The Kennesaw State Owls claimed the Air National Guard Conference USA Championship with a 19–15 win over the Jacksonville State Gamecocks on Friday night at AmFirst Stadium. In just one year under head coach Jerry Mack, Kennesaw State transformed a 2–10 record into a first league championship, completing a seven-win turnaround.
The Owls (10–3) controlled most of the game, building a 12–0 advantage behind a methodical 11-play, 80-yard touchdown march finished by a 3-yard run from Coleman Bennett and a 38-yard field goal by Britton Williams. Their defense pulled off the second-longest shutout in CUSA Championship history, holding Jacksonville State (8–5) scoreless until the 10:20 in the fourth quarter. Kennesaw State also generated the first safety in the title game since 2007 when defensive lineman Marcus Patterson tackled a Gamecocks runner in the end zone.
With 12:39 remaining, Jacksonville State exploited a free-kick fumble, converting a fortunate blunder into a 1-yard touchdown by national rushing leader Cam Cook, who entered the game with 1,581 yards. Quarterback Caden Creel added a 19-yard scoring run and connected on a two-point pass to Deondre Johnson, giving JSU a 15–12 lead with 4:04 to play. Creel finished with 112 rushing yards and 96 passing yards (12-of-21) with one interception, while Cook totaled 78 yards on 19 attempts.
Trailing late, Championship MVP Amari Odom orchestrated a decisive 75-yard drive. He converted a third-and-27 with a 26-yard completion to Christian Moss, who led KSU with five catches for 75 yards, and Bennett followed with a 3-yard gain to move the chains. Odom then gained 14 yards on fourth-and-14, thanks to a personal-foul penalty that placed the ball at the JSU 11. On the very next play, Odom found Navelle Dean in the end zone for an 11-yard touchdown, Dean’s first ever in his college career. Odom finished the game, completing 26 of 32 passes for 246 yards.
Between them, Owls linebackers Tywon Christopher and Baron Hopson had 13 tackles, and Milon Jones grabbed an end-zone interception. Freshman Elijah Hill made a big play with his second sack of the night, and KSU’s defense did the rest, as two incomplete passes later, the championship was theirs.
Kennesaw State now awaits its destination for the program’s first bowl appearance.
