Led by senior Jeremy Young’s school record 261 yards receiving, Ouachita defeat No. 16 Valdosta State, 24-14, for the school’s first victory against the Blazers. The victory extends the Tigers’ current winning streak to eight games, the longest since 1968.
The victory against the Blazers is the first in the program’s history, going 0-9 against Valdosta State since Ouachita joined the Gulf South Conference in 2000. It was the first victory over a top-25 opponent since the 2003 season, when the Tigers defeated Southeastern Oklahoma State and Central Arkansas.
With the victory, Ouachita improved to 3-0 on the season and 2-0 in Gulf South Conference play.
Senior wide receiver Jeremy Young put the finishing touches on the game with a 60-yard touchdown catch from Eli Cranor, turning a three-point lead into a 24-14 advantage that would hold for the rest of the game. Young capped off the huge GSC win with a Ouachita single-game record for receiving yards with 261 yards on 13 receptions with two touchdowns.
Ouachita opened the scoring up in the first quarter with a 35-yard field goal from freshman kicker Jason Fowler to give Ouachita an early 3-0 lead with 4:02 left on the clock.
Valdosta State answered with a two-yard touchdown run from Ronnye Nelson to begin the second quarter for a 7-3 Blazers lead.
Ouachita answered immediately when senior running back Keldrick Johnson capped the next possession with a 45-yard touchdown blast off-tackle to give the Tigers a 10-7 lead.
Johnson was the first player to rush for more than 100 yards against Valdosta since the 2007 season. He had more than 100 yards at halftime and finished with 27 carries for 144 yards and one touchdown on a night when the Tigers needed every yard from the Monroe, La native.
The Tigers dominated the line of scrimmage in the first half offensively, recording 244 yards with an attack that kept the Blazers off-balance. While Johnson ran freely in the first half, the Blazer’s team total was just 27 yards rushing at the break.
Young opened the third quarter with a 56-yard touchdown grab from Cranor to give Ouachita a 17-7 lead with 4:29 left in the third.
To begin the fourth quarter, junior Chad Emmons intercepted a pass from Lewis to swing momentum back to the Tiger’s side as the Blazers threatened again with a sustained drive into Tiger territory.
After both teams traded possessions with no scoring drives, Blazers quarterback Kellen Lewis connected with Kody Case on a 10-yard touchdown strike to cut Valdosta’s deficit to 17-14.
After Young’s 60-yarder that gave Ouachita the final 24-14 score, as Valdosta started the final drive of the game at the Valdosta State one-yard line. After a near safety effort by the Tigers, Lewis drove the Blazers to the Ouachita six-yard line to end the game on a quarterback run for the game’s final play.
Valdosta State hadn’t lost to a GSC Arkansas-based school since Sept. 17 of the 2005 season in an overtime loss to Harding University, 16-13. The regular season GSC loss to Ouachita is only the fourth regular-season loss in Blazers Head Coach David Dean’s three seasons at the program.
Cranor, a native of Russellville, was 24-36 passing for 373 yards with two touchdowns and no interceptions. Through three games, the Tigers have yet to turn the ball over and are +7 in turnover ratio.
Freshman Jaime Harris again had a productive evening with three catches for 59 yards, including a 31-yard catch midway through the first half. Arkadelphia native Clinton Dewitt added three catches for 25 yards.
Ouachita junior linebacker Clayton Goree led all defenders with 11 tackles, while senior defensive end Jerry McNeil added two sacks and 6 tackles on the evening. McNeil and fellow linemen Bryan Church, Taurus Williams and Brady King put pressure on Lewis throughout the night.
Emmons recorded the only interception on the evening and defensive back Denszell Brown added eight tackles.
The Tigers return to action against No. 9 Delta State at home on Saturday, Sept. 26 for the 7 p.m. kickoff at A.U. Williams Field. Delta State (2-1) defeated Harding in a 48-10 blowout over Harding in a GSC matchup in week three. Delta State opened the 2009 season with a 28-17 loss to Texas A&M-Kingsville, followed by an overwhelming 42-3 victory over Arkansas-Monticello in week two.
