MONTGOMERY – Toss aside a couple of early turnovers and a lengthy weather delay and head coach Rich Rodriguez's debut at Jacksonville State at the FCS Kickoff was a rousing success.

Senior Zion Webb rushed for a career-best three touchdowns as the Gamecocks erased a 10-point deficit and routed No. 10 Stephen F. Austin 42-17 at Cramton Bowl to give Rodriguez his first victory as a Gamecock. The contest was officially halted by lightning and rain with 13:18 remaining in the fourth quarter.

"I'm really proud of our guys because we didn't start out well and had some adversity," Rodriguez said. "There were a lot of reasons for our guys to hang their heads, but they didn't. They came back and had a great attitude in the second half."

Jax State scored 35 unanswered points after Stephen F. Austin staked a 17-7 lead in the first half.

Webb started at quarterback and accounted for 219 scrimmage yards (160 passing, 59 rushing). Anwar Lewis rushed for 100 yards in his JSU debut and Matt LaRoche added another 92 on the ground.

The Gamecocks finished with 484 total yards.

The ASUN Conference issued a post-game statement regarding the decision to end the game after a 1-hour, 46-minute delay:

After suspending play because of lightning with 13:18 in the fourth quarter with Jacksonville State leading 42-17 over Stephen F. Austin, it was determined that the game could not be resumed without significant risk to the health and safety of the student athletes. Per NCAA rules 3-3-3c(2) and with both institutions in complete agreement, the game was ended with the final score 42-17.

The Gamecocks recorded their most yardage in a half since Nov. 9, 2019, against Eastern Kentucky while building a 21-17 lead at intermission. Jax State overcame two first-quarter miscues in their own territory and had a 21-yard field goal attempt blocked by Stephen F. Austin's Edward Bobino.

Jacksonville State rolled up 360 scrimmage yards through the first 30 minutes as LaRoche gained 89 yards (averaging 11.1 yards per run) and Webb contributed another 54. Webb also passed for 118 yards in the first half, including a career-long 73-yard strike to Sterling Galban that set up JSU's second score.

The Lumberjacks scored first when they picked off Webb and returned the interception deep into JSU territory. SFA got on the scoreboard on a 1-yard touchdown pass on fourth down for a 7-0 lead with 6:33 to go in the first quarter.

Jax State responded in impressive fashion with a 75-yard, 13-play drive to tie it.

Pat Jackson ran in from the 1 and Brenton King kicked the extra point to draw the Gamecocks even at 7-7 at the 5:03 mark in the first.

Stephen F. Austin scored via a 50-yard touchdown pass and a 36-yard field to take a 17-7 lead midway through the second quarter. Not much went right for the Lumberjacks of the Western Athletic Conference after that.

Jax State scored twice in the final 1:56 before the half for a 21-17 cushion at the break.

Webb connected with the speedy Galban for 73 yards deep into Stephen F. Austin territory and LaRoche scored from the SFA 8 on the next play. King added the extra point to trim the Lumberjacks' lead to 17-14.

Jax State's defense forced a punt on SFA's next possession, and the Gamecocks quickly drove 49 yards in five plays for their first lead. Webb's first touchdown run – a 4-yarder – and King's PAT put JSU in front with 16 seconds left before half.

Jax State out-gained the visitors from Texas 360-150 in the first half while limiting Stephen F. Austin to seven first downs.

Webb scored touchdowns on a pair of 2-yard runs as Jax State dominated the third quarter. The special teams got in on the scoring onslaught when Cole Fuller pounced on an SFA fumble in the end zone for the Gamecocks' third touchdown in a five-minute span.

"We felt good where we were at in the second half, running the football and making some stops," Rodriguez said. "It was good have a win where you have 1) had some adversity and 2) the heat and the conditioning and all the things we talked about for the last several months helped us and was a factor."

Sophomore Deco Wilson was Jax State's top tackler with eight stops. He also returned an interception 22 yards in the third quarter.

Jax State plays the first of its four home games next Saturday when it hosts Davidson in a rematch from the 2020 FCS playoffs. Kickoff is set for 1 p.m. at Burgess-Snow Field at JSU Stadium.

Jax State Postgame Notes – Stephen F. Austin
August 27, 2022 • Historic Cramton Bowl • Montgomery, Ala.

• JSU Captains: Senior linebacker Stevonte Tullis, senior kicker Brenton King and senior center Zack Cangelosi
• The game ended with 13:18 remaining in regulation after being called due to weather following a nearly two-hour delay
• SFA won the toss and deferred to the second half
• The Gamecocks are now 51-54-8 all-time in season openers
• JSU's win was the first season-opening win since beating Chattanooga 27-13 in the 2017 FCS Kickoff game at the Cramton Bowl
• Head coach Rich Rodriguez is now 1-0 at the helm of JSU and 164-119-2 for his career
• Rodriguez becomes the first JSU head coach to win his debut since Bill Clark in 2013
• Five Gamecocks made their first career starts for JSU on Saturday: wide receiver Sterling Galban, running back Matt LaRoche, offensive lineman Will O'Steen, cornerback Derek Carter and defensive end J-Rock Swain
• Senior Zion Webb's 73-yard pass to Galban in the second quarter was the longest of his career, surpassing a 67-yarder at UT Martin last season.
• Quarterback Zion Webb had three rushing touchdowns in a game for the first time in his career and scored JSU's final three touchdowns on the ground.
• Redshirt sophomore running back Anwar Lewis rushed for 100 yards in his JSU debut to lead all Gamecocks rushers
• LaRoche ran for a career-high 90 yards, surpassing his 46 yards rushed against Abilene Christian last season
• Highlighted by a 73-yard reception that sparked the offense, Galban finished with three catches for 99 yards in his debut to lead all receivers
• A total of 29 Gamecocks made their JSU debuts against Stephen F. Austin
• Ending 13 minutes shy of regulation time, JSU's 42 points scored were one touchdown shy of the most in a season opener since 49 at Ole Miss in 2010