Perrymon Wright
Staff Writer
The Jackson State University Tiger’s struggled to slow down Alabama State University’s star running back Isaiah Crowell in the W.C. Gordon Classic held on Sept. 7 at the Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium.
Inspite of a career-long 83-yard touchdown by Crowell in the first quarter of the game, the Tigers went on to defeat ASU in a hard fought victory.
The Tiger offense was shinning as red hot QB Clayton Moore hit senior wide out Zachery Pendleton for a 53 yard touchdown pass in the first quarter to give the Tigers the momentum they needed to finish the game strong.
Both Moore and Pendleton played exceptionally well in this game. Moore scored on a 3-yard run in the fourth quarter and Pendleton had two TD catches and finished with a career high 177 yards.
Coach Rick Comegy was very excited about his rising superstar receiver.
“He’s our go-to man,” said Comegy of Pendletons. “We already have him in that kind of [leadership] position. He knows we need him for big plays, and he stepped up.”
Senior running back Tommy Gooden also scored on a 2-yard red zone run in the first quarter of the game. Other key players who didn’t score but had a major impact on the game were senior running back Rakeem Sims, who had 16 carries for 92 yards; junior wide-out Tobias Singleton, who had 6 catches for 98 yards; and two-time All-American cornerback Qua Cox, who had a major pass deflection when it mattered most in the fourth quarter to prevent a potential Alabama State touchdown.
The Tigers took home the win in this match-up 30-23 and improve to 1-1 overall and 1-0 in the SWAC.
The Tigers take their talents to Memphis, Tennessee as they face the Tigers of Tennessee State University in the Southern Heritage Classic, on Sept. 14 at 6 p.m.
This is sure to be a battle of the Big Cats.
