GSU trying to avoid up-and-down play vs. Alabama A&M
GRAMBLING — Grambling’s last four weeks have been an up-and-down ride filled with offensive explosions, penalties and enough yards allowed on defense to resemble an Arena League football game.
The Tigers have managed a 3-1 record during that span, though, with the only loss coming to Bethune-Cookman. Grambling has since won three straight with the most recent victory coming in convincing fashion against rival Jackson State.
Grambling is now hoping to string together another consistent effort at home Saturday against Alabama A&M.
“That’s what it’s going to take is just continued focus and an understanding we need to do the little things in order to play well every week,” Grambling coach Broderick Fobbs said. “We’ve dodged some bullets because we’ve played well and we haven’t played well at times but we’ve been able to continue to win football games.”
Grambling, which sits atop the Southwestern Athletic Conference at 3-0 and a half game up on Southern, can make another move against an Alabama A&M team that traditionally matches up well with the Tigers. Alabama A&M fell in the middle of Grambling’s seven-game win streak in 2014, but the Bulldogs kept things interesting before the Tigers used two late touchdowns to pull away with a 38-28 victory.
Grambling's offense continues to roll
“I don’t mind being in a dog fight,” Alabama A&M coach James Spady said. “What you’d like to do is be able to be consistent enough so that when you start throwing those haymakers, you can be consistent enough to land them at a significant rate. That’s what we weren’t able to do last year.”
Grambling has looked unstoppable for the majority of its first three conference games. The Tigers have produced a 34-10 win over Alabama State, a 70-54 win over Prairie View A&M and a 59-27 win over Jackson State. Alabama State and Jackson State were the highs, while Fobbs called the Prairie View game an “ugly” win.
“You don’t want a down game. Trust me, when these kids come out to play, they don’t come out to play and play down,” Grambling wide receivers coach Mickey Joseph said. “Like coach said, there’s a lot of kids on scholarship, too. Then it comes down to executing. They’ll be prepared this week. I think they’ll be happy to be home.”
Alabama A&M, which is last in the SWAC in total defense with 526.8 yards allowed per game, is the latest team to try and slow down Grambling’s offense led by Johnathan Williams.
The senior quarterback is on a tear of late with 12 total touchdowns in the last two games and leads the FCS with 18 touchdown passes.
“Contain him is what needs to happen,” Spady said. “When a guy gets on a roll, he starts to feel what they’re doing and really understands the game plan. He’s a hard guy to defend.”
In general, Spady is concerned with stopping a Grambling unit that is averaging 54 points per game during the three-game win streak. Grambling leads the SWAC in scoring offense (46 points per game) and is second to only Prairie View in total offense (490.2 yards per game).
“They’ve got a lot of tools. This guy (Williams) has a lot of guys to throw the ball to,” Spady said. “They look big and imposing up front. We’re going to have our hands full trying to keep them from scoring as many points as they do. They seem to just keep putting points up.”
Grambling’s weakness still revolves around its defense, although the Tigers have been able to compensate by forcing turnovers. Alabama A&M is second in the SWAC in turnover margin at plus-2 with eight takeaways and six giveaways.
GSU coaches say defense is improving despite stats
Coming off a 55-0 loss to Coastal Carolina, the Bulldogs have shown the ability to pile up yards (418.2 yards per game) but struggle to consistently put points up (21.8 points per game).
One area Grambling has struggled in is getting off the field on third downs. The Tigers should have an advantage since the Bulldogs are converting just 27 percent of their third downs.
“What happens is a lot of times is we’re doing a good job of putting the ball in the end zone quickly and then defensively we’re playing well on first and second downs and then something will happen on third-and-long or third-and-7 and we’ll give up a first down,” Fobbs said.
Connect with Sean Isabella on Twitter at ST_IsabellaTNS
Alabama A&M (1-3, 1-1) at Grambling (3-2, 2-0)
Kickoff: 3 p.m.
At: Eddie Robinson Stadium
Radio: KPCH-99.3 FM
TV: None
Coaches: Broderick Fobbs, Grambling (10-7); James Spady, Alabama A&M (5-11)
Grambling wins if: Quarterback Johnathan Williams continues to roll. Outside of California, opponents have yet to slow down Grambling’s senior quarterback. He has 12 total touchdowns in his last two games and leads the FCS with 18 passing touchdowns.
Grambling loses if: The Tigers can’t stay off the field on third down. Working in Grambling’s favor is Alabama A&M’s inability to convert third downs. The Bulldogs sport just a 27 percent conversation rate this year.