KSU’s win streak fueled by strength of O-line. ‘It all starts up front.’
When Jerry Mack began constructing the roster after taking the head coaching job at Kennesaw State, he started with the line. Now that the Owls are bowl eligible and in contention for a Conference USA championship, the up-front emphasis has proved to be a wise move.
“My philosophy has always been about building teams from the inside out,” Mack said. “I think if you can have a core of big men, you can start putting other pieces around them to be successful. But it all starts up front.”
Kennesaw State has done it with stability and strength on the offensive line. The approach has enabled the offense to produce solid results and successfully deal with injuries to both starting quarterbacks.
The Owls (6-2, 4-0 CUSA) have won six in a row and travel to New Mexico State (3-5, 1-4) at 4 p.m. Saturday on ESPN+. A win would further enhance their image as a bowl team and give them momentum entering the difficult final stretch of games against Jacksonville State, Missouri State and Liberty.
The Owls have started the same five offensive linemen every game this season: redshirt junior JaDarious Lee (6-4, 290) at left tackle, redshirt junior Brandon Best (6-4, 313) at left guard, redshirt sophomore Josiah Chenault (6-3, 302) at center, redshirt senior JT Pennington (6-4, 321) at right guard, and redshirt sophomore Nikola Milovac (6-6, 314) at right tackle.
Pennington injured his ankle early in last week’s game against Texas-El Paso and was replaced by Cameron Williams, who played well after moving over from center. Pennington has been working his way back in practice this week and is a game-time decision.
“We’ve had a lot of success during the season but we’ve had our moments of adversity, too,” Best said. “And not a single time I don’t think the moment has gotten too big for us, even playing an opponent like Indiana, the No. 2 team in the country. Regardless of the outcome, we’ve shown up to play and play as hard as we possibly can.”
Best joined the team in the spring after finishing his degree in economics at Georgia Tech in three years. Kennesaw State was one of the last places he visited and the Milton High School product needed little convincing after meeting the other offensive linemen he would be playing alongside.
“I got to see the O-line as a whole and I definitely though it would be the best group up front,” Best recalled. “Rolling into summer practices and fall camp, we got to know each other better and grow in our communication. As time went on, you had a feeling this would be a good team and we’d be in a really good spot as a group.”
Best wasn’t wrong. The offensive line has helped Kennesaw State produce consistent offensive numbers. The Owls average 26.5 points and 372.5 yards per game and rank second in CUSA in offensive yards per play (5.75). Their production is equally distributed; they rank fifth in the league in rushing (1,240 yards) and sixth in passing (1,740 yards). The offensive line has allowed only nine sacks and has been especially productive in the red zone, scoring on 23 of 26 opportunities with 17 touchdowns.
“Just keeping the quarterback’s jersey clean is something you take personal pride in and being able to run the ball when the other team knows you’re going to run the ball,” Best said. “We take pride in being a group that can put things on our back.”
The line has earned its share of notoriety. Pennington is a two-time selection as the CUSA’s Lineman of the Week for his efforts against Louisiana Tech and Arkansas State, and Lee won the award following the win over Florida International.
“I think we signed 13-14 new offensive linemen,” Mack said. “(Pennington) is the only one who played much on last year’s team. All these guys are new guys that we got in the (transfer) portal and we knew we were going to have build that from the ground up and that’s what we’ve done.”
The group has bought into the physical approach espoused by Mack and offensive line coach Jay Clements.
“You’ve got to be a physical-style team to run the ball in this league in order to have success,” Mack said. “I’d love to tell you we’d be able to drop back and throw the ball 40 times a game and beat people, but that’s just not reality. There’s going to be times when you have to put the ball in the belly of the running back.”
About the Author
Stan Awtrey has been covering sports for the Atlanta Journal-Constitution since 1977. He currently writes about high school sports, Georgia State University athletics and golf.
