Sunday, April 28, 2024

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DHS alum James gashed UT Martin for 184 yards and three scores

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Junior DaMarcus James finished the game with 184 rushing yards, marking the third time the Demopolis, Ala., native topped 100 rushing yards. He now has eight career 100-yard rushing games, which is tied for the third most by a Gamecock since moving to Division I in 1995. James also has eight touchdowns over the last three weeks. After James rushed for more than 100 yards in the game, it marked the first time that UT Martin had allowed a 100-yard rusher this season. James scored three touchdowns for the third-straight game, making him the first player in school history with three 3-TD games in a career and the first with three-straight. James has ran for three touchdowns. No other Gamecock has three 3-TD games in a career.
Junior DaMarcus James finished the game with 184 rushing yards, marking the third time the Demopolis, Ala., native topped 100 rushing yards. He now has eight career 100-yard rushing games, which is tied for the third most by a Gamecock since moving to Division I in 1995. James also has eight touchdowns over the last three weeks. After James rushed for more than 100 yards in the game, it marked the first time that UT Martin had allowed a 100-yard rusher this season. James scored three touchdowns for the third-straight game, making him the first player in school history with three 3-TD games in a career and the first with three-straight. James has ran for three touchdowns. No other Gamecock has three 3-TD games in a career.

MARTIN, Tenn. – DaMarcus James continued to find the end zone and the Jacksonville State football team rolled to a 41-27 Ohio Valley Conference win at No. 22 UT Martin on Saturday.

The junior from Demopolis, Ala., ran for 184 yards on 23 carries and scored three touchdowns for the third-straight game to help the Gamecocks (5-1, 1-1 OVC) spoil Homecoming for the Skyhawks (3-2, 0-1 OVC). UTM entered the game having never trailed an FCS opponent this season, but it never led in falling to 7-28 all-time to JSU.

James continued to etch his name in the Gamecock record books, becoming the first player in school history to tally three three-touchdown games in a career, let alone in three-straight games. With his third 100-plus yard game of the year he surpassed the 500-yard mark at the halfway point of the season. His 184 yards more than doubled the previous high the Skyhawks had allowed by a player this year.

The win was the first for JSU this season in which the Gamecocks have never trailed at any point in the game and it also snapped an NCAA-record-tying streak of consecutive overtime games at three.

Junior Max Shortell threw for 226 yards and two touchdowns on14-for-25 passing with no interceptions, while freshman Josh Barge hauled in five passes for 114 yards. Sophomore Markis Merrill caught seven passes for 67 yards and a score.

Several Gamecocks racked up tackles in the win, led by Jermaine Hough and Pierre Warren with nine apiece. Hough intercepted a pass and Warren had three break-ups. Dustin Gayton and Rashod Byers each made eight tackles. JSU forced two turnovers, the fifth time in six games in which it has forced at least two in a game.

Dylan Favre led the Skyhawk offense with 290 yards on 24-for-36 passing. He threw two touchdowns and one interception. Chris Thompson had 107 receiving yards on seven catches, while Jeremy Butler had two scoring catches.

The Gamecocks took their first possession down the field and did so quickly, going 69 yards in just three plays and 44 seconds. A 46-yard pass from Shortell to Merrill set up a pair of runs by James that gave JSU the 7-0 lead and the Skyhawks their first deficit to an FCS foe this year.

The defense held the Skyhawks on fourth down to get the ball back, and the offense put together an 11-play drive that ended with a 38-yard field goal by Griffin Thomas. The senior improved to 9-for-10 from inside 40 yards and gave JSU a 10-7 lead with 2:34 left in the first.

UTM finally lit its side of the scoreboard on the next drive, a 75-yard one that took seven plays and was capped by a 10-yard pass from Favre to Jeremy Butler with 20 seconds to play. The Skyhawks then returned a wayward MacInnes punt to the seven, but an errant snap on the first play fored them to settle for a 37-yard Jackson Redditt field goal that tied the game early in the second quarter,

The two exchanged possessions before the Gamecocks used a little trickery to grab the lead back. Shortell dropped a 42-yard pass into Barge’s hands at the UTM 36, setting up a flea flicker that saw DaMarcus James take the handoff before flipping it back to Shortell. The JSU quarterback then tossed it to a wide open Spencer Goffigan for a 36-yard touchdown that gave JSU a 17-10 lead with 5:09 left in the half.

On their next drive, the Skyhawks went for it on fourth and three but an errant snap sailed 21 yards before Jordan Jackson recovered at the UTM 45 with just under two minutes to play. Shortell went to work, driving the Gamecocks the rest of the way and finding Markis Merrill for a 10-yard scoring strike that gave JSU a 24-10 halftime advantage.

The Skyhawks held JSU to start the third quarter to get the ball. They were stopped on three plays, but a roughing-the-passer call extended the drive. Favre drove UTM down the field before finding Butler for a 17-yard touchdown pass that cut JSU’s lead to 24-17 with just under nine minutes on the clock.

The Gamecock offense couldn’t move the chains again, but the defense came through. Jermaine Hough intercepted Favre and took it 18 yards to the UTM 24. Thomas missed a 40-yard field goal try, but an offsides flag gave him another chance from 35 yards out and he connected. His second successful kick of the day made the Gamecocks’ lead 27-17 with 4:27 left in the third.

UTM answered with a 44-yard kick from Redditt to cut it back to a seven-point game, but after two exchanged punts the Gamecocks got back in the end zone. James capped a 10-play 40-yard drive with a one-yard run with just under 10 minutes to play. The big play in the drive was an 19-yard scramble by Shortell on fourth down that kept the scoring drive alive.

James put the game on ice with 5:24 to play with his second 50-yard run and his third touchdown run of the day. His ninth score in the last three weeks gave the Gamecocks a 41-20 lead with 5:24 left in the game.

JSU returns home for Homecoming on Saturday vs. Tennessee State, a game that is scheduled to begin at 3 p.m. CT at Burgess-Snow Field.