Southern Jaguars fall short at Memphis

The Southern University Jaguars took on the Memphis Tigers this morning in an exciting match up. Southern fans were dedicated and many made the trip to show their team support on this hot Saturday.

Southern started off the first half of the game against Memphis with a run from Devon Benn for 29 yards. This is no surprise as Benn has been one to watch since his break season last year. This was then followed by another 29 yard run by quarterback Ladarius Skelton. Jamar Washington came finished off the possession with two short runs that ended with a touchdown for the Jaguars.  Memphis came back with some passes that moved them far enough down the field to score a field goal making it 7-3. Memphis came back strong on their next possession with a 55 yard pass that was caught for their first touchdown of the game from Brady White to Antonio Gibson. The Jaguars came back with a variety of small runs from Ladarius Skelton, Craig Nelson, and Chris Chaney but their punt was blocked by Austin Hall and returned 27 yards for another touchdown for Memphis. The Jaguars had a lengthy possession comprised of 17 plays showing a strong run game and ended with a 4 yard pass to Jeremias Houston for a touchdown. The Tigers came right back a 17 yard pass to Damonte Codie and then a big 46 yard run by Kenneth Gainwell into the end zone. The next possessions for Southern and Memphis results in successful field goals leaving the score at 17-27, Memphis, for the first half.

Memphis started off the second half with Damonte Coxie as the go-to man for the quarterback and Kenneth Gainwell consistently running the ball for positive yardage. Kylan Watkins made an appearance and ran the ball for yet another touchdown against the Jaguars. Their next possession saw some nice runs and pass attempts but Brady White was sacked and the ball was returned by Southern’s Jordan Lee which ended in a huge touchdown. The Tigers wouldn’t allow that mishap to steal their momentum and counter with a 65 yard pass to Kedarian Jones. Kenneth Gainwell stepped in again and finished with a 1 yard run into the end zone. Southern punted on their next possession which lead to another Tigers touchdown as White made a 21 yard pass to Gainwell making the score 24-48. Southern saw another punt in their next possession this brought in a new quarterback for Memphis. Connor Adair came in and did not disappoint completing multiple passes to Kedarian Jones, Kylan Watkins, and Joey Magnifico. Rodrigues Clark ended with a 10 yard run for the final touchdown for the Tigers. Each team saw an additional possession before the clock ran out but no points were scored for either team.