NEW ORLEANS, La. — Martez Carter’s 11-yard touchdown run with 3:22 remaining helped the Grambling State University football team overcome a late one-point fourth-quarter deficit as the Tigers won a thriller, 30-21, over Southern on Saturday night at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome in the 44th Annual Bayou Classic.
“This was truly a great game,” Grambling State head coach Broderick Fobbs said. “Anytime you have two good teams battling, you know it will be a good game. Southern is a well-coached team. Today, we made some mistakes, and had some key penalties, but overall I am proud of our guys for continuing to battle.
The Grambling State victory secured its third consecutive spot into next Saturday’s Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) Championship at NRG Stadium in Houston, Texas against Alcorn State.
Southern (7-4 overall, 5-2 SWAC) took its first lead of the night, 21-20, with 5:02 remaining after Dillon Beard caught an 8-yard touchdown pass from Austin Howard.
On the ensuing kickoff, Calif Samon returned the ball 41 yards to set up the Tigers at the Southern 40. However, after Devante Kincade rushed for no yards and threw an incomplete pass, Grambling State called a timeout. Coming out of the timeout, Kincade connected with Quintin Guice for an 11-yard gain. Two plays later, the Jaguars were flagged for a personal foul to give the Tigers a first down at the Southern 11. On the very next play, Carter rushed straight up the middle for the go-ahead touchdown with 3:22 left.
The Tigers defense rose to the occasion on the next Southern possession as Howard was sacked by Brandon Varner as the ball came loose. Varner recovered the ball at the Jaguars 21. Four plays later, Marc Orozco booted a 36-yard field goal to seal the victory.
Grambling State (10-1, 7-0) took advantage of a Howard interception on the game’s first offensive play and marched 37 yards in seven plays as Kincade scored on a 9-yard run to give the Tigers an early 7-0 lead.
After a missed field goal, the Tigers took advantage and went 80 yards in nine plays as Carter caught a 9-yard pass from Kincade to extend the lead to 14-0 with 10:08 left in the third quarter.
Southern battled back and cut the margin in half as the Jaguars took advantage of a Carter fumble. Devon Benn scored on a 1-yard run with 3:40 left in the first half to trim the deficit to 14-7.
Back came Grambling State as the Tigers added a 42-yard field goal by Orozco to close out the first half on top, 17-7.
The Jaguars took over the momentum in the third quarter as Kendall Catalon caught a 20-yard pass from Howard to cap a five-play, 40-yard drive as Southern closed the gap to 17-14 with 3:31 remaining.
The Tigers quickly answered as Orozco booted a 37-yard field goal with 13:57 left in the fourth and that set the stage for a wild final five minutes.
Turning Point
Turnovers, turnovers and turnovers.
It all started with the first play from scrimmage. Je’Terious Pouncy picked off Howard and Grambling State cashed that into seven points.
But if you thought that was the difference, how about the fact that the Tigers turned a missed field goal into another seven points, and led 14-0 in the third quarter.
Pouncy wasn’t done as he added a blocked field goal to keep Grambling State on top 17-7 in the third quarter.
Southern was able to cash in on the only Grambling State turnover to cut the margin to 17-14 in the third.
The Tigers sealed the game late off two Jaguar turnovers. The first came when Brandon Varner sacked Howard and forced a fumble. He also recovered the fumble. The second came with 1:23 left when De’Aumante Johnson picked off Howard.
Grambling State took a knee for the final two plays to pick up its third consecutive Bayou Classic victory.
Inside the Numbers
– Grambling State finished with 17 first downs.
– The Tigers registered 293 total yards of offense, including 171 through the air.
– Southern tallied 19 first downs.
– The Jaguars recorded 303 total yards, including 198 through the air.
– Devante Kincade was 14-of-30 passing for 293 yards and no interceptions.
– Martez Carter rushed for 92 yards on 21 carries and averaged 4.4 yards per a carry.
– Darrell Clark caught six passes for 77 yards.
– Marc Orozco was 3-for-4 on field goals.
– Austin Howard was 24-of-41 passing for 198 yards and two interceptions.
– Herbert Edwards tallied 68 rushing yards on 14 carries.
– Dillon Beard caught five passes for 54 yards and one touchdown.
– Kendall Catalon finished with 44 yards on five receptions and one score.
– Deontae Hatter recorded six tackles, including five solo stops, and one sack.
– Malcolm Williams added six tackles and one sack.
– Johnkil Skipper tallied six tackles, including five assisted.
– Calvin Lunkins led the way defensively for Southern with eight tackles, including one sack.
– The Tigers were 7-of-16 on third-down conversions.
– The Jaguars were 8-of-17 on third downs.
– Grambling State was penalized seven times for 45 yards.
News & Notes
– Grambling State came into the game ranked No. 12 in the FCS Coaches Preseason Poll and No. 13 in the STATS FCS Top 25 Poll, – No. 1 in the SBN Sports Network Black College Football Poll and No. 2 in the BOXTOROW Coaches and Media Poll.
– Grambling State wore its black jersey’s with gold pants and improved to 2-0 during the Broderick Fobbs era.
– Broderick Fobbs improved to 3-1 all-time against Southern.
– Grambling State improved to 33-32 all-time against the Jaguars.
– The Tigers have won 10 straight after losing to Tulane to begin the season.
– Grambling State wins the SWAC West title for the third consecutive season.
– Grambling State’s Devante Kincade and Southern’s Austin Howard were named the 44th Annual Bayou Classic Most Valuable Players.
– Saturday’s game was broadcast live on the NBC Sports Network.
– Grambling State will meet Alcorn State for the 2017 SWAC Championship next Saturday.
Up Next
Grambling State returns to action next Saturday at NRG Stadium in Houston, Texas as the Tigers meet Alcorn State for the 2017 SWAC Championship game. The Tigers and Braves met earlier this season with Grambling State picking up a 41-14 on Oct. 21 in Grambling, La. Kickoff for the 2017 SWAC Championship game is set for 3:30 p.m.
Courtesy: GSU Athletics
