HOUSTON — Marshall Faulk doesn’t enter any game expecting to lose, but the odds were clearly stacked against the Southern football team at Houston on Saturday night.
The No. 22 Cougars rolled to a 77-6 win over the Jaguars, who were a 51.5-point road underdog, at TDECU Stadium. The Jaguars trailed 49-0 at the half and allowed Houston to tie a program record with 28 first-quarter points.
Southern (1-2) is now 0-19 against FBS programs all-time. In their lone game against FBS competition a year ago, the Jaguars lost 56-7 at Fresno State.
When Faulk was asked if he had ever been a part of a game like this, the Pro Football Hall of Fame running back said he has.
“Yeah, normally I'm giving the ass whooping,” he said.
Southern was dominated in all three phases of the game. Houston had multiple players break tackles on offense for explosive plays. Defensively, the Cougars played with a speed and physicality that the Jaguars couldn’t match. The Jaguars’ running game, which is the foundation of their offensive identity, was also shut down.
“We're not good enough to beat a team who doesn't beat themselves,” Faulk said. “They didn't turn the football over. They didn't make a lot of mistakes. You know, you got to catch a team not playing well this early in the season. And I got to give Coach (Willie) Fritz, I got to give him his props.”
While Faulk didn’t care how tall the odds were for the Jaguars, he told his players that this Big 12 foe was an opportunity to “show out and make a name for themselves” if they have the desire to transfer up or play in the pros, he said on Wednesday.
Two of the players who seized the moment were third-string quarterback Wyatt McCauley and wide receiver Wydell Clark. McCauley entered the game with 9:38 remaining in the third quarter. At the 4:49 mark, he threw a 79-yard touchdown to Clark up the left sideline. That was the Jaguars’ most impressive play to make the score 70-6 after a blocked extra point.
Ckelby Givens also had a positive moment. The graduate student defensive end had his team’s only tackle for loss in the first quarter, showing his explosiveness off the edge, bringing down a rusher. It marked the third time he has played an FBS opponent in his career. He appeared in Southern’s 65-17 loss to LSU as a freshman in 2022.
Southern started this contest with the ball after Houston won the coin toss and deferred until the second half.
While the score doesn’t reflect it, offensive coordinator Ken Merchant’s unit looked unfazed at the onset. In an empty backfield, Southern quarterback Christian Johnson completed his first pass, a 5-yard delivery to tailback Champ Davis at Southern’s 30-yard line. The freshman then rushed up the middle for an additional 4 yards on second down.
On third and 1, the Jaguars used a typical Go-Go offensive formation with Davis and power running back Michael Franklin side by side next to the quarterback. Southern snapped the ball right before the play clock expired, and Franklin was the ball carrier. Despite the graduate student’s 225-pound frame, the Houston defensive line broke through and tackled Southern’s rusher for a loss of 1.
Southern punted and couldn’t stop Houston from marching 62 yards for a game-opening touchdown drive with 8:59 left in the first quarter.
The next drive featured some of the same composure as the first. However, on third and 3 from Southern’s 32-yard line, Houston brought a corner blitz with Jalen Mayo, who was unblocked by Southern running back Trey Holly. The fifth-year defensive back strip-sacked Johnson, and the ball was recovered by Houston defensive lineman DK Mays at the 22-yard line. The sophomore went to Central High School in Baton Rouge.
In three plays, Houston tacked on its second touchdown. The final play was a 9-yard carry by running back Re’Shaun Sanford. After the extra point, the Cougars took a 14-0 lead at the 6:52 mark of the first period.
“The reality is when you go out there, man, you expect to win,'“ Faulk said. “I don't care who we playing against. There was a feeling like, ‘Hey, we could win this ball game,’ and it just didn't start off the right way.”
Fritz’s team took a 21-0 advantage two minutes later. Houston had a short field again after a Southern incomplete pass on third and 5 at its own 25-yard line was overturned by officials to be considered a lateral pass fumbled by Holly and recovered by the Cougars on the 30-yard line. Their drive ended with a 1-yard gain by running back Makhi Hughes.
Although Southern lost control of the game early, the offense had manageable third downs in each of its first four drives.
Southern finally got a first down after a roughing the kicker penalty by Houston on punter Trey Johnson from the Jaguars’ 8-yard line. Faulk’s team was again aided by a Cougars mistake, a pass interference penalty on a deep shot to wide receiver Cam Jefferson.
The Jaguars entered Houston territory for the first time at the 12:35 mark of the second quarter after a 7-yard pass to top receiver Daejawn Smith, who was tackled at the opposing 49-yard line. Southern’s offense once again had a third-and-3 situation after an accurate short pass to Damien Henderson was broken up by Houston junior defensive back Javion White, a Winnsboro native and Tulane transfer.
Southern went for it on fourth and 3, and Johnson’s intermediate pass toward the left sideline sailed out of bounds due to a miscommunication with wide receiver Floyd Jones, who cut the opposite direction.
The Jaguars made a change at quarterback with 10:50 remaining in the second quarter. They put in returning senior Ashton Strother, making his first appearance this season. The backup signal-caller completed his first pass of the game.
The 10-yard delivery to running back Jason Gabriel gave the Jaguars their first non-penalty first down. Gabriel, a redshirt sophomore, made a crisp juke to get 6 yards after the catch.
While the reception was the longest offensive play up to that point, Southern was unable to build off it. Three plays later, Strother threw an interception on a 10-yard curl route, starting Houston’s drive at the Jaguars’ 25-yard line with 6:58 left before halftime. He was picked off by fifth-year defensive back Jordan Allen, a Lafayette native who started his career at LSU (2022-24).
Strother remained the starter into the third period until McCauley entered.
Southern’s next game is against h Christian University, an NAIA program, at 6 p.m. Saturday at A.W. Mumford Stadium. h Christian beat Division I Northwestern State on the road in its season opener.