JACKSON, Mississippi -- The Braves use a huge first half, outscoring Jackson State 31-3 en route to 48-33 season finale victory over the Tigers at Veterans Memorial Stadium.
Midway through the first quarter, the Braves got on the scoreboard first on a 15-yard strike from quarterback John Gibbs, Jr. to wide receiver Jordan Payne (His 9th receiving TD of the season) to give the Braves a 7-0 lead at the 8:14 mark.
The second quarter was all about the Braves as they recorded 24 points in the quarter to take total control of the game.
With only six seconds into the second quarter, the Braves scored again when Gibbs, Jr. connected with Tollette George for a 13-yard touchdown to increase the Braves lead to 14-0.
Jackson State got on the board at the 11:35 mark on a 22-yard field goal by Ryan Deising to cut the lead to 11, 14-3.
Four minutes later, Anthony Williams intercepted Jackson State's quarterback, Clayton Moore which setup a Haiden McCraney 36-yard field goal which boosted the Braves lead back to 14 points, 17-3 with 7:30 to go before halftime.
Immediately following McCraney's field goal, Quinton Cantue intercepted Moore's pass and returned it 36 yards for a touchdown to extend the Braves lead to 24-3 at the 6:06 mark of the second quarter.
The Braves defense shut down the Tigers offense to set up an Arnold Walker 13-yard touchdown with .59 seconds on the clock just before the half.
After the touchdown, Jackson State drove all the way down to the Braves territory but Cantue intercepted his second pass of the game and the Braves went into the locker room leading 31-3 at the half over Jackson State.
Two minutes into the third quarter, McCraney's punt was blocked by Jackson State in which the ball ended up in the back of the end zone for a safety making the score 31-12.
Jackson State took advantage of the safety and capped off a 12 play, 64 yards with an eight-yard pass from Moore to Zach Pendleton.
But the Braves fired back when sophomore wide receiver Jarvis Turner broke open for a 57-yard touchdown from Gibbs, Jr. which only took 1:51 off the clock. The Braves had increased their lead once again 38-12 with 6:52 to play in the third quarter.
Running back Rakeem Sims scored from one-yard out to decrease the lead back to 19, 38-19 with 3:42 on the clock.
McCraney nailed his second field goal of the game after the Braves offense drove down the field for 60 yards on 11 plays. The Braves lead was now 41-19.
Sims found the end zone again on a two-yard run cutting the lead to 41-25 with 10:30 left in the game. The Tigers failed to convert on the two-point conversion.
After the touchdown, the Tigers thought they were closing in on the Braves but Alcorn's "Go To Guy," Walker scored his second touchdown of the night with 7:45 to go in the game.
Jackson State would score one more time with .10 seconds left in the game but the Braves had already run away with the victory.
Gibbs, Jr. finished the game completing 18-of-32 passes for 275 yards and three touchdowns. Walker carried the ball 14 times for 87 yards and two touchdowns.
Devon Francois led the Braves once again with a team-high eight tackles and one pass break-up.
The Braves cap off the 2013 season with a remarkable 9-3 record and 7-2 SWAC record and will get back to work over the off-season as they prepare to make run at the SWAC Championship next year in Houston.
Box Score
COURTESY ALCORN STATE UNIVERSITY SPORTS INFORMATION
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