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Gamecocks Win on Last Second Kick
8/31/2002 11:03:00 PM | Football
Steven Lee kicks 41-yarder in<
JACKSONVILLE -- Junior Steven Lee kicked a 41-yard field goal with one second left on the clock to lift Jacksonville State to a 20-17 come-from-behind victory over Alabama A&M in front of a record crowd of 16,851.
JSU scored all 20 of its points in the second half after being shut out 17-0 in the first.
"I'm just glad my team gave me a chance to win it there at the end," said Lee following the kick. "Our defense came up big tonight and we had that second half surge and got into a position to win it."
All of Alabama A&M's 17 points came after JSU turnovers. Desmond Hardy started things off early in the second quarter, when he returned a fumble 73 yards for a touchdown, putting the Bulldogs up 7-0.
Later that same quarter, Martel Holt intercepted a pass from JSU quarterback Reggie Stancil, which led to a 12-yard touchdown run by Melvin Gideon to give the Bulldogs a 14-0 lead.
Gideon would finish the game with a team-high 77 yards rushing on 18 carries.
Another JSU fumble would give A&M possession late in the half, allowing them to finish their scoring with a 28-yard field goal from Rashad Cylar with one second left in the half.
In the second half, Anthony Mayo would replace an injured Stancil to lead the JSU comeback. Mayo completed 6 of 14 passes for 101 yards. Stancil completed 5 of 12 for 31 yards.
Jax State scored early in the third quarter after Kory Chapman scored on an eight yard run, but Lee missed the extra point and A&M held a 17-9 lead.
Walter Payton Award candidate Rondy Rogers helped the Gamecocks rally after scoring on a two yard run and Chapman dove in the endzone for the two-point conversion to knot the game at 17-17 with just 3:11 left in the game.
Rogers led the Gamecocks in rushing with 98 yards and one touchdown on 16 carries. Chapman followed with 70 yards on 16 carries, one touchdown and a two-point conversion run.
Alabama A&M (0-1) plays again Sept. 14 when it plays host to Grambling. JSU (1-0) also plays on Sept. 14 when it travels to Mississippi State.
POSTGAME NOTES
Steven Lee's 41-yard field goal in the last second of the game was JSU's first last-second game-winning play since Nov. 11, 1996, when JeDarius Isaac completed a 42-yard pass to Patrick Plott on the last play of the game to give JSU a 32-27 victory.
Saturday's crowd of 16,851 was the largest in JSU school history. As a matter of fact, the three largest crowds is JSU history has been against Alabama A&M University. The previous records were 16,733 in 1999 and 16,600 in 1989.
JSU was shut out 17-0 in the first half, marking the first time the Gamecocks had been held scoreless for an entire half since Nov. 18, 2000, when Troy State claimed a 28-0 win over JSU.
Desmond Hardy's 73 yard-fumble return in the second quarter marked the first time an opponent returned a fumble for a touchdown since Nicholls State's Murphy Edwards recovered a fumble in the end zone on Sept. 26, 1998.
Jarvis Houston made his first career reception on a 25-yard pass from Anthony Mayo in the second quarter. The catch set up a six-yard touchdown run by Kory Chapman for the Gamecocks' first score.
Freshman receiver William Cumbie also made his first career reception, catching a 26-yard pass from Mayo with nine minutes left in the game.
JSU has an all-time record of 14-8-2 in home-openers at Paul Snow Stadium. Since 1994, JSU is just 1-4 in home-openers, claiming a 72-10 win over Cumberland University last season.
Junior kicker Steven Lee had a streak of five-consecutive made field goals snapped when he missed a 52-yard attempt early in the first quarter. The attempt was the longest in Lee's career, topping a successful 47-yarder vs. Arkansas State last season. Lee's 33-yard field goal in the fourth gave him at least one field goal in each of the past eight games. He is now 5 of 10 from 30 to 50 yards.
Junior defensive back Neika Willis recorded his first career interception in the third quarter.
Willis' interception extended a streak to five-straight games with an interception dating back to last season. The streak started with an interception against Tennessee Tech and extended with picks in games against Sam Houston State, Troy State and McNeese State.
Jacksonville State has never lost back-to-back games to Alabama A&M in the series that spans 22 games in 27 years. JSU holds an 18-2-2 advantage in the all-time series, losing in 1986 and in the two teams' last meeting in 1999.
JSU scored all 20 of its points in the second half after being shut out 17-0 in the first.
"I'm just glad my team gave me a chance to win it there at the end," said Lee following the kick. "Our defense came up big tonight and we had that second half surge and got into a position to win it."
All of Alabama A&M's 17 points came after JSU turnovers. Desmond Hardy started things off early in the second quarter, when he returned a fumble 73 yards for a touchdown, putting the Bulldogs up 7-0.
Later that same quarter, Martel Holt intercepted a pass from JSU quarterback Reggie Stancil, which led to a 12-yard touchdown run by Melvin Gideon to give the Bulldogs a 14-0 lead.
Gideon would finish the game with a team-high 77 yards rushing on 18 carries.
Another JSU fumble would give A&M possession late in the half, allowing them to finish their scoring with a 28-yard field goal from Rashad Cylar with one second left in the half.
In the second half, Anthony Mayo would replace an injured Stancil to lead the JSU comeback. Mayo completed 6 of 14 passes for 101 yards. Stancil completed 5 of 12 for 31 yards.
Jax State scored early in the third quarter after Kory Chapman scored on an eight yard run, but Lee missed the extra point and A&M held a 17-9 lead.
Walter Payton Award candidate Rondy Rogers helped the Gamecocks rally after scoring on a two yard run and Chapman dove in the endzone for the two-point conversion to knot the game at 17-17 with just 3:11 left in the game.
Rogers led the Gamecocks in rushing with 98 yards and one touchdown on 16 carries. Chapman followed with 70 yards on 16 carries, one touchdown and a two-point conversion run.
Alabama A&M (0-1) plays again Sept. 14 when it plays host to Grambling. JSU (1-0) also plays on Sept. 14 when it travels to Mississippi State.
POSTGAME NOTES
Steven Lee's 41-yard field goal in the last second of the game was JSU's first last-second game-winning play since Nov. 11, 1996, when JeDarius Isaac completed a 42-yard pass to Patrick Plott on the last play of the game to give JSU a 32-27 victory.
Saturday's crowd of 16,851 was the largest in JSU school history. As a matter of fact, the three largest crowds is JSU history has been against Alabama A&M University. The previous records were 16,733 in 1999 and 16,600 in 1989.
JSU was shut out 17-0 in the first half, marking the first time the Gamecocks had been held scoreless for an entire half since Nov. 18, 2000, when Troy State claimed a 28-0 win over JSU.
Desmond Hardy's 73 yard-fumble return in the second quarter marked the first time an opponent returned a fumble for a touchdown since Nicholls State's Murphy Edwards recovered a fumble in the end zone on Sept. 26, 1998.
Jarvis Houston made his first career reception on a 25-yard pass from Anthony Mayo in the second quarter. The catch set up a six-yard touchdown run by Kory Chapman for the Gamecocks' first score.
Freshman receiver William Cumbie also made his first career reception, catching a 26-yard pass from Mayo with nine minutes left in the game.
JSU has an all-time record of 14-8-2 in home-openers at Paul Snow Stadium. Since 1994, JSU is just 1-4 in home-openers, claiming a 72-10 win over Cumberland University last season.
Junior kicker Steven Lee had a streak of five-consecutive made field goals snapped when he missed a 52-yard attempt early in the first quarter. The attempt was the longest in Lee's career, topping a successful 47-yarder vs. Arkansas State last season. Lee's 33-yard field goal in the fourth gave him at least one field goal in each of the past eight games. He is now 5 of 10 from 30 to 50 yards.
Junior defensive back Neika Willis recorded his first career interception in the third quarter.
Willis' interception extended a streak to five-straight games with an interception dating back to last season. The streak started with an interception against Tennessee Tech and extended with picks in games against Sam Houston State, Troy State and McNeese State.
Jacksonville State has never lost back-to-back games to Alabama A&M in the series that spans 22 games in 27 years. JSU holds an 18-2-2 advantage in the all-time series, losing in 1986 and in the two teams' last meeting in 1999.
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