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Savannah State University Athletics

1
24
Winner Savannah State SSU 7-2 , 5-1
6
Fort Valley State FVSU 5-4 , 3-2
Winner
Savannah State SSU
7-2 , 5-1
24
Final
6
Fort Valley State FVSU
5-4 , 3-2
Score By Quarters
Team 1st 2nd 3rd 4th F
SSU Savannah State 7 14 3 0 24
FVSU Fort Valley State 0 0 6 0 6

Game Recap: Football |

Tigers Dominate Wildcats, 24-6, In Final SIAC Game

FORT VALLEY, Ga. – The Savannah State put together a complete game effort in their final Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SIAC) match on Saturday, beating Fort Valley State 24-6 in Wildcat Stadium.
 
The Tigers conclude their regular season SIAC schedule with a 5-1 mark and move to 7-2 overall. The 5-1 conference record mirrors the 2019 season where they finished 5-0. Savannah State's nine SIAC wins between the 2019 and 2021 seasons set a school record for most consecutive conference wins.
 
On Saturday, the Tigers were solid on both sides of the ball from the kickoff.
 
Savannah State lost the toss and received to open the game. From the 15:00 clock mark to the 6:00 minute mark, the Tigers pounded the ball directly at Fort Valley using the option schemes that have kept their offensive highly productive throughout the season to control time of possession.
 
Fourteen plays after kickoff, D'Vonn Gibbons held onto to the ball on second and goal, stretching out from the 3-yard line into the end zone under a pile of bodies. Kenneth Lockhart added his 27th extra point of the season to lift Savannah State to an early 7-0.
 
The Wildcat offense sputtered on the ensuing possession and the Tigers got the ball back on a drive that carried over into the second quarter but didn't result in much else.  
 
Fort Valley answered Savannah State's ground game with a good bit of running too. They racked up an equal number of rushing yards on drives mostly consisting of run plays with No. 1 Emanuel Wilson carrying the ball. The Tigers put up 110-yards of offense in the first half with their No. 1, D'Angelo Durham and No. 6 Einaj Carter carrying the lion's share of attempts.  
 
But the Tiger defense was the difference maker in the first half, coming up big with three interceptions (one called back on a penalty) that resulted in two late scores and a big lead for Savannah State into the locker room.
 
With three minutes on the clock in the second quarter, and the Wildcats knocking on the Tigers' front door, Jared Mack came out of the backfield with eyes all over a simple pass attempt from Tyrell Jackson. Mack snagged the ball midair and took off for a 64-yard return to the home team's one-yard line. Gibbons did the rest of the work on his second keeper of the day, lifting the Tigers to a 14-0 lead.
 
On their next possession, Fort Valley moved the ball efficiently and again were knocking on the door; this time with 43 seconds left in the second quarter. And again, Jackson aired it out, but Ny'Em Bozeman had eyes on it and grabbed his second interception of the year, returning it 48-yards to setup the Tigers on the Wildcat's 30-yard line.
 
Durham rushed for a 5-yard touchdown two minutes and 18 seconds later and the Tigers extended their lead to a comfortable 21-0 as the clocked ticked away to the half.
 
Fort Valley opened the second half with the ball. They pushed into Tiger territory but two huge sacks from the Savannah State defense forced a punt. The punt was botched off a Tiger and Fort Valley recovered deep in the Savannah State red zone.
 
The new set of downs deep in Tiger territory setup the Wildcats nicely. Wilson pounded through the final 27 yards on two carries for the touchdown. The point after attempt was blocked by the Tigers, keeping the home team to only 6 points.
 
Savannah State's running game again ate up much of the clock in the third quarter. On their second possession of the quarter, in the Wildcat red zone, the Tigers were unable to pound in the touchdown, but went to the steady and reliable leg of Lockhart for a 29-yard field goal and a 24-6 lead with 5 minutes to play.
 
The fourth quarter mostly saw the Savannah State offense control possession with two very long drives that combined ate up 13 minutes of the quarter with 18 plays. But despite the successful drives the Tigers could not punch in any additional points.
 
Savannah State put up 211 yards of offense that included 184 rushing yards, mostly from Durham (69) and Carter (74). Gibbons added 24 rushing yards to the effort.
 
Brian Roberts led the Tiger defends with six tackles (2 solo, 4 assisted, 1.0 for a loss and 1 forced fumble). Senior Bernard Brown registered 5 tackles on the day, one sack and one tackle for a loss.

Savannah State concludes the regular season on November 6 as they return home for a non-conference game against SIAC provisional member Edward Waters. Kickoff in Theodore A. Wright Stadium is set for 5 p.m.
 
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