Football Falls to South Alabama in 68 Ventures Bowl

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MOBILE, Ala. (EMUEagles.com) – The Eastern Michigan University football team closed out its 2023 season with a loss to the University of South Alabama in the 68 Ventures Bowl in Mobile, Ala., Saturday, Dec. 23. The Eagles, who competed in a program-record third consecutive bowl game, finished the year with a 6-7 record.

Quarterback Cam'Ron McCoy (St. Louis, Mo./St. Mary's) led the Eagles offense as the junior set career-highs across the board, finishing the game with 12 completions for 73 yards while rushing the ball 13 times for 73 yards, averaging 5.6 yards per carry. McCoy also notched the first touchdown of his career as he found pay dirt from 10 yards out in the fourth quarter.

Defensively, Luke Cameron (Kokomo, Ind./Kokomo/Army West Point) excelled for the Green and White as he racked up seven tackles to lead the team. Cameron's seven stops also marked a career-high for the graduate student.

Jaylon Jackson (Burleson, Texas/Centennial/Lamar) accumulated a team-best 78 all-purpose yards, which were helped by his 48-yard kickoff return, which tied an EMU bowl game record. Also in special teams play, Mitchell Tomasek (Columbus, Ohio/Worthington Kilbourne) continued to rack up punting yards as the All-MAC First Team selection finished the game with 296 yards on six punts for an average of 49.3 yards per boot. With his yardage, Tomasek finished the season with 3,060 yards to bring his career total to 5,219, which makes him the 12th player to reach the 5,000-yard mark.

How It Happened
Eastern Michigan responded to an early 17-0 South Alabama advantage with a second quarter field goal by Jesús Gómez (Puebla, Mexico/Prepa Tec Puebla) to narrow the deficit to 17-3. The Eagles responded with a touchdown after South Alabama increased its lead to 59-3 to make it a 59-10 game.

Game Notes
» Joe Sparacio (Naples, Fla./First Baptist Academy/Boston College) plucked the ball out of midair late in the first quarter, granting Eastern possession in South Alabama territory. The interception marks the second of Sparacio's EMU tenure and goes down as the third overall in his career as he tallied one while playing for Boston College in 2019.
» Jaylon Jackson tied the mark for the longest kick return in an EMU bowl game as the running back ran it back 48 yards in the second quarter to set up the Eagles' offense on the ensuing drive. Jackson's return ties former Huron Glennard Smith, who returned a San Jose State kickoff 48 yards in Eastern's 30-27 win over the Spartans in the 1987 California Bowl, securing the then-Hurons' first bowl victory, Dec. 10, 1987.
» Bryce Eliuk (Linden, Mich./Linden) registered the first kick return of his collegiate football career as he corralled the USA squib kick, returning the ball four yards.
» Cameron carved out a career-high in tackles tonight as he tabbed seven stops throughout the contest.
» With a 16-yard rush in the third quarter, McCoy notched both the longest rush of the night for the Eagles and the longest rush in his youthful career. McCoy set career-highs across the board tonight as the junior finished the game with 12 completions for 73 yards while rushing the ball 13 times for 73 yards, averaging 5.6 yards per carry.
» Tomasek continued to rack up punting yards as the All-MAC First Team selection finished the game with 296 yards on six punts for an average of 49.3 yards per boot. With his yardage, Tomasek finished the season with 3,060 yards to bring his career total to 5,219, which makes him the 12th player to reach the 5,000-yard mark. Moreover, with his 296 punting yards tonight, Tomasek set an Eastern Michigan record for the most punting yards in a bowl game, surpassing former Eagle Jake Julien who previously held the record by punting five times for 246 yards in the 2019 Quick Lane Bowl, Dec. 26, 2019. Additionally, Tomasek averaged 49.3 yards per boot tonight, the seventh best figure in program history in a single game.
» First year Eagle Londyn Craft (Rio Rancho, N.M./IMG Academy/Mississippi State/Kentucky) took down the South Alabama signal caller in the third quarter, marking the first sack of his collegiate football career.
» Terry Lockett Jr. (Minneapolis, Minn./Minnehaha/Michigan State) set a career-high tonight as the wide receiver hauled in two catches for 29 yards. One of those catches went for 15 yards, the longest reception of Lockett Jr.'s career.
» Brian Dooley (Bowling Green, Ohio/Toledo St. John's Jesuit) closed out his stellar collegiate campaign as the 2023 Disney Spirit Award recipient, making his 60th career start in his 62nd career game played. Dooley is the program's leader in both categories, surpassing Sidy Sow (2018-22) for both records earlier this season.

Historical Notes
» With the loss, the Eagles close their 2023 season with a 6-7 overall record.
» Eastern is now 2-5 all-time in bowl games. The last time the Eagles were victorious in a bowl game came last year at the 2022 Famous Idaho Potato Bowl with a 41-27 win over San Jose State.
» The loss drops Eastern to 0-4 all-time when playing in the state of Alabama, including 0-2 this season after dropping a 21-0 decision at Jacksonville State, Sept. 23. The other two losses came in bowl games, including the 2021 LendingTree Bowl (Mobile), and the 2018 Camellia Bowl (Montgomery).
» Eastern is 0-3 this season against teams it faced for the first time in program history. Earlier this year, the Eagles dropped road games at Minnesota, 25-6, Sept. 9, before falling at Jax State.
» The Eagles fell to 1-5 when appearing on ESPN with all six games coming during bowl season. The lone win came last year in the Famous Idaho Potato Bowl, a 41-27 defeat of San Jose State, Dec. 20, 2022, in Boise, Idaho.

Up Next
The 2023 season has come to an end for the Eagles. Stay up to date by following the Eagles on social media and check back on EMUEagles.com for more information on spring ball, tickets for the 2024 campaign, and all things Eastern Football.

Team Stats

Cam’Ron McCoy

Ike Udengwu III

Players Mentioned

Luke Cameron

Londyn Craft

Brian Dooley

Bryce Eliuk

Jaylon Jackson

Terry Lockett Jr.

Cam’Ron McCoy

Sidy Sow

Joe Sparacio

Mitchell Tomasek

Players Mentioned

Luke Cameron

Londyn Craft

Brian Dooley

Bryce Eliuk

Jaylon Jackson

Terry Lockett Jr.

Cam’Ron McCoy

Sidy Sow

Joe Sparacio

Mitchell Tomasek

Eastern Michigan Athletics