Jacksonville State won the conference crown last December, sitting atop Conference USA in its second year of FBS membership.
The Gamecocks lost head coach Rich Rodriguez and nearly their entire starting
lineup, but with Charles Kelly at the helm with a horde of newcomers, the program’s winning tradition remains alive. Jacksonville State improved to 4-0 in conference play and 5-3 overall after outlasting Middle Tennessee, which lost bowl eligibility at 1-7 and 0-4 in conference play, by a score of 24-21.
Jacksonville State running back Cam Cook punched in the winning touchdown with 4:29 remaining, capping a 105-yard outing which marked his sixth 100-yard game of the season. Cook became the first FBS rusher to reach 1,000 yards in the 2025 campaign on a 7-yard pickup in the fourth quarter. Middle Tennessee contained the nation’s leader quite well until the final frame. Of his 105 yards, 58 were recorded in the final frame, and he utilized a 42-yard scamper (his only 10+ carry of the night) to spark Jax State’s game-winning drive.
Before Cook started cooking, the Gamecocks received important offensive contributions from an unlikely source. Deondre Johnson entered the night with five receptions and 73 yards on the year but totaled four catches for a career-best 131 yards, and two touchdowns — hauling in one from Caden Creel and another from Gavin Wimsatt.
Meanwhile, Middle Tennessee countered with an effective passing game by quarterback Nicholas Vattiato, who fired for 235 yards and two touchdowns. The Blue Raiders traded leads with the Gamecocks throughout the contest, but with roughly three minutes remaining, a chop block penalty set Middle Tennessee backward from the Jax State 41 to its own 44-yard line — turning a potential go-ahead/tying possession into a punt, effectively sealing the game.
Also of note Wednesday night: The final play of the first half was perhaps the most chaotic play of the 2025 college football season. Middle Tennessee fell short of the end zone on a 48-yard Hail Mary heave to end the half, and in a sea of two Blue Raiders and six Gamecocks, Jacksonville State free safety Caleb Nix emerged with the interception. Nix had a free lane all the way down to around the Middle Tennessee 25-yard line where running back Jekail Middlebrook pushed him out of bounds.
Determined to keep the play alive while stepping out, Nix threw it forward inbounds to warrant a penalty flag, and the chaos only continued. Travis Franklin Jr. scooped the ball before getting tripped inside the 5-yard line. While stumbling, Franklin launched the ball over his head into the end zone in a Holy Roller type play the 1978 Oakland Raiders would be proud of. Inside linebacker Walker O’Steen dove on the ball in the end zone, and the head referee initially signaled touchdown… before the madness was called back for three obvious reasons — one out of bounds and two forward passes.
Weekday CUSA is now firmly in the books, as the Tuesday and Wednesday baton now passes to the MAC. Jacksonville State (5-3, 4-0 CUSA) tests its undefeated record at UTEP next Saturday, while Middle Tennessee (1-6, 0-4 CUSA) looks to snap its 5-game losing skid at home against FIU, also on Saturday.
