Southern emerged victorious in the 50th Bayou Classic with a thrilling 20-17 win over Grambling State. With the win, Terrence Graves becomes the first coach to win a game as the lead of both Grambling and Southern University.
The first quarter started with a fumble from Grambling State's Chance Williams, which was recovered by Southern. However, the Tiger defense held strong and forced a punt. On Southern's next drive, Braelin Morgan fumbled deep in GSU territory, and Kevin Thomas made a crucial recovery for the Tigers. This led to a 97-yard drive, capped off by Myles Crawley's 1-yard touchdown run, giving Grambling State a 7-0 lead.
Southern quickly responded on their next drive, with Noah Bodden finding Darren Morris for an 8-yard touchdown, tying the game at 7-7. The Jaguars then took control of the game with a big 14-point swing before halftime. Kendric Rhymes punched in a 2-yard touchdown, and to top it off, Southern blocked a field goal and Demetri Morsell returned it for a touchdown. The Jaguars headed into halftime with a solid 21-7 lead.
After a halftime that saw Fantasia perform with the Human Jukebox, Southern scored again. Rhymes broke free for a 73-yard touchdown run, extending the lead to 27-7. Grambling State made a comeback as Andrew Jones intercepted a pass and ran it back for a touchdown, narrowing the gap to 27-14. The Tigers' defense stepped up their game, forcing a safety on a punt to make it 27-16.
In the fourth quarter, Grambling State had a shot at closing the gap even more, but Jordan Carter intercepted a pass at the Southern 1-yard line. Eventually, the Tigers got into the end zone with a 3-yard run by Floyd Chalk Jr., but their two-point conversion didn't quite work out. So, the score ended up being 27-22.
The game reached its climax as Grambling State started its final drive with just under four minutes remaining. The Tigers marched down the field, with Floyd Chalk Jr. running for 28 yards to set up a first and goal at the Southern 4-yard line. However, the Jaguars' defense held firm, preventing Grambling State from scoring and securing the victory.
Southern enters the offseason with some positive momentum as they search for their next head coach following the ouster of Eric Dooley. Meanwhile, Grambling looks to regain the dominance that they've enjoyed in their history, last having a definitive winning season in 2017 when they made their second straight Celebration Bowl. They haven't had a winning season since 2019 when they finished the season 6-5 and a 30-28 loss to Southern.