Turnovers cost UAPB in season finale loss

An uncharacteristic number of turnovers cost the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff in its final game of the season.

UAPB turned the ball over four times, feeding Texas Southern in the Tigers’ 31-23 win at Simmons Bank Field in Pine Bluff on Saturday.

Head coach Alonzo Hampton said the Golden Lions missed open receivers.

“Ball bounced off of us a couple of times,” Hampton said. “Tipped balls turn into interceptions. Missed wide open guys, and they were opportunistic, and when they tipped, they got them. Two of them. So, that’s kind of been the season. It’s a season of missed opportunities.”

UAPB (3-9, 2-6 SWAC) quarterback Mekhi Hagens threw an interception to Jayden Williams on the first play of the second half. The Tigers turned that into a 24-yard field goal from Christian Avelar which tied the game at 10.

Two drives later, UAPB running back Za’Marion Webber fumbled at the Golden Lions’ 35-yard line, and MJ Hinson recovered for TSU. The officials initially ruled Webber down, negating Hinson’s return, but replay showed Webber’s knee was on a teammate’s leg, not the ground, when the ball came loose.

Texas Southern (5-6, 4-4) made UAPB pay four plays later with a 21-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Jace Wilson to Trenton Leary, giving the Tigers a 24-13 lead.

Midway through the fourth quarter, wide receiver JaVonnie Gibson bobbled a pass from backup quarterback DJ Stevenson. TSU defensive lineman Keelan Cox dove and intercepted it. Six plays later, Athean Renfro scored on a 1-yard run, making it 31-16 with 5:08 remaining.

The three second half turnovers joined one from the first half, when Gibson threw a pass on a trick play which Hinson intercepted.

UAPB had thrown five interceptions all season before throwing three, each by a different passer, against Texas Southern.

UAPB’s 162 passing yards was the fewest this season since Arkansas held the Golden Lions to 123 in the season opener.

Stevenson relieved Hagens at quarterback near the end of the third quarter. Hagens, who entered the game as the SWAC’s second-leading passer in conference games, completed 9 of 18 passes for 94 yards and an interception.

Hampton said UAPB has two good quarterbacks, and the Golden Lions will continue to evaluate every position.

“Mekhi missed a couple passes, but we had a couple guys run routes that wasn’t correct, either,” Hampton said. “We’re up at half, 10-7. We come out, the interception, we don’t run the correct route, and a guy picks it off. So, now you’re talking about the momentum just literally flipped.

“I think sometimes with Mekhi, because he’s so competitive, he starts pressing a little bit. DJ is a little cooler, so we kind of put DJ in there to kind of settle things down.”

Stevenson completed 4 of 7 passes for 68 yards with a touchdown and an interception.

His touchdown pass came with 1:55 remaining in the game, a 15-yard strike to Gibson to cut the deficit to 31-23. The Golden Lions attempted an onside kick but failed to recover it. An 18-yard pass by Wilson to Leary on third down allowed the Tigers to run out the clock.

Texas Southern rushed for 214 yards, led by junior Quintell Quinn’s 154 and two touchdowns. Renfro had 55 yards and a score.

Wilson completed 15 of 19 passes for 169 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions.

Both of Wilson’s interceptions came in the final minute of the first half. TSU had a 7-0 lead and was driving in UAPB territory when defensive end Khalil Arnold hit him mid-throw. Defensive tackle Abdulbasit Osholake picked the ball out of the air and ran it back nearly 80 yards to tie the game.

Freshman defensive back Amyrion Mingo intercepted another pass with 16 seconds left in the half, and UAPB turned it into a 52-yard field goal from Braden Ducharme to take a 10-7 lead into halftime.

Hampton said the Golden Lions felt good at halftime.

“We thought we were the better team,” Hampton said. “When I say the better team, we matched up with them well. We felt we matched up with Southern well. They didn’t have big O-linemen. So, when you don’t have big O-linemen, we can play with you for a little while. I just thought our offense would get to clicking, but we ain’t clicked the last four games.”

UAPB finishes sixth in the SWAC. A Grambling State loss to Southern in next week’s Bayou Classic would see GSU and UAPB tie for fifth, but GSU would win that tiebreaker thanks to its win against the Golden Lions last month.