Jackson State football shows it's the real deal with statement win over rival Southern

A showcase outing against rival SWAC opponent Southern. A bludgeoning win against Division II opponent Lane, and a Week 1 game in which Jackson State football had a shot at knocking off its first-ever FBS opponent in ULM but ended in defeat.

The story's moral is that this JSU team is hungry and in serious contention about a conference title — especially after a statement 33-15 win over Southern on Saturday night at Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium.

"Very excited from what I saw tonight," Tigers coach T.C. Taylor said. "I thought we set the tone early in the first half as a unit against a physical Southern football team. We had some guys banged up and found a way to get a lead and hold on to it throughout the football game."

JSU ended its first SWAC game with 201 rushing yards from seven rushers and three rushing touchdowns. Most notably, star running backs Irv Mulligan and J.D. Martin returned from injuries for their first snaps of the season, which will only increase this athletic and strong offense.

"We just gonna spread the wealth," Taylor said. "Getting J.D. and Irv back, which we had those guys on pitch count. ... So it's good when you got a stable of guys like that. You know, all of them can be starters."

Mulligan led the Tigers with 13 rushes and 51 yards with a touchdown and Martin finished with 33 rushing yards and 27 receiving yards.

Along with a talented and deep running back room are Taylor's options at quarterback. Jacobian Morgan started Week 1 against ULM and made an impressive debut for the season, and Taylor gave the past two starts to Cam'Ron McCoy, who has shown what he can do with his arms and legs.

However, McCoy exited the game because of a right wrist injury early in the first quarter. This meant Morgan would have to come in and take over.

Morgan went 12-of-21 passing for 153 yards and a touchdown. The maturity and leadership to take over a game where the score was 3-0 and help put up 30 points show Taylor's squad's talent and why SWAC title hopes should be discussed.

MORE: Cam'Ron McCoy injury update: Jackson State football QB injured in game vs Southern

"The coaches — they preach, do your job," Morgan said. "... Me and Cam, we do a great job of just staying ready. Just continue to fight through adversity and whoever's number is called and just go out there and work."

Followed by an explosive offense is a talented defense that allowed only 26 rushing yards in the first half and finished Saturday's game, allowing 29. It also had two interceptions.

"We prepared excellent this week as a defense," defensive lineman Joshua Nobles said. "We preached on doing more. Practice was hard this week. So they pushed us non-stop. So getting to the backfield was a lot easier in the game."

JSU was picked to finish third in the preseason SWAC East behind Alabama State and Florida A&M. After Week 3, Alabama State is 1-2 and Florida A&M's two wins are from one-score games. The Tigers have the talent and must show it week in and week out.

Michael Chavez covers high school sports, among others, for the Clarion Ledger. Email him at mchavez@gannett.com or reach out to him on X, formerly Twitter @MikeSChavez.

This article originally appeared on Mississippi Clarion Ledger: Jackson State football's win vs. Southern shows it's the real deal