One last hurdle remains for the Southern

Before the Southern Jaguars (8-4, 7-2) could start thinking about the SWAC championship, they had to finish the regular season against in-state rival Grambling State (1-11, 1-8).
That happened to come easily. The Jaguars scored touchdowns on their first four offensive possessions in the first half, led by senior receiver Lee Doss, who scored twice in the second quarter. The defense, not surprisingly, chased around another dual-threat quarterback but forced four turnovers in a 40-17 victory over the Tigers.
“If we do the things that we say we’re going to do we’ll always have a chance to win football games,” head coach Dawson Odums said after the game Saturday.
The final score might looks overly impressive, but the overall record on the regular season is even more eye-popping for the Jaguars. They’re 8-4, the program’s first eight-win season since 2007. They went 7-2 in the SWAC for a senior class that’s had two head coaches and three straight losing seasons.
There’s just one thing missing during this era of success under Odums, and it’s glaring: a SWAC title.
The Jaguars came close nearly a decade ago, losing to Alabama State in the championship game, which was then played in Mobile, Alabama. They’re determined not to suffer that fate Saturday in Houston when they play Jackson State (8-3, 8-1) at Reliant Stadium, the Tigers fourth appearance in the school’s history.
“They always say you start from the bottom and you make it to the top,” Doss said, who was named the Bayou Classic’s most valuable player. “I appreciate those guys helping me get to the SWAC championship my last year.”
Southern and Jackson State have already played each other this season and veteran players know what its like to come up short against the Tigers, too. The Jaguars loss 19-14 to the Tigers in September, which set the stage for a season of heartbreaking loses on the big stage. That was Jackson State’s third straight victory in Baton Rouge under current head coach Rick Comegy, which led to the Tigers winning the following six games, including a 1-0 win over Grambling, who forfeited.
But Southern, with the league’s no.2 pass offense, believes their momentum will carry over against the Tigers, who are sixth in the SWAC in pass defense.
“Momentum is everything in college football,” quarterback Dray Joseph said. Going into the next game with a victory is a great deal for us. Jackson State has been sitting down watching us.”
Senior defensive back Virgil Williams said that the team just stayed focused on preparing for Grambling and didn’t talk about the championship game against Jackson.
“Now that this game is over we’re definitely ready for next week,” he said.
The Jaguars know they’ll have to perform better on offense in Houston than it did in the first meeting between the two programs. The offense has taken major strides over the past several weeks, averaging 417 yards of total offense and scoring 38 points per game. Joseph has thrown 10 touchdown passes over the past four games for the Jaguars.
Joseph, who had five touchdown passes in last year’s Bayou Classic game, also tied the school record for most touchdown passes in a career with 70, set by former SU quarterback Bryant Lee.
“I told him when you go back out there get one more…call your own pass play,” Doss said he told Joseph.
Last year around this time, it was Arkansas Pine Bluff who was representing the West Division in the title game against Jackson. The Golden Lions defeated the Tigers 24-21, claiming the school’s first SWAC title since the 1966 season.
Odums feels that his team is showing consistent improvement as the season nears the finish line.
“We’re doing things better as we go down the stretch,” said Odums. “We had an undefeated November and that’s what we talked about as one of our goals. Now our goal is to be 1-0 in December.”