NEW ORLEANS — James Madison clinched bowl eligibility for the fourth-straight season and secured its place as the last remaining unbeaten team among non-autonomy conferences, while Louisiana Tech earned its ninth-straight win over renewed in-state rival Louisiana in its Sun Belt Conference debut. The Dukes and Bulldogs’ victories were 2-of-5 in Sun Belt Week 6 action decided by one possession. 
 
Sixth-year quarterback Goose Crowder accounted for four touchdowns as Troy ran its winning streak over Southern Miss to six games with a 55-34 victory on Tuesday night. The Trojans amassed 662 yards of total offense, with Crowder completing 18-of-21 passes for 225 yards and two touchdowns and rushing for a team-high 145 yards and a pair of scores. Crowder’s rushing yardage total was the most by a Trojan quarterback since 1987. Fourth-year running back Jordan Lovett accumulated 195 all-purpose yards—142 rushing and 53 receiving, adding a touchdown on the ground and through the air. Troy’s 437 rushing yards were the most by the Trojans since they rushed for 464 against Southern Utah in 2002 and the most in a Sun Belt Conference contest since Georgia Southern rushed for 507 against New Mexico State in 2015. Fourth-year bandit Donnie Smith highlighted the Trojan defensive effort with five tackles, a tackle for loss, a sack and a forced fumble. 
 
Redshirt senior wideout Mario Sanders tallied eight receptions for 102 yards and two touchdowns and threw a 75-yard touchdown pass to account for three Southern Miss touchdowns in defeat. 
 
Behind a four-touchdown day from junior running back Keenan Phillips, South Alabama withstood an Arkansas State comeback bid in a 56-49 victory on Thursday night. Phillips rushed for a career-high 157 yards and three touchdowns on 19 carries and added a program-record-tying 100-yard kickoff return touchdown. Junior quarterback Jared Hollins also accounted for three touchdowns—two rushing and one passing—for the Jaguars, as the team amassed its most-ever points in a Sun Belt Conference game. Fifth-year defensive lineman Masey Lewis carded five tackles, a tackle for loss, a sack, a forced fumble and an interception to headline the South Alabama defensive presence, while junior defensive back Damyrion Darby added his third interception on the season. 
 
Third-year quarterback Trey Owens had a hand in five Arkansas State touchdowns in the losing effort, throwing for 418 yards and four scores and rushing for a team-high 28 yards and a touchdown. Fourth-year wide receiver Hunter Summers caught nine passes for a career-high 145 yards and two touchdowns for the Red Wolves. 
 
Old Dominion held App State to just 158 yards of total offense in a rain-soaked 10-3 victory on Saturday—the Monarchs first-ever in Boone. After a scoreless first half, redshirt sophomore running back Maurki James scored the game’s lone touchdown with 9:30 to play. Old Dominion’s other points came on a third quarter safety—one play after a Mountaineer interception in the red zone. Third-year defensive back Brandon Crutchfield’s interception with 36 seconds to play—one of three Old Dominion takeaways on the day—sealed the victory for the Monarchs. Redshirt junior running back Devin Roche rushed for 101 yards on 23 carries and fourth-year defensive lineman Javen Gibson carded four tackles—all for loss—and two sacks to highlight the individual efforts.  
 
App State also posted three takeaways, with junior defensive back Devin Henderson having a hand in two in defeat. 
 
Coastal Carolina led wire-to-wire, scoring the first 27 points and withstanding a Marshall comeback bid in a 27-24 win. The Chanticleers forced six takeaways on three interceptions and three fumble recoveries in the victory. Sophomore running back Dominic Lee-Knicely amassed 211 all-purpose yards (169 rushing, 42 receiving) and rushed for a 70-yard touchdown on Coastal Carolina’s first offensive play of the second half. 
 
Sophomore running back Judah Price amassed 136 all-purpose yards (124 rushing, 12 receiving) and scored the first two touchdowns of his Marshall career in the losing effort. 
 
Louisiana Tech scored 19 fourth-quarter points to manufacture a 32-31 come-from-behind win over in-state rival Louisiana in its debut in Sun Belt Conference play. The win is the nine-straight in the renewed rivalry for the Bulldogs. Fourth-year quarterback Blake Baker returned from injury and completed 32-of-42 passes for 319 yards and three touchdowns and rushed for 35 yards and a fourth score. Bulldogs fourth-year tight end Eli Finley (114 receiving yards, 2 touchdowns) and fifth-year wide receiver Talyn Shettron (102 receiving yards) each went over the century mark. Second-year wideout Jalen Mickens added two touchdowns—one receiving and one rushing—as part of a 95-yard day. Third-year defensive back Jordan McRae’s interception with 27 seconds remaining sealed the victory for the Bulldogs.
 
Redshirt junior quarterback Lunch Winfield had a hand in 2-of-4 Louisiana touchdowns in defeat, throwing for 239 yards and a score and rushing for another 23 yards and a touchdown. 
 
James Madison outlasted Georgia Southern, 27-24, to earn its first-ever victory in Statesboro, stay unbeaten on the season and clinch bowl eligibility for the fourth-straight year. Third-year quarterback JC Evans threw touchdown passes on each of his two attempts, highlighted by a 57-yard touchdown connection with sixth-year tight end Cole Keller on a 4th-and-1 play. Keller caught four passes for 108 yards and the aforementioned touchdown, while fifth-year running back George Pettaway rushed for 151 yards on 21 attempts. The Dukes scored 10 points off a pair of takeaways, which would prove to be the difference. 
 
Seventh-year quarterback Max Johnson completed 26-of-38 passes for a season-high 343 yards and three touchdowns, with fifth-year wide receiver Josh Dallas catching eight balls for a career-high 111 yards for Georgia Southern. The Eagles attempted a potential game-tying 52-yard field goal with 47 seconds to play, but it fell just short.   
 
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SUN BELT FOOTBALL – WEEK 6 RESULTS
Troy def. Southern Miss, 55-34 
South Alabama def. Arkansas State, 56-49
Old Dominion def. App State, 10-3 
Coastal Carolina def. Marshall, 27-21
Louisiana Tech def. Louisiana, 32-31
James Madison def. Georgia Southern, 27-24