By james art 
Courtesy of Tennessee State Athletics
NASHVILLE — Draylen Ellis threw for 312 yards and Jalal Dean hauled in 118 receiving yards, but HBCU Tennessee State fell to OVC-Big South Conference foe UT Martin 28-21 at Nissan Stadium on Saturday night. TSU falls to 6-3 overall and 3-2 in conference play.
Ellis went 33-for-53 en route to 312 yards, two touchdowns with two interceptions. Ellis totaled 29 yards to lead the Tigers’ ground attack in the game, collecting 5.8 yards per carry along the way. CJ Evans also had a seven-yarder on the ground.
Dean’s 118-yard performance with one touchdown led Tennessee State’s receiving corps. Karate Branson also hauled in 11 passes for 86 yards and Bryant Williams chipped in with four catches for 66 yards and a touchdown as well. Tyler Jones led Tennessee State’s defensive effort, totaling one interception. Tyler Moore added 1.0 TFL and one sack.
Tennessee State converted 50 percent of its third-down attempts on the day. Defensively, the HBCU football program held up quite well against the UT Martin rushing attack, holding the Skyhawks to 104 yards on the ground.
How it happened
Tennessee State responded to Martin’s early 21-0 UT lead in the first quarter to cut the deficit to 21-14. UT Martin extended its lead to 28-14, but the Tigers responded with a touchdown to cut the lead to 28-21. Neither team scored more in the match.
Game notes
» UT Martin defeated Tennessee State 370-354 in the contest.
» Tennessee State scored 14 points in the first quarter, accounting for 66.7 percent of its total.
» Tennessee State converted 6-of-12 third downs, while UT Martin was 5-of-12.
» Mark Shenouda punted five times for the Tigers, averaging 46.8 yards per punt while pinning the Skyhawks inside their own 20 twice.
» The Tigers collected nine tackles for loss.
» Kinkead Dent led the Skyhawks’ passing attack, completing 18 of his 27 attempts for 266 yards and three touchdowns with one interception.
» Tyler Dostin was UT Martin’s leading receiver with 87 yards.
Game notes
» TSU travels to Western Illinois next Saturday at 1 p.m. for another OVC-Big South matchup.