Richardson wants consistent play against Tennessee State

With the Jaguars starting out (3-0, 2-0 Southwestern Athletic Conference), Southern coach Pete Richardson is stressing the importance of consistent play.
The last time Southern was 3-0, the Jaguars finished 12-1, winning SWAC and Black College National Championships.
But with Saturday’s 12-2 win over Prairie View A&M, Richardson knows there is improvement to be made.
“I thought the play was inconsistent, especially offensively,” Richardson said. “Missed assignments caused some problems for us and when you have that you struggle.”
“We have a young quarterback and he’s learning, but we were inconsistent in dropping some passes that costs us some big plays,” said Richardson. “Overall I thought we hung in there with a good football team.”
Defensively, the Jaguar’s picked up the slack of the offense, holding Prairie View scoreless. In fact, the Panthers only points came on a safety in the end zone when a Southern offensive lineman was called for holding.
“Defensively I think they are starting to play together as a unit,” Richardson said. “When you look at the players we have on defense, that’s usually where the core leadership of our football team is at the present time.”
This week, Southern takes on a Tennessee State Tiger team that is (2-1, 1-0 OVC) and has knocked off Jackson State 16-13 and Austin Peay State 33-32.
Junior quarterback Antonio Heffner headlines the Tigers. Last week against Austin Peay, Heffner went 19 of 27 for 233 and one touchdown, while also rushing for 27 yards. Plus, junior wide receiver Chris Johnson also had five receptions for 81 yards and a touchdown. The Tigers generated 471 yards total offense last week.
“Offensively they have an outstanding quarterback,” Richardson said. “Heffner’s an athlete that’s playing quarterback and can really throw the football. He can cause some problems because he can run with it. And he has a real strong arm.”
On the season Heffner has completed 52 of 88 passes for 638 yards and three touchdowns. Junior running back Javarris Williams has 317 yards and one touchdown while sophomore Terrence Wright has 124 rushing yards and two touchdowns.
Johnson leads the Tigers’ receiving core with 16 catches, 273 yards and two touchdowns.
Defensively Tennessee State is led by standout in junior linebacker Romand Willis and defensive end Kellen Woodard respectively. Willis has 18 total tackles and one sack, while Woodard has 14 tackles from his defensive end position. Both senior linebacker Kalvin Baker and senior defensive end Shaun Richardson have 12 tackles, with Richardson adding three sacks.
“Defensively they have a defensive end named Woodard that can put pressure on the quarterback,” Richardson said. “He’s and individual that’s not very big, but he comes off the ball because his first step is really quick.”
But although Tennessee State possesses a lot of talent, the Tigers have had to win a few close games already. In the last two weeks Tennessee State has gone down to the wire defeating both Jackson State and Austin Peay on last second field goals.
Kicker Eric Benson has not missed a field goal this season, going four of four and six of eight on extra point attempts.
“They’ve been in some close games,” Richardson said. Their field goal kicker, Benson, has pulled out some outstanding kicks in the last few minutes of some of those games and really won for them.”
A plus for the Southern this week is that Tennessee State has been shooting itself in the foot as of late. Last week against Austin Peay the Tigers fumbled the football six times, losing four, and the week before that Heffner threw two interceptions in the Jackson state game.
Players of the Week
Senior defensive end Vince Lands was name SWAC Defensive Player of the Week for his performance against Prairie View. Lands had eight tackles (5 solo), 4.5 tackles for loss and 2.5 sacks.
“I thought Vince Lands did an outstanding job creating a lot of pressure on the quarterback,” Richardson said.
Offensively Richardson split his player of the week award between senior tight end Trent Thomas and long-snapper Corey Allen.
“Offensively we were real inconsistent, but I thought our tight end, Alexander did an outstanding job of blocking and catching passes,” Richardson said. “Also he did an outstanding job on special teams for us.”
“Corey Allen stepped in and did the long snapping for us” Richardson said. “He did an outstanding job of snapping the ball all the way back and making tackles on special teams.”
Missing in Action
Southern wide receiver Gerard Landry will sit out the first half of Saturday’s game while serving a suspension stemming from a punch thrown last week against Prairie View.
Landry has a current streak of at least one catch in the last 28 consecutive games, but with the suspension his streak could be in jeopardy. The streak dates back to September 17, 2004 in a game against Prairie View.
“S” On My Chest Weekend
The Southern University Athletic department has dubbed this weekend, “S” On My Chest weekend, for Saturday’s game versus Tennessee State. Fans are encouraged to wear blue t-shirts to the game as part of Southern’s game day marketing plan. The slogan, “I know I’m the best, because I wear the “S” on my chest”, is emblazoned on the front of the shirts.