Alabama
South Alabama turns in dominant road win at Appalachian State, 48-14
South Alabama treated the Sun Belt Conference preseason favorite like just another also-ran on Thursday night.
The Jaguars pounded Appalachian State 48-14 at sold-out Kidd Brewer Stadium in Boone, N.C., in perhaps the most significant conference road win in program history. South Alabama (2-2 overall, 1-0 Sun Belt) rolled up 320 rushing yards and played mostly lockdown defense to beat the Mountaineers (2-2, 0-1) for the first time since 2014.
“I think everybody on our team knew they were capable of this, but to be able to come do it on the road against a quality opponent — a traditional really good program, kind of the standard bearer for our conference along with a couple of other schools — there’s a lot of excitement in our locker room,” first-year South Alabama head coach Major Applewhite said. “There is a lot of time left in the season, but it’s great that we all came tonight and had this type of win.”
Gio Lopez accounted for 259 yards and three touchdowns for South Alabama, rushing for 105 yards and a TD and throwing for 154 and two scores on 16-for-24 passing. Freshman running back Fluff Bothwell added 116 yards and two scores on 14 carries for the Jaguars, while Kentrel Bullock and Iverson Celestine also ran for touchdowns and DJ Thomas-Jones and Jamaal Pritchett both caught scoring passes.
South Alabama’s defense held App State and Preseason Sun Belt Player of the Year Joey Aguilar down for much of the night and forced a pair of turnovers in the red zone. The Mountaineers’ twos touchdowns came on a Hail Mary on the final play of the first half, and against the Jaguars’ second-team defense with 52 seconds left in the game.
It was the second straight blowout Thursday-night victory for South Alabama, which set a Sun Belt Conference scoring record in an 87-10 victory over Northwestern State on Sept. 12. The Jaguars’ 135 points the last two weeks are a conference record over a two-game span.
“It means a lot, going to somebody else’s house and not just winning, but executing all game,” Lopez said. “It was a good team win for our first road win of the season.”
South Alabama — a seven-point betting underdog coming into the night — led 28-7 after a nearly perfect first half. The Jaguars drove 75 yards to the end zone on their first possession, ending with a 10-yard pass from Lopez to Thomas-Jones and a 7-0 lead at the 11:59 mark of the first quarter.
South Alabama scored again after forcing an App State punt, this time on a 22-yard touchdown run by Bothwell to make it 14-0 with 7:10 left in the first. The Jaguars drove 95 yards in 13 plays for their third score, a 31-yard run by Lopez with 5:30 remaining in the first half.
South Alabama turned away App State at the goal line late in the half, as Jordan Scruggs intercepted Aguilar at the 1 and returned the ball to the Mountaineers’ 5. Two plays later, Bullock scored on a 2-yard run and it was 28-0.
“We were in a zone, where I have to play in between the No. 1 and No. 2 receiver,” Scruggs said of his interception and 96-yard return. “I just read the quarterback’s eyes and made a play. I tried to score, but I got too tired and he caught me.”
App State got on the board in dramatic fashion on the final play of the half. Aguilar threw deep and Dalton Stroman came down amid two South Alabama defensive backs for a 47-yard touchdown and a 28-7 halftime score.
South Alabama’s defense forced App State into a turnover on downs to start the second half and turned it into immediate points for a 34-7 lead. Lopez hit Pritchett, who dove into the end zone for an 18-yard score with 11:08 left in the third (Laith Marjan’s extra point hit the upright).
After an App State punt, South Alabama scored another touchdown. Lopez hit Jeremiah Webb for 22 yards on third-and-11 and Bothwell burst into the end zone from 14 yards out to put the Jaguars up 41-7.
Bothwell has rushed for 359 yards and six touchdowns on 37 carries this season, an average of 9.7 yards per attempt. He credited the Jaguars’ offensive line of tackles Jordan Davis and Malachi Carney, guards Kenton Jerido and Reed Buys and center Malachi Preciado for blowing big holes in the App State defensive front all night.
“Every week, the offensive line, they create a lot of gaps for our running backs,” Bothwell said. “So I give them props, every time we get inside the (end) zone, just let them know that they did what they were supposed to do.”
South Alabama pulled most of its offensive starters with 10:15 to play, but still got into the end zone again. Celestine scored on a 6-yard run with 4:15 remaining for the Jaguars’ final points.
App State scored the game’s final points with 52 seconds left when Marquel Haywood ran in from 2 yards out. The touchdown came only after South Alabama was called for pass interference on fourth-and-goal.
Aguilar finished the night 21-for-40 for 266 yards with a touchdown and an interception. Blayne Myrick led the Jaguars’ defense with nine tackles, while Courtney McBride had a sack, Aakil Washington and Carlos Johnson had two quarterback hurries each and Darius McKenzie had a fumble recovery.
South Alabama stays on the road next week, playing at LSU on Sept. 28. That game kicks offs at 6:45 p.m., with television coverage on SEC Network.
The iconic wooden roller coaster at Alabama Adventure & Splash Adventure is officially back in action, along with some seasonal deals. This Father’s Day, dads can get into the park for free to ride the restored coaster, Rampage.
It’s not the only attraction returning; this Halloween, Alabama Adventure is bringing back not one but two haunted houses for the first time since the late 2000s.
If you can’t wait until then, the Bessemer park will be open late on Saturdays and end with a pop of color. Adventure Summer Nights will have the park open until 9:30 p.m. once a week with a fireworks show to round off the night.
And as an apology to their loyal visitors, people who bought a daily ticket before June 10 are welcome to come back and try their new and improved attractions for free. If you’re a season pass holder, don’t feel left out—pass holder discounts are doubled for the month of July.
Governor Kay Ivey on Thursday set an execution date for death row inmate Jeremy Williams, who was convicted in the 2021 kidnapping, rape and murder of 5-year-old Kamarie Holland in Phenix City.
Williams is scheduled to be executed by the state’s three-drug lethal injection during a 30-hour window beginning at 12 a.m. August 13 and ending at 6 a.m. August 14. The execution date comes after the Alabama Supreme Court granted a request from Attorney General Steve Marshall’s office on June 16, authorizing the state to carry out the sentence.
In a letter to Alabama Department of Corrections Commissioner Greg Lovelace, Ivey said the Supreme Court’s June 16 order serves as the official death warrant for Williams.
“By law, I am required to specify the time frame for carrying out the sentence of death,” Ivey said. “Accordingly, I hereby order that Jeremy Lee Williams’s sentence of death be carried out within a time frame beginning on August 13, 2026, at 12:00 a.m. and ending on August 14, 2026, at 6:00 a.m.”
Ivey noted that she retains the authority to commute the sentence before the execution takes place.
Williams, 34, was convicted in April 2024 on four counts of capital murder stemming from Holland’s death. Prosecutors charged him with capital murder during a kidnapping, capital murder during a rape, capital murder during first-degree sodomy and capital murder of a child younger than 14.
Authorities said Holland disappeared from her family’s home in Phenix City on December 13, 2021. Her body was discovered two days later inside an abandoned house less than a mile away. An autopsy determined that she had been sexually assaulted and strangled.
In addition to the death sentence, Williams received several other prison terms. He was sentenced to life imprisonment for human trafficking and for knowingly producing recordings depicting the sexual abuse of a child. He also received another life sentence for a separate sexual abuse conviction, along with a 20-year sentence for conspiracy to commit human trafficking and a 10-year sentence for abuse of a corpse.
Unlike most death row inmates, Williams sought to speed up the execution process. During a hearing, he told the court that he accepted responsibility for his actions and wanted the sentence carried out.
In 2025, Williams dismissed his attorneys and informed the court that he wished to waive any remaining appeals and proceed with his execution. Russell County Circuit Court Judge David Johnson determined that Williams was competent to make that decision and allowed him to forgo further legal challenges.
Under Alabama law, capital convictions automatically receive appellate review. The Alabama Court of Criminal Appeals subsequently affirmed Williams’ conviction and death sentence in March.
After that review concluded, the Alabama Attorney General’s Office petitioned the Alabama Supreme Court in May to authorize an execution date. The court granted the request earlier this week, clearing the way for Ivey to schedule the execution.
If carried out as scheduled, Williams’ execution would occur nearly five years after Holland’s death and a little more than two years after he was sentenced to death.
Williams’ execution would be Alabama’s first by lethal injection since April 2025. The state’s three most recent executions were carried out using nitrogen hypoxia, which Alabama began using in 2024.
MONTGOMERY, Ala. (WSFA) – You don’t find too many camps where you learn how to slap someone. But this summer, you will in Montgomery. It’s one of many kids camps put on by the Alabama Shakespeare Festival.
“We have our Camp Shakespeare Junior which is our half day for the littles, kindergarten through 3rd grade,” said Cameron Williams, the ASF director of education. “We have Big Kid Shakespeare camp and everyone is learning all about ‘Much Ado About Nothing’.”
They learn about on stage combat, different acting techniques, and also how to be creative and think on their feet.
“I think theater skills are life skills. So, what makes this camp special is we’re doing more than just boosting literacy and doing theater things. We’re doing life skills, learning what it means to be team players, about discipline, and working with people who may have different personalities than you.”
Different kids have different talents. And even if your child isn’t up for a lead role in the next play, this place can leave a lasting impact.
“If you’re looking for a place where your kid can come out of their shell, to learn how to speak in front of a group, and develop some confidence, this is the place to be.”
It’s a place that’s a real treasure in Montgomery, and its mining some young gems, who one day, could be on the big stage themselves. There are still more ASF camps going on this summer for pre-teens and even adults.
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