The Southern Heritage Classic takes place this Saturday. The 35th edition of the game pits the Tigers of Tennessee State against the Lions of Arkansas Pine Bluff for the second consecutive season. Last year’s matchup was UAPB’s debut in the Classic, with them falling in a hard fought contest 24-14, with Tennessee State blocking a potential game-winning field goal that was subsequently returned for a touchdown that sealed the game.
Arkansas-Pine Bluff
UAPB enters the contest with a 1-1 record, however, their games have been opposites. Arkansas took UAPB to the woodshed with a 70-0 annihilation in the opener, in which the Razorbacks opened the game by scoring on their first 10 possessions. Arkansas piled up 687 yards of total offense and averaged 9.8 yards per play to just 130 and 2.8 yards per play for the Lions. In their contest the following week against Arkansas Baptist, it was the Lions who looked like the bullies, finding the end zone on their forst six possessions and building a commanding 52-0 lead on the way to a 73-0 obliteration of the Buffaloes. Quarterback Mekhi Hagens completed 15-of-22 passes for 350 yards and 2 touchdowns. Running back Oshawn Ross ran for 100 yards and 3 touchdowns on a mere 5 carries and wideout JaVonnie Gibson hauled in 6 passes for 172 yards and a score of his own.
The Pine Bluff defense allowed just 9 Arkansas Baptist first downs, 161 yards of offense, and forced 7 punts.
Tennessee State
The first two games of UAPB’s opponent, Tennessee State, have played out in an eerily similar fashion. The Tigers were largely able to completely impose their will in a 41-21 win over Mississippi Valley State in the John Merritt Classic. On the backs of a variety of big plays, Tennessee State stormed to a 31-0 halftime. The Delta Devils scored 21 points in the fourth quarter to avoid the shutout and make the score respectable. Draylen Ellis looked sharp and may have played his best game as a Tiger, as he set a career-high in passing yards with 356, as well as tossed 3 touchdowns. Jalal Dean caught 9 passes for 144 yards and a touchdown.
Last week Tennessee State traveled to Fargo, ND to take on the no.2 ranked team in FCA, the Bison of North Dakota State. It was a rough day at the office for Coach Eddie George’s team, as they sw up close and personal that NDSU’s reputation as a perennial FCS powerhouse was well-earned, as TSU was taken to the woodshed to the tune of a 52-3 donkey-kicking. North Dakota State’s first punt of the day did not occur until the 12:55 mark of the third quarter, a point at which they already had a 35-0 lead. Tennessee State narrowly avoided being shut down with a 19-yard field goal from James Lowery on the Tigers’ final possession of the afternoon. It was a game that Coach George said the game showed his team “first-hand what it takes to get to that level.”
Prediction :
In what will unquestionably be a hard-fought and physical match up, Tennessee State will be able to cause and take advantage of UAPB miscues. Draylen Ellis will look closer to his week 1 self and will be able to lead the Tigers’ offense down the field for multiple scores early on. As was the case with their bout last season, down multiple scores, the Lions will not panic but will attempt to use their run game, along with timely attacks with the passing game, to attempt to work their way back into the contest. However, Tennessee State will have learned from the lessons of last season, where their tendency to overpersue put defenders out of position, which led to several big plays and critical third-down conversions.
UAPB will eventually be forced to put the ball in the air more. Although Pine Bluff quarterback Mekhi Hagens leads the SWAC in passing yards per game, 236.5 yards per game, the redshirt junior is relatively inexperienced. He has appeared in 11 games but has attempted just 162 passes in his career and has thrown more than 20 passes just 4 times in those 11 games. Hagen’s inexperience will come back to haunt him as Tennessee State defensive coordinator Brandon Fisher will be able to dial up some looks that will confuse Hagens, leading to errors, which the Tigers’ defense will be able to take advantage of, which will pave the way for Tennessee State’s second consecutive win in this new era of the Southern Heritage Classic.
Final Score: Tennessee State: 33 Arkansas Pine Bluff: 14
