CLEVELAND, Miss. - Delta State football (11-1 overall, 6-1 GSC) made quick work of Fayetteville State in the first round of the NCAA Football Playoffs, but the celebrations in Cleveland were kept short with GSC rival West Florida (10-1, 6-1) coming to Cleveland in the second round. Michael Gross will have the call on the Statesmen Sports Network. Delta State will also broadcast home playoff games for free on the Statesmen Sports Network.

Delta State's 51-0 win against Fayetteville State (9-3, 7-1 CIAA) last Saturday saw the Statesmen find the endzone on offense, defense, and special teams in a complete team victory. The Statesmen took advantage of five Bronco turnovers, turning all of them into points while only turning the ball over once themselves. Delta State out-gained Fayetteville State 407-250 in total yardage, 175-112 in passing yardage, and 232-138 in rushing yardage.

Parker-McCool Stadium will see some of the GSC's best players as 28 All-GSC selections take to the field on Saturday. Delta State quarterback Patrick Shegog and head coach Todd Cooley were also named the GSC's Offensive Player of the Year and Coach of the Year for 2022.


SERIES NOTEBOOK: WEST FLORIDA
• This is the seventh meeting all-time between the Statesmen and the Argonauts. The teams have played every year since 2016 (except 2020 due to Covid-19) with the first two meetings ending in Delta State wins. The Statesmen won the meeting in Pensacola earlier this season, a 45-42 double overtime win that snapped a three-game winning streak for the Argos over Delta State. Saturday's game works as a brief rubber match with the series currently even at 3 wins apiece.

• The Argonauts opened their season with a convincing 52-3 win at home against Warner. West Florida led 45-0 at halftime and out-gained Warner 420-144 in total yardage. Argonaut junior quarterback Peewee Jarrett was 12-for-20 for 246 yards with four touchdowns while also rushing three times for 21 yards.

• West Florida traveled to Southwest Baptist in Bolivar, MO for their Week 2 game. The Argonauts defeated the now 1-1 Bearcats by a score of 49-10. Jarrett only passed the ball eleven times, but completed seven of them for 189 yards and two touchdowns. UWF junior rusher Shomari Mason carried the ball 12 times for 103 yards and two scores against the Bearcats.

• A then-unranked Delta State visited the 6th-ranked Argonauts on September 24th for the beginning of GSC play for the two teams. The Argos out-gained DSU 662-423 in total yardage, but a combination of four UWF turnovers, a Tyler Kennedy kickoff return touchdown, and an incredible performance from Patrick Shegog all led to Nick Herber hitting a game-winning field goal to give West Florida their only blemish on their record thus far.

• The Argonauts have since gone on an 8-game winning streak that began with a 34-31 win against North Greenville. North Greenville led by 13 at the end of the third quarter, but the Argos outscored the Crusaders 24-8 in the fourth, including a field goal as time expired from Griffin Cera to win in walk-off fashion. Jarrett completed 15 of his 31 passes for 186 yards with 2 touchdowns and an interception, but the player of the game was rusher Shomari Mason who carried the ball 11 times for 153 yards.

• West Florida then picked up a big road win at then-16th-ranked West Georgia. Jarrett was 13-for-24 with 235 yards with 2 touchdowns and 2 interceptions while also rushing 11 times for 71 yards and a score in the 42-28 win over the Wolves.

• The Argonauts kept their winning ways alive with victories at Shorter (50-26), at home against Mississippi College (45-17) and West Alabama (36-24), at Valdosta State (32-31) in overtime, and at Mississippi College (56-21) in non-conference action.

• The first round of the playoffs brought the Limestone University Saints (8-4, 7-2 SAC) to Pensacola last Saturday. The score was fairly close for the majority of the first half before the Argonauts scored a touchdown on a rush from Jarrett with 1:11 left in the second and returned a blocked punt for a touchdown with 11 seconds remaining to put West Florida up 24-6 at halftime. Jarrett completed 7 of his 18 pass attempts for 113 yards with a touchdown and an interception, but he also ran for 34 yards and 3 touchdowns in their 45-19 win. Ra'veion Hargrove also carried the ball 9 times for 121 yards and a touchdown.


GSC SHOWDOWN AND BEYOND: Saturday's game could be viewed as a metaphorical GSC Championship game as both teams finished with 6-1 conference records. The winner of Saturday's game at Parker-McCool will advance to the Super Region 2 Finals and play the winner of the Wingate (10-2) at Benedict (11-0) game at 1 pm on Saturday.

AWARDS AND HONORS: Last Thursday afternoon saw a number of accolades and honors come to the Statesmen football team. Patrick Shegog was named the GSC Offensive Player of the Year and Todd Cooley was named GSC Coach of the Year. This is the 8th time a DSU player has received offensive player of the year honors, the first since 2011 (Micah Davis). Cooley's win his third and the sixth in DSU history. Delta State had 12 football players named to the All-GSC teams on Thursday afternoon. First team offense honors went to Dohnte Meyers, Patrick Shegog, Keshawn Jennings, and Nicolas Melsop. First team defense honors were earned by Malik Jones, Tamos Stevenson, and Timaje Porter. Nick Herber was named first team for special teams. Jaelon Brown and Damon Moore were named All-GSC second team for offense, Marlon Windham earned second team honors for defense, and Tyler Kennedy earned second team honors as a special teams return specialist.

GO GREEN: DSU fans are asked to wear green to all remaining home games this season. Get your official game day gear at www.StatesmenStore.com!

WHAT TO BRING: Only clear bags are permitted in McCool Stadium. Delta State logoed bags will be available for purchase between gates 4 and 5; pouches are $10 and totes are $15. No outside food/drink, no non-service animals, and no weapons are permitted.

TICKETS:  Season ticket holders must repurchase their tickets and parking spots for each home playoff game. Visit https://deltastatetickets.universitytickets.com/ to purchase in advance or visit the ticket booths next to gates 3 or 4 on the west side, or gate 14 on the east side on game day.

GETTING THERE: Kickoff is at 1:30 pm. Gates open one hour pregame. As of 5 pm Friday, all Stadium Lots (1-7) are designated parking and can only be accessed with the appropriate placard. A limited number of Lot 6 parking spots will be available beginning three hours before kick-off Saturday for $15, or $10 in advance at https://deltastatetickets.universitytickets.com/. Additional parking will be available at Shumate Park, Walter Sillers Coliseum, Kent Wyatt Hall, and across MS Highway 8 on campus. Delta State student parking is available on a first-come, first-served basis in the grass lot next to Lot 1 for vehicles with current Resident or Commuter parking decals. All game-day traffic should enter via Statesman Boulevard.

TAILGATING: Register for FREE tailgating in Statesmen Park at https://forms.office.com/r/N87YW2dzPW.

FOOD AND DRINK: Concessions will be available on both the west and east sides of McCool stadium.

NCAA MERCHANDISE: NCAA Football Playoffs merchandise will be available for purchase underneath the home bleachers.

FUN FOR THE WHOLE FAMILY: Kids can join the Statesmen Football team as they take the field at 10-minutes on the game clock. The Punkin' Patch KidsZone will open one hour before kickoff; admission is $10 but Future Statesmen Club members get into the KidsZone free so join today at www.StatesmenClub.com.

STAY IN THE KNOW: You can listen or watch along! Visit www.GoStatesmen.com > Sports > Football > Schedule and click the speaker (Magic 107.5) or screen and follow the prompts. Download the Statesmen Nation app where you can listen to or stream the event, see rosters and stats, receive notifications about promotions and partnerships, and much more!