Jackson State Dominates South Carolina State 37-7 In First Game Without ‘Coach Prime’

The Jackson State Tigers showed Deion Sanders departure as head coach hasn’t affected them by dismantling the South Carolina State Bulldogs 37-7 in the MEAC/SWAC Challenge in Atlanta Saturday night.

South Carolina transfer Jason Brown went 25-for-29 for 356 yards and three touchdowns, completing 10 straight passes to close out the first half of the game. Running back Irv Mulligan ran for 90 yards and a touchdown on 11 carries, including a 46-yard touchdown run on the Tigers’ first drive of the game.

Jackson State never trailed in the first game for head coach T.C. Taylor.

Andre Hunt, Jency Riley, and Dwayne Stevens each had a receiving touchdown for the Tigers as Brown completed at least one pass to eight different receivers. Jackson State also got revenge as the Bulldogs defeated the Tigers in their last meeting, the 2021 Celebration Bowl.

“I think it was very important going against a great coach like Coach Pough,” Taylor said in his postgame conference, according to Sports Illustrated.

“We talked about playing a physical brand, but going forward, this is the one we wanted to come out and set the tone.”

The Tigers gained 494 total yards on offense while the defense held the Bulldogs to just 201 yards of offense and 14 first downs. Bulldogs quarterback Corey Fields Jr. struggled, going 7-for-20 for 60 yards with one touchdown and one interception. Jawam Howell led the Bulldogs in rushing with 48 yards on 13 carries.

For the Tigers, the win was a sign the HBCU program has moved on from its headline-grabbing former coach Sanders, who left the HBCU last year to coach at Colorado University and taking his son, former Tigers quarterback Shedeur Sanders, and cornerback Travis Hunter with him. Sanders will coach in his first game with the Power 5 school on Sept. 3 against 17th-ranked Texas Christian University.

Jackson State will next face Florida A&M on Saturday, Sept. 3.