GAME NOTES: Valdosta State @ Delta State (10.12.19)
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CLEVELAND, Miss. - The Statesmen (3-2, 2-1 GSC) of Delta State University face their toughest test to date this season, as the No. 1-ranked and defending NCAA DII national champion Blazers (5-0, 3-0 GSC) of Valdosta State University travel to Cleveland on Saturday, Oct. 12. Kickoff is set for 6 PM at Parker Field-McCool Stadium. VSU brings the nation's longest winning streak into the game, as the Blazers have won 20 consecutive contests. Matt Jones, Philip Tang and Lane Quinton will have the call on the Statesmen Sports Network (WMJW 107.5 FM) and online at GoStatesmen.com. WHCQ-TV will also simulcast the game across its' cable network.

Delta State and Valdosta State are meeting for the 39th time on the gridiron this Saturday, Oct. 12 at Parker Field-McCool Stadium. The Statesmen hold a 20-17-1 edge in the series standings, including a 10-9-1 margin in Cleveland. The Blazers, ranked No. 1 in the AFCA Top 25 Poll and defending NCAA DII champions, have won the last four meetings with DSU, including a 59-28 victory on Oct. 6, 2018 at Bazemore-Hyder Stadium in Valdosta.  

After falling behind 7-0 at the end of the 1st quarter to the Argos, Delta State (3-2, 2-1 GSC) never found a rhythm, as West Florida (4-1, 3-0 GSC) rolled to a 48-3 victory at Blue Wahoos Stadium. The Statesmen were held to a season-low 217 yards on 67 plays in the loss. Breck Ruddick completed 19-of-28 passes for 109 yards, but was sacked a season-high four times. L.J. Hawkins caught seven passes for 56 yards. Dante Williams led the Statesmen defenders with 8.0 tackles and one TFL. Junior Faulk picked-off his league-leading 4th interception.

The Blzaers (5-0, 3-0 GSC) remained perfect in Gulf South Conference play, smashing Mississippi College (2-3, 1-2 GSC), 42-17, at Bazemore-Hyder Stadium last Saturday. Rogan Wells was 19-of-24 passing for 191 yards with three touchdowns while Jamar Thompkins rushed for 149 yards on 10 carries and three scores in the win. The Choctaws did rush for a game-high 229 yards in the loss.

The Statesmen will face their third ranked opponent in top-ranked Valdosta State on Saturday at Parker-McCool. DSU fell 28-24 at No. 10 Grand Valley State, and, 48-3 to No.  25 West Florida. Delta State is 11-14 against ranked opponents under coach Todd Cooley.     



SERIES NOTEBOOK: VALDOSTA STATE
• Delta State and Valdosta State are meeting for the 39th time on the gridiron this Saturday, Oct. 12 at Parker Field-McCool Stadium. The Statesmen hold a 20-17-1 edge in the series standings, including a 10-9-1 margin in Cleveland. The Blazers, ranked No. 1 in the AFCA Top 25 Poll and defending NCAA DII champions, have won the last four meetings with DSU, including a 59-28 victory on Oct. 6, 2018 at Bazemore-Hyder Stadium in Valdosta, Ga.

• The Blzaers (5-0, 3-0 GSC) remained perfect in Gulf South Conference play, smashing Mississippi College (2-3, 1-2 GSC), 42-17, at Bazemore-Hyder Stadium last Saturday. Rogan Wells was 19-of-24 passing for 191 yards with three touchdowns while Jamar Thompkins rushed for 149 yards on 10 carries and three scores in the win. The Choctaws did rush for a game-high 229 yards in the loss.
• Valdosta State enters Saturday's game on a 20-game winning streak. The Blazers have not lost since falling, 38-14, to West Alabama on Nov. 4, 2017.

• Junior quarterback Rogan Wells leads the vaunted Blazer offensive attack in Saturday's game, averaging 200.1 yards per game. The Fort Mill, S.C., native, has completed 94-of-120 passes for 1,006 yards with nine TDs and zero interceptions. He's also rushed fir 235 yards and three scores.

• Sophomore running back Jamar Thompkins is leading the GSC in rushing, averaging 104.2 yards per game. The Miami, Fla., native, has rushed 56 times for 521 yards and six TDs. In his last two games, the speedster has totaled 150 versus Shorter and 149 against Mississippi College.

• The Blazers are averaging a GSC-best 43.2 points and 516.2 yards per game, while ranking No. 1 in total defense (239.6) as well.   



STATESMEN FALL TO ARGOS: After falling behind 7-0 at the end of the 1st quarter to the Argos, Delta State (3-2, 2-1 GSC) never found a rhythm, as West Florida (4-1, 3-0 GSC) rolled to a 48-3 victory at Blue Wahoos Stadium. The Statesmen were held to a season-low 217 yards on 67 plays in the loss. Breck Ruddick completed 19-of-28 passes for 109 yards, but was sacked a season-high four times. L.J. Hawkins caught seven passes for 56 yards. Dante Williams led the Statesmen defenders with 8.0 tackles and one TFL. Junior Faulk picked-off his league-leading 4th interception.

AGAINST RANKED OPPONENTS: The Statesmen will face their third ranked opponent in top-ranked Valdosta State on Saturday at Parker-McCool. DSU fell 28-24 at No. 10 Grand Valley State, and, 48-3 to No.  25 West Florida. Delta State is 11-14 against ranked opponents under coach Todd Cooley.     

KING ON HIS THRONE: Senior linebacker Vada King is leading the GSC in tackles (43) entering week six of the campaign. He totaled 6.0 tackles and 1.0 TFLs last week at West Florida. King posted back-to-back 13 tackle performances against Tusculum and No. 9 Grand Valley State earlier this year. The Smiths Station, Ala., native, also eclipsed the 100-career tackles plateau last week and is tops in the GSC in tackles (43) and tackles-for-loss (8.5).

HAWKING THE BALL: Junior Faulk has had a phenomenal start to the season, intercepting four passes and defending 11 in DSU's first five games. The Jayess, Miss., native, leads the GSC in interceptions and passes defended while totaling 18 tackles for the Statesmen in five starts at corner.

RUNNING PAST THE OPPOSITION: The Statesmen enter this week's game versus No. 1 Valdosta State averaging 189.4 yards rushing per game, which ranks 2nd in the GSC. Delta State has topped 200 yards rushing for 3-of-5 games this season, including a season-high 255 yards versus Florida Tech. The Statesmen rushed for 230 yards at Grand Valley State and 224 yards at North Greenville.

STINGY AGAINST THE RUN: Delta State is allowing just 95.4 yards rushing a game to lead the GSC while ranking 30th in NCAA DII. The Statesmen have held 3-of-5 opponents under 150 yards, with Florida Tech's 42 yards rushing a season-low. Grand Valley State entered the game on Sept. 14 averaging 319.0 yards rushing but was held to a mere 76 yards on 30 carries. North Greenville tallied 100 yards on 37 carries, a 2.7 yards per carry average. West Florida rushed for a season-high 177 yards in last week's matchup.    
   
RUDDICK APPROACHING 3,000 YARDS: Senior Breck Ruddick has been solid since taking over the quarterbacking duties, completing 54-of-81 passes for 436 yards with a pair of touchdowns and three interceptions. The Marion, Ark., native, topped 2,000 career passing yards at West Florida and needs just 81 rushing yards to eclipse 1,000. In 19 games, Ruddick has completed 231-of-398 passes for 2,047 yards while rushing 207 times for 919 yards. He's trying to join an exclusive club of former DSU quarterback's with at least 2,000 yards passing and 1,000 yards rushing. Josh Bright (1998-2001) totaled 4,027 yards passing and 2.336 yards rushing during his illustrious DSU career.  

FEROCIOUS DEFENSIVE FRONT: The Statesman defensive front has been filthy through the first five games, racking up a conference-leading 14 sacks (81 yards) and 42 tackles-for-loss (194 yards).  Vada King (1st/8.5), Zane Samuel (4th/7.0), Marvin Terry  (7th/6.0) and Eric Sadler (8th/6.0) all rank in the top 10 in the GSC in TFLs. Samuel, Sadler and Terry are 5th, 6th & 7th as well in sacks.
    
CRABTREE HAVING SPECIAL SENIOR CAMPAIGN: Taylor Crabtree has made a league-best 10-of-13 field goals and 11-of-11 PATs this season for the Statesmen. His 2.0 FGs per game average ranks 5th in NCAA DII while he ranks fourth in the GSC in scoring at 8.2 points per game. The Pascagoula, Miss., native was named GSC Special Teams Player of the Week after outstanding performances versus Florida Tech, where he tied the GSC record for FGs in a game (5-of-5), and North Greenville (2-of-2 FG).
        
THUNDER & LIGHTNING: Deion Dampier, a junior from Pinola, Miss., and Rico Owens, II, a junior from Greenwood, have combined to give the Statesmen a dramatic 1-2 punch at running back. Dampier enters the week ranked 3rd in the GSC at 74.8 yards rushing per game while Owens is 7th (51.4). The former Copiah-Lincoln CC transfers combined for 175 yards an d a pair of TDs in a 34-9 throttling of North Greenville. Owens rushed for a career-high 99 yards and two TDs, including a back-breaking 73-yard touchdown.  

NEGATIVE PLAYS: Under new defensive coordinator Kelvin Green, the Statesmen have been relentless in their pursuit of the opposing quarterback, racking up a league-leading 14.0 sacks for 81 yards through their first five games. DSU has also recorded 42 tackles-for-loss, accounting for 194 negative yards.

HAWKINS EMERGING AS TOP TARGET: Junior wide receiver L.J. Hawkins has caught 15 passes for 132 yards and a TD in his last two games, including a career-high eight passes for 76 yards and a 9-yard touchdown in DSU's 34-9 win at North Greenville. The Water Valley, Miss., native, hauled in a team-high seven passes for 56 yards at West Florida to give him 19 receptions for 165 yards and a touchdown. His 19 receptions are tied for 5th most in the GSC.  

100-CAREER TACKLES CHART: Junior linebacker Dante Williams eclipsed the 100 tackles plateau with 8.0 tackles and 1.0 TFL at West Florida. The Bossier City, La., native, has recorded 102 tackles and 9.0 tackles-for-loss in 28 career games. He is currently 3rd on the team with 21 stops.    

CRADLE OF COACHES: Delta State has more than 300 alumni coaching football at every level of the game. In fact, Cleveland has become a "Cradle of Coaches" as several high-profile jobs have been filled recently by Statesman alums or former assistants. A list of head coaches, coordinators and key coaches is below. This past summer, former All-GSC safety Pete Golding, who also served DSU as DC under Ron Roberts, was named defensive coordinator at the University of Alabama for Nick Saban.
   

COACH	SCHOOL	POSITION
Steve Campbell	South Alabama	Head Coach
Mark Hudspeth	Austin Peay	Head Coach
Mike Bloomgren	Rice	Head Coach
Jay Hopson	Southern Miss	Head Coach
Ron Roberts	Louisiana	Defensive Coordinator
Pete Golding	Alabama	Defensive Coordinator
Dave Aranda	Louisiana State	Defensive Coordinator
Brian Brown	Louisville	Defensive Coordinator
Jerry Mack	Rice	Offensive Coordinator
Greg Stewart	South Alabama	Defensive Coordinator
Tim Edwards	Memphis	Defensive Line
Reed Stringer	Southern Miss	Tight Ends
Mike Kershaw	Rice	Wide Receivers
Karl Scott	Alabama	Cornerbacks
Chad Huff	South Alabama	Tight Ends

COOLEY COLLECTS 40TH CAREER VICTORY: Delta State head coach Todd Cooley became the fourth coach in the program's 90-year history to record 40 victories when he led the Statesmen to a 34-9 win at North Greenville on Saturday, Sept. 28 at Younts Stadium in Tigerville, S.C. The Nashville, Ark., native has led the Statesmen to two NCAA postseason appearances and a share of the 2014 Gulf South Conference championship during his seven seasons as head coach. He trails Horace McCool (76), Gene Chadwick, and Ron Roberts (47) in career wins while only Roberts (2007, 2008, 2010, & 2011) and Cooley (2014) have led the Statesmen to a league title.
 

COACH (Minimum 15 Wins)	YEARS	RECORD
Horace McCool	14	76-48-3
Gene Chadwick	13	67-46-1
Ron Roberts	5	47-16
Todd Cooley	7	40-29
Rick Rhoades	4	38-20
Jim "Red" Parker	6	34-26-4
Todd Knight	6	28-32-2
Steve Campbell	3	27-8-0
Herman Zimonski	7	27-30-5
Robert McGraw	4	22-19-1
Don Skelton	5	21-27-3
A.D. Dickson	6	16-38-3

ON THE BIG SCREEN: Delta State will appear three times this season on ESPN3 or ESPN+ in the GSC-TV Game of the Week, presented by Florida's Space Coast. DSU's televised contests include Florida Tech on Saturday, Sept. 21 for Pig Pickin' and West Alabama on Saturday, Oct. 19. Delta State's non-conference match-up at Grand Valley State on Sept. 14 will also appear on ESPN3. The Statesmen are 25-15 all-time on TV, including a 14-7 record under coach Cooley.