PDF Game Notes
FLORENCE, Ala. -- Coming off a strong all-around performance in a 34-17 thrashing of Mississippi College on Homecoming last weekend, the University of North Alabama will return to the road this weekend when the Lions play at Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium in Jackson, Miss., against the Jackson State Tigers.

Kickoff is set for 2 p.m.

Jackson State  is one of four first-time opponents on UNA's 2018 schedule and JSU will be UNA's final Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) opponent of 2018. The Lions hold a 2-2 mark against the FCS this season with road wins at Southern Utah and Alabama A&M. The Lions downed Alabama A&M 25-20 in Huntsville but the Bulldogs posted a five-point win over Jackson State, 21-16, in Jackson two weeks later.

Jackson State enters the game with UNA with a 3-2 overall record and is coming off back-to-back wins over Arkansas Pine Bluff and Mississippi Valley State.

The Tigers have averaged scoring just 18.8 points this season, while the JSU defense is allowing 25.2 points.

Quarterbacks Derrick Ponder and Jarrad Hayes have split time, each throwing for over 400 yards. Jordan Johnson is the top rusher and receiver with 398 yards and two touchdowns on the ground and 12 catches for 79 yards.

As a team, Jackson State averages 137 yards rushing and 173 passing per game for 311 yards of total offense. On defense, the Tigers have been tough to run against, allowing just over 124 yards per game rushing, but allow 271 per game through the air.

North Alabama is coming off its best offensive performance since its season-opener at Southern Utah. The Lions scored on all five of their first half possessions with four touchdowns and one field goal. UNA also finished the game with 404 total yards and had a 100-yard rusher in Damon Cox and a 100-yard receiver in Cortez Hall.

Cox is having the best year of his four-year UNA career with 591 yards rushing on 96 carries and is averaging 6.2 yards per carry. His career average per carry entering the season was 3.8 yards. He has already eclipsed his previous season-high of 519 yards in 2016 and his career numbers are now at 324 carries for 1,462 yards and 10 touchdowns.  

UNA senior kicker Chandler Carrera had another outstanding performance last weekend when he made a career-long 46 yard field goal against Mississippi College and followed it with another career-long 47-yarder later in the same game. He is 12-of-13 on his field goal attempts in 2018 and has made his last 10 straight. He has also made 25 of his last 27 field goal attempts after going 0-for-3 in the Lions' 2017 season-opener.

The North Alabama defense held Mississipi College to a season-low 17 points last week and it was also the fewest points allowed by UNA this season. The Lions held one of the nation's leading rushing teams to almost 100 yards below its season average and forced a huge turnover when Chris Johnson intercepted a pass to end an MC threat after the Choctaws recovered an on-side kick.

Jackson State will be the 15th Historically Black College and University (HBCU) that the UNA football program will have faced. North Alabama has an all-time 51-7-1 record against HBCUs, with nine of those meetings coming in the NCAA Division II Playoffs.

While the Lions have played 96 previous games against teams from the state of Mississippi, Jackson State will become just the third school from Mississippi that UNA has ever faced in football. The Lions are 34-26-1 all-time against Delta State and 19-14-2 against Mississippi College.

Following the trip to Jackson, UNA will have an open date on October 27 before playing its final two games at home against Shorter on November 3 and North Greenville on November 10.