Southern Miss football beats Jackson State 38-20 for first win of Huff era

Charles Huff can now mark off earning his first win as the Southern Miss head football coach from his to-do list. After dropping their first game to Mississippi State one week ago, the Golden Eagles bounced back on Saturday and defeated the reigning HBCU national champion Jackson State Tigers in Hattiesburg.

Southern Miss (1-1) struck first blood with the special teams unit itching for the first score of the game. Jackson State (1-1), facing a 4th and 7 on its own 38, sent the punting unit onto the field on its first offensive drive of the matchup. Donovan Warren’s punt was blocked by Ahmere Foster and scooped up by Zach Ruffin to put the Golden Eagles up 7-0.

Jackson State countered, with place kicker Gerardo Baeza connecting on a 46-yard field goal to put three points on the Tigers’ side of the scoreboard. With 23 seconds remaining in the first quarter, Southern Miss quarterback Braylon Braxton hit Bralon Brown for an eight-yard touchdown to give the home team a 14-3 lead.

A 46-yard carry by Travis Terrell Jr. moved Jackson State’s offense into Golden Eagle territory early in the second quarter. Three plays later, a 21-yard rush by Emari Matthews had the road Tigers within one score of their in-state foe. Keeping the strong connection alive, Braxton hit Brown on a 40-yard pass to land the Golden Eagles in the red zone. Southern Miss’ drive ended with a successful 46-yard field goal by Reed Harradine with 10:44 on the clock.

Neither team would add points to the scoreboard for the remainder of the half, and Southern Miss took a 17-10 advantage into the midway break.

Both teams led fruitless opening drives of the second half. After an exchange of punts, the Golden Eagles led the scoring charge of the third quarter when Braxton hit Ole Miss transfer Micah Davis for a 15-yard touchdown pass with 5:29 on the clock. An ensuing three-and-out by Jackson State primed Southern Miss to separate from its opponent. Braxton opened the fourth quarter with a touchdown pass to Kadinn Morris, giving the black and gold a 31-10 lead.

Jackson State showed a little life in the fourth quarter, but efforts by T.C. Taylor’s crew to mount an upset on the road were not enough to overcome a solid offensive showing by the Golden Eagles. Baeza nailed a 40-yard field goal to give the Tigers their first score of the second half. Leaving no room for the visitor to play spoiler, Southern Miss pressed the issue with a 15-yard touchdown run by Robert Briggs Jr. with right at 10 minutes remaining in regulation.

The Tigers proceeded to lead a five-minute, 75-yard drive that ended with Ahmad Miller trotting into the end zone from eight yards out. Following a scoreless drive by the Southern Miss offense, a last-ditch effort by Jackson State to garner some late-game magic was stymied when JaCobian Morgan threw an interception to Golden Eagle defensive back MaLik Caswell with just over a minute left of action.

Backup Southern Miss quarterback John White took the final two snaps of the ballgame, and Southern Miss emerged a 38-20 victor over a tough Jackson State team.

Stat leaders

Braylon Braxton completed 20 of 30 passes for 214 yards and three touchdowns in the win. The Marshall transfer’s top target was Bralon Brown, who had 52 yards and a score. In all, 11 Golden Eagles caught a pass on Saturday. Jeffery led the home team’s ground attack with 71 yards on 10 carries.

For Jackson State. JaCobian Morgan connected on 14 of 27 passing attempts for 131 yards and a pick. His top receiver was Nate Rembert, who logged 64 yards on four catches. Travis Terrell Jr. was the Tigers’ leading rusher with 80 yards on 10 carries.

Defensively, Mathis Haygood had a solid outing for Southern Miss with six total tackles, one of which was for a loss, and a sack. MaLik Caswell had the lone interception of the game. Jackson State’s Quincy Ivory stood out on the stat sheet, recording 10 total tackles, a sack, and a quarterback hurry.