In front of a homecoming crowd of 11,989 fans at Daytona Stadium in Daytona beach,Florida, the Bethune-Cookman Wildcats lost to the Jackson State Tigers, 37-17, marking another 20 or more point defeat this season.

This defeat leaves the Wildcats with a 1-7 overall record and 1-3 in conference play. They are now 3-8 all-time against Jackson State and 0-2 against the Tigers under head coach Raymond Woodie Jr.

The Wildcats have now lost five consecutive homecoming games after previously winning nine straight. They fall to 50-28-3 in recorded homecoming games all-time.

Jackson State totaled 513 yards and capitalized on 22 first downs. Quarterback Jacobian Morgan threw for 138 yards and one touchdown, completing 14 of 18 passes. Eastern Michigan transfer Cam'Ron McCoy also contributed, throwing for a touchdown on two of seven attempts.

Wide receivers Isaiah Spencer and Joanes Fortilien combined for 108 receiving yards and one touchdown each.

Running back Irv Mulligan rushed for a season-high 171 yards and two touchdowns. Travis Terrell Jr. added 86 yards, while Emari Mathews contributed 45. The Tigers collectively amassed 349 rushing yards, overpowering the Wildcats.

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For the first time this season, the Wildcats were held without a sack on defense. The Southwestern Athletic Conferences second-leading unit in that category had previously recorded a low of one sack, which occurred during the game against Western Michigan, before today they had averaged nearly three per game on the season. 

Bethune-Cookman led 14-7 at the start, but Jackson State tied the game before halftime. The Wildcats finished with 302 offensive yards, including 190 passing yards. Quarterback Luke Sprargue completed 15 of 23 passes for two touchdowns. His primary targets, Maleek Huggins and Lorenzo Jenkins, combined for 93 yards and two touchdowns.

Dennis Palmer led all rushers for the Wildcats with 73 yards on 20 carries but did not reach the end zone. 

With this win, Jackson State improved to 6-2 overall and remains undefeated in conference play at 4-0. They will host the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff, another conference rival, at 2 p.m. Saturday, while the Wildcats will host conference rival Grambling State University for Senior Day at the same time.