MOBILE, Ala. | An interception and a fumble led to two of three first-quarter touchdowns as the Alabama A&M University football team fell, 45-30, to Jackson State in the Gulf Coast Challenge on Saturday afternoon at Ladd-Peebles Stadium.
In a showdown of Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) East Division foes, Jackson State capitalized on the turnovers, cashing them into touchdowns as the Tigers never trailed.
"We knew it was going to be a good game," Alabama A&M head coach Connell Maynor said. "They jumped out on us in the first half. We didn't play well in our first three offensive possessions and gave them a short field with an interception and a quarterback fumble. It just put us behind the eight ball early on. At the end of the day, I am proud of my team for not quitting and for fighting back."
Alabama A&M (3-3 overall, 1-2 SWAC) got the ball to begin the game, but a Quincy Casey pass was deflected off a JSU defender and intercepted by Keydr Calligan at the AAMU 27 with 14:04 left in the opening quarter.
On the very first play after the turnover, Irv Mulligan picked up 24 yards to set up first-and-goal from the Bulldog 3. Two plays later, Jacobian Morgan went straight up the middle for the 3-yard touchdown as the Tigers grabbed a 7-0 advantage with 13:37 left in the period.
After a Bulldog punt, Jackson State went right back to work as the Tigers completed a 9-play, 80-yard drive, capped by an Ahmad Miller 38-yard touchdown run, extending the margin to 14-0 with 7:25 remaining.
On the next offensive possession for AAMU, Casey fumbled the ball and was recovered by JSU at the Bulldog 1.
The Tigers (4-2, 2-1) cashed the turnover into more points as Morgan scored on a 1-yard keeper, pushing the margin to 21-0 with 7:02 left.
Alabama A&M got the ball on its own 42 after a 14-yard punt by Avery Salerno.
The Bulldogs responded and put together an 8-play, 58-yard drive as Xavier Lankford connected with Cameron Young for 12 yards and on the next play, scored on a 1-yard keeper AAMU, which burned more than four minutes off the clock, closed the gap to 21-7 with 13:53 remaining in the half.
Neither team could not move the ball for a couple of possessions, but Jackson State pushed the lead back to three scores with less than two minutes in the half.
After an Alabama A&M punt, JSU started its drive at its own 42. Four plays into the drive, Jason Brown connected with Fabian McCray for 47 yards down the left sideline as the Tigers extended the advantage to 28-7 with 1:59 remaining.
Jackson State took advantage of a 17-yard punt by Austin McCready during the final 1:21 of the half as Brown connected with Seven McGee for five yards as the Tigers stretched the lead to 35-7 with 14 seconds to play.
Alabama A&M came out of the break and attempted an onsides kick to start the second half, but the ball was recovered by JSU at the Bulldog 47.
Jackson State's drive stalled at the AAMU 23 as Dylan Moore booted a 40-yard field goal as Jackson State increased its lead to 38-7 with 11:09 left in the third quarter.
The Bulldogs responded with a 13-play, 75-yard drive, taking nearly six minutes off the clock as Lankford found Young for 17 yards and with the two-point conversion, Alabama A&M closed the gap to 38-15 with 5:31 remaining.
After a short Jackson State punt, Lankford found Donovan Payne down the left sideline for a 32-yard gain. One play later, Lankford scored on a 6-yard touchdown run as the Bulldogs cut the deficit to 38-22 with 3:09 left in the period.
Jackson State took advantage of a short field and put the game away as Brown connected with McGee for 15 yards as the Tigers pushed their lead to 45-22 with 13:34 remaining.
Back came Alabama A&M as Lankford marched the Bulldogs 58 yards as he found Darin Turner on a 7-yard touchdown pass and with the two-point conversion, AAMU trimmed the margin to 45-30 with just over 11 minutes to play.
However, Alabama A&M's final attempt at a rally fell short as Jackson State pulled out the conference win.
CHECKING THE BOX SCORE
- Alabama A&M finished with 384 total yards, including 277 through the air
- The Bulldogs registered 25 first downs
- Xavier Lankford went 21 of 36 passing for 265 yards, with two touchdowns and two interceptions
- Quincy Casey was 3 for 7 passing for 12 yards and one interception
- Donovan Eaglin carried the ball times for 53 yards
- Cameron Young recorded eight catches for 110 yards and one score
- Young averaged 13.8 yards per catch
- Jordan Mitchell paced the defense with 13 total tackles, including 10 solo stops
- Austin McCready punted the ball four times, with a long of 55 yards
- Jackson State finished with 406 total yards
- The Tigers registered 22 first downs
- Jason Brown went 14 of 26 passing for 202 yards and three touchdowns
- Irv Mulligan carried the ball 23 times for 115 yards
- Fabian McCray caught a pair of passes for 82 yards and one score
- Khalil Arrington tallied five tackles, with three solo stops
NEWS & NOTES
- Alabama A&M and Jackson State met in the Gulf Coast Challenge
- The game was played at Ladd-Peebles Stadium
- Jackson State stretched its lead in the all-time series to 20-14
- The Tigers have now won three straight in the series
- Jackson State led 21-0 after one quarter
- JSU capitalized on two AAMU turnovers, cashing them into 14 points in the first quarter
- Alabama A&M played two quarterbacks – Quincy Casey (started) and Xavier Lankford
- Jackson State won the turnover battle (three interceptions and one fumble)
UP NEXT
Alabama A&M steps out of SWAC divisional play as the Bulldogs visit Grambling State next Saturday. Kickoff against the Tigers is set for 3 p.m. from Eddie G. Robinson Memorial Stadium and will be streamed live on ESPN+. Grambling State enters the matchup off a 25-24 road loss on Saturday to Alcorn State.
For complete coverage of Alabama A&M Athletics, check out the official homepage at www.aamusports.com. Remember to follow us on social media: Instagram (@aamuathletics) and Twitter (@_aamuathletics).
