Savannah, Ga. -- The Tigers did a lot of good things while building a 14-point third-quarter lead but ultimately costly turnovers and a missed extra point in overtime were the deciding factors in a 28-27 loss to Lane College before a crowd of 8,730.
SSU (4-4, 3-3 Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference) saw a three-game winning streak, its longest since 2021, snapped in heartbreaking fashion.
Tiger kicker Jimmy Mal missed the point-after try in overtime after Joseph Hampton scored on a 3-yard run as SSU attempted to send the game to a second overtime.
Dragons' running back Ike Brown powered in from the 1-yard line on fourth down on the first possession of overtime and Marcelo Ortiz's kick was perfect.
"It's disappointing, it doesn't hurt," Tigers coach Aaron Kelton said. "Our frustration can be masked as hurt but there are people with a lot more problems than this. It's a football game."
The visitors from Jackson, Tenn., struck for a touchdown before the huge homecoming crowd could settle in. Quarterback NyJal Johnson threw a screen pass to Rashad Wilson who found a seam and outraced the SSU defense 69 yards for a score on the first play from scrimmage.
The Tigers rebounded with a 97-yard TD drive in the second quarter. Defensive back Keion Bryant intercepted Johnson's pass at the 3 and the SSU offense converted three third-down plays before Demeke Colbert's 4-yard TD run and Mal's extra point tied the game 5:50 before halftime.
In the third quarter, quarterback Jhaydon Sullivan led an offense that suddenly looked unstoppable – until a fumble at the Lane 13 caused an abrupt halt.
Undaunted, Sullivan led the Tigers back down the field on their next possession and his 18-yard TD pass to Da'Shun Mitchell put SSU ahead 14-7.
And the next time the Tigers touched the ball, the same combo hooked up on a 45-yard TD pass for a 21-7 lead.
Sullivan, who was coming off a 256-yard, four-touchdown pass performance in a win over Edward Waters while earning the SIAC's Offensive Player of the Week last week, had 323 yards and two scores against Lane.
Mitchell, a 6-foot-3, 210-pound wide receiver, finished with eight catches for 150 yards and two touchdowns.
"We had this game. We should have put up 40 points," Sullivan said. "But we turned the ball over and you just can't do that."
Meanwhile, SSU's defense, led by Xavier Esquillen's four sacks and two quarterback hurries, had a string of three straight three-and-outs.
"We were just trying to stay strong and get the win and keep with the standard we set at the start of the season," Esquillen said.
But a Sullivan pass was picked off by Brandon Johnson and returned to the SSU 16. Two plays later, Zarek Williams hauled in Jerick Gaston's pass for a touchdown to trim the Tigers' lead to 21-13.
With nine minutes to go, Lane (3-5, 3-4) cashed in another turnover by going 27 yards in three plays, capped by Kylan Duhe's 1-yard TD run. His two-point conversion run tied the game at 21.
"You can't turn it over and expect to beat anybody," Kelton said. "(Lane) is a good football team, I said that all week, and when you turn the ball over that's what happens."
SSU responded with another drive, marching from its own 25 to the Lane 21, but with 2:31 left in regulation, Mal missed a 38-yard field goal try.
In overtime, Lane converted a third-down play with a 13-yard run by Brown to the Tigers' 6. Three plays later, the Dragons still needed a yard to get into the endzone. On fourth down, Brown powered in for a touchdown.
Dramatically, SSU answered the touchdown when, on fourth-and-four from the 19, Sullivan scrambled for a 16-yard gain to Lane's 3. Hampton scored on the next play.
SSU finished the game with a 351-257 edge in total yardage.
But the missed extra point left the Tigers short.
"At the end of the day, it's a loss and that's difficult," Kelton said.
SSU will play its final home game of the football season next Saturday (Nov. 2) against Albany State at 3 p.m. The Tigers conclude the season Nov. 9 in Columbia, S.C., against Benedict.
