Jackson State football shows toughness in bounce-back win over Southern

Jackson State football had something to prove after suffering its first loss of the season a week ago. For JSU coach T.C. Taylor, that meant winning on both lines of scrimmage against rival Southern on Saturday.

Or another way of putting it: Have the "big men lead the way."

The Tigers did that in a 27-14 win over the Jaguars on Saturday, just one week after a 28-10 loss to Florida A&M.

JSU (2-1) ran the ball effectively with running backs Irv Mulligan and Desmond Moultrie and kept JSU quarterback Jason Brown clean against Southern (0-2).

Here are three takeaways from the win:

Jackson State offense makes timely plans

Jackson State came out of halftime and capped a lengthy drive with a 21-yard touchdown run from Mulligan. On the play, wide receiver Duke Miller blocked two defensive backs to help spring Mulligan.

In the fourth quarter, after Southern cut JSU's lead to 20-14 with 11:54 to play, the Tigers responded with Andre Hunt's 75-yard TD run.

Jackson State defense opportunistic

Jackson State's defense was opportunistic from the outset.

JSU led 13-7 in the second quarter when Southern advanced to the Tigers 15-yard line. One play after Jackson State's Javarian Jenkins was ejected for targeting with 4:31 remaining in the half, defensive back B.J. Washington intercepted Southern QB Harold Blood in the end zone to squash a scoring opportunity.

Jackson State intercepted Blood again later in the game and forced five sacks and fumble.

Jackson State special teams an area of concern

Jackson State punter Matt Noll has a very strong leg but is prone to outkicking coverage.

Southern's Chandler Whitfield took advantage with a 66-yard return to the JSU 35, though a block in the back nullified the return.

Jackson State missed a 38-yard field goal that could have put the game away. After a 63-yard touchdown score by Rico Powers, kicker Gerado Beaza missed the extra point as JSU took a 13-7 lead with 8:58 to play in the second quarter.