Jax State
7-2 , 5-0
Sam Houston
1-8 , 0-5
| Team | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | Final F |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sam Houston | 0 | 0 | 7 | 7 | 14 |
| Jacksonville St. | 0 | 17 | 7 | 23 | 47 |
11/7/2026 10:43:00 PM | Football
JACKSONVILLE – Jax State treated the Homecoming crowd at AmFirst Stadium to a 47-14 victory over Sam Houston and took another step toward securing its third straight appearance in the Conference USA Championship Game.
The Gamecocks (7-2, 5-0) remained lodged in a first-place tie with Liberty in the CUSA standings Saturday night as Caden Creel threw two touchdown passes and Jamill Williams contributed two scores, catching a 31-yarder and recording Jax State's first kickoff return for a touchdown in nine years.
"We're very excited about the results of the game," said Jax State head coach Charles Kelly. "But what I'm more proud of is how they prepared. I told our players, `You show respect for a team by how you prepare for them.' I was very excited about the preparation.
"We had a chance to play a lot of people tonight and we've been wanting to do that. "
Creel completed 18-of-28 passes for 246 yards with a 67-yard touchdown pass to Deondre Johnson and a 31-yard TD to Williams. He later added a four-yard scoring run early in the fourth quarter, his sixth rushing touchdown of the season.
Creel accounted for 333 scrimmage yards and was the Gamecocks' rushing leader with 87 yards on 13 carries.
The Gamecocks put the finishing touches on their sixth consecutive win by reeling off 16 points in a span of two minutes to turn the contest into a rout in the final quarter.
On the next drive after Creel's rushing TD, Jax State's Jacob Cruz sacked Sam Houston quarterback Landyn Locke in the end zone for a safety to extend the lead to 33-7. The Bearkats (1-8, 0-5) opted to kick off and Williams raced 85 yards with 12:09 remaining, the Gamecocks' first kickoff return for a touchdown since 2017.
Jax State rolled up 479 total yards to the Bearkats' 254 and limited them to 65 yards on the ground.
Following an uneventful opening quarter that saw the Bearkats outgain Jax State, the Gamecocks finally discovered some offensive rhythm with 8½ minutes left before halftime.
Jax State needed just three plays to cover 63 yards for the game's first points. Creel connected with Jamill Williams, who beat single coverage and hauled in a 31-yard touchdown pass while falling backward in the back of the end zone. Garrison Rippa's extra point made it 7-0 at the 8:35 mark.
Rippa extended the lead to 10-0 with 3:18 left in the second quarter with a 45-yard field goal, tying him for Jax State's career lead with 49.
Jalen Likely's eight-yard touchdown run – his third score in as many games – stretched the Gamecocks' cushion to 17-0 at halftime. Likely's rushing TD with 25 seconds left capped a four-play, 54-yard drive.
Jax State outgained Sam Houston 235-96 in the first half.
Kickoff for next Saturday's CUSA matchup against Western Kentucky (3-6, 2-3) at Houchens Industries-L.T. Smith Stadium in Bowling Green, Ky., is scheduled for 2:30 p.m. The game will be broadcast on ESPN+.
Jax State Postgame Notes – Sam Houston
November 7, 2026 • Burgess-Snow Field at AmFirst Stadium (20,476) • Jacksonville, Ala.
- Jax State Captains: Quarterback Caden Creel, defensive lineman Jawaun Campbell, cornerback JQ Brooks.
- Jax State won the opening coin toss and deferred its option to the second half.
- Jax State has outscored its opponents 179-97 during this six-game win streak. It's the longest winning streak since reeling off eight straight victories after an 0-3 start in 2024.
- This is the eighth time since 2010 that the Gamecocks have had a winning streak of six games or more in a season (eight in a row in 2010, 10 in 2014, 12 in 2015, nine in both 2016 and 2017, seven in 2020-21, eight in '24).
- The Gamecocks improve their record at AmFirst Stadium to 21-3 since joining the FBS ranks.
- Shane Payton Hodges' punt block in the first quarter was the Gamecocks' first since Kekoura Turner blocked a Louisiana Tech punt on Nov. 18, 2023.
- Jacob Cruz's sack of Sam Houston quarterback Landyn Locke in the end zone in the fourth quarter was the Gamecocks' first safety since Oct. 9, 2024, against New Mexico State.
- Jax State is 7-2 for the first time since 2023.
- The Gamecocks are 65-14-2 all-time on Homecoming with four straight wins.
- Jax State has rushed for a touchdown in an NCAA-best 67 consecutive games following Jalen Likely's eight-yard TD run in the second quarter. That's 25 games more than the next-longest active streak across all Division I programs (FCS Montana State with 42).
- The Gamecocks are 26-5 against CUSA opponents since joining the conference in 2023. Â
- Jax State still has not recovered an opponent's fumble through nine games.
- The Gamecocks improve to 9-6 all-time against Sam Houston, their former Southland and ASUN/WAC Conference foe. They are now 21-17 all-time vs. teams from the Lone Star State.
- Senior kicker Garrison Rippa kicked a 45-yard field goal late in the second quarter to tie Gavin Hallford (2004-08) and Alen Karajic (2020-23) atop the career field goals made list with 49.
- Rippa needs 22 points in Jax State's remaining games this season to move past Hallford as the school's all-time leading scorer. Hallford kicked 49 field goals and 156 PATs for his 303 career points.
- Jalen Likely's second-quarter score marked his third straight game with a rushing touchdown.
- The Bearkats have not scored an offensive touchdown in the first half of five CUSA games this year.
- Deondre Johnson's 67-yard touchdown reception in the third quarter was his longest this season and the second-longest of his Jax State career. He had a 77-yard TD reception at UTEP in 2025.
- Conor Donaghy's 58-yard punt in the third quarter was the second-longest of his career. He had a 67-yard punt vs. Georgia Southern on September 19.
- Jax State's offense accounted for 400+ yards for the fifth time in 2026.
- Junior running back Jacob Cornejo had eight carries for 39 yards and scored on a one-yard run with 34 seconds remaining.
- Freshman safety Brennan Core led the Gamecocks defensively with seven tackles. His previous career-high was three stops vs. Eastern Kentucky.
Players Mentioned
Team Stats
SHS 0, JSU 7
JSU - Williams,Jamill 31 yd pass from Creel,Caden (Rippa,Garrison kick) 3 plays, 63 yards, TOP 01:36
SHS 0, JSU 10
JSU - Rippa,Garrison 45 yd field goal 7 plays, 29 yards, TOP 03:06
SHS 0, JSU 17
JSU - Likely,Jalen 8 yd run (Rippa,Garrison kick), 4 plays, 54 yards, TOP 01:17
SHS 0, JSU 24
JSU - Johnson,Deondre 67 yd pass from Creel,Caden (Rippa,Garrison kick) 2 plays, 75 yards, TOP 00:40
SHS 7, JSU 24
SHS - Reed,Chris 64 yd pass from Locke,Landyn (Carpenter,Samuel kick) 2 plays, 75 yards, TOP 00:37
SHS 7, JSU 31
JSU - Creel,Caden 4 yd run (Rippa,Garrison kick), 9 plays, 75 yards, TOP 04:03
SHS 7, JSU 33
JSU - Cruz,Jacob 0 yd safety
SHS 7, JSU 40
JSU - Williams,Jamill 85 yd kickoff return (Rippa,Garrison kick)
SHS 14, JSU 40
SHS - O'Neill,Grady 7 yd pass from Bailey,DJ (Carpenter,Samuel kick) 10 plays, 75 yards, TOP 04:48
SHS 14, JSU 47
JSU - Cornejo,Jacob 1 yd run (Donaghy,Conor kick), 10 plays, 75 yards, TOP 06:47
