MEMPHIS — The one-two punch of carelessness and miscommunication came at the absolute worst time for Jackson State on Saturday night.
And be-cause of that, JSU stood and watched helplessly as Tennessee State's Eric Benson kicked a 35-yard field goal as time expired to steal a 16-13 victory at the Southern Heritage Classic in front of an announced crowd of 50,987.
Photo: The Jackson State University Sonic Boom of the South Band performs at the Southern Heritage Classic in Memphis, TN
A sullen JSU coach Rick Comegy offered little in the way of an explanation of the team's Liberty Bowl troubles."We're all a little tired of excuses on this football team right now," Comegy said. "What we need instead are results."
The loss is the fifth in a row for JSU against Tennessee State, dating back to 2002. It's also JSU's sixth loss overall in seven games dating back to last season.
What was even more heart-wrenching about Saturday's final result was that the game was tied at 13 and appeared destined for overtime before two JSU (0-2) mistakes gave Tennessee State (1-1) new life.
First was the carelessness: Tennessee State was set to punt the ball away with 46 seconds remaining in the game before JSU was whistled for an illegal substitution to give TSU a new set of downs.
And on the very next play was the miscommunication: Tennessee State quarterback Antonio Heffner found Antonio Graham down the middle of the field on a wide-open 30-yard pass play, eventually setting up the game-winning field goal and a raucous TSU celebration.
"I'm not even sure what happened," said JSU linebacker Daniel Brooks of the 30-yard pass. "I was playing off adrenaline and trying to win the game. We'll have to look at the tape to see where we messed up because I truly have no idea."
Once again, Jackson State mixed and matched quarterbacks Tray Rutland and Jimmy Oliver with limited success. Rutland saw the majority of time and was 5-of-14 passing and 54 yards. He also rushed for 14 yards and a touchdown.
Oliver played briefly in the third quarter and finished 3-of-10 for 28 yards. He rushed for 25 yards.
Running back Erik Haw played in his first game of the season and rushed for 82 yards on 17 carries. JSU S was outgained 385-280 in total yards.
"We've got some problems offensively right now," Comegy said. "We've got to get this thing right soon, because (TSU) was beatable and we just didn't get it done."
Jackson State jumped to a 7-0 lead early in the first quarter partly thanks to a botched TSU punt attempt. With a short field, JSU drove 25 yards for the touchdown in five plays, capped by Rutland's 1-yard sneak.
Eric Perri stretched the Tigers' lead to 13-6 by midway through the third quarter with a pair of field goals.
The first was a 44-yarder that gave JSU a 10-6 lead going into halftime. The second was even more impressive, a 50-yard blast that set a school record and gave JSU a 13-6 advantage midway through the third quarter.
But that's about the time Jackson State's previously stingy defense started breaking down.
TSU's Terrence Wright scored his second touchdown of the game on an 11-yard pass from Antonio Heffner to tie the score at 13 with 8:03 left in the game.
The teams traded scoreless possessions throughout the rest of the fourth quarter until Benson nailed the field goal to win.
"This is our most important game all season," TSU coach James Webster said. "I know it's not a conference game, but we put a lot into it. That's why winning it is such a big thrill each year."
Heffner finished 18-of-31 passing for 232 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions.
