Tennessee State could not withstand the UT Martin run game in the second half, as they defeated the reigning OVC champion, No. 22 UT Martin, 20-10 Saturday evening.
The Tigers were up 10-0 late in the third quarter, but a stretch that saw a non-call on a pass play led to a shanked TSU punt, setting up the UT Martin at the Tigers’ 30-yard line. Four plays later, the Sky Hawks got on the board for the first time on the evening when Kinkead Dent connected with DJ Wilson from 15 yards out to score 10-7.
The UT Martin defense chased the TSU offense off the field with a three-and-out, giving the ball back to the offense at their 35-yard line. UT Martin took the lead six plays, and 65 yards later, Dent kept himself, taking it 31 yards to the house to give the Sky Hawks a 14-10 information they took into halftime that they would never relinquish.
An Aidan Laros 23-yard field goal late in the third quarter extended the gap to 17-10. A second Laros boot from 22 yards pushed the UT Martin to double figures at 20-10. That proved to be a significant deficit for the Tennessee State to overcome. The Tigers’ offense failed to produce anything with their four second-half possessions.
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Here is what led to the Tigers tasting defeat:
The Tennesee State offense sputters in the second half
With 11:55 remaining in the second quarter, Tennessee State was up 10-0. From that point forward, TSU scored no more issues, never progressed further than the Martin 42-yard line, and only had five first downs. Despite scoring twice, the Tigers’ offense could not breach the red zone on the evening. The TSU defense held the OVC-Big South’s top-rated offense to nearly half its average, and the offense could not capitalize. Tennessee State generated just 285 yards of total offense, 169 of which came in the first half. The Tennessee State passing attack failed to produce 200 yards for the third time in four games.
Sam Franklin imposed his will on the game
After only running for 14 yards on four carries in a quiet first half, Sam Franklin broke out in the second half, accumulating 118 yards on 16 carries in the final thirty minutes of the contest. Earlier in the week, Tennessee State coach Eddie George expressed concern over dealing with Franklin due to his “to hit the home run.” Bringing Franklin to the ground consistently proved to be a daunting task for the TSU defense, with the leading rusher in FCS and FBS breaking multiple key runs.
UT Martin dominated time of possession
As UT Martin leaned into their running game, particularly in the second half, when the Sky Hawks rushed the ball 27 times, they could keep it away from Tennessee State. The Sky Hawks held the ball for 35 minutes, compared to just 24:24 for Tennessee State.
Tennessee State (2-2, 1-1) seeks to return to the win column next week when they hit the road to take on the Owls of Kennesaw State.
