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Austin Peay State University Athletics

Postgame Notes and Quotes: Govs at Tennessee State

November 13, 2021

By: Casey Crigger, Assistant Director of Athletics Communications

GOVS-TIGERS POSTGAME NOTES

Notes following Austin Peay's 36-7 Ohio Valley Conference win over Tennessee State, Saturday, at Nissan Stadium in Nashville.

FROM THE TOP

  • Austin Peay beat Tennessee State, 36-7, and it is the second time in series history the Govs have held the Tigers to seven points or less, joining a 28-6 win in Clarksville in 1995.
  • Austin Peay's defense recorded its 16th and 17th interceptions of the season, the Governors also recovered a fumble, and they ended the game with 26 takeaways this season.

CAPTAINS/COIN TOSS

  • Captains Shamari Simmons, Jack McDonald, Bucky Williams, Jacob Caughell, Matt Rigney took the coin toss for Austin Peay.
  • Austin Peay lost the toss for the eighth time this season and Tennessee State elected to receive the opening kickoff.
  • The Govs are 4-4 this season and 6-4 under head coach Scotty Walden when losing the opening coin toss.
  • Weather in Nashville at kickoff: 48, Fair, Winds northwest at 9 mph.

SERIES UPDATE                                           

  • Austin Peay picked up its 10th win all-time against Tennessee State and improved to 10-15 in the series.
  • The Govs picked up their fourth win against the Tigers in their last six meetings.
  • The Governors improved to 3-2 all-time against Tennessee State in games played at Nissan Stadium (or previously LP Field).

THOSE ARE THE BREAKS

  • Austin Peay improved to 5-2 this season and 7-3 under Walden when leading at halftime.
  • The Governors improved to 5-1 this season and 7-3 under Walden when leading at the end of the third quarter.

OFFENSIVE SPARKS

  • Baniko Harley caught his seventh touchdown of the season and the 21st of his career on a 51-yard grab with 15 seconds left in the first half.
  • With 21 receiving touchdowns in his career, Harley ranks third in program history and is four scoring catches behind DeAngelo Wilson for the second-most in Austin Peay history.
  • Harley's touchdown grab was the 25th total touchdown of his career, moving him into a tie with DeAngelo Wilson for the seventh-most in program history.
  • With 2,201 career receiving yards, Harley still ranks fourth in APSU history and is 65 yards behind Michael Farrell for third all-time.
  • With his 28th and 29th career touchdown passes, Draylen Ellis is now one passing touchdown behind Jeremiah Oatsvall for the fourth most in program history.
  • Ellis' seven-yard rushing touchdown in the third quarter was his first touchdown on the ground this season and the third of his Austin Peay career.
  • Eugene Minter caught a 50-yard touchdown – his second-straight week with a 50-yard scoring grab – it was his fourth touchdown catch of the season and the eighth of his career.

DEFENSIVE STANDS                   

  • Jack McDonald intercepted his second pass of the season with less than a minute left in the first half and recovered a Tennessee State fumble in the third quarter, he has three turnovers gained this season.
  • Troy Henderson Jr. recorded the first interception of his Austin Peay career and recorded a sack for a second-straight week, it was his second sack of the season and the fourth of his career
  • Henderson also made six tackles with a team-best two tackles for loss.
  • Koby Perry led the Governors with seven tackles, all of which were solo stops.
  • Shamari Simmons posted a team-high three pass breakups, he now leads the Governors with 10 pass breakups this season.
  • Isaiah Norman recorded a strip sack on the final play first half, it was the second forced fumble of his Austin Peay career.
  • Kenneth Martin also recorded the second sack of his career.
  • Tennessee State's offense was only able to move the ball into Austin Peay territory four times, the Tigers were not able to cross the Governors' 43-yard line until their final drive of the game, when they finally were able to break through with a touchdown in the final seconds of the contest.
  • The Governors held Tennessee State to just 51 rushing yards, it is the third time this season and the second-straight week the defense has held the opponent under the century mark on the ground.  

SPECIAL TEAMS SPRINTS

  • Freshman wide receiver Drae McCray blocked a Tennessee State punt and then returned the punt 20 yards for a touchdown, he is the first Gov to block a punt since Kordell Jackson at Southeast Missouri (3/14/21) and is the first to return a blocked punt for a touchdown since Jeremy Ross against Jacksonville State (10/31/09).
  • Freshman kicker Maddux Trujillo drilled a 44-yard field goal in the third quarter, the 44-yard kick is the second-longest by an Austin Peay kicker in Nissan Stadium, behind a 50-yard kick by Stephen Stansell in 2010.
  • With a 42-yard and 44-yard field goal, Trujillo is the third Austin Peay kicker to make multiple field goals in a single game at Nissan Stadium.
  • Trujillo's 44-yard field goal is one yard shy of his career-long, he entered the game against Tennessee State 2-of-3 on field-goal attempts of 40-plus yards and was 2-of-3 on field goals of 40-plus yards against the Tigers.
  • With his 10th field goal of the season in just 13 attempts, Trujillo is the quickest kicker to double-digit makes in a single season in program history, edging out David Young, who finished the 1994 season 10-for-14.
  • Trujillo's 12 field goals made this season is tied for the second-best single season mark in program history, equaling Stansell in 2010 and Logan Birchfield in 2019 – he is two field goals behind Tom McMillan for the best single-season mark in APSU history.
  • Matt Rigney punted six times for an average of 38 yards, he had one kick downed inside the 20-yard line.

GOVS-TIGERS POSTGAME QUOTES

Austin Peay head coach Scotty Walden

Opening Statement… "I can't say enough about this team. I know I have said it a million times and it may sound like a broken record, but this team continues to battle through adversity. From bouncing back from the tough loss against UT Martin, having that three-game losing streak in the middle of the year and now having an opportunity to have a three-game winning streak to end the year is a big deal. I am proud of this team and our preparation. Our preparation has never wavered.  Our coaching staff has put together great plans on the offensive, defensive and special teams sides of the ball and our players have been practicing really hard and showing they care and that is something that fires me up… These guys want to win every game they play and they want to go out winners."

On winning the rematch against Tennessee State … "We knew what kind of weapons they had that could pose a lot of issues for us, but I think our defensive staff was hungry to show that first time around was not out standard of performance and I thought Coach Kappas had a great game plan coming into this one and made great adjustments all night long… Offensively, I felt like there were some things that we missed in the first game that we did a good job of making adjustments today. Our defensive performance and effort was just stellar overall"

On the Govs defense … "Coach Davis and Coach Kappas have done an amazing job of dialing up pressures… we're getting pressure on the quarterback I think that's something that we missed early in the year that we're doing great. Our defensive line is one thing that has just kept getting better every week under Chris Jones. Their continuity continues to develop there from Terrell Allen, Damion Barber, Eric Bentley, and Deterias Glover. We have just had so many guys step up and get pressure on the quarterback and when you get pressure on the quarterback, you force those errant throws and our defensive backs continue to capitalize on those."

Austin Peay linebacker Troy Henderson Jr.

On the Govs' recent success defensively … "Going into the season, we felt like we were one of the most dominant defenses in the county. When we got our bye week earlier in the season, we used it to just focus on the details like tackling and getting turnovers and the small things that make a defense great. We have all been coming in to watch extra film, asking more questions and trying to pick our coaches brain more. That has all been paying off for us and we have one more to go, so we just want to keep it going."

On defensive takeaways… "It has been some of the most fun I have had in my career. On Sunday after the game, if we had missed tackles or assignments, we have to do up downs, but lately we have not been doing up downs. We have been able to get the ball back to our explosive offense and give them more opportunities to make plays."

Austin Peay quarterback Draylen Ellis

On entering Saturday's game … "We had to go game-by-game and run our game plan do what we needed to do and not focus on the other team. We have been clicking well the last few weeks and are looking to keep this going for the rest of the season."

On the win… "We pounded the ball and it cleared up shots for us to throw deep balls. I thank our offensive line, the receivers on the perimeter and the running backs in pass protection did a great job. Overall, it was a great win."

On finishing the season with a winning record … "Of course, we want to finish the season with a winning record. We want to send the seniors out and get a win for them next week. It will be something they can brag about that not a lot of Austin Peay players can. We just have to continue to be consistent and get this win."

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