SSU beats S.C. State, 34-10, to end season

SAVANNAH, Georgia – Savannah State's football team defeated South Carolina State, 34-10, in both teams' season finale Saturday. It was the Tigers' third victory in their last four games, all Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference contests, after earlier beating Delaware State and Norfolk State.

A T.A. Wright Stadium of 3,015 celebrated Senior Day/Community & High School Band Day by watching SSU beat S.C. State for the first time since a 14-9 win in 2001. SSU (3-8 overall, 3-5 MEAC) improved to 2-18 in the series against S.C. State (3-7, 2-6).

"Hopefully, this gives us some momentum going into the offseason that we can carry into recruiting and also into the offseason workouts," SSU second-year head coach Erik Raeburn said. "We talked about how many true freshmen we've played all season. They showed me these last four weeks they have the talent to compete in the MEAC. But we've got to develop in the weight room and get more physical. Man, if we do that, we've got a really good, young nucleus to build around."

SSU took a 7-0 lead on freshman running back Jaylen McCloud's 6-yard touchdown run with 10:21 left in the first quarter, and Giovanni Lugo kicked the first of his four extra points, to cap a 10-play, 68-yard drive.

SSU made it 14-0 with 6:15 left in the first quarter when freshman quarterback D'Vonn Gibbons connected with junior tight end Paris Baker for a 90-yard touchdown. Gibbons held onto the ball until the last possible second and he was drilled by an S.C. State defender a split-second after he threw it. Baker, a 6-foot-2, 230-pound graduate of Savannah's Jenkins High School, caught the ball despite double-coverage by defenders and rumbled about 45 yards to the end zone.

"I saw him stop in his route and come back to me so I threw it," said Gibbons, a 6-foot-2, 205-pound graduate of Stephenson High School in Stone Mountain. "I wasn't worried about the hit. I was just worried about delivering the ball."

Sprawled on the turf, Gibbons said he heard the roar of the crowd and knew something good happened.

"I peeked my head up at the end of the play and I was like, 'Oh, he's still running!" said Gibbons, who finished 13-of-23 passing for 267 yards and two touchdowns.

As Baker lumbered toward the end zone, he used the sun of the afternoon game as a guide.

"All I was doing was looking at my shadow (on the turf)," he said. "I saw my shadow, and my shadow only, so I just kept running."

During S.C. State's ensuing series, SSU senior defensive back Juwuan Tolbert, after dropping a potential interception, made up for it on the next play by picking off S.C. State quarterback Dewann Ford's pass.

SSU's ensuing drive ended when Gibbons fumbled and S.C. State linebacker Damu Ford recovered at the Tigers' 31-yard line. The Bulldogs cut the score to 14-7 on Dewann Ford's 24-yard touchdown pass to Jermaine Baxley with 1:25 left in the first quarter. Tyler Scandrett kicked the extra point.

"I thought this was maybe their most solid performance this season," Raeburn said of SSU's defense. "They played excellent against Delaware State as well. I thought they really played well (today). The only touchdown, (S.C. State) got the ball in good field position. That doesn't excuse giving up a big pass play. But other than that, they played really physical all day."

Late in the second quarter, SSU's Gibbons connected with senior wide receiver Cameron White for a 51-yard gain to S.C. State's 29-yard line. Three plays later, Gibbons found senior wide receiver Tino Smith for an 8-yard gain that extended the drive. Three plays after that, Gibbons connected with senior wide receiver Steven "Tyler" Hagan for a 10-yard pickup that kept the chains moving. SSU decided to attempt a 28-yard field goal on third down and Lugo made it to put the Tigers up 17-7 with 19 seconds left before halftime. SSU's 10-play, 69-yard drive took 2:21 to complete.

With 8:34 remaining in the third quarter, S.C. State cut it to 17-10 on Scandrett's 29-yard field goal, capping a 14-play, 57-yard drive that took 6:26 off the game clock.

With 6:18 to go in the third quarter, SSU junior defensive back Darrell "Vanquez" Bonner forced S.C. State quarterback Dewann Ford to fumble and freshman Jeremiah Bundrage recovered for the Tigers at the 50-yard line.

SSU's Gibbons connected with junior wide receiver James Kicklighter, a graduate of Savannah's Windsor Forest High School, for a 47-yard gain to the Bulldogs' 3-yard line. SSU settled for a 22-yard field goal by Lugo that made it 20-10 with 4:28 remaining in the third quarter.

After S.C. State's drive ended with a punt, SSU's White made an acrobatic catch for a 25-yard gain to the Bulldogs' 5-yard line, ending the third quarter. On the next play to start the fourth quarter, Gibbons threw a 5-yard touchdown strike to Smith that made it 27-10. The Tigers' six-play drive covered 52 yards. During the touchdown pass, Gibbons again held onto the ball until the last possible second before enduring another vicious hit.

"He took some shots," Raeburn said of Gibbons. "They're good on defense. It's a combination. It's some poise and a lot of courage. It's hard to stare down, when you know you're going to take a shot, it's hard to hang in there and deliver the ball, and he did it a bunch of times today.

"He's done a great job," Raeburn continued. "He's really improved every week. The plan was to redshirt him and give him some time to develop in our program but he got thrown into the fire and he really responded. I'm so proud of the way he progressed."

With 5:27 to play, SSU faced a fourth-and-goal from S.C. State's 2-yard line. The Tigers elected to go for it but Gibbons was sacked for a 6-yard loss and the Bulldogs took over on downs. But two plays later, SSU sophomore defensive back Terrance McCray intercepted S.C. State's Dewann Ford and returned the ball for a 27-yard touchdown, making it 34-10 with 5:15 to go.

SSU's White finished with three catches for 90 yards. Hagan, a graduate of Guyton's South Effingham High School, made three catches for 17 yards. Baker finished had two catches for 93 yards and a touchdown.

Defensively, SSU was led by defensive end Stefen Banks, who made a team-high 10 tackles, including three sacks. Banks, a 6-foot-3, 265-pound junior from Columbus, Ohio, made four tackles for losses of 26 yards and forced a fumble.

"We just wanted to come out and set the tone early," Banks said. "Last year, they came out and set the tone on us. We wanted to make sure that we came out with the gas pedal down."

SSU committed only one penalty for 15 yards compared to S.C. State's 11 penalties for 79 yards. The Tigers were 4-of-5 on red zone scoring opportunities, while the Bulldogs were 1-of-1.

"Part of (SSU's strong finish) was all these young guys that we're playing just getting some experience, growing up a little bit," Raeburn said. "The older guys hung in there and kept the faith. I'm really proud of them how they played today but also the way we finished the season."

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