NEW ORLEANS — Two Sun Belt teams remain unbeaten—James Madison (5-0, 2-0 SBC) and Marshall (4-0, 1-0 SBC)—following Week 5 action, while the conference boasts a .667 winning percentage and a 32-16 record in non-conference play.
Playing in front of 26,064 fans—the third-largest crowd in Bridgeforth Stadium history—James Madison used explosive plays to outpace South Alabama, 31-23, and move to 5-0 for the second-straight season.
Redshirt senior quarterback Jordan McCloud connected with sophomore wide receiver Elijah Sarratt (48 yards) and junior tight end Zach Horton (44 yards) on a pair of first-quarter touchdown passes of 40-or-more yards. Overall, McCloud completed 12-of-22 passes for 241 yards and three touchdowns—the third being a game-long 66-yard fourth-quarter connection with Horton—and led the Dukes in the ground game with 61 rushing yards on 10 attempts.
The touchdown receptions of 44 and 66 yards were the two longest receptions of Horton’s career, as he tallied a team-high 116 receiving yards on three catches and became the first tight end to record a 100-yard receiving game for the Dukes since 2015. Sarrattt finished with 92 yards on five receptions.
Sophomore linebacker Aiden Fisher headlined James Madison’s defensive effort with a career-high 10 tackles, 2.5 tackles for loss, a sack and two pass breakups. Senior defensive lineman Jalen Green added four tackles, 3.5 tackles for loss, 2.5 sacks and a 24-yard pick-six.
With a 132-yard receiving day, junior wide receiver Caullin Lacy was the bright spot for South Alabama in defeat.
Marshall outlasted Old Dominion, 41-35, to remain undefeated and move to 4-0 on the year. The win, which came in front of 22,652 fans at Joan C. Edwards Stadium, is Marshall’s sixth-straight over the Monarchs, dating back to 2016.
Redshirt sophomore quarterback Cam Fancher completed 29-of-35 passes for 278 yards and two touchdowns, while also leading the Thundering Herd ground attack with 102 rushing yards on 15 carries. Junior running back Rasheen Ali punched in a pair of scores for the fourth-straight game, while accumulating 79 yards on 28 rushing attempts.
Redshirt junior defensive lineman Elijah Alston highlighted the Marshall defensive effort with an 85-yard interception return for a touchdown.
Old Dominion used just eight plays and 1:41 of clock time on its five scoring drives—four of which were punctuated by scoring plays of 66-or-more yards. In his first collegiate start, redshirt sophomore Jack Shields had the first explosive play for the Monarchs—a 66-yard rushing touchdown that was the longest by a quarterback in program history. The play was later upstaged by rushing touchdowns of 70, 69 and 75 yards by junior running back Kadarius Calloway—two of which came on the first play of the respective drives.
Calloway tallied 236 yards—the second-most in Monarch program history—and three touchdowns on 11 carries in defeat, while Sun Belt Preseason Defensive Player of the Year junior linebacker Jason Henderson posted his 20th career double-digit tackle outing and his fifth-straight to open the 2023 campaign.
Troy’s defense forced three takeaways to propel the Trojans to a 28-7 victory over Georgia State, handing the Panthers their first loss of the 2023 season.
The Trojans got interceptions from senior cornerback O’shai Fletcher and junior spear Caleb Ransaw, but no turnover was bigger than senior linebacker Jayden McDonald’s fourth-quarter fumble recovery.
In a 21-7 game, with Georgia State threatening to pull within a score at the Troy one-yard line, junior defensive end Zach Edwards pushed Panther redshirt senior quarterback Darren Grainger’s rushing attempt back four yards and forced the fumble that was recovered by McDonald and returned 27 yards.
The Troy offense took over with 8:21 to play and manufactured a 14-play, 68-yard scoring drive that took 8:15 off the clock and provided the final 28-7 margin. The Trojans got a 121-yard receiving day from junior wide receiver Jabre Barber, while junior running back Kimani Vidal (76 yards) and sophomore running back Damien Taylor (69 yards) split the rushing duties. Vidal scored the final two touchdowns to seal the game for the Trojans.
McDonald finished with a team-high nine tackles and a tackle for loss to go along with his momentum-shifting fumble recovery.
Redshirt junior wide receiver Robert Lewis posted a 114-yard receiving outing for Georgia State in defeat, while senior running back Marcus Carroll scored his ninth rushing touchdown of the season.
In front of an Allen E. Paulson Stadium record crowd of 26,483 fans, Georgia Southern did something no other defense had been able to accomplish in five years against three-time Sun Belt Player of the Year redshirt senior Grayson McCall—recording four interceptions.
McCall had never thrown more than two interceptions in a game or three interceptions in a season prior to Saturday’s contest—and had just 10 interceptions in 921 career passing attempts.
Sixth-year defensive back Damel Hickman, redshirt senior defensive back Cam Williams, fifth-year linebacker Khadry Jackson and redshirt junior linebacker Marques Watson-Trent recorded the takeaways for the Eagles—with Jackson returning his 20 yards for a pick-six. Watson-Trent paced the defensive unit with a game-high 14 tackles.
Offensively, Georgia Southern sixth-year quarterback Davis Brin completed 34-of-56 passes for 322 yards and three touchdowns, with fifth-year wide receiver Khaleb Hood being his primary target with 12 catches for a team-high 131 yards.
The Chanticleers had a pair of 100-yard receivers in super senior wide receiver Sam Pinckney (132 yards, 1 touchdown) and redshirt sophomore wide receiver Jared Brown (106 yards) in the losing effort. Three different running backs scored touchdowns, led by redshirt junior running back Braydon Bennett (114 yards, 1 touchdown).
A four-touchdown outing from sophomore running back Ismail Mahdi propelled Texas State to a 50-36 win over Southern Miss and its best start since 2005. Mahdi ran the opening kickoff back 100 yards for a touchdown and added three touchdowns in the running game, while tallying 317 all-purpose yards. Redshirt sophomore quarterback TJ Finley completed 19-of-24 passes for 339 yards and two scores.
Two Bobcat wide receivers posted 100-yard receiving days—juniors Joey Hobert (126 yards, 1 touchdown) and Ashtyn Hawkins (101 yards).
Southern Miss, which trailed 42-10 at the half, scored 26 unanswered points out of the break to pull within a score, but could not complete the comeback attempt. Junior running back Frank Gore Jr. rushed for 116 yards and two touchdowns for the Golden Eagles in defeat.
A 54-yard field goal off the foot of junior Michael Hughes—the longest by a Mountaineer kicker since 2000—lifted App State to a walk-off 41-40 win over ULM.
Mountaineers junior quarterback Joey Aguilar completed 27-of-39 passes for 335 yards and three touchdowns—with the bulk of those completions going to redshirt junior wide receiver Kaedin Robinson (112 yards, 1 touchdown) and junior wide receiver Christian Horn (124 yards, 2 touchdowns). Junior running back Nate Noel (109 yards) made it five-straight 100-yard rushing performances to open the 2023 season.
ULM graduate student quarterback Jiya Wright had a career day, accounting for five touchdowns—four through the air and one on the ground—in defeat. Wright completed 18-of-27 passes for 268 yards and four touchdowns, while rushing for a team-high 74 yards and a score. Three of Wright’s touchdown passes were connections with sixth-year wide receiver Tyrone Howell.
Arkansas State freshman quarterback Jaylen Raynor completed 20-of-25 passes for 383 yards and a program-record six touchdowns as the Red Wolves routed UMass, 52-28. The Red Wolves’ three-game winning streak is the first for the program since a run of four-straight wins in 2019.
Raynor joined familiar names Caleb Williams (Oklahoma vs. Texas Tech, 2021), Justin Herbert (Oregon at California, 2016) and Patrick Mahomes (Texas Tech vs. Baylor, 2014) as the fourth FBS true freshman since 2013 with six touchdown passes in a game.
Nine different receivers caught passes, with five finding the end zone. Redshirt junior wide receiver Adam Jones registered a career-high 105 yards and a touchdown on three receptions, while each of senior wide receiver Jeff Foreman’s catches went for scores.
Defensively, redshirt freshman linebacker Javante Mackey racked up a team-high eight tackles, including the first two sacks of his career.
Louisiana held a 17-14 lead at the half—threatening to make it five-straight weeks with a win over an autonomy five foe for the Sun Belt—but conceded 21-straight points out of the break in a 35-24 loss to Minnesota.
Redshirt freshman quarterback Zeon Chriss continued to make his mark, connecting on 14-of-25 passes for 172 yards and a pair of scores. He also paced the Ragin’ Cajuns with 74 rushing yards on 10 carries in defeat.
Junior linebacker K.C. Ossai and senior linebacker Jasper Williams tallied a game-high eight tackles apiece for Louisiana.
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SUN BELT FOOTBALL – WEEK 5 RESULTS
Minnesota def. Louisiana, 35-24
James Madison def. South Alabama, 31-23
Arkansas State def. UMass, 52-28
Marshall def. Old Dominion, 41-35
Troy def. Georgia State, 28-7
Georgia Southern def. Coastal Carolina, 38-28
Texas State def. Southern Miss, 50-36
App State def. ULM, 41-40