UWF Football: Argos prepare for Senior Day against Chowan University to close regular season
As the regular-season finale looms for the University of West Florida football team, there are a pair of seniors that have already – and have the chance to – set a new standard in the program.
After Saturday’s game at Mississippi College, quarterback Peewee Jarrett became the first Argo to achieve 5,000 yards passing and 1,000 yards rushing in one career. And he’s done it in less than two years, after transferring in from Iowa Central Community College entering the 2022 season.
Jarrett’s rushed for 340 yards this season, including a 120-yard game against Valdosta State in Week 9. Having a quarterback that can run adds another layer to the run game for UWF, head coach Kaleb Nobles said. Jarrett added that he didn’t start being relied on as a running quarterback until he got to the junior college level.
“I feel like I’ve incorporated it into my game now, and it’s going to be there forever,” Jarrett said leading up to the game at Mississippi College. “No one likes to tackle for 60 minutes straight. I feel like we have bigger games when I’m incorporated in the run game.”
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But it’s more than just his legs that make Jarrett a special quarterback, Nobles said.
“He cannot stand to lose. Even if it’s the smallest things, like in our quarterback meetings where we do little competitions, he just hate’s losing. That’s what you want as your quarterback,” Nobles said. “Peewee’s a guy that works his butt off, and it’s cool to see him get some rewards and benefits from that work.”
Another player to keep an eye on Saturday is wide receiver John Jiles, who has 1,127 yards receiving in 10 games. That makes him just 42 yards short of tying the UWF single-season record for receiving yards, held by Quentin Randolph, who had 1,169 yards during the 2019 season.
Jiles has had six games with 100-plus yards receiving, highlighted by a 277-yard night at North Greenville University. On the season, Jiles has 15 touchdowns.
Nobles noted the similarities between Jiles and Randolph, especially their confidence levels whenever a quarterback throws the ball near them. Jiles, who stands at 6-foot-3, also has the added bonus of a larger catch radius.
“Some of that is God-given by height and wingspan, but other guys, they have the mentality where, ‘If that football is in the air, that’s mine,’” Nobles said of Jiles. “He does a great job of identifying the things he’s got to work on, and putting the pen to paper and actually working. He doesn’t just rely on physical talent. He likes to hone in on his craft and do his job.”
All-in-all, Nobles is looking forward to his first Senior Day at the helm of UWF. After all, not only did he have a senior recognition not too long ago, but he also was with a lot of these seniors during their first years with the program when he was a graduate assistant and assistant coach in 2018 and 2019.
“It’s very surreal to now be head coach of the program and see them go through certain things. What I see is a group of guys that have worked their butt off to earn the right to play at a high level,” Nobles said. “Those 16 guys embody the UWF program – whether they’ve been here one year or six years.”
Revisiting Week 10
All it took was a handful of plays for UWF to take all the momentum – and ultimately the victory – away from Mississippi College last Saturday during the Argos’ 42-14 win. Not only did UWF score right before halftime with a Jiles touchdown, but then he added one right away in the third quarter to go up by two touchdowns.
The Argos blocked a punt on the following drive, and Mi’Chaun Coward recovered the ball in the end zone minutes later, followed by a forced fumble and recovery by the UWF defense on the next Choctaw offensive drive. UWF scored on the ensuing drive.
“I’ve been preaching to them all year that five or six plays doesn’t just mean offense or defense. It’s going to be on special teams too at some point,” Nobles said. “Finally, those guys are seeing the fruits of their labor.”
The blocked punt also gave emphasis to the fact that the Argos excelled in all three facets of the game between offense, defense and special teams. UWF had come close to blocking a punt a couple times, resulting in a roughing the kicker penalty once or twice.
But with the Choctaws pinned deep in their own territory, plus using a three-man shield in front of their punter, defensive back Braylon Anderson told the coaches he thought he had a good chance to get a piece of a punt.
“It was a great chance and a great call by Coach (Jordan) Remsza, our special teams coordinator,” Nobles said. “It certainly makes me feel like a lot better play-caller when we score on special teams or defense. Our guys know those are important plays, and you’ve got to put an emphasis on and take pride in that stuff, because it could be a play that wins you loses you a game.”
Around the GSC/Playoff Primer
The chances at a Gulf South Conference championship are gone for UWF. Between falling in the last-second heartbreaker to Valdosta State, plus Delta State and the Blazers both picking up Week 10 victories, it’s between those two programs now.
Delta State plays at Mississippi College on Saturday, while Valdosta State hosts the University of West Georgia. Should both teams win, and finish the season with 7-1 conference records, the Statesmen have the tiebreaker with the better head-to-head record.
By virtue of the NCAA regional rankings, North Greenville’s season ended last week. West Alabama’s, Mississippi College’s, Shorter University’s and Chowan University’s seasons will end on Saturday.
West Georgia was previously in the ranking talks in Super Region 2 before falling to Delta State. With a game at Valdosta State, which is ranked third in the region, there is a chance the Wolves could climb back into light discussions – but probably not high enough to crack into the top eight.
Valdosta State and Delta State, ranked second, appear to have punched their tickets for the postseason. UWF, sitting at No. 5, will want a win over Chowan to guarantee its season will continue.
Heading into Saturday, here are the conference standings and the team’s opponent:
Valdosta State (9-1, 6-1 GSC) vs. West Georgia
Delta State (8-1, 6-1 GSC) at Mississippi College
West Florida (7-3, 5-2 GSC) vs. Chowan University
West Georgia (6-3, 5-2 GSC) at Valdosta State
North Greenville (5-5, 4-4 GSC) BYE WEEK
West Alabama (4-5, 3-4 GSC) at Shorter University
Mississippi College (3-6, 2-5 GSC) vs. Delta State
Shorter University (3-7, 1-6 GSC) vs. West Alabama
Chowan University (0-9, 0-7 GSC) at West Florida
Scouting Chowan University
It’s safe to say this hasn’t been the most ideal season for the Hawks, who haven’t put a number in the win column yet. Chowan, an affiliate member for the 2023 and 2024 football seasons, haven’t really come close to a win, either.
The Hawks’ closest game was two weeks ago when they lost 14-6 against West Alabama. The current record is a stark difference from back-to-back seven-win campaigns over the last couple years. Even though this is the first time the Argos will battle against Chowan as conference foes, it's not the first all-time meeting.
The series record currently sits at 1-1, most recently with a 51-23 win on Sept. 16, 2017.
As Nobles has said for a couple different teams during the season with not-so-stellar records, he called Chowan’s record “misleading.” The Hawks are averaging just 16 points a game, and have allowed 364.7 total yards per game while putting up just 283.8 yards of their own.
Quarterback Rashad McKee has thrown for 1,911 yards and 10 touchdowns this season(139-for-258), but has been picked off 12 times. McKee is also the leading rusher with a net total of 261 yards. Romeo Felton is next on the list with 179 yards, but he hasn’t scored on the ground this season.
Nobles did point out defensive lineman Traevon Mitchell, who is tied for the team-lead in tackles (51) and has recorded 13 tackles for a total loss of 52 yards. One of those TFLs is a sack with a loss of 11 yards. He’s also hurried the quarterback six times and blocked one kick.
“He’s got a great first step. He’s in the backfield on a lot of plays,” Nobles said.
If UWF tops Chowan on Saturday, it would be the Hawks’ first winless season since 2006. That does mean one thing for the Argos: Chowan has nothing to lose on Saturday, and Nobles made sure to emphasize that to his players after practice on Wednesday – avoiding costly penalties during play or after the while that could jeopardize postseason eligibility.
It should be noted that six players were suspended by the GSC earlier this year from Chowan after a brawl broke out at the end of the game at Delta State in Week 3. One of those players was suspended the entire season.
Another angle: https://t.co/AcnRaTB4jq
— Ben T. Grieco (@BenGriecoSports) September 11, 2023
Add in that it’s Senior Day on Saturday, and there will be a lot of extra “noise” at Pen Air Field. The game is scheduled to begin at 1 p.m.
“I told those guys already this week that there’s a lot of things going on during pregame and it’s an early kickoff, but at the end of the day, at 1 p.m., we’ve got to play at our best and play great football,” Nobles said. “People are going to talk trash, and our guys have to know we’ve got to step away from those things and not get involved in it, and just be at our best even after the whistle’s blown.”
Ben Grieco is a sports reporter for the Pensacola News Journal. He can be reached on X (@BenGriecoSports) and via email at BGrieco@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Pensacola News Journal: UWF football takes on Chowan University to finish regular season
