Del Roberts is Southern’s offensive x-factor

Del Roberts proved just how vital he is to Southern’s offensive success Saturday against Texas Southern in Houston’s Reliant Stadium.
The junior wide receiver opened the game with an 80-yard catch and run from a touchdown on Southern’s first play from scrimmage. This was the first time Southern has scored a touchdown on the first play of scrimmage since the Jaguars defeated Florida A&M 33-27 in the season opener in the SWAC-MEAC Challenge in Birmingham, Ala.
“They left the middle wide open and played their safeties heavy outside the hash,” said Southern head coach Pete Richardson. “We were able to protect a little longer and get them down vertical on that first drive to hit TSU for a big play.”
On the play, Southern quarterback Bryant Lee froze TSU’s free safety as he looked down field away from Roberts and put the ball on the money, dropping it into his receiver right over the defenders head. The score was the confidence booster Southern so desperately needed as they clung to a 7-0 lead at the end of the first quarter before blasting TSU for 27 second quarter points, going into halftime ahead 34-7.
“It was very important to come out and score on our first drive because I feel like we’ve been kind of sputtering on offense the last couple games,” said Southern offensive coordinator Mark Orlando.
“We felt like we needed to attack their defense and start early doing that and that’s what we did,” Orlando said. “B. Lee read the first one and took it downtown and that kind of got the ball rolling. It was kind of like the first time we played Florida A&M, we scored the first time we touched the ball. That’s only the second time it’s happened for us all year so it was big to get the confidence.”
Plus, with Southern’s defense playing the same cover three as TSU, the Jaguars were afforded the opportunity of practicing against what they were going to see against the Tigers. That practice paid dividends as the Tigers were ripped to shreds, surrendering 426 yards of total offense.
“From the start they came out in the defense we practiced against all week, so we just had to execute it,” said Roberts. “We watched it all week and we practiced against it all week because our defense also plays cover three. We realized that their deep safety never comes off the hash, so we knew if we attacked them vertically we could kill them and we attacked that first.”
“It’s always tough to play on the road, especially with a team that hasn’t won any games because they’re going to come out with nothing to lose and play hard,” Roberts said. “You just have to come out and smash them in the mouth and that’s what we did.”
Including his performance against TSU, Roberts now has 38 receptions good for 455 yards and two touchdowns. He’s also averaging 12.0 yards per reception and trails only running back Darren Coates for the team lead in receiving yards. He’s also tied for the team lead in receptions with Coates.
Plagued by minor injuries most of the season, Robert returned last week against Alcorn to give the Jaguars the dimension of their offense they had been so desperately missing. Without Roberts Southern lost its only two games of the season but in the wake of his return the Jaguars are 2-0. Plus, if it didn’t show against Alcorn, it most certainly was made definite against TSU as Roberts hit the Tigers up for 123 yards and one touchdown on two receptions.
“It feels great to be back,” Roberts said. “Since I’ve been here I’ve been plagued by injuries. Just small nagging injuries, nothing too serious but it definitely hindered my performance. Just coming out now I’ve been working out hard and trying to stay healthy. Being back 100 percent feels good and I’m just giving it all I’ve got.”
Lagniappe
After missing last week’s game against Alcorn with an ankle injury, sophomore quarterback Bryant Lee returned in a big way as he lit up TSU’s defense, going 12-for-18 for 248 yards and four touchdowns. This marked the first time Lee and Roberts have been on the field at the same time since the Alabama A&M game on October 6. In his return, Lee showed no signs of rust as he came out early and set the tone with an 80-yard strike to Roberts for a touchdown. The score put Southern ahead 7-0 and they never trailed.
“B. Lee made some good passes, guys made plays and we just were able to march the ball down the field against them all day,” Roberts said.