LORMAN, MS -- Southern opened with confidence and an early lead, but Alcorn State powered ahead with 35 unanswered points over the middle two quarters to claim a 35–17 SWAC victory Saturday at Jack Spinks-Marino Casem Stadium.
The Jaguars marched 87 yards on 17 plays to start the afternoon, capped by a 2-yard touchdown run from
Trey Holly to take a 7–0 lead with 5:14 left in the first.
The Jaguars briefly regained life when
Landon Carter intercepted Tolbert and returned it for a touchdown to make it 28–17. But Alcorn responded again — Tolbert found Tylon Citizen for a 5-yard score to close out a dominant 21-point quarter. The Jaguars struggled to sustain drives after the opener, converting only
5 of 17 third downs and punting eight times.
Interim Head Coach
Fred McNair said that drive showed what his young team is capable of: "That first possession was Southern football," McNair said. "We executed, we controlled the line, and we played with purpose. The challenge is doing that consistently."
KEYS TO THE GAME
Alcorns' ground attack took over
259 rushing yards on 5.4 yards per carry
RB Reggie Davis: 110 yards, long of 30
Four different Braves recorded a run of 14+ yards, constantly flipping field position
Southern couldn't sustain drives
Just two rushing first downs all game
5-of-17 on 3rd downs; 1-for-3 on 4th downs
Eight punts with a 33.2 average
Special teams miscues killed momentum
Muffed punt recovered by Alcorn set up a short-field TD
Another punt went only 10 yards, quickly followed by points for ASU
Alcorn won the turnover swing
Braves scored 21 points off short-field opportunities
Southern's lone takeaway (pick-six) was its only score after the first quarter
By the Numbers
Total Yards: ASU 378, Southern 257
Rushing Yards: ASU 259 (5.4 avg), Southern 74 (2.6 avg)
Passing Yards: ASU 119, Southern 183
First Downs: ASU 23, Southern 11
Time of Possession: ASU 30:10, Southern 27:10
UP NEXT
Southern will be back in action on Saturday, November 15th, for Senior Day against Texas Southern University. The Game is slated for a 2 PM kickoff and will be live on SWAC TV.
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