Jacksonville State football falls New Mexico State has comeback comes up short
Jacksonville State football and coach Rich Rodriguez fell to New Mexico State, 20-17 in Las Cruces, New Mexico on Saturday to end the regular season.
Jax State looked like they had the game won but the go-ahead touchdown was called back for an illegal forward pass, before they tied the game with a field goal. The Aggies took the win with a field goal as time expired.
The Aggies scored on their first two drives of the game, moving the ball with relative ease. The Gamecocks (8-4) settled in getting stops on back-to-back drives and added a field goal in the middle but couldn't truly get the offense going, finding themselves in a 14-point deficit at halftime.
This could be the last game of the season for the Gamecocks, as their bowl fate is still in the hands of other teams. If there are not enough six-win teams, the Gamecocks will learn what bowl they'll play in on December 3.
Slow start hurts Gamecocks
The first quarter was a continuation of New Mexico State's upset win over Auburn last week where they outscored the Tigers 21-3. This go around the Aggies pounced on the Gamecocks and were up 14-0 after the first quarter. The Gamecocks managed 48 yards of offense while the Aggies had 133.
First half third down struggles
The Gamecocks struggled on third down on both sides of the ball in the first half. The Gamecocks offense went 0-4, killing off drives before they could ever get going. The field goal drives were the best two drives, but they had to avoid third down on both. It didn't help that the average distance to go was almost 10 yards on each of the third downs.
The defense allowed the Aggies to go 6 of 8 in the first half on third down. The Aggies had to gain an average of seven yards to convert the six third downs.
Zion Webb shines passing early, falters late
Unlike most games this season, Jacksonville State struggled to get the ball moving on the ground but Webb had a great start to the game through the air. In the first half Webb went 6 of 9 for 120 yards, and was consistently hitting his receiver for big gains. The big plays continued into the second half but the older version Webb showed up, going 11 of 28 for 128 yards but had two interceptions.
Maxwell Donaldson covers high school sports and Jacksonville State athletics for the Gadsden Times. Find him on Twitter/X @_Max_Donaldson and contact him at MDonaldson@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on The Gadsden Times: Jacksonville State football, Rich Rodriguez fall to New Mexico State
