The Braves captured their first SWAC Championship in 20 years this past weekend. Below is a list of key factors that happened over the weekend:
Saturday's game was the fourth largest crowd in SWAC Championship history (38,969). The largest crowd was in 1999 (47,621) when Jackson State took on Southern in the first SWAC Championship game.
The Braves became the first team in the SWAC Eastern Division to win the SWAC Championship game in their first appearance.
With the win, Head Coach
Jay Hopson is 4-0 against Southern since he took the job in 2012. It was also the first time the Braves defeated Southern twice in one season.
Quarterback
John Gibbs, Jr. became the first quarterback to rush for over a 1,000 yards in the SWAC in a single season and was named the SWAC Championship Offensive MVP. He also rushed for the most yards in the history of the SWAC Championship game (132 yards).
Senior linebacker Will Thomas II was named the SWAC Championship Defensive MVP after recording a team-high nine tackles and recovered a fumble.
The Braves defense held Southern to their lowest offensive showing this season.
The running game rushed for a total of 50 touchdowns during the 2014 season which became the most touchdown by a team in school history.
Sophomore kicker
Haiden McCraney set a new all-time SWAC Championship record in PATs made (5) and attempted (5). Previous record was four in 1999.
Junior wide receiver
Jarvis Turner set a new all-time high in the SWAC Championship record by returning five kicks for 133 yards. Previous record was 91 yards in 2008.
