VALDOSTA, Ga. – Conference play continues this Saturday on the road for the Valdosta State Blazer football team, who has seen a steady increase of improvements each week this season leading up to last weekend's huge win over the Wolves of West Georgia.
This week, the flame red and black hits the road for Clinton, Miss. to face the Choctaws of Mississippi College in an afternoon matchup. The contest marks the first to be played outside of the state of Georgia since VSU's only loss back on September 17 against North Alabama.
The Blazers enter the contest sitting in three way tie with Florida Tech and West Florida for third place behind West Alabama in second place and the North Alabama Lions, who are currently undefeated in conference play. Meanwhile, the Choctaws come into Saturday's matchup searching for their first GSC victory of the 2016 season.
Valdosta State's defense has been extremely impressive this season and currently ranks second in the Gulf South Conference when measured by average yards allowed per game. Blazer opponents are averaging 333.8 yards per contest, while West Georgia leads the pack with an average of 325.7 yards allowed per game. Upon further breakdown of the Black Swarm's performance in 2016, VSU's 15 interceptions lead the conference and place the Blazers second in the nation in picks, behind only Black Hills State's total of 16. Brandon Roe's efforts in the secondary have played a key role in the Blazers' success, as he is currently locked in a seven-way tie for the individual league lead with three interceptions of his own.
Complementing the success of the Black Swarm, the Blazer offense has brought balance to Head Coach Kerwin Bell's squad in recent weeks as well. Bell's attack has been firing on all cylinders in recent weeks, particularly in the past two weeks, during which Valdosta State has racked up 1185 yards for an average of 592.5 yards per game. Much of the Blazers' offensive success can be attributed to the gradual improvement of the offensive line, which did not allow a single sack against the top defense in the league.
