The Postgame Report: South Alabama 39, Southeastern Louisiana 14

Major Applewhite wanted complementary football. He got it before the first quarter was over. South Alabama scored on its first three offensive possessions, forced two interceptions, added a safety and built a 19-0 lead in the opening 13 minutes. The Jaguars (1-0) buried Southeastern Louisiana 39-14 in the season opener at Hancock Whitney Stadium in front of 15,087.

South Alabama rushed 59 times for 241 yards behind a three-back committee — PJ Martin (18 carries, 69 yards, one touchdown), Keenan Phillips (13 carries, 66 yards) and Trae'von Dunbar (13 carries, 60 yards, one touchdown). Bishop Davenport completed 18 of 27 passes for 154 yards and a touchdown with no interceptions, then added a 2-yard scoring run in the third quarter. Davis Little was perfect: 3-for-3 on field goals (35, 30 and 26 yards) and 4-for-4 on extra points for 13 total points. The Jaguars held the ball for 40 minutes and 9 seconds, ran 86 plays to Southeastern Louisiana's 37 and punted once the entire game.

The defense set the tone immediately. Damyrion Darby intercepted Kyle Lowe on Southeastern Louisiana's first possession — the first pick of Darby's career — and South Alabama converted it into a Little field goal. Jaylen Moson added a second interception in the third quarter, his first as a Jaguar. Southeastern Louisiana went 0-for-7 on third down.

WHAT IT MEANS

Applewhite built this season around a pillar he hammered throughout fall camp: be 1-0. "One of the pillars of our program, we talk about being 1-0, and these guys have done that throughout all of fall camp, and to get a chance to actually be 1-0 in the win-loss column is huge," he said. This is the eighth time in program history South Alabama has opened a season with a victory.

The manner mattered as much as the result. Offense, defense and special teams all contributed before SELA touched the end zone. The Jaguars scored a touchdown on the opening drive, forced a turnover into a field goal, recorded a safety and punched in a fourth score — all in the first quarter. Applewhite called it "complementary football," and that is exactly what it was.

The question is whether this production carries against Sun Belt competition. The third-down defense (0-for-7) and rushing volume (59 carries) worked against a Southland opponent that fell to 0-2. Tulane in New Orleans next Saturday will answer how much of this was real.

THE TURNING POINT

Damyrion Darby's interception on Southeastern Louisiana's first possession. South Alabama had just scored on the opening drive — Davenport found Brendan Jenkins for a 26-yard touchdown on a five-play, 55-yard march that took 93 seconds. It was the Jaguars' first opening-drive touchdown since 2023 against Southern Miss. When SELA got the ball, Darby picked off Lowe at the 11:31 mark. South Alabama turned the short field into an 11-play, 45-yard drive that burned 5:24 and ended with a Little 35-yard field goal. It was 10-0 and SELA had run four plays.

Safety Cole Blaylock described the defensive mentality: "Dee Darby came out on the first drive with a big pick. I mean, that was a huge play. Moson, a transfer, made a huge play. I mean, I could go on and on about it, but I really liked the way we played aggressive and we took our shots even when we missed, and just covered each other up."

WHAT THEY SAID

South Alabama head coach Major Applewhite:

"It's great to be back in Hancock Whitney. You practice about 90 times a year, and you only get to play 12 games, so it was special to be back — to start our season off at home, and start it off with a win. One of the pillars of our program, we talk about being 1-0, and these guys have done that throughout all of fall camp, and to get a chance to actually be 1-0 in the win-loss column is huge. To see them have fun and play together, and some of the complementary football that went on in different parts of the game. So, I was just really pleased with the way they played. I talked to them in there, whether we won or whether we lost tonight, there's still things that we've got to go clean up, and as coaches, we'll see those things tonight on film and explain to the guys in the morning, then just try to get a head start on Tulane tomorrow afternoon."

South Alabama safety Cole Blaylock, on the defense getting its first opportunity:

"Yeah, no doubt. Dee Darby came out on the first drive with a big pick. I mean, that was a huge play. Moson, a transfer, made a huge play. I mean, I could go on and on about it, but I really liked the way we played aggressive and we took our shots even when we missed, and just covered each other up."

South Alabama wide receiver Brendan Jenkins, on the balance of the offense:

"That was something we emphasized. We didn't want to be one-dimensional this year. We wanted to spread the wealth so defenses actually have to game plan for us. I feel like we did that tonight."

THE GOOD, THE BAD AND THE UGLY

Good: The rushing committee. Martin, Phillips and Dunbar combined for 44 carries and 195 yards — all three between 60 and 69. Phillips was the most efficient at 5.1 yards per carry. No single back dominated, and that is the design. The Jaguars held the ball for 40:09, ran 86 plays and wore Southeastern Louisiana down possession by possession. Martin's fourth-quarter touchdown capped a 15-play, 47-yard drive that took 8 minutes and 15 seconds off the clock. That drive was the clearest expression of what Applewhite wants this offense to be.

Bad: The passing game was functional but narrow. Davenport's 154 yards on 27 attempts (5.7 per attempt) did not stretch the field. Brendan Jenkins accounted for 78 of those 154 yards. Jeremiah Jones-Thomas tied Jenkins with five catches but gained only 38 yards. Jenkins said the offense wanted to "spread the wealth so defenses actually have to game plan for us." Against a Southland defense, the Jaguars got away with being run-heavy. Against Tulane, they will need more from the passing game.

Ugly: The two Southeastern Louisiana scoring drives exposed a pattern. Both came via Lowe finding Lonnie Shinn Jr — a 12-yard touchdown on a four-play, 76-yard drive in 1:16, and a 7-yard score on a four-play, 65-yard drive in 2:14. When SELA connected on explosive plays, the defense had no answer. Shinn Jr finished with four catches for 54 yards and both Lion touchdowns. The defense was dominant on third down and dominant in takeaways, but the big-play vulnerability is something to watch.

THE STATS THAT MATTER

Southeastern Louisiana: 0-for-7 on third down — The Jaguars never let SELA extend a drive through conversion. Every Lion scoring drive was a quick strike — four plays each. When Southeastern Louisiana could not hit an explosive play, they went nowhere. South Alabama's defense imposed a binary: score fast or punt.

South Alabama: 40:09 time of possession — The Jaguars held the ball for more than two-thirds of the game. The 15-play, 47-yard drive that produced Martin's fourth-quarter touchdown took 8:15 off the clock — and that was only the most extreme example. South Alabama's first-quarter field goal drive lasted 5:24. The second-half field goal drive went 5:33. This is grinding, possessive football, and it kept SELA's offense on the sideline.

South Alabama: 59 rushes, 241 yards, 3 rushing touchdowns — Martin, Phillips and Dunbar all finished between 60 and 69 yards. Davenport added 23 on the ground with a 2-yard scoring run. Phillips led the group in efficiency at 5.1 per carry. The Jaguars averaged 4.1 yards per attempt on 59 carries — volume and efficiency together.

3 STARS

1. Davis Little, K, South Alabama — 3-for-3 FG (35, 30, 26), 4-for-4 XP, 13 points. Little scored more points than any player on either side. In a game where the offense produced four touchdowns, the kicker accounting for 13 points speaks to the completeness of the performance.

2. Brendan Jenkins, WR, South Alabama — 5 receptions, 78 yards, 1 TD. Jenkins caught the opening-drive touchdown — a 26-yard pass from Davenport that put South Alabama on the board 93 seconds into the game. He accounted for half the passing offense and was the target Davenport trusted most. Jenkins held up his end of the "spread the wealth" mandate.

3. PJ Martin, RB, South Alabama — 18 carries, 69 yards, 1 TD. Martin carried the ball more than anyone on either side. His 3-yard fourth-quarter touchdown capped the 15-play, 8:15 drive that put the game away at 39-14. The numbers reflect workload, not explosiveness, and that is exactly the role.

FINAL TAKEAWAYS

The three-back committee is the identity until proven otherwise. Martin, Phillips and Dunbar split 44 carries nearly evenly. Phillips' 5.1-yard average led the group, and Dunbar scored on a 1-yard run that capped the first-quarter onslaught. None of them needs to be a star. They need to take turns, move the chains and hold the ball. They did all three.

The defense forced turnovers from the opening possession and never let Southeastern Louisiana sustain anything. The 0-for-7 third-down mark is the headline, but the interceptions by Darby and Moson — both getting their first picks as Jaguars — set the tone before the offense had a chance to pull away. The defense created a plus-two turnover margin and gave the offense short fields. Complementary football, exactly as Applewhite described it.

The passing game needs to develop beyond Jenkins. Jones-Thomas tied him with five catches but gained only 38 yards. Micah Woods caught three passes for 20 yards. Davenport was accurate (66.7 percent) and did not turn the ball over, but the passing attack will need more dimension against Sun Belt secondaries.

Applewhite already has his eyes forward. "Whether we won or whether we lost tonight, there's still things that we've got to go clean up, and as coaches, we'll see those things tonight on film and explain to the guys in the morning, then just try to get a head start on Tulane tomorrow afternoon," he said. The opener was thorough. The schedule is about to get real.

NEXT UP

South Alabama travels to New Orleans to face Tulane on Saturday, Sept. 12, at Yulman Stadium. Kickoff is 6 p.m. CT.