2020 Jackson State Tigers football team

The 2020 Jackson State Tigers football team represented Jackson State University in the 2020–21 NCAA Division I FCS football season. The Tigers were led by Pro Football Hall of Famer and first-year head coach Deion Sanders and played their home games at Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium in Jackson, Mississippi as members of the East Division of the Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC).

2020 Jackson State Tigers football
Conference	Southwestern Athletic Conference
Division	East Division
Record	4–3 (3–2 SWAC)
Head coach	Deion Sanders (1st season)
Offensive coordinator	Michael Pollock (1st season)
Co-offensive coordinator	Jason Phillips (1st season)
Offensive scheme	Run and shoot
Defensive coordinator	Dennis Thurman (1st season)
Base defense	3–4
Home stadium	Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium
Seasons ← 2019 2021 →

2020 Southwestern Athletic Conference football standings

v t e	Conf							Overall
Team		W		L					W		L
East Division
No. 24 Alabama A&M x$		3	–	0					5	–	0
Alabama State		3	–	2					3	–	3
Jackson State		3	–	2					4	–	3
Mississippi Valley State		1	–	3					1	–	3
West Division
Arkansas–Pine Bluff x		4	–	0					4	–	1
Southern		4	–	1					5	–	1
Prairie View A&M*		2	–	1					2	–	1
Texas Southern		1	–	2					1	–	2
Grambling State		0	–	4					0	–	4
Championship: Alabama A&M 40, Arkansas–Pine Bluff 33
$ – Conference champion x – Division champion/co-champions Note: The SWAC played a spring conference-only schedule (February–May 2021) due to COVID-19 pandemic. Alcorn State opted out of the spring season; all of their scheduled games were counted as forfeit wins for their opponents. * – Ineligible for FCS postseason play due to NCAA sanctions. Rankings from STATS Poll

On July 20, 2020, the Southwestern Athletic Conference announced that it would not play fall sports due to the COVID-19 pandemic, which includes the football program.^[1] The conference ultimately moved its football schedule to the 2021 spring semester.

Schedule

Due to the SWAC's postponement of the 2020 football season to spring 2021, games against Florida A&M, Langston, Southern Miss, and Tennessee State were canceled.^{[2][3][4][5][6][7]} The SWAC released updated spring schedules on August 17.^[8]

Date	Time	Opponent	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
February 21	1:00 p.m.	Edward Waters*	Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium Jackson, MS	ESPN3	W 53–0	11,000
March 6	12:00 p.m.	at Grambling State	Eddie Robinson Stadium Grambling, LA	ESPN3	W 33–28	6,340
March 14	2:00 p.m.	Mississippi Valley State	Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium Jackson, MS	ESPN2	W 43–7	22,000
March 20	3:00 p.m.	at Alabama State	New ASU Stadium Montgomery, AL	ESPN2	L 28–35	5,908
April 3	4:00 p.m.	Southern*	Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium Jackson, MS (Boombox Classic)	ESPN	L 14–34	22,000
April 10	2:00 p.m.	Alabama A&M	Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium Jackson, MS	ESPN	L 43–52	20,051
April 17		at Alcorn State	Casem-Spinks Stadium Lorman, MS (Soul Bowl)		W 2–0 (forfeit)
*Non-conference game All times are in Central time

^[9][10]

Staff

Name	Position	Consecutive season at Jackson State in current position
Deion Sanders	Head Coach	1st
Otis Riddley	Director of player personnel	1st
Michael Pollock	Co-offensive coordinator/quarterbacks	1st
Jason Phillips	Co-offensive coordinator/wide receivers coach	1st
Dennis Thurman	Defensive Coordinator	1st
Alan Ricard	Special teams coordinator	1st
T.C. Taylor	Tight ends coach	2nd
Mike Markuson	Offensive line coach	1st
Gary Harrell	Running Backs Coach	1st
Jeff Weeks	Defensive line coach	1st
Andre' Hart	Linebackers Coach	1st
Kevin Mathis	Defensive backs coach	1st

Game summaries

Edward Waters

Edward Waters at Jackson State

1 2 3 4 Total EWU Tigers 0 0 0 0 0 • JSU Tigers 10 21 6 16 53 Date: February 21, 2021 Location: Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium Jackson, MS Game start: 1:00 p.m. CST Elapsed time: 3:20 Game attendance: 11,000 Game weather: 52 °F (11 °C) • Weather: Sunny • Wind: SSE 18 MPH TV announcers (ESPN3): Santoria Black (play-by-play) and Deuce McAllister (analyst)

Scoring summary 1 11:36 JSU Warren Newman 6-yard pass from Jalon Jones (Glenn Misiak kick) (6 plays, 40 yards, 2:15) JSU 7–0 04:35 JSU Glenn Misiak 23-yard field goal (11 plays, 50 yards, 5:17) JSU 10–0 2 14:09 JSU Kymani Clarke 8-yard rush (Glenn Misiak kick)br/>(9 play, 62 yards, 3:41) JSU 17–0 01:07 JSU Jalon Jones 6-yard rush (Glenn Misiak kick) (2 plays, 30 yards, 0:46) JSU 24–0 00:11 JSU Daylen Baldwin 10-yard pass from Jalon Jones (Glenn Misiak kick) (4 plays, 44 yards, 0:44) JSU 31–0 3 11:55 JSU Kymani Clarke 10-yard rush (Jalon Jones two-point conversion pass attempt failed) (7 plays, 47 yards, 2:56) JSU 37–0 4 13:26 JSU Greg Williams 1-yard rush (Glenn Misiak PAT failed) (5 plays, 30 yards, 1:34) JSU 43–0 09:25 JSU Noah Anderson 24-yard field goal (4 plays, 1 yard, 1:36) JSU 46–0 09:20 JSU Christian Allen 24-yard pass from Quincy Casey (Noah Anderson kick) (1 play, 24 yards, 0:05) JSU 53–0

See also: Edward Waters Tigers football

Statistics	Edward Waters	Jackson State
First downs	8	27
Total yards	104	435
Rushing yards	21	183
Passing yards	83	252
Turnovers	0	0
Time of possession	28:35	31:25

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Edward Waters	Passing	Roshard Branch	9/21, 83 yards
	Rushing	De'Shaun Hugee	6 carries, 10 yards
	Receiving	Samuel Thompson	3 receptions, 28 yards
Jackson State	Passing	Jalon Jones	17/19, 163 yards, 2 TDs
	Rushing	Kymani Clarke	18 carries, 92 yards, 2 TDs
	Receiving	Warren Newman	8 receptions, 76 yards, 1 TD

At Grambling State

Jackson State at Grambling State

1 2 3 4 Total • JSU Tigers 7 20 0 6 33 GRAM Tigers 14 0 7 7 28 Date: March 6, 2021 Location: Eddie Robinson Stadium Grambling, LA Game start: 12:00 p.m. CST Elapsed time: 3:58 Game attendance: 6,340 Game weather: 60 °F (16 °C) TV announcers (ESPN3): Tiffany Greene (play-by-play) and Jay Walker (analyst)

Scoring summary 1 11:34 JSU Corey Reed Jr. 13-yard pass from Jalon Jones (Noah Anderson kick) (3 plays, 10 yards, 1:17) JSU 7–0 08:04 GRAM Geremy Hickbottom 2-yard rush (Garrett Urban kick) (9 plays, 61 yards, 3:23) TIE 7–7 04:07 GRAM Keilon Elder 1-yard rush (Garrett Urban kick)br/>(7 play, 51 yards, 2:30) GRAM 14–7 2 10:48 JSU Jalon Jones 4-yard rush (Noah Anderson PAT failed) (9 plays, 67 yards, 4:02) GRAM 14–13 09:05 JSU Daylen Baldwin 64-yard pass from Jalon Jones (Glenn Misiak kick) (2 plays, 68 yards, 0:44) JSU 20–14 05:00 JSU Tyson Alexander 33-yard rush (Glenn Misiak kick) (5 plays, 62 yards, 1:39) JSU 27–14 3 08:50 GRAM Darrell Clark 15-yard pass from Geremy Hickbottom (Garrett Urban kick) (11 plays, 67 yards, 4:00) JSU 27–21 4 13:55 GRAM Keilon Elder 2-yard rush (Garrett Urban kick) (16 plays, 80 yard, 5:45) GRAM 28–27 12:35 JSU Warren Newman 20-yard pass from Jalon Jones (Noah Anderson PAT failed) (4 plays, 50 yards, 1:13) JSU 33–28

See also: 2020 Grambling State Tigers football team

Pregame line	Over/under
GRAM −10.5	50

Statistics	Jackson State	Grambling State
First downs	21	29
Total yards	473	422
Rushing yards	293	182
Passing yards	180	240
Turnovers	2	1
Time of possession	28:06	31:54

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Jackson State	Passing	Jalon Jones	12/18, 180 yards, 3 TDs
	Rushing	Tyson Alexander	17 carries, 184 yards, 1 TD
	Receiving	Daylen Baldwin	4 receptions, 95 yards, 1 TD
Grambling State	Passing	Geremy Hickbottom	24/35, 237 yards, 1 TD
	Rushing	Geremy Hickbottom	16 carries, 81 yards, 1 TD
	Receiving	Dorrell James	6 receptions, 87 yards

Mississippi Valley State

Mississippi Valley State at Jackson State

1 2 3 4 Total Delta Devils 0 0 0 7 7 • Tigers 7 23 0 13 43 Date: March 14, 2021 Location: Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium Jackson, MS Game start: 2:00 p.m. CST Elapsed time: 3 hours and 34 minutes Game attendance: 22,000 Game weather: 79 °F (26 °C) • Weather: Cloudy • Wind: N 11 MPH Television network: ESPN2

Scoring summary 1 08:17 JSU Jalon Jones 19-yard rush (Glenn Misiak kick) (13 plays, 95 yards, 5:14) JSU 7–0 2 14:00 JSU Daylen Baldwin 30-yard pass from Jalon Jones (Glenn Misiak PAT failed) (9 plays, 79 yards, 3:30) JSU 13–0 09:55 JSU Daylen Baldwin 38-yard pass from Jalon Jones (Jalon Jones two-point conversion pass to Kyland Richey)br/>(3 play, 62 yards, 0:53) JSU 21–0 07:47 JSU Daylen Baldwin 20-yard pass form Jalon Jones (two-point conversion rush failed) (2 plays, 20 yards, 0:17) JSU 27–0 04:40 JSU Noah Anderson 29-yard field goal (5 plays, 29 yards, 2:22) JSU 30–0 4 04:20 MVSU Jalani Eason 11-yard rush (Orlando Fernandez kick) (3 plays, 24 yards, 1:30) JSU 30–7 01:34 JSU Quincy Casey 2-yard rush (Glenn Misiak kick) (8 plays, 58 yards, 2:44) JSU 37–7 00:25 JSU Jaumonie Crain 26-yard fumble returned (Glenn Misiak PAT failed) (1 play, -9 yards, 0:10) JSU 43–7

See also: 2020 Mississippi Valley State Delta Devils football team

Pregame line	Over/under
JSU −17.5	55

Statistics	Mississippi Valley State	Jackson State
First downs	15	21
Total yards	271	456
Rushing yards	147	153
Passing yards	124	303
Turnovers	4	2
Time of possession	34:08	25:52

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Mississippi Valley State	Passing	Jalani Eason	17/34, 117 yards, 1 INT
	Rushing	Darius Williams	9 carries, 65 yards
	Receiving	Jarius Clayton	5 receptions, 35 yards
Jackson State	Passing	Jalon Jones	14/27, 250 yards, 3 TDs
	Rushing	Tyson Alexander	6 carries, 136 yards, 3 TDs
	Receiving	Daylen Baldwin	6 receptions, 136 yards, 3 TDs

At Alabama State

Jackson State at Alabama State

1 2 3 4 Total Tigers 0 6 15 7 28 • Hornets 0 14 0 21 35 Date: March 20, 2021 Location: New ASU Stadium Montgomery, AL Game start: 3:07 p.m. CDT Elapsed time: 3 hours and 51 minutes Game attendance: 5,908 Game weather: 61 °F (16 °C) • Weather: Partly Cloudy • Wind: NE 7 MPH Referee: Tony Ross Television network: ESPN2

Scoring summary 2 10:01 JSU Glenn Misiak 31-yard field goal (7 plays, 14 yards, 1:46) JSU 3–0 06:57 ALST Jeremiah Hixon 35-yard pass from Ryan Nettles (Hunter Hanson kick) (6 plays, 78 yards, 2:59) ALST 7–3 04:37 JSU Glenn Misiak 22-yard field goal (6 plays, 20 yards, 1:54) ALST 7–6 08:21 ALST Jahod Booker 8-yard pass from Ryan Nettles (Hunter Hanson kick) (12 plays, 89 yards, 4:00) ALST 14–6 3 08:26 JSU Team Safety (2 plays, -1 yards, 1:04) ALST 14–8 04:48 JSU Corey Reed Jr. 17-yard pass from Jalon Jones (Glenn Misiak kick) (8 plays, 50 yards, 3:38) JSU 15–14 04:04 JSU Jalon Jones 3-yard rush (two-point conversion pass attempt failed) (3 plays, 4 yards, 0:23) JSU 21–14 4 10:50 ALST Ezra Gray 4-yard rush (Hunter Hanson kick) (10 plays, 95 yards, 3:58) TIE 21–21 06:53 ALST Ezra Gray 49-yard rush (Hunter Hanson kick) (6 plays, 86 yards, 2:43) ALST 28–21 01:42 JSU Jalon Jones 2-yard rush (Glenn Misiak kick) (14 plays, 67 yards, 5:04) TIE 28–28 01:29 ALST Ezra Gray 50-yard rush (Hunter Hanson kick) (1 play, 50 yards, 0:09) ALST 35–28

See also: 2020 Alabama State Hornets football team

Pregame line	Over/under
JSU −8.0	46

Statistics	Jackson State	Alabama State
First downs	24	21
Total yards	350	466
Rushing yards	170	209
Passing yards	180	257
Turnovers	2	3
Time of possession	29:56	30:04

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Jackson State	Passing	Jalon Jones	19/50, 180 yards, 1 TD, 2 INTs
	Rushing	Jalon Jones	22 carries, 94 yards, 2 TDs
	Receiving	Corey Reed Jr.	8 receptions, 99 yards, 1 TD
Alabama State	Passing	Ryan Nettles	27/42, 257 yards, 2 TDs, 2 INTs
	Rushing	Ezra Gray	23 carries, 195 yards, 3 TDs
	Receiving	Michael Jefferson	8 receptions, 76 yards

Southern

Southern at Jackson State

1 2 3 4 Total • Jaguars 7 10 10 7 34 Tigers 0 7 0 7 14 Date: April 3, 2021 Location: Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium Jackson, MS Game start: 4:00 p.m. CDT Elapsed time: 3 hours and 7 minutes Game attendance: 22,000 Game weather: 68 °F (20 °C) • Weather: Sunny • Wind: 3 MPH Television network: ESPN

Scoring summary 1 10:01 SOU Devon Benn 1-yard rush (Cesar Barajas kick) (11 plays, 70 yards, 4:59) SOU 7–0 2 12:43 SOU Cesar Barajas 30-yard field goal (11 plays, 51 yards, 4:54) SOU 10–0 06:48 JSU Daylen Baldwin 75-yard pass from Jalon Jones (Glenn Misiak kick)br/>(1 play, 75 yards, 0:11) SOU 10–7 00:08 SOU Corey Williams 20-yard pass from John Lampley (Cesar Barajas kick) (5 plays, 54 yards, 0:37) SOU 17–7 3 11:07 SOU Cesar Barajas 49-yard field goal (7 plays, 28 yards, 3:00) SOU 20–7 04:21 SOU Devon Benn 20-yard rush (Cesar Barajas kick) (9 plays, 93 yards, 4:09) SOU 27–7 4 14:55 JSU Corey Reed Jr. 18-yard pass from Jalon Jones (Glenn Misiak kick) (13 plays, 82 yards, 4:26) SOU 27–14 11:35 SOU Ladarius Skelton 2-yard rush (Cesar Barajas kick) (1 play, 2 yards, 0:04) SOU 34–14

See also: 2020 Southern Jaguars football team and Boombox Classic

Pregame line	Over/under
SCSU −1.5	59

Statistics	Southern	Jackson State
First downs	26	16
Total yards	474	309
Rushing yards	294	66
Passing yards	180	243
Turnovers	2	1
Time of possession	42:49	17:11

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Southern	Passing	John Lampley	9/14, 116 yards, 1 TD
	Rushing	Jerodd Sims	17 carries, 79 yards
	Receiving	Ethan Howard	4 receptions, 54 yards
Jackson State	Passing	Jalon Jones	17/29, 243 yards, 2 TDs, 1 INT
	Rushing	Tyson Alexander	8 carries, 38 yards
	Receiving	Daylen Baldwin	3 receptions, 91 yards, 1 TD

Alabama A&M

Alabama A&M at Jackson State

1 2 3 4 Total • Bulldogs 7 21 10 14 52 Tigers 7 14 7 15 43 Date: April 10, 2021 Location: Mississippi Veterans Memorial Stadium Jackson, MS Game start: 2:00 p.m. CDT Elapsed time: 3 hours and 37 minutes Game attendance: 20,051 Game weather: 75 °F (24 °C) • Weather: Mostly Clear • Wind: WSW 13 MPH Television network: ESPN

Scoring summary 1 11:50 AAMU Abdul-Fatai Ibrahim 9-yard pass from Aqeel Glass (Spencer Corey kick) (9 plays, 74 yards, 3:10) AAMU 7–0 02:33 JSU Warren Newman 6-yard rush (Glenn Misiak kick) (8 plays, 66 yards, 3:29) TIE 7–7 2 13:37 JSU Santee Marshall 54-yard rush (Glenn Misiak kick)br/>(3 play, 65 yards, 1:10) JSU 14–7 12:14 AAMU Gary Quarles 43-yard pass from Aqeel Glass (Spencer Corey kick) (4 plays, 65 yards, 1:23) TIE 14–14 08:04 AAMU Aqeel Glass 5-yard rush (Spencer Corey kick) (6 plays, 48 yards, 2:46) AAMU 21–14 04:32 JSU Warren Newman 17-yard pass from Quincy Casey (Glenn Misiak kick) (8 plays, 53 yards, 3:21) TIE 21–21 03:45 AAMU Zabrian Moore 61-yard pass from Aqeel Glass (Spencer Corey kick) (2 plays, 80 yards, 0:38) AAMU 28–21 3 12:04 AAMU Odieu Hilaire 11-yard pass from Aqeel Glass (Spencer Corey kick) (4 plays, 70 yards, 1:22) AAMU 35–21 09:49 JSU Daylen Baldwin 24-yard pass from Quincy Casey (Glenn Misiak kick) (5 plays, 61 yards, 2:08) AAMU 35–28 03:41 AAMU Spencer Corey 34-yard field goal (8 plays, 33 yards, 3:02) AAMU 38–28 4 14:29 AAMU Abdul-Fatai Ibrahim 25-yard pass from Aqeel Glass (Spencer Corey kick) (7 plays, 75 yards, 2:25) AAMU 45–28 06:59 JSU Warren Newman 7-yard pass from Quincy Casey (Glenn Misiak kick) (11 plays, 79 yards, 3:51) AAMU 45–35 02:49 AAMU Anthony Howard 4-yard pass from Aqeel Glass (Spencer Corey kick) (10 plays, 75 yards, 4:10) AAMU 52–35 01:29 JSU Warren Newman 7-yard pass from Quincy Casey (Quincy Casey two-point conversion pass to Corey Reed Jr.) (5 plays, 67 yards, 1:13) AAMU 52–43

See also: 2020 Alabama A&M Bulldogs football team

Pregame line	Over/under
SCSU −10.0	53

Statistics	Alabama A&M	Jackson State
First downs	28	26
Total yards	533	463
Rushing yards	93	140
Passing yards	440	323
Turnovers	0	0
Time of possession	29:12	30:48

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Alabama A&M	Passing	Aqeel Glass	27/40, 440 yards, 6 TDs
	Rushing	Gary Quarles	16 carries, 86 yards
	Receiving	Zabrian Moore	4 receptions, 114 yards, 1 TD
Jackson State	Passing	Quincy Casey	30/47, 323 yards, 4 TDs
	Rushing	Santee Marshall	19 carries, 126 yards, 1 TD
	Receiving	Daylen Baldwin	6 receptions, 135 yards, 1 TD

References

1. Stephenson, Creg (July 20, 2020). "SWAC becomes latest FCS conference to postpone 2020 football season to spring". AL.com. Retrieved July 21, 2020.
2. Visser, David (July 21, 2020). "SWAC Suspends Fall Football Season". FBSchedules.com. Retrieved July 20, 2020.
3. Kelley, Kevin (June 17, 2020). "2020 Southern Heritage Classic canceled due to COVID-19". FBSchedules.com. Retrieved June 18, 2020.
4. Carpenter, Mark (June 17, 2020). "NAIA issues update on 2020 fall sports". People's Defender. Retrieved June 18, 2020.
5. Witz, Billy (June 17, 2020). "First Cancellations Emerge for Major College Football". The New York Times. Retrieved June 18, 2020.
6. Wilmer, Brian (June 25, 2020). "FAMU adds Jackson State to 2020 football schedule". FBSchedules.com. Retrieved June 27, 2020.
7. "MEAC suspends all fall sports for indefinite period". ESPN.com. July 16, 2020. Retrieved July 16, 2020.
8. "SWAC Releases 2021 Spring Football Schedule". swac.org. Retrieved August 18, 2020.
9. "Spring 2021 Schedule". Retrieved August 15, 2021.
10. "Jackson State Tigers". ESPN. Retrieved August 15, 2021.