SportsDirect Inc. staff
Nov 15, 2014
South Alabama 24, Texas State 20: Terrance Timmons rushed for 74 yards and the go-ahead touchdown, and the host Jaguars' defense forced an incomplete pass in the end zone on the final play to hold off the Bobcats.
Hunter Vaughn was 20-of-28 for 182 yards with a touchdown and an interception, and caught a TD pass for South Alabama (6-4, 5-3 Sun Belt), which overcame four turnovers - three in the first half - to become bowl-eligible. Danny Woodson recorded a TD reception to help the Jaguars snap a two-game losing streak.
Texas State's Tyler Jones was 25-of-42 for 300 yards and a touchdown, but his pass into a crowded end zone on second-and-goal from the 4 fell incomplete as time expired. Robert Lowe rushed for 76 yards and a score for the Bobcats (5-5, 3-3), who had their three-game road winning streak snapped.
South Alabama reached into its bag of tricks when Vaughn threw a lateral pass to backup quarterback Jake Howton, whose return toss to Vaughn resulted in a 28-yard touchdown with 10:07 left in the second quarter to trim the Texas State lead to 10-7. The Bobcats restored their 10-point advantage when Jones hit a wide-open Lawrence White in stride for a 46-yard touchdown with 4:17 to play in the first half before Aleem Sunanon's 46-yard field goal made it 17-10 at the break.
The Jaguars went 75 yards on the opening possession of the second half, with Vaughn's 8-yard touchdown pass to Woodson tying the score, and Timmons' 8-yard scoring run with 12:18 remaining giving South Alabama its first lead at 24-17. After David Mims intercepted Vaughn and returned it 46 yards to the Jaguars 25-yard line, the South Alabama defense stiffened and held Texas State to a 31-yard field goal by Will Johnson with 4:21 left.