By james art 
HUNTSVILLE, Alabama – Southern’s sick attack got a boost from one of its youngest members.
Redshirt freshman quarterback C’Zavian Teasett ignited the Jaguars with 294 passing yards and three touchdowns, including Dupree Fuller’s game-winning 14-yarder with 1:12 left, in a 25-20 rout of Alabama A&M on Saturday.
The home team made it dramatic by getting to the South 35-yard line with seven seconds left, but Bulldogs quarterback Xavier Lankford’s desperation pass into the end zone was knocked down by Jamarius Brown to seal the victory for the South.
“I feel relieved; To God be the glory,” Southerners coach Terrence Graves said. “The boys battled hard, played hard, it was an up and down game. There were some tough decisions, tough times, but you have to get over that.
“I expected this (from Teeseth). That’s the type of quarterback he is. I’m glad it stayed in the frame (of the offense). He missed a few reads, but overall he played a really good game of football.”
Southern (5-4, 4-1 SWAC) solidified its first place in the SWAC West Division by defeating A&M (3-5, 1-3) for the ninth straight time.
A&M took a 20-19 lead after Lankford’s 8-yard run, his second of the game, with 3:42 left. But Tissett, making his second career start, coolly led a 75-yard drive for the winning points.
He kept the drive alive with a 21-yard pass to Darren Morris on third-and-10 from the South 25, then set up Dupree’s TD with an 18-yard pass to Datraveon Brown. Fuller made the game-winning catch with one hand and a defender draped all over him.
“Coach called the play early, so I knew it was coming, especially when I saw the safety coming down,” Fuller said. “It’s a matter of practice, knowing what’s going on. (Caught him with one hand) because he (the defender) gave my other hand. I couldn’t move it so I had to try something.
Southern fell behind 10-0 early but rallied to take its first lead in the third quarter after a punt pinned the Jaguars at their own 1-yard line. But the offense responded with a 99-yard scoring march that led to a 36-yard touchdown pass from Teesett to Morris, his second TD, to make it 16-10.
Teasett ignited the drive with a 23-yard pass to Fuller to get Southern out of a hole, then a 31-yard run on third-and-7 from their 27.
Josh Griffin kicked his second field goal to make it 19-10 in Southern’s favor before the Bulldogs answered with a field goal and a Lankford TD for a 20-19 advantage.
After starting 2-for-8, Teasett finished 24-of-37 innings. He was especially big on third down, where the Jaguars converted 7 of 17 attempts after going 2 of 16 in last week’s loss to Florida A&M. Southern also didn’t allow a turnover for the first time in nine games.
“I prepared well for this game,” said Thiesset, a Baton Rouge native who played in Scotlandville. “I had to get the rust off. I started a little slow. I missed a few throws and had to make a few catches. But we knew that unhappiness would happen and we had to stay together no matter what. We did a good job of that.”
Teasett had plenty of help as the Jaguars piled up 441 yards. Kobe Dillon rushed for 85 yards on 19 carries. Morris caught five balls for 96 yards, including TD catches of 11 and 36 yards. Southern has outgained the league’s No. 1 offense 441-362.
“He ran the offense,” Graves said of Teesett. “He didn’t get away with what we wanted to do. He kept the offense flowing. He commanded the offense.
The Jaguars offense was awful in the first half until the final two drives, but fell behind 10-9 only because Griffin suffered his first missed extra point of the season. Southern was outscored 90-46 in the first quarter, but held a 181-158 advantage by halftime.
Tissett led a 70-yard touchdown drive and capped it off with a 14-yard scoring pass to Morris on a third-and-9 play. Morris caught the ball inside the 10 on a crossing and weaved his way through traffic for his second TD of the season to put Southern up 16-10.
The play that sparked the drive was a 20-yard run by Coby Dillon on third-and-2 at the Southern 38. On the next two plays, Dillon went 12 yards and Teesett hit Tyler Kirkwood 15 yards to tie the score.
Southern got a defensive stop to give Teasett another chance, which ended with a 35-yard field goal by Griffin. Dillon ripped off a 21-yard gain. Then on a fourth-and-4 gamble, Teasett connected with Datraveon Brown for 28 yards to set up a field goal with 23 seconds left.
Tissett was 6-of-9 passing for 75 yards in the second quarter and 8-of-17 for 94 at halftime. Dillon’s 63 yards on 11 carries led all rushers in the first half. The Jaguars left some points on the field, failing to convert a Herman Brister interception as Griffin missed a 48-yard field goal to end a drive that started at the A&M 35-yard line.
The Jaguars defense was pushed early but finally settled down and came up with a big stop after A&M went first and goal at the Southern 3. Derrick Williams dropped Lankford for a 1-yard loss on first down and two incompletions later, the Bulldogs they had to settle for a 26-yard field goal.
A&M was 0 for 5 on third down conversions and managed just 68 yards in the second quarter.