Star-studded Jackson State delivers on hype with rout of FAMU in Orange Blossom Classic
Shedeur Sanders was unfazed and why would he be? A heave to the end zone, with a crunching hit to his gut to accompany it, ended with one of his passes hitting the ground for the first time Sunday, and even then a flag flew. Rico Powers, one of the five former blue-chip wide receivers Sanders has to throw to, drew a defensive pass interference on the play, keeping his quarterback’s streak of perfection alive and the Jackson State Tigers’ offense on track in its near-flawless first half at Hard Rock Stadium. Sanders popped right back up, went back into the huddle and set up his next play.
The rest of the drive took just two plays. First, he slung a short pass to Camron Buckley for an 11-yard gain, and then he went back to Powers and let the wide receiver do the rest. With a Florida A&M Rattler grabbing at him and trying to push him out of the play, Powers fought his way through BJ Bohler, tossing the defensive back aside and maneuvering to win a jump ball in the end zone.
On its third touchdown drive in four possessions to start the Orange Blossom Classic, Jackson State made it look easy and, for the most part, it was. For the second straight year, the Tigers began their season in the Orange Blossom Classic — a showcase for two of the top historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs) in the country — and they used their national platform this time to make a statement with a 59-3 rout of Florida A&M in Miami Gardens.
“We don’t say statements,” Jackson State coach Deion Sanders said. “We play football. However the scoreboard takes it, it takes it.”
Hype followed Sanders and Co. all offseason, and all they needed was one game against another FCS team to prove it was all justified.
Sanders, who was a top-300 recruit in the 247Sports composite rankings for the Class of 2021, went 29 of 33 for 323 yards and five touchdowns, and started the game 17 for 17 to follow up his Jerry Rice Award-winning freshman campaign in style. Powers, who started his career with the South Carolina Gamecocks after he was a four-star prospect in the Class of 2019, caught a 29-yard touchdown. Wide receiver Kevin Coleman, the No. 54 overall player in the Class of 2022, caught four passes for 41 yards in his debut.
In all, seven former four- and five-star prospects recorded a stat for Jackson State.
At the start of the day, all eyes were on Travis Hunter, whose debut for the Tigers (1-0, 1-0 Southwestern Athletic) was a historic moment for both HBCUs and the FCS level, as a whole.
Last year, Hunter was all set to sign a national letter of intent with the Florida State Seminoles after spending months orally committed to them, until, on the first day of the early signing period, he stunned the college football world by instead signing with Jackson State. He was the No. 1 recruit in the country — a five-star cornerback, who probably also would’ve been ranked No. 1 at wide receiver — and became the top-ranked player to ever sign with an FCS school.
Injuries, however, limited him throughout the preseason and his name didn’t pop up on the Tigers’ initial two-deep depth chart, so his presence on the field during warm-ups was a relief for those of the 39,907 in attendance eager to see him make history.
When the game began and Jackson State lined up on defense for the first time, there was Hunter, lined up at corner, and it didn’t take him long to display his game-changing ability to this next level. On the third play of the game, he nearly made a leaping, stretching one-handed interception along the left sideline, although the play was ultimately wiped away for offsides. On the Rattlers’ third drive, he almost created another interception when he reached his hand around a Florida A&M wide receiver to break up a slant pass and send the ball deflecting straight into one of his safeties’ chests, only Herman Smith III let an easy takeaway slip through his hands.
Hunter finished his debut with three passes defended and didn’t allow a single completed pass in his coverage area. The only thing missing was a moment on offense, as Sanders kept him strictly to defense for his first game.
“We played with probably 60 percent of a Travis Hunter and you see what he’s capable of doing,” Sanders said, “but 60 percent of Travis Hunter is 100 percent of anybody else.”
Even though he’s at the center of the hype, Hunter is only a small part of why the Tigers began the season at No. 17 in the Stats Perform FCS Top 25.
Sanders won the Rice Award last year as the best freshman in FCS. Wide receiver Shane Hooks, who wasn’t a blue-chip recruit, made the preseason watch list for the Senior Bowl, and broke out with six catches for 55 yards and two touchdowns Sunday. Even Jackson State’s defense is potentially loaded, with five preseason All-Southwestern Athletic Conference selections, and it tormented the Rattlers (0-2, 0-1) with four sacks, two fumble recoveries, two interceptions and two defensive touchdowns, plus a blocked punt for a touchdown.
None of it was a surprise to Jackson State, which is out to do more than just win the SWAC this year. Sanders is operating the program like it’s playing in one of the Power 5 Conferences, with four analysts, including former Minnesota Vikings coach Mike Zimmer.
If the Tigers are what Sanders believes they can be, wins like this one shouldn’t be unusual. They’ll be the expectation.
“I’ve been visualizing that for a minute,” Shedeur Sanders said, “all week.”
This story was originally published September 4, 2022 at 6:30 PM.
