Scott Shelton Staff Writer The Troy football team scored 31 first-half points and made key defensive plays on its way to defeating arch-rival South Alabama 38-17 on Tuesday night. With the win, the Trojans move to 4-0 in Sun Belt Conference play and in a three-way tie for first place in the Sun Belt East. The Trojans are now 6-2 overall and have achieved bowl eligibility for the third season in a row under head coach Neal Brown. In this rivalry, the Battle for the Belt, the away team has now won four consecutive games in a row. The Trojans started off the game with five consecutive scoring drives, including four touchdowns and a field goal. The offense was powered by the connection between quarterback Sawyer Smith and senior wide receiver Damion Willis. Willis caught five passes from Smith totaling for 132 yards and two touchdowns. Sawyer Smith had all three of his passing touchdowns in the first half. Running back B.J. Smith once again crossed the century mark with 170 yards and a touchdown off 22 rushing attempts. Tonight’s game marked B.J. Smith’s fourth consecutive game with over 100 yards, and 171 yards is his career high in rushing yards. The Trojan defense prevented any threat of a Jaguar comeback after Troy extended its lead to three touchdowns in the first half. Three Trojans caught an interception off South Alabama quarterback Evan Orth. Cedarius Rookard and Marcus Jones each caught a pick, and Terence Dunlap took an interception back for a touchdown before it was called back because of a penalty. The ground game for Troy, both offensively and defensively, continued to be a steady force for the Trojans. The Trojan front seven hold strong against the run, too, holding the Jaguars, the worst rushing team in the Sun Belt, to 110 yards on the ground. The Jaguars also allow the most rushing yards per game in the Sun Belt, and the Trojans took advantage with 252 yards on the ground total. Next, Troy returns to Veterans Memorial Stadium for its homecoming game against Louisiana-Lafayette scheduled to start at 2:30 p.m.
Staff Writer
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