SIMPSON BECOMES PROGRAM’S ALL-TIME WINS LEADER AS UT MARTIN SECURES HOMECOMING VICTORY OVER NO. 18 JACKSONVILLE STATE

Saturday, November 2

Martin, Tenn.

2 p.m.

UT Martin

6-3 , 5-1

Jacksonville State

6-4 , 3-3

1st

2nd

3rd

4th

Jacksonville State

UT Martin

SIMPSON BECOMES PROGRAM’S ALL-TIME WINS LEADER AS UT MARTIN SECURES HOMECOMING VICTORY OVER NO. 18 JACKSONVILLE STATE

11/2/2019 10:18:00 PM | Football

Box Score PDF Book Press Conference: Simpson Press Conference: Williams Photo Gallery

MARTIN, Tenn. – The University of Tennessee at Martin football team celebrated Homecoming in grand fashion, defeating No. 18 ranked Jacksonville State for the first time since 2012 in an Ohio Valley Conference matchup on Saturday afternoon by a final score of 22-17.

The Skyhawks (6-3, 5-1 OVC) remained in first place in the league standings by knocking off its first ranked opponent of the season. The win marked the 86^th of head coach Jason Simpson's illustrious career, moving the 14^th-year head coach into first place on the program's all-time wins list, surpassing Hall of Famer Bob Carroll's previous mark of 85.

"I am glad we won the game today, but in my mind, Coach Carroll is the father of UTM football. I don't care how many games I am the head coach and win, I'm just in his shadow and I'm proud of that. When you consider his friendship and loyalty to this program, you just don't get that in this day in time. To have the opportunity to be around Coach Carroll on a daily basis and have the honor to even be close to a record he held is an honor. He's a true southern gentleman and I appreciate him. He's a part of that win out there today. Make no mistake about it, 86 can grow hopefully into 150, but Bob Carroll is the UTM coach and the standard that the rest of us are chasing."

In an evenly matched contest that saw both teams tally just over 370 yards of total offense, UT Martin found the key plays it needed to secure the home victory. The Skyhawks would not turn the ball over while defensively, the squad forced an interception by Cam Ordway while senior playmaker Terry Williams totaled 137 all-purpose yards, including a 65-yard punt return for a touchdown.

Plagued with injuries as of late, the Skyhawks turned to a familiar but young face in redshirt-freshman quarterback John Bachus III who led the offense by completing 18-of-32 pass attempts for 245 yards and one touchdown. Before exiting the game with an injury, junior running back Peyton Logan averaged 12.2 yards per carry on six rushes for 73 yards. Then in the passing game, Williams paced the core with seven catches for 52 yards while Colton Dowell made the most of his five catches, tallying 117 yards and a touchdown.

Playing in his first Homecoming matchup as a Skyhawk, graduate Cecil Cherry wasted little time making his presence known by tallying a career-high 14 tackles along with two tackles for loss, a critical sack and five quarterback hurries. The league leader in sacks would tally three as a team while registering nine tackles for loss and three pass breakups.

Gallery: (11/2/2019) Football vs. No. 18 Jacksonville State

"Give them credit, John Grass has done a great job and set the standard," Simpson said. "When you do have a chance to get them, you better get them. We didn't do it last year and today we came out on top. I'm proud of the way the guys showed resilience and fought back. We have several guys dinged up but they kept fighting and hung around in the game until we found a way. These guys competed and I'm proud of that."

No. 18 ranked Jacksonville State (6-4, 3-3 OVC) dropped its third OVC contest in a single season for the first time since 2013. The Gamecocks quarterback Zerrick Cooper competed 16-of-36 pass attempts for 240 yards while totaling a pair of touchdowns – one passing and one rushing. Wide receiver KJ Stepherson broke the 100-yard mark on five catches. While running back Michael Mathews tallied 57 all-purpose yards and one touchdown.

UT Martin answered every punch by Jacksonville State in the contest. After falling behind midway through the first quarter, the Skyhawks capitalized on great field position with a 10-yard rushing touchdown by Bachus in the second quarter. The home squad would then take its first lead right before the half as a 26-yard connection from Bachus to Dowell capped off a 69-yard scoring drive. The Gamecocks countered by scoring on the final play of the first half on a pass from Cooper to Matthews to take a 14-13 advantage into halftime.

Both teams would see its defense answer the bell in the third quarter, holding each other scoreless until Williams tip-toed 65 yards down the visitor's sideline for his second punt return touchdown of the season to take a 19-14 lead. The fourth quarter remained tight until JSU tallied a 37-yard field goal to cut the Skyhawk margin down to two points with just under 10 minutes to play. Needing a bit of insurance, Ryan Courtright would cap off the game's scoring with an 18-yard field goal to bring the score to 22-17.

UT Martin will now turn its focus to in-state rival and fellow OVC leader Austin Peay on Saturday, Nov. 9. Kickoff from Fortera Stadium is scheduled for 3 p.m.