The two best quarterback-receiver tandems in the SWAC will go head-to-head Saturday in Pine Bluff.
The SWAC’s top two receivers and two of its top three quarterbacks will meet at Simmons Bank Field when the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff hosts Alabama A&M at 2 p.m. on the SWAC Digital Network.
UAPB (3-6, 2-3 SWAC) wide receiver JaVonnie Gibson continues to lead the SWAC with 118.8 yards per game. He needs 11 yards against the Bulldogs to reach 1,000 for the season. No other SWAC receiver has more than 718 yards entering this week.
Alabama A&M (3-5, 1-3) coach Connell Maynor said preparing for Gibson isn’t easy.
“We gotta play better than we played the last couple of weeks,” Maynor said. “Defensively, we gotta cause some turnovers and limit the explosive plays. We can’t stop the wide receiver. We just gotta try to contain him, man. He’s a very, very good football player.”
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Maynor said the same things about UAPB quarterback Mekhi Hagens, who enters this game as the SWAC’s third-leading passer in league play with 214.2 yards per game. The AAMU coach said his defense will need to show Hagens different looks and zone coverages to try and confuse him while getting pressure with the pass rush.
Not many teams in the SWAC can match the tandem of Hagens and Gibson, but if any team can, it’s Alabama A&M.
UAPB coach Alonzo Hampton said Maynor’s offense may be the best in the SWAC.
“His quarterback can run it, just like the quarterback from Mississippi Valley and most quarterbacks in this league,” Hampton said. “This young man can spin the football, as well. They got a very talented receiver, just as good as the one that we have. We’ve got our work cut out for us to be able to stop him, but they got weapons all over the field.”
Bulldog quarterback Xavier Lankford is one of the two quarterbacks averaging more passing yards per game than Hagens with 234 per SWAC contest. He played sparingly in nonconference play before taking over for original starter Cornelius Brown IV.
In addition to his passing totals, Lankford is the second-leading rusher among quarterbacks in SWAC play with 52.3 yards per game, just behind Xzavier Vaughn of Alcorn State.
AAMU receiver Keenan Hambrick averages 86.8 yards per SWAC game, second only to UAPB’s Gibson. He has two touchdowns this year, both against Alabama State, a game in which he caught five passes for a season-high 139 yards. He also had 111 yards against Bethune-Cookman.
Add in running back Donovan Eaglin, whose 74.8 rushing yards per SWAC game are fourth-best in the league, and Alabama A&M has the SWAC’s leading offense in total yards and second-highest scoring offense behind Jackson State.
Hampton said Maynor’s team has so many weapons, the Bulldogs can beat a team several ways.
“They got running backs,” Hampton said. “They got receivers. They got a quarterback that’s really talented. They got three quarterbacks that are really talented. I think they’re the best offense that we’ve played this year, and Jackson State (is) really good. Jackson State make you do a lot of different things, as well, but Alabama A&M and Coach Maynor, he knows how to coach offensive football.”
As good as both teams have been offensively, defense has been another story.
The Bulldogs and Golden Lions rank eighth and 10th in scoring defense, respectively. Jackson State broke 40 points against both teams. Both gave up 70 points or more to SEC foes, while allowing over 56 or more to teams from the United Athletic Conference. UAPB and AAMU have forced the fewest sacks, interceptions and fumbles in SWAC play of any team.
UAPB’s best defensive showing in SWAC play was holding Prairie View A&M to one touchdown in a 21-17 Golden Lions win, while AAMU’s was holding Bethune-Cookman to 12 points.
Hampton said stopping this offense will be tough.
“We hadn’t stopped a lot of people this year, but we trying to get a few more stops this week,” Hampton said. “We’re going to have to score a lot of points in order to beat this football team, and so we need to be good on offense. We need to be good on special teams. To be able to keep them off the field, we need to be able to run the football.”
UAPB’s rushing offense had been showing improvement with three-straight games over 100 yards rushing, including a 201-yard outing against Mississippi Valley State, but Jackson State held the Lions to 67 yards last week.