play, 63-yard drive that took four and a half minutes. Timmons opened the drive with an 11-yard run, and Vaughn converted a third-and-2 with a 10-yard completion to Bowman on the final play of the third quarter. Houston then carried four straight times, including a 15-yard run on the first, before Timmons finished the drive with a touchdown for a 24-17 lead.
Defense Holds at the End
The Jaguar defense forced a three-and-out when Maleki Harris stopped Terrence Franks for no gain on third-and-1. On South Alabama’s next possession, Vaughn was intercepted along the left sideline, and the return set Texas State up at the Jaguar 25. Facing third-and-1 at the 16, Harris timed a blitz up the middle with the snap and dropped Robert Lowe for a four-yard loss. Texas State kicked a field goal to make it 24-20 with a little more than four minutes remaining.
South Alabama could not pick up a first down on its next series and gave the ball back to the Bobcats with about two and a half minutes left. Texas State kept its final drive alive with a 21-yard completion to Brandon Smith on fourth-and-7 and a pass interference penalty on third-and-18 at the Jaguar 39. The Bobcats reached the South Alabama 4 and spiked the ball with five seconds left, but the final pass fell incomplete.
Statistical Leaders
- Vaughn completed passes to seven receivers. Jereme Jones led with five catches for 37 yards. Bowman had four for 81 yards, Woodson had four for 30 yards and a touchdown, and Shavarez Smith had three for 21 yards.
- Timmons led the ground game with 74 yards on 11 carries, and Houston added 68 yards on 10 carries. South Alabama rushed for 174 yards, an average of five yards per attempt.
- Terrell Brigham had a career-high 12 tackles. Harris added nine, and Jesse Kelley and Davin Hawkins had eight each. Kelley had 2.5 tackles for loss and two sacks.
- Texas State, which entered the game averaging 227 rushing yards per game, was held to 106 yards on the ground.
Coaches React
“First of all, my hat’s off to Texas State — what a game,” Jones said. “Last year it came down to the last play of the game, and it did again this year. They have a great program. Coach [Dennis] Franchione does one heck of a job with that team, we knew it was going to be a tough one. We went all week long knowing that this was do-or-die for us to get into a bowl game.”
Jones praised his first-time starter. “Hunter Vaughn came in at quarterback and did a heck of a job even though he really hasn’t practiced all year long,” he said. “We obviously have a chance to get into a bowl now with six wins, and we’re going to be a good one for somebody. We’re excited about it. It could be the first bowl game in South Alabama history.”
Franchione credited the Jaguars. “We live in a one-play world, don’t we with our football team? We came up a play or two short tonight,” he said. “South Alabama did a nice job. I thought their quarterback did a better job in the second half and that was big for them. We still were able to get down there and have a chance to win the game, we just didn’t quite get it done.”
Up Next
South Alabama travels to Columbia, S.C., to face South Carolina on Saturday, with kickoff set for 11 a.m. Central.
