GOVS-THUNDERBIRDS POSTGAME NOTES

Notes following Austin Peay's 28-17 loss to Southern Utah in a United Athletic Conference contest at Fortera Stadium in Clarksville, Tennessee.

FROM THE TOP

• Sammy Anderson Jr. has recorded an interception in four-straight games, he is the first Governor to do so in Austin Peay's digital record-keeping era.
• Austin Peay rushed for 274 yards while limiting Southern Utah to just 151 yards on the ground – the Thunderbirds' lowest single-game total against an FCS team this season.
• La'Vell Wright rushed for 140 yards; he is the first Gov with back-to-back 100-yard rushing games since Jevon Jackson rushed for 100-plus yards in three-straight games during the 2023 season.
• Wright is the first Governor with back-to-back 140-plus rushing games since Jevon Jackson ran for 197 and 158 yards against Stephen F. Austin (9/23/23) and Lindenwood (9/30/23).

CAPTAINS/COIN TOSS

• Captains Garrett Hawkins, Chandler Kirton, Hosea Knifeley Jr., and Harrison Wilkes took the coin toss for the Governors.
• Austin Peay won the coin toss and deferred its option until the second half. Southern Utah elected to receive the opening kickoff.
• Austin Peay improved to 4-1 at the opening coin toss this season.
• Austin Peay falls to 1-4 this season when winning the opening coin toss.
• Weather in Clarksville at kickoff: 66 degrees, overcast, winds west at 10 mph.

SERIES UPDATE            

• Austin Peay falls to 1-1 all-time against Southern Utah.
• The Govs are now 2-1 all-time against teams from the State of Utah.

THOSE ARE THE BREAKS

• The Governors fall to 0-1 this season when tied at halftime
• The Govs fell to 1-1 when leading at the end of the third quarter.

DEFEND THE FORT

• Austin Peay is now 29-15 (.659) at Fortera Stadium since the start of the 2017 season.

OFFENSIVE SPARKS

• Austin Peay rushed for 200-plus yards as a team for the second-straight game; it is the first time the Govs have had back-to-back 200-yard rushing games since they ran for 227 and 270 yards against Stephen F. Austin (9/23/23) and Lindenwood (9/30/23).
• Wright's 72-yard run is the longest offensive play by the Governors this season and the longest offensive play by Austin Peay since an 87-yard pass from Mike DiLiello to Trey Goodman against North Alabama (10/28/23).
• Wright's 72-yard rush is the longest run by a Gov since a 75-yard touchdown run by Brian Snead against Tennessee State (2/28/21).
• Austin Smith completed 19 passes for 124 yards and a touchdown.
• Smith rushed 17 times for a season-best 53 yards and a six-yard touchdown – his first rushing score as a Gov.
• Romon Copeland Jr. had 10 receptions for 59 yards; he is the first Gov with double-digit receptions since Kam Thomas caught 10 passes at Eastern Kentucky (11/4/23).
• Copeland Jr. totaled 175 all-purpose yards; it was his fourth game this season with over 120 all-purpose yards and his third game with over 170 all-purpose yards.
• Alec Pell caught two passes for 15 yards, including a two-yard reception for his first touchdown as a Governor.

DEFENSIVE STANDS      

• The Govs totaled multiple interceptions in back-to-back games for the first time since recording multiple picks in three-straight games against Stephen F. Austin (9/23/23), Lindenwood (9/30/23), and Gardner-Webb (10/14/23).
• Dion Hunter led the Austin Peay defense with a season-best 12 tackles, which is the second-best single-game total by a Gov this season.
• Hunter joins Jaden Lyles as the second Gov with a double-digit tackle outing this season.
• Ellis Ellis Jr. recorded his first-career interception as a Governor.
• Hunter and Hosea Knifeley Jr. shared a sack, while Jaden McKinney and Marquez Casey each had a solo tackle for loss.
• Freshman Stephen Ellison II was second on the team with a career-best five tackles – including four solo stops.

SPECIAL TEAMS SYNOPSIS

• Copeland Jr. returned four kicks for 80 yards, he has at least 55 kickoff return yards in four-straight games.
• Carson Smith connected on his lone field goal attempt from 23 yards out, improving to 4-for-6 this season.
• Smith also was 2-for-2 on PATs, improving to a perfect 14-for-14 this season.
• Dominik Stadlman punted five times for 198 yards with two kicks downed inside the 20-yard line and a long kick of 45 yards.

GOVS-THUNDERBIRDS POSTGAME QUOTES

Austin Peay head coach Jeff Faris

Opening Statement… "I am proud of the way our guys fought. We will learn from this. We have to learn from the plays that we shot ourselves in the foot, and when we do, we have the chance to be a really good football team."

On the Southern Utah big plays… "Southern Utah has a good offense and can run the ball. Coming into this game, our goal was to outrun them, which we were able to do and thought it would be a critical key to winning. We still have to win in the other facets and continue to run the ball. They made two good plays during this game, a pass and a run. Teams are going to make those, but we have to respond in all three phases and play complete football. I give them [Southern Utah] a lot of credit, they did a heck of a job and I have a ton of respect for their program."

On the run game… "That is going to be an emphasis for us every week; we want to be able to own the line of scrimmage and establish the run. We are going to find a bunch of ways to do that, you talk about different ball carriers, different formations, different schemes; these guys are really, really good inside. Their interior defensive linemen are really good and would make it a struggle to get movement, so we had a variety of ways to attack the strength of their defense, and it was not enough. So, we will continue to grow and have a great plan for West Georgia."

Austin Peay linebacker Dion Hunter  

On the big plays… "I think the defense flew around today; we just need to limit our undisciplined plays, cut down on the penalties, and allow explosive plays. We play really good ball on defense; it is just that we are allowing four to six explosive plays a game, and we need to cut those down in order to be an elite defense."

On the goal-line stop… "It was big for our defense. We may have given up a few big plays, but we do not break and have to make sure not to give up points. That is a key point of our defense."

Austin Peay running back La'Vell Wright  

On dominating the line of scrimmage… "It all starts up-front. The yards I had all start up-front. I am nothing without the offensive line, and the offense is nothing without them. The same goes for the defense; the defense is nothing without the defensive line. The offensive line being dogs up-front will definitely help us and has helped us a lot."