Texas State denied South Alabama a shot at the Sun Belt Conference title with a 45-38 victory at Hancock Whitney Stadium on Friday.

The Bobcats outscored the Jaguars 24-10 in the final two periods, and took advantage of three second-half turnovers for the comeback win. South Alabama (6-6, 4-3 Sun Belt) is now eliminated from the possibility of a West Division championship and will await its bowl assignments on Dec. 8.

After South Alabama led 35-31 heading into the final quarter, Texas State used a 12-play, 90-yard drive to take a 38-35 lead with 11:39 to play. Jordan McCloud hit Joey Hobart from 17 yards away for the score, which came after the Bobcats had run the ball on eight straight plays.

South Alabama then drove to the Texas State 40, but the Bobcats’ Mannie Nunnery picked off a short Gio Lopez pass and returned it 60 yards for a touchdown and a 45-35 lead with 7:27 to play. Lopez got up limping after the play, and was replaced by Bishop Davenport on the following series.

Laith Marjan’s 21-yard field goal with 1:32 remaining pulled South Alabama within seven. The Jaguars failed on an onside kick attempt, however, and Texas State ran out the clock for the victory.

South Alabama led 28-21 at after a first half that saw numerous big plays by both teams. The Bobcats got rushing touchdowns of 8 yards by McCloud, 11 yards by Brad Jackson and 33 yards by Ismail Mahdi to take a 21-14 lead with 8:59 left in the second, but missed another chance to score when the Jaguars’ Devin Voisin made a leaping interception in the end zone early in the second quarter.

South Alabama scored on Fluff Bothwell’s 51-yard touchdown run and Blayne Myrick’s 33-yard interception return for a touchdown, then tied the game on Lopez’s 17-yard touchdown pass to Jamaal Pritchett with 3:59 to go before halftime. After an 18-yard punt gave the Jaguars the ball on the Texas State 25, Lopez ran for an 8-yard touchdown to put South Alabama up 28-21 with 2:06 to go in the second.

The Jaguars’ defense turned in another big stop just before halftime, after Texas State drove into the USA red zone. Myrick and fellow linebacker Darius McKenzie stopped Bobcats receiver Chris Dawn two yards short of the first down on third-and-7, and Texas State — which had used all three of its timeouts on South Alabama’s previous possession — could not get another play off or stop the clock (because it was fourth down) before time expired.

Texas State tied the game at 28-28 with a 12-play scoring drive midway through the third quarter, with Lincoln Pare leaping into the end zone from a yard out. After South Alabama fumbled at its 29, the Bobcats went up 31-28 on Mason Shipley’s 32-yard field goal with 2:34 left in the third.

South Alabama went back on top with a quick scoring drive, using just three plays. Bothwell broke loose for a 29-yard touchdown run — his second of the game — to make it 35-31 after three quarters before the Bobcats owned the fourth.

South Alabama now awaits a bowl game assignment, which will be announced on Dec. 8.

“Familiarity breeds contempt”- Aesop, 550 BC

Let’s set the obvious aside. The Auburn offense and Alabama defense do not like each other. Now, with that said, time to delve inside the Alabama defense. The Crimson Tide ranks No. 28 nationally in total defense.

That figure takes into consideration passing/rushing yards combined. While concerning, aspects of the Alabama defense actually play into Auburn’s favor, and should help them on Saturday afternoon. 

The Big Play

In order to defeat Alabama or any other defense, you must generate big plays. In what feels like a relatively close game, Auburn needs to metaphorically punch Alabama square in the mouth. Whether a long pass or run, the Tigers offense must make the Tide feel their presence.

Bryant-Denny will be an electrically-hostile atmosphere for the men from The Plains. Hugh Freeze discussed the necessity of the big play during media availability. 

“Usually, the biggest ones need to be called against the right coverages at the right time, without pressure,” said Freeze. “All those are, sometimes, a guessing game, but I think we do have a knack for having good designs for some.

“We will need those to go multiple drives. You are not going to drive the football 75 yards every time without some explosive plays. That will be a big part of winning in Tuscaloosa on Saturday.”

The Flaw in Broad Daylight

For as formidable as the pass defense, the run defense looks rather shaky. Ranking 63rd nationally, the Tide will bend to a potent rushing attack. Five times during the season opponents run all over the defense for more than 150 yards, including a whopping 257 from Oklahoma last week.

This incarnation of the Crimson Tide front seven lacks the brutes along the defensive line to smother ball carriers. Jonathan Allen and Quinnen Williams won’t walk through the door on Saturday. A glaring weakness will see a team desperate to compensate. 

Meanwhile, Jarquez Hunter will feast, or at least he should. With holes available, he can pick his spot, or cut back and make his own. In his last Iron Bowl, Hunter will want to take advantage of his ability to cut and get north/south in a hurry.

Take A Chance

As mentioned, Alabama struggles against the run but excels against the pass. They’re 17th in the country in passing yards allowed at 181.2. They’re No. 11 in the country with 14 interceptions. This falls completely on the shoulders of the secondary. Seven deep in the secondary allows the Tide to attack offenses, regardless of route, down or distance. 

The Bama will look for Auburn quarterback Payton Thorne to make a mistake. Thorne threw six interceptions in Auburn’s first-four games, but has thrown only two in the last six. That doesn’t mean Auburn should put the game in Thorne’s hands. Rather, Hunter should be the focus of the game plan.

 Hunter’s running ability will force the secondary to creep up. A solid play action and vertical pass will bring success. Trust in the receivers’ ability after you trust in the safeties’ inability to not bite on a solid fake.

Bottom Line

Without monsters upfront, Auburn needs to freely run the ball with aggression. This will wear down a unit that’s displayed a lack of quality run support. Two dozen or more carries for the rushing attack brings defensive fatigue. 

Furthermore, without a strong pass rush, Auburn needs to roll the dice and gamble against a stout secondary. Left on several islands, bolstered by the ground attack, Auburn’s offense stands on equal footing with the Alabama defense.

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) — We’ve seen former Tompkins and current University of Alabama quarterback Jalen Milroe make amazing plays on the field. Off the field, he is raising awareness for sudden cardiac arrest.

“It’s a sudden killer, it’s a silent killer, it happens in some cases without warning”, Ruqayya Gibson, Executive Director of Damani Gibson Foundation, said.

Milroe is the lead ambassador for the Damani Gibson Foundation. For every touchdown he throws or runs for, the foundation will donate an AED to a school or community to help save lives.

SEE ALSO:2 teens hailed as heroes after performing lifesaving CPR for wrestler in cardiac arrest

“Studies have shown that out-of-hospital cardiac arrest has a 10% average survival rate, but if someone gets an AED connected to them within the first minute, their survival chances go up to 90%. And that’s huge,” Gibson said.

Ruqayya Gibson is the former head track coach at Cy-Springs. Her son, 17-year-old son Damani, died from sudden cardiac arrest in 2019.

“When I think back to anything out of the ordinary, I would say leading up to the sudden cardiac arrest, he did seem tired. That was his warning sign that he was tired, but he had enough energy to go to practice. You know, he went to practice. He had a great practice. He ran around off at practice that day and won the run-off”, Gibson said.

Gibson stepped away as an assistant track coach at the University of Alabama to pour all her time and energy into the foundation. “It just warms my heart to have such good people involved in his campaign who I get to see live out their dreams, even though I didn’t get to see Damani live out his dreams,” she said. “That’s why I call them the dream favors: because we’re trying to save other athletes, kids, youth, and other people, all in general, from losing their dreams to something that is a silent killer but is also preventable.”

Other Damani Gibson Foundation ambassadors include former Kinkaid running back Josh Williams, current LSU RB Shadrach Banks, Jr., and former North Shore WR and LB Shadrach Banks.

Why every minute matters when someone goes into sudden cardiac arrest

(It) can’t be stressed enough about awareness and prevention for SCA. ” It’s very important to get your regular checkups, but also ask for heart screenings,” Gibson said.

“The EKG is good across the board for anyone to get at least every year or every two years because the heart does change over time. So if you’ve gotten it once, don’t just say, okay, they’ve gotten their heart screened. I don’t have to do it anymore.”