Ten years after: Jax State's epic three pick-sixes vs. Eastern Kentucky
9/5/2026 3:00:00 PM | Football
Jax State arrived in Richmond, Ky., on October 22, 2016, with a 5-1 record and a No. 2 national ranking, just nine months removed from its appearance in the FCS Championship Game.
The lone blemish so far that season was a 34-13 loss at LSU in Week 2. The Gamecocks responded with victories over FCS powers Coastal Carolina and Liberty, followed by resounding home wins over Ohio Valley Conference foes Austin Peay (40-21) and Tennessee Tech (34-14).
Despite a 2-4 record, Eastern Kentucky entered the OVC matchup averaging 30.3 points per game. The Colonels also ranked 14th nationally with 457.3 yards per game, but the Gamecock defense held them nearly 200 yards below that average.
An announced crowd of 11,600 was in attendance at Roy Kidd Stadium on a idyllic fall afternoon, with temperatures in the mid-50s and winds gusting at 10 mph.
Little did they know at kickoff that they were about to witness one of the classic defensive performances in Jax State's vaunted 122-year football history..
Reggie Hall, Joel McCandless and Jaylen Hill each returned interceptions for touchdowns as the Gamecocks claimed a 24-7 victory without the offense ever finding its way to the end zone. It marked the first and only time in history the defense scored three touchdowns in a game via interception returns.
Hall picked off a pass by quarterback Tyler Swofford and raced 88 yards down the Colonels' sideline with 9:34 remaining in the fourth quarter to seal Jax State's 20th consecutive OVC victory.
"ANOTHER PICK SIX! THIRD OF THE DAY, JACKSONVILLE STATE!," Jax State Hall of Fame broadcaster Mike Parris informed his listeners. "Oh, you talk about turning it around in a hurry. He read it all the way!" The Gamecocks snapped Eastern Kentucky's streak of nine straight homecoming wins with their fourth win in a row in the series.
Hall's pick-six came after McCandless (41 yards) and Hill (60 yards) intercepted passes by EKU starting quarterback Bennie Coney and returned them for scores in the second quarter. Hall went on to add another interception in the fourth quarter and Marlon Bridges also picked off an EKU pass.
The 218 yards in interception returns easily eclipsed the previous school record (121) set against Austin Peay in 2013 on two interceptions.
According to NCAA records, the feat had previously happened only once before at the FCS level when Missouri State intercepted four passes and returned three for touchdowns in a 49–7 victory over Indiana State on November 2, 2013. Weber State subsequently had three pick-sixes against Northern Colorado on November 20, 2021.
The Colonels defense was solid that late October afternoon, holding the high-scoring Gamecocks offense without an offensive touchdown for the first time since 2012. The defense held Jax State's offense to 105 yards below its average. JSU's kicking game also sputtered, with one 36-yard try missed and a 41-yard attempt blocked.
Jax State's only points that didn't come off turnovers was a 25-yard field goal by Cade Stinnett midway through the third quarter.
The Gamecocks went on to finish 10-2, falling to Youngstown State in the FCS playoffs. The three pick-sixes at Eastern Kentucky turned out to be the only points Jax State's defense produced the entire season.
