The 2017 FCS Playoffs are here and we've got game-by-game wrap ups.
[divider]COMPARE: Any Two FCS Players | Any Two FCS Teams[divider]
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Kennesaw State 28Samford 17 |
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| Next up: Kennesaw St (11-1) at Jacksonville St (10-1) Saturday, 2 p.m. (ET) ESPN 3 COMPARE: Kennesaw at Jacksonville State |
THE STANDOUTS
PLAYER OF THE GAME: Chandler Burks, QB, Kennesaw State (Threw two TDs and rushed for 72 yards and 1 TD).
THE TURNING POINT
When the Owls' Akebren Ralls returned an interception 55 yards for a touchdown late in the third quarter, that pretty much put things away in a game that was back and forth for much of three quarters. That gave the Owls the 18-point lead going into the fourth quarter and forced Samford into high-pressure situations on offense.[divider]
THE SKINNY
Kennesaw State hadn't lost since a close one in the first game against Samford, and the Owls got revenge on Saturday by squeezing the clock and running the ball down Samford's throat 50 times for 329 yards. The Owls have now won 11 straight games and also were victorious in the first playoff game in the school's very short but productive history. The first season at the school was 2015, but coach Brian Bohannon has made this program viable nearly immediately. The Owls had to lay everything out, as Samford QB Devlin Hodges whipped it around for 396 yards and a score — which is about par for the course for this junior NFL prospect.
PREVIEW OF NEXT WEEK
This could be a really interesting matchup for Kennesaw State. Jacksonville State played brutally tough defense against FCS opponents, so it will be a test. But, as a Jacksonville State fan pointed out, when the Gamecocks played — and lost — against Georgia Tech (another triple option style team like Kennesaw State), JSU held Ga. Tech to 210 rushing yards on 49 carries. If not for turnovers on offense, JSU may have knocked off the Yellow Jackets. So we will see how JSU does against the FCS version of Georgia Tech.
THE PREDICTION
Jacksonville State 28, Kennesaw 14
