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THE BASICS:
Score: #5 Valdosta State 47, #3 West Georgia 31
Records: Valdosta State 10-0 (8-0 GSC), West Georgia 10-1 (7-1 GSC)
Location: Valdosta, Ga. (Bazemore-Hyder Stadium)
The Lead: For the first time since 2010, the Valdosta State football team won the Gulf South Conference title with a thrilling 47-31 win over No. 3 West Georgia Saturday evening in front of 10,558 fans as the Blazers capped their first undefeated regular season since 2002.  The heavyweight matchup between two top five teams lived up to its billing for the rivals in the Battle for the Peach Basket.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED:

• The Blazers took the opening drive and marched right down the field as sophomore quarterback Rogan Wells hit junior Lio'undre Gallimore for 45 yards on the first play from scrimmage. 
• The vaunted West Georgia "D", who entered as the top defensive unit in the GSC allowing just 275.5 yards per game for 14^th nationally, stiffened forcing the Blazers into a 45-yard field goal from senior Andrew Gray, marking season-long field goal for Gray and 3-0 lead.
• The GSC's leading rusher, Devontae Jackson, was stopped in the backfield on a pass from Willie Candler for fourth down on the Wolves' first offensive series.
• UWG began its second drive at its own 36 and Jackson used a rush of 16 yards and Candler found Jackson for 29 yards to the VSU six as Candler connected with Malik Henry for nine yard strike and a 7-3 lead with 6:04 left in the first quarter.
• VSU freshman running back Seth McGill picked up a 3^rd and two with a 28-yard scamper and scored from one yard out for a 10-7 lead with 4:35 left in the quarter as VSU quickly erased the deficit.
• The Blazers used a 14-play, 6:57-yard drive into the second quarter as the team converted three third downs on the drive with Gray hitting his second field goal of the game from 27 yards for a 13-7 lead with 8:47 left in the half.
• Following a UWG punt and a personal foul on the Wolves, gave VSU good field position at the UWG 25 as freshman quarterback Ivory Durham was out wide in the backfield and Wells did the halfback toss and pass.  Durham connected with sophomore Kenny Benjamin for a 25-yard touchdown and a 20-7 lead with 6:54 remaining in the second quarter.
• VSU fumbled setting up the Wolves in Blazer territory as Jackson had two great runs and Candler hit Emoni Williams for a 20-14 score with 3:19 left in the half.
• Wells and the Blazers had the answer once again as he found Gallimore for 29 yards and a 27-14 lead with 1:06 left in the half.
• UWG answered with a touchdown of its own and the third passing score of the half by Candler. 
• Benjamin returned the kick 39 yards with one second left, following a UWG timeout, Durham had one of the best runs of the season as he ran 53 yards from the far side the near and scored for a 34-21 lead at halftime.
• Gray connected on his season-best third field goal from 27 yards out midway through the third for a 37-21 lead, but UWG answered right back with Candler's fourth touchdown pass of the game and a 37-28 score.
• Early in the fourth, a field goal by the Wolves cut the deficit to 37-31, but Wells once again came up with a huge play with his feet as he ran 55-yards for a touchdown just 39 seconds later and a 44-31 score as VSU is the only team in the country to score 44 or more points in every game this season in all divisions of the NCAA.
• Gray's fourth field goal pushed the lead to 47-31 with 5:05 left as the VSU "D" came up with huge stops throughout the game against the second-best offense in the GSC behind the Blazers.
• Following the game, the team celebrated on the field with the championship trophy and Peach Basket as it returns to Valdosta for the first time since 2016-17.

 
INSIDE THE NUMBERS:

• In the first half, VSU tallied 310 yards of offense on 37 plays, while UWG had 166 yards on 31 plays. 
• VSU had 23 carries for 183 yards and was 7 of 15 passing for 127 yards, while Candler was 11 of 17 for 84 yards and the Wolves had 14 rushes for 82 yards.
• Jackson, who entered averaging 116 yards rushing per game, had eight rushes for 32 yards in the first half.
• The win marked the seventh conference title overall and first outright title since 2004 for the Blazers.
• In the 2002 season when VSU went undefeated during the regular season, it won its first national championship.
• For the game, VSU amassed 584 yards of offense and 395 on the ground, tying the school-record for rushing yards in a game as VSU had 395 against North Alabama on Nov. 22, 2014 and was the Blazers' second-straight game this season of more than 390 rushing yards.
• UWG had 322 yards of offense with 201 passing yards and 121 rushing.
• Wells had his second-straight game of over 100 yards rushing with a career-high 143 yards on 14 carries and one score, while redshirt freshman Jamar Thompkins had 122 yards on the ground on 10 carries.
• Wells was 11 of 24 passing for 164 yards and a score, while Durham was 1 for 1 for 25 yards and a score and had four rushes for 78 yards and a score.
• The VSU defense held Jackson to just 39 yards rushing on 13 carries and the Wolves averaged just 4.5 yards per rush.  UWG had 121 yards rushing as it entered averaging 207 per game.
• Speaking of the "D", VSU recorded four sacks for 27 yards and 11 tackles for loss for 48 yards in the game. 
• VSU improved to 25-13 all-time against UWG.

 
UP NEXT:

• The Blazers most likely will be announced as the top-seed in Super Region Two tomorrow at 5 p.m. ET on the NCAA Division II Football Selection Show and receive the coveted first round bye.
• Fans can click the link at the top of this page to be directed to watch the show.
• Tickets for home playoff games will go on sale in the VSU Athletic Ticket Office on Monday.  Please check back with vstateblazers.com for more information on how to purchase tickets following the selection show Sunday.