Football | 11/2/2017 1:02:00 PM

SAVANNAH, Ga. – Savannah State's football team will attempt to win its second consecutive game when the Tigers play host to Delaware State on Saturday.

Kickoff is at 5 p.m. for the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference game between SSU (1-7, 1-4 MEAC) and Delaware State (1-7, 1-5) at T.A. Wright Stadium. The game will be radio-broadcast on WHCJ 90.3 FM and SSU Internet (SSUAthletics.com).

SSU is coming off a 27-9 victory at Norfolk State last Saturday. The win not only spoiled the Spartans' Homecoming, but also gave the Tigers their first victory of the season, and their first road win since beating North Carolina Central in 2011. The victory ended SSU's 10-game losing streak dating to last season.

"It just changes your whole mindset," SSU second-year head coach Erik Raeburn said of winning. "After you've played hard for 60 minutes, it just feels so much better to walk off the field with a win. We needed one. Our guys deserved to get one. We played really well; certainly the best we've played all season."

SSU won back-to-back games last season when it beat Howard University, 31-27, and defeated Norfolk State, 31-14.

"If we play our best, we feel like we can line up and play against anybody," said Raeburn, whose Tigers have played their last three games on the road. "Unfortunately, we're not good enough where we could show up with our 'C' game and get a win. We've got a bunch of young guys. It is what it is. But they're getting more and more consistent with every practice and game that they play.

"Everybody has to be locked in," Raeburn continued. "We can't afford the mental errors. If we eliminate the mental errors we typically play well enough, physically, to compete with everybody in the conference. Hopefully, we can go out there and play really well, and find a way to scratch out a win in the fourth quarter, and continue to build the confidence up of these young guys that we have on our team."

Delaware State is coming off a 42-14 loss to North Carolina Central last Saturday in Durham, N.C. The Hornets are 4-0 in the series against SSU, including a 35-10 victory in the teams' last meeting in 2014.

On paper, it appears SSU might be favored against Delaware State. The Tigers beat Norfolk State. Delaware State lost, 17-7, to Norfolk State. SSU lost, 17-10, to Hampton. Delaware State lost, 28-15, to Hampton.

"We haven't won enough for our guys to overlook teams," Raeburn said. "I don't think that's an issue. They do match up well against us. They've been all-around one of the best special teams units. Maybe Morgan State has been the best. But they'd be right behind them. (Delaware State's) kicker has made more field goals than anyone else (in the conference).

"In every game except Morgan State, we have given ourselves a little advantage in special teams," Raeburn continued. "We've made more plays on special teams than the other teams have made. It will be a battle for us to do that against these guys because they are so good on special teams."

SSU'S OFFENSE DOMINATES NORFOLK STATE
SSU had its best offensive production of the season against Norfolk State, amassing 382 yards of offense. The Tigers were 4-of-4 in red-zone scoring opportunities.

"That was huge," Raeburn said. "We got four touchdowns. We weren't lining up to get field goals. A big part of that was we ran the football better than we've run it all year. Our offensive line played the best game they've played all season. That's definitely a big reason. If you can't run the football and get down in the red zone then that field kind of shrinks on you. Those passing windows get a little tighter."

O-LINE HELPS MCCLOUD HAVE CAREER PERFORMANCE
SSU's offensive line played its best game this season against Norfolk State. The Tigers' linemen helped running back Jaylen McCloud provide a huge spark for the offense. McCloud, a 6-foot-1, 195-pound freshman from Jacksonville, Fla., ran for a career-high 132 yards and a touchdown.

"We had a couple of running backs out (Uriah Oliver and Rashad Saxton are injured)," Raeburn said. "We've played four true freshmen at some point during the season on the offensive line. The guys up front, they played their best game of the season. Jaylen played really well. He was fantastic in the fourth quarter but he played really good all game. He was running hard in the fourth quarter. Made some great cuts. Made a bunch of guys miss. Broke some tackles.

"We have struggled in games where we haven't been able to run the football," Raeburn continued. "(Delaware State has) the fourth-best rush defense in our conference. The thing that they've done best, defensively, is stopping the run so it will be a challenge for us for sure. But I'm looking forward to it. Hopefully, our guys will come out and play really well."

GIBBONS SOLID AT QUARTERBACK
Another player who benefitted from the offensive line's performance against Norfolk State was SSU quarterback D'Vonn Gibbons, who made his sixth collegiate start. The 6-foot-2, 205-pound freshman from Stone Mountain finished 11-of-17 passing for 120 yards and a touchdown. He ran for 89 yards and a touchdown.

"He was pretty efficient passing," Raeburn said. "We had a couple of drops so his completion percentage really should have been excellent. It was solid. It was good. But it would have been excellent if we didn't have a couple of drops. And he also ran for like 90 yards, most of which was in the first half.

"When he hurt them on some of those run plays, now they're more worried about him pulling it on some of the runs, which creates a little more space for Jaylen and some of those other guys," Raeburn continued. "His play on Saturday certainly helped to make it easier to run the football."

TIGERS' DEFENSE STIFLES SPARTANS
SSU's defense played its best game this season, limiting Norfolk State to nine points. The last time the Tigers held an opponent under 10 points was in 2008, when SSU beat Concordia-Selma, 23-7, and beat Webber International, 24-7.

SSU sophomore defensive back Donald Rutledge, a transfer from The Citadel, picked off a pass against Norfolk State. It was his second interception this season.

"That was huge," Raeburn said of Rutledge, who leads SSU in tackles with 59. "It got us the ball and we were kind of in control of the game at that point. That interception almost sealed it for us. We drove down and punched it in for another touchdown, which sealed the deal. That was a big play. At that point, they were down 21-9. They needed two touchdowns so they really had to score on that possession. When he got that pick that was, in my mind, almost a game-clincher."

SSU junior defensive back Isaiah Bennett made a team-high nine tackles against the Spartans.

DELAWARE STATE OUTLOOK
Quarterback Keenan Black, a 6-foot-2, 185-pound sophomore from Concord, N.C., started his second consecutive game against NCCU. He finished 13-of-33 passing for 119 yards, a touchdown and two interceptions. Jack McDaniels came off the bench and was 11-of-17 passing for 166 yards, a touchdown and an interception against NCCU. McDaniels, a 6-foot-3, 205-pound freshman from Lorton, Va., is 86-of-155 passing for 1,039 yards, three touchdowns and six interceptions.

"They take a lot of shots down the field in the passing game," Raeburn said. "They throw the ball to the running back a lot, too."

Wide receiver Taronn Selby, a 5-foot-9, 170-pound junior from Bear, Del., has made 26 catches for a team-leading 369 yards and a touchdown.
"(Selby) is one of the top receivers in the league," Raeburn said.

Wide receiver Fatu Sua-Godinet, a 6-foot, 180-pound sophomore from Honolulu, also has 26 catches for 336 yards and two touchdowns.

Running back Brycen Alleyne, a 5-foot-6, 165-pound junior from Wilmington, Del., has a team-leading 216 yards on 52 carries. Alleyne did not play against NCCU because of an injury.

"Their running back is really good," Raeburn said. "He's also their kickoff and punt returner. They haven't had as much success running the football as they did a year ago. I think they're a little younger up front. Sort of like we are. But their running back is a good player, and if he gets any space at all, he'll hurt you."

Linebacker Brian Cavicante, a 6-foot, 220-pound sophomore from Portsmouth, Va., has made a team-leading 56 tackles, including 7.5 for loss and two sacks. Cavicante had a career-high 16 tackles against NCCU.

"I've been really impressed with their inside linebackers," Raeburn said. "I know No. 7 (Cavicante) was a Preseason All-MEAC player. This isn't his first year playing well. I've been really impressed with their inside linebackers. Part of it is their scheme. They play real aggressive. They blitz a lot. They make it tough on you to try and run the football.

"I think that will be a critical matchup for us," Raeburn continued. "If we run the ball as well as we did last week, we'll have a good chance. If we don't, and they're able to play the run as well as Hampton's defense did, or Charleston Southern, that will put a lot of pressure on us from an offensive standpoint and make life pretty tough on us."
Defensive back Jahad Neibauer, a 5-foot-10, 180-pound sophomore from Harrisburg, Pa., is second on the team with 54 tackles. Neibauer made 12 tackles against NCCU.