From the Digest Sports Desk

Before the season began Southern lost 15 players to off the field issues and everyone basically wrote them off. In the midst of the adversity, SU redshirt sophomore quarterback Bryant Lee has risen quietly putting together a solid season and showing he is a young talent with tremendous upside.
With Lee at quarterback Southern (7-3, 5-3 Southwestern Athletic Conference) has secured its first winning season since 2004, with its only three loses coming by a combined 13 points. Plus, the Jaguars are 9-3 since Lee took over as the starter late last season.
If you didn’t know Lee is a gamer, here’s a little inside information.
• In only his second career start Lee led Southern to a 21-17 defeat of Grambling in last season’s Bayou Classic and won the games MVP award going 25-for-31 for 254 yards and rushing 21 times for 57 yards and a touchdown.
• This summer Lee beat out fellow redshirt sophomore Warren Matthews in the team’s highly publicized QB derby claiming the starting spot.
• Lee led Southern to its first 5-0 start since the 2003 season when the Jaguars went 12-1 winning both SWAC and Black College National Championships.
• Lee leads the SWAC in average passing yards per game with 245.1 and has passed for a grand total of 2,206 yards.
• Lee leads the SWAC in total offense averaging 274.9 yards per game. So far this season he has totaled 2,474 yards.
• Lee is also the most efficient quarterback in the SWAC, completing 187-of-285 passes, with a 65.6 percent completion rate while only throwing three interceptions.
• Lee also leads the SWAC in touchdowns and touchdown to interception ratio, as he has 22 touchdowns and only three interceptions.
• Lee has rushed for 268 yards and four touchdowns on 122 carries. Currently he’s his team’s second leading rusher.
• Last week Lee passed for a career high 373 yards, the best by a Southern quarterback since Thomas Ricks’ 380 yards in the 2004 SWAC Championship game.
• Lee passed Willie Johnson (2,625 yards from 1962-68) for ninth on Southern’s all-time passing list with 2,777 yards Saturday against UAPB.
Yep. There you have it. Lee is that key component Southern has lacked since the championship days of Quincy Richard. If you don’t believe it, ask yourself where would Southern be without him?
And although Southern will not play for the SWAC Championship this season, with Lee at the helm and a gang of young experienced players returning next year seems like the time for the Jaguars to make a run.