JACKSONVILLE—There may never be a more appropriate Homecoming setup than what Jax State football will have on Saturday.
The term is incredibly fitting as the Gamecocks welcome their old Ohio Valley Conference foe Murray State to AmFirst Stadium and Burgess-Snow Field which has eight members of their coaching staff with ties to Jax State.
Jax State will be looking to rebound after a 41-34 loss at Georgia Southern last week to get its record to 2-2. After falling behind 31-17 with 5:54 left in the second, the guests took a 34-31 lead with 22 seconds left in the third on
Brock Rechsteiner's second touchdown of the game. Georgia Southern evened the game with a 43-yard field goal on the ensuing drive, then regained the lead with a six-yard touchdown run with 6:23 to play.
On offense, the Gamecocks have the No. 18 rushing attack in FBS at 238.7 yards per game.
Cam Cook has rushed for 390 yards in his first three games at Jax State and ranks fourth nationally in total rushing. Additionally, the Gamecocks are one of the least penalized teams in college football having incurred just 11 penalties in three games.
Eight members of the Murray State coaching staff previously played or coached at Jax State, led by second-year head coach Jody Wright who served as a student assistant for three seasons under Jack Crowe, then returned in 2013 to assist John Grass as passing game coordinator and tight ends coach.
Additionally, Murray State quarterback Jim Ogle is a Jacksonville High grad with his father, Jimmy also having coached under Grass. Ogle passed for 480 yards through the first two games of the season which is the most by a Racer since 2016.
Of the 109 players on Murray State's roster, there are 80 newcomers including 54 freshmen. Running back Jawaun Northington is one of the returning players and has 1,195 yards on 272 career carries over 27 games.
The two teams have met 19 times previously with Jax State having won 17 of the meetings. The Racers picked up an overtime win at Burgess-Snow Field on September 28, 2013 racking up 405 yards on 85 plays. This is the first times the teams have met in Jacksonville since October 26, 2019 when the Gamecocks escaped with a 14-12 win on a windy and rainy day.
