Tigers take Tough Loss at Jackson State

JACKSON, MS- Texas Southern played their second consecutive football game in the bright lights, but the Tigers did not shine as expected against Jackson State on ESPNU.
 
TSU true freshman Jay Christophe got the start at the quarterback for an injured Homer Causey.  Causey got banged up while scoring in the game against Sam Houston.
 
"I could have played him but I did not want to risk making his injury worse," said head coach Darrell Asberry. "He will be fully healed and ready to go next week."
 
Christophe had a good showing for a true freshman with the pressure of playing his first division I football game on national television.  He picked up 29 yards rushing and completed 3 of 6 passes for 21 yards. 
 
"The freshman did some good things for us," said Asberry.  "He made some mistakes as I expected but he has a bright future and we have plans for him."
 
The Tigers ended the first quarter down 7-0 when Christophe was in the game.  Jamal Small took over in the second period and led the Tigers 97 yards in 12 plays for a touchdown to tie the game 7-7.  Daveonn Porter rushed 2 yards for the score.
 
Texas Southern's defense kept Jackson State's offense in-check for the rest of the half.  JSU got a break however, when they blocked a TSU punt and recovered it in the end zone for a touchdown.  J-State led 14-7 at the half.  This proved to be the turning point in the game.
 
"No telling what would have happened if they didn't block that punt," Asberry said. "It changed the momentum of the game.   We came out of the second half flat and you can't come out against a good quality program flat."
 
Jackson State scored three touchdowns in the second half while the Texas Southern could not get its offense going.  TSU fell to Jackson State 35-7.
 
Small finished the game by completing 6 of 11 passes for 90 yards.  Daveonn Porter had 13 carries for 30 yards and one touchdown.  Fred Plummer had 4 catches for 47 yards while Dedric Shipman caught 3 passes for 58 yards.
 
Defensively, Michael Holmes led TSU with 9 tackles (5 solo).  LeKendric Conley and Le'Tevin Wilcox each had 8 tackles, and Remond Silas had a sack to go along with his 4 tackles.
 
"It's always tough when you lose a football game that you felt really good about coming in," said Asberry.  "This is part of rebuilding.  It's a humbling experience but we will get through it. Sometimes you have to take these tough losses to make you appreciate being a champion.  Once you get that taste of losing out, you don't want to go back to it.  Our future is bright; we will be fine."
 
The Tigers will face Alabama A&M on the road on Saturday, September 28^th at 6:00pm.