The Kennesaw State Owls grabbed their fourth consecutive victory Saturday night at Fifth Third Bank Stadium, beating Texas Southern 48-3 in a game that never was in doubt.
KSU (4-1) has rebounded well from a season-opening loss to Samford, and it will head into conference play against Liberty next week coming off its most impressive win of the season.
Kennesaw State got the blowout win it’s been looking for
After tight wins against Tennessee Tech and Alabama State, KSU coach Brian Bohannon expressed his dissatisfaction with games he felt should’ve been won more easily. The Owls were unable to play backups and younger, inexperienced players in those victories, which is something Bohannon hoped to do. That changed Saturday, with KSU breaking away with an insurmountable lead in a dominant first half. Many starters were out of the game as early as the third quarter.
Special teams impressed as the Owls got their first kickoff return touchdown in program history
Bohannon has emphasized special teams throughout the season, and it’s been a mixed bag of results for the most part. There shouldn’t be many complaints about this game. Justin Thompson -- who came into the game 6-of-8 on field-goal attempts this season -- knocked down both of his attempts. The Owls punted only twice, and the return game looked unstoppable at times. Shaquil Terry took back the opening kickoff of the second half 97 yards for a touchdown, the first in program history. Terry flew down the right sideline and fought his way through a tackle to fall into the end zone. Bert Birdsall nearly took back a punt return for a score, but he was tackled deep in Tigers’ territory after a 53-yard gain. KSU also had a couple of strong returns called back from penalties, though Texas Southern also had what would have been a punt-return touchdown called back by penalty for a block in the back.
The Owls had their most complete performance yet on offense and defense
In KSU’s first four games, the Owls struggled to have their offense and defense playing well at the same time. Rushing for 346 yards and holding Texas Southern to 171 total yards, including 44 on the ground, each unit held up its end to help give the Owls their first comfortable win of the season. They won the turnover battle by two and punted twice -- both in the second half. The passing game also was effective, with the quarterbacks completing six passes for 138 yards. The Owls averaged 7.8 yards per play, compared with 3.2 for the Tigers.
Justin Sumpter made his opportunities count
The Owls’ star receiver doesn’t always get a ton of chances in their run-heavy offense, but when he does, Sumpter makes the most of them. He had three catches Saturday night for 92 yards. Two of them came in spectacular fashion. The first was a deep ball down the left sideline in the first half that Sumpter grabbed while heavily contested. He then spun and fought while nearly stretching the play out for a highlight touchdown. On the second, Sumpter leapt and grabbed another tough catch with a defensive back all over him for a 44-yard gain. Coming into the game with 11 catches for 187 yards, the junior continues to prove he’s the perfect threat at wide receiver that doesn’t allow defenses to focus only on the option running game.
Bryson Armstrong did it again
In the first quarter, the freshman linebacker came away with another turnover. With multiple accolades already coming his way just four games into his college career, the Kell product dove for a spectacular interception after the ball bounced around with multiple deflections. It was his third interception of the season. He added 10 tackles and a sack in the game.
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