SETTING THE SCENE
The No. 3/4 Blazers return to the road for the first time since Sept. 11, with a top ten matchup at West Alabama Saturday afternoon.  The game pits two of the three remaining undefeated Gulf South Conference teams against each other and is a game with significant conference championship implications and potential NCAA postseason seeding ramifications.  VSU is coming off its most complete performance of the season in a 55-0 thrashing of Delta State on Saturday to improve to 5-0 overall and 2-0 in Gulf South Conference play.  UWA enters with a 6-0 record overall and a 3-0 mark in GSC play after a 44-7 victory at Shorter on Saturday.  
 
FLOSPORTS
The Gulf South Conference signed a league-wide, four-year agreement with FloSports to broadcast all GSC football games beginning this fall.  With this new GSC package, all VSU football livestream broadcasts will be available exclusively through FloSports. Fans can purchase a monthly membership for $19.99 or an annual subscription for $150 ($12.50/month).  The yearly membership is a saving of nearly $90.  Subscribe to FloSports at www.flosports.tv/gulfsouth.  The membership will include:

 
THIS WEEK IN THE GSC 
Looking into the four games in the GSC this week, the top four teams in the standings play each other, while the bottom four teams also play each other.  The slate features No. 3/4 Valdosta State at No. 10/10 West Florida, while top-ranked West Florida plays host to No. 12/15 West Georgia.  Mississippi College plays at Shorter, while Delta State hosts North Greenville.  West Florida sits at 5-0 overall and 2-0 in GSC play, while West Georgia is 5-1 overall and 3-1 in league play.
 
CALLING TODAY'S GAME
TALK 92.1 FM will broadcast the Blazer games all season long with Spencer Van Horn and Wade Beale having the call of the games.  Fans also can access the broadcast at www.talk921.com.  
 
INSIDE THE SERIES WITH WEST ALABAMA
The Blazers lead the all-time series with West Alabama 34-5 and have won the last two meetings in the series in 2018 in Livingston, Ala., 58-24 and in 2019 in Valdosta, 44-27.  VSU is 15-3 all-time in Livingston and has won three-straight times there.  VSU is 19-2 all-time in Valdosta.  VSU has outscored UWA 1,286 to 667 in the 39 meetings all-time.  The series includes one NCAA postseason meeting where VSU won 49-21 on Nov. 24, 2012, during the Blazers' third national championship season. 
 
WHEN THEY'RE RANKED
This marks the fourth-straight meeting when at least one of the teams is ranked and the second-straight meeting both teams are ranked.  UWA was ranked in its last victory over the Blazers in 2017 (38-14 in Valdosta) and ranked in 2018 when VSU upset the No. 8 Tigers in Livingston, 58-24.  In 2019, VSU was ranked No. 1 nationally and UWA was 20th as the Blazers won 44-27 on Sept. 21.  VSU is 65-60-2 all-time versus ranked teams and is 25-32-1 on the road against ranked opponents.  The Blazers are 54-28-1 in ranked versus ranked matchups in program history.  VSU is 2-2 against UWA when both teams are ranked in the series and has gone 1-1 against UWA when Tigers have been the only team ranked.   In the second round of the 2019 NCAA postseason, UWF was No. 20 nationally and upset top-ranked VSU 38-35 in the last ranked versus ranked matchup for the Blazers.  It snapped a string of eight-straight victories over ranked opponents for VSU.
 
LAST TIME OUT FOR THE BLAZERS
The Blazers, once again, started fast - this time just 16 seconds into the game as senior kick returner/wide receiver Lio'undre Gallimore took a lateral from junior kick returner/running back Jamar Thompkins at the ten yard line and returned it 90 yards for a touchdown with 14:46 left in the first quarter.  The combined kick return was 96 yards, marking the first kick return for a touchdown by the Blazers since Vincent Dallas versus Albany State returned a kick 85-yards on Sept. 6, 2014.  Following a three-and-out by the Statesmen, Gallimore scored on a 31-yard catch and run from junior quarterback Ivory Durham for a 14-0 lead just 2:10 into the contest.  VSU absolutely dominated DSU in all facets of the game as the Blazers had a career-high 190 yards and one touchdown on the ground from junior running back Seth McGill and Thompkins finished with 135 yards on the ground and two scores.  It marked the third time this season the Blazers have had two rushers over 100 yards in a game and second-straight game for McGill and Thompkins.  VSU tallied 401 yards rushing for the second-most rushing yards in a game in school history (446, at Shorter, 9/28/19).  VSU amassed 566 yards of total offense in the game, marking the third time of over 500 yards of offense in a game this season.  The Blazers accumulated a season-high 583 yards of offense against Shorter (10/2/21).  Durham went 7 of 13 passing for 165 yards and two scores, while he had 29 yards and a rushing touchdown also.  Gallimore had three catches for 78 yards and a touchdown reception.  Defensively, the Blazers dominated the game and had two goal line stands, including a turnover on downs as DSU went 0 for 4 in the red zone with three missed field goals.  Senior Nick Moss had a career-high 17 tackles and eight solo stops in the game, along with one tackle for loss, one pass breakup and one hurry.  VSU recorded three sacks in the game for 20 yards and eight tackles for loss for 35 yards, along with one fumble return.  Senior defensive back Mondrell Jefferson recorded his team-leading fourth fumble recovery of the season.  VSU recorded its 26th shutout in program history and the first since a 52-0 blanking of Shorter on Sept. 22, 2018.  
 
GSC PLAYERS OF THE WEEK X3
For the second time this season, VSU had three players named GSC Players of the Week on Oct. 11.  McGill earned Player of the Week honors for the first time this season, while Moss earned Defensive honors for the second time this season and sophomore kicker Estin Thiele earned Special Teams honors for a third time.  Thiele went 2 for 2 in field goals late in the game Saturday and went 7 of 7 in extra-points.  Thiele also handled the kickoff duties with 10 kicks for 635 yards and a 63.5 average with four touchbacks.  VSU also had three weekly honorees following the victory at Virginia Union with Durham, Moss and Thiele earning the honors.
 
FIRST IN THE NATION
The Blazers have been outstanding this season in the national statistics as they are leading the nation in scoring defense, allowing just 6.0 points per game and are ironically tied with Albany State in scoring defense, a team VSU beat 21-3 earlier this season.  VSU also leads the nation in kick returns at 41.62 yards per return.  VSU is tops in the nation in red zone defense at a 0.364 clip following holding DSU to zero scores in four trips in the red zone last week.  The opposition is 4 of 11 in red zone scoring this season.  The Blazers also continue to lead in punt return defense holding teams to a -2.33-yard average on punt returns this season.  DSU had just one punt return for two yards last week.  VSU only punted the ball once in the game, marking the fewest punts in a game this season.
 
7:20
The Blazers needed just 7:20 minutes of possession time in the first half against Delta State last week to race out to a 35-0 lead at intermission.  The Blazers had a season-low 22:07 minutes of possession time, but that didn't matter in the 55-0 victory.  VSU averages 26:57 minutes of possession per game and is sixth nationally in scoring offense at 45.8 points per game, while leading the nation in scoring defense.  
 
CREATING OPPORTUNITIES
VSU is third nationally in turnovers lost (3) for tops in the GSC.  Indiana (Pa.) leads the nation with just one lost turnover, while the Blazers are 35th nationally and second in the GSC in turnovers gained (12).  VSU is fifth nationally and tops in the league in turnover margin at 1.8 per game.  VSU has four interceptions for the season and eight fumble recoveries.  Senior defensive back Mondrell Jefferson leads the team with four fumble recoveries for 21 yards as he leads the nation in fumble recoveries.  
 
190 OCTANE
Junior running back Seth McGill tallied a career-high 190 yards and a touchdown on the ground in the Blazers' 55-0 thrashing of Delta State last week.  He had 13 carries in the game and averaged 14.6 yards per carry.  The 190 yards on the ground marked the tenth-most rushing yards in a game by a Blazer in school history.  McGill leads teh team averaging 111.6 yards per game with 64 carries for 558 yards.  He is 26th nationally and second in the league in rushing yards (558), while he leads the nation in rushing yards per carry at an 8.27 clip.  He is 12th nationally and first in the GSC in rushing yards per game at a 111.6 clip.  McGill has 304 carries for his career for 1,953 yards and 28 rushing touchdowns, while he has caught 48 passes for 372 yards and one touchdown.    His 1,953 rushing yards puts him eighth all-time in school history in career rushing yards, while his is fourth all-time in rushing touchdowns with 28.  McGill needs six rushing scores to tie Aaron Jenkins (2000-03 ) for third in rushing touchdowns (34).  He needs 702 rushing yards to tie Vontrell Mitchell (1995-98) for seventh all-time in rushing yards (2,655).  McGill has scored 174 points for his career and needs just 24 points to move into the top ten all-time in career scoring.
 
THOMPKINS MOVING UP
Just as McGill has had a solid start to the season, so has Jamar Thompkins as he has 51 carries for 395 yards for a 79.0 average per game and a 7.7 average per carry.  Thompkins has four rushing touchdowns for the season and 24 for his career, tying him with Tyran Robinson (2001-04) for sixth all-time in school history.  Thompkins' 2,674 career yards are good for seventh all-time in school history.  He needs 341 yards to tie Austin Scott (2012-15) for sixth all-time with 3,015 yards.
 
FOR STREAKS
The Blazers enter Saturday's contest winners of 26-straight regular season games dating back to a 52-0 victory at Shorter on Nov. 11, 2017.  The last regular season loss for VSU came at the hands of West Alabama in Valdosta on Nov. 4, 2017.  The Blazers also have won 19-straight regular season GSC games dating back to 2017.  Since the Shorter win to close the 2017 season, VSU has won 30 of its last 31 games and has won 33 of 35 dating back to the final five games of 2017.  From the Shorter game in 2017 through the heartbreaking 38-35 loss to West Florida in the NCAA Second Round in 2019, VSU set a GSC record for consecutive victories with 25.
 
TWO OVER 100 X3
For the third time this season, the Blazers had two rushers over 100 yards on the ground as junior Jamar Thompkins finished with 108 yards on eight carries, while junior Seth McGill had 15 carries for 104 yards and two scores in the 49-13 victory over Shorter on Oct. 2.  McGill and Durham each went over 100 yards on the ground in the 51-7 victory at Virginia Union (Sept. 11).  
 
UNDEFEATED TEAMS 
The Blazers are one of 13 undefeated teams in the country this season and three of those teams are within the Gulf South Conference, marking the most of any league in NCAA Division II this season.  The Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) and the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) has two undefeated teams.  In the GSC, Valdosta State, West Alabama and West Florida all are unbeaten thus far.
 
NEVER TRAILING
The Blazers have led for 276:25 minutes thus far this season and have been tied for 23:35 minutes of the 300 minutes played.  VSU is the only school in NCAA Division II who has not trailed all season (168 schools).
 
VSU STAYS PUT IN THE POLLS
The Blazers remained fourth in the newest AFCA Top 25, while they held steady at third in the D2Football.com Top 25 this week.  Both polls have West Florida as the top team in the country, while West Alabama is tenth in both polls.  West Georgia is 12th in the AFCA poll, while it is 15th in D2Football.com.    VSU 2021 opponents Albany State and Savannah State each are among others receiving votes in the AFCA Top 25.
 
STOUT DEFENSIVELY
Along with the strong marks in scoring defense, turnovers and interceptions, the Blazers are 31st nationally and second in the league in third down conversion defense, holding teams to a 0.307 clip.  West Alabama is leading the GSC in 3-down percentage defense holding teams to a 0.296 clip. The Blazers are fifth nationally in defensive touchdowns with five for tops in the GSC.  VSU is ninth nationally in fumbles recovered (8) for tops in the GSC and his holding teams to 84 first downs for third in the GSC and 22nd nationally.  VSU is holding teams to just 112.0 passing yards for fourth nationally and tops in the league, while it is 11th nationally in total defense allowing just 257.2 yards per game to lead the conference.  Junior linebacker Jameon Gaskin is 18th nationally in forced fumbles per game at a 0.4 clip for second in the GSC.  
 
YOU GOT MOSSED
Senior linebacker Nick Moss leads the team with 63 total tackles and 31 solo stops.  He has three tackles for loss for 19 yards, one pass breakup, three quarterback hurries and one interception for 44 yards.  He has one fumble recovery on the year.  Moss is 13th nationally and tops in the GSC in solo tackles at 6.2 per game, while he is third nationally and also leads the league in total tackles per game at a 12.6 clip.  Moss has recorded double-digit tackles in four of the five games thus far this season.
 
MATTHEW WITH THE PICK SIX
Senior Christian Matthew had his first pick six as a Blazer intercepting Aeneas Dennis' pass late in the 49-13 victory over Shorter (Oct. 2).  Matthew had a great read on the pass and picked it off, going 40 yards down the near sideline for the score with just 4:34 left in the contest.  Moreover, VSU had just scored on a 51-yard touchdown pass from Durham to Gallimore at the 4:46 mark.  Just 12 seconds later, on the first play for Shorter from scrimmage, Matthew had the pick and score.  
 
GALLIMORE NAMED STEEL'S JEWELRY ATHLETE OF THE WEEK
Senior Lio'undre Gallimore became the third VSU football player to earn Steel's Jewelry Blazer Athlete of the Week honors as he recorded seven catches for a season-high 135 yards and two scores against Shorter Oct. 2.  Gallimore leads the team with 19 catches for 351 yards and five touchdowns.  Gallimore is fourth in the GSC in all-purpose yards at 118.0 per game, while he is second in the GSC in receiving touchdowns this season (5) for 23rd nationally and his 351 receiving yards are good for third in the league.  
 
WHERE THE BLAZERS STAND OFFENSIVELY
Not only do the Blazers have a stout defense, but also a strong offense as they are 11th in passes had intercepted with just two on the year. VSU is one of three GSC schools with just two interceptions (West Alabama and Mississippi College).  VSU is 23rd nationally in red zone offense at a 0.895 clip for second in the league, while it is fourth nationally in rushing at a 276.2 clip for second in the GSC.  The Blazers are second nationally in sacks allowed at a 0.20 clip as the team has allowed one sack all season.  VSU is sixth nationally in scoring offense at 45.8 points per game for second in the GSC and seventh nationally in total offense at 489.6 yards per game for second in the GSC.  
 
GALLIMORE RETURNS 
Senior Lio'undre Gallimore is one of two GSC student-athletes with kick returns for touchdowns this season as Joshua Edwards of North Greenville is the other.   For the season, Gallimore has three kickoff returns for 211 yards and the one score.  As a team, VSU leads the nation in kickoff returns at a 41.62 clip.  As a receiver, Gallimore is 26th nationally and second in the GSC in touchdown receptions (6), while he is third in the GSC in receiving yards (429) and fourth in receiving yards per game (85.8).  UWA's Tyriq Martin leads the GSC in receiving yards per game (97.2) and receptions per game (7.0).  For Gallimore's career, he has played in 35 games with 30 starts and has 109 catches for 2,114 yards and 22 touchdowns.  Gallimore has 23 total touchdowns for 138 points.  His 2,114 yards are good for seventh all-time in school history and his 22 receiving touchdowns are eighth in school history. 
 
SAUNDS MOVING UP
Graduate Brian Saunds has 13 receptions for 200 yards this season and two touchdowns as he now has played in 39 games with 30 starts with 2,082 yards receiving on 127 receptions and 23 receiving touchdowns.  Saunds has 53 punt returns for 551 yards for his career, while he has completed two passes for ten yards and thrown one touchdown.  The 2,082 yards receiving is good for eighth all-time in school history, just behind Gallimore, while Saunds' 23 receiving touchdowns places him seventh in program history.
 
GOFF HITS 50 CAREER VICTORIES
VSU third-year head coach Gary Goff hit 50 career coaching victories with the 53-7 win over Savannah State on Sept. 4.  Goff now is 54-50 in his 11th season of coaching.  Prior to VSU, he coached nine years at Tiffin University in Tiffin, Ohio.  Goff is 15-1 during his time at VSU.
 
GARY GOFF RADIO SHOW
The Gary Goff Radio show is back this season at the Salty Snapper Restaurant in Valdosta every Monday at 7 p.m.  Come out and listen to VSU head football coach Gary Goff speak about the previous game and looking ahead to the next game on the schedule.  VSU Assistant Athletic Director for Development, Matt Malone, broadcasts the show and if you can't make it out, you can listen on WVGA 105.9 FM in Valdosta or stream it at valdostatoday.com.  Prizes will be awarded after the show and fans in attendance have the opportunity to ask questions of Goff during the show. 
 
COACH GARY GOFF SHOW
The Coach Goff Show will be available each Sunday at vstateblazers.com on the football page throughout the season as it will include interviews from Goff, select players and highlights from the previous game.  Spencer Van Horn and Dave Garner host the show throughout the season and Jamie Abbott of Crashandannie Productions directs and produces the show.
 
ABOUT WEST ALABAMA
The Tigers enter with a 6-0 record overall and have won their last eight games, including both games in the spring.  UWA, just like the Blazers, has been stout on both sides of the ball this season.  The Tigers are tenth in both the AFCA Top 25 and the D2Football.com Top 25, while they are ninth in the D2 Football Power Rankings.  This season, the Tigers are led by Jack McDaniels at quarterback and Tyriq Martin and Bayley Blanchard at wide receiver.  McDaniels is second in the GSC and 25th nationally in passing efficiency (155.1), while he is third in the league in passing yards (1,411), passing yards per game (282.2) and passing yards per completion (13.06) - all within the top 55 nationally.  He is fourth in the GSC in passing touchdowns (10).  McDainels leads the GSC and is 18th nationally in completion percentage at a 0.651 clip, while he is second in the league in completions per game (21.60) for 21st nationally.  McDaniels is 24th nationally in total offense at 285.4 yards per game for third in the GSC.  On the ground, Demetrius Battle leads the GSC with six rushing touchdowns for 24th nationally, while Blanchard is third in the GSC in touchdown receptions (4).  Kicker Gabriel Dunkle is second in the GSC in field goal percentage (0.818) and 21st nationally, while he also is 21st nationally and second in the league in field goals per game at a 1.80 clip.  Dunkle is 25th nationally and second in the league in points scored (49) and 13th nationally for tops in the GSC in scoring at 9.8 points per game.  As a team, the Tigers are second in the GSC behind VSU in scoring defense, allowing just 13.8 points per game for tenth nationally.  UWA is sixth nationally in passing efficiency defense at an 85.11 clip for second in the GSC, just behind VSU at an 81.59 average.  UWA averages just 100.8 yards allowed on the ground for second in the league and 28th nationally, while it is 18th nationally in punt return defense at 2.80 yards allowed per return, just behind VSU at -2.33.  UWA is 24th nationally in passing offense at 287.2 yards per game, while it is third in the league in rushing offense at 174.8 and 18th nationally in total offense at 462.0 yards per game for third in the GSC.  UWA is third in the league in total defense, holding teams to 266.6 yards per game.  VSU leads the league in total defense at 257.2 yards per game for 11th nationally, while VSU is seventh nationally and second in the league in total offense at 489.6 yards per game.  UWA head coach Brett Gilliland is in his eighth season at UWA and is 50-26 there. His best season was a 10-3 campaign in 2017 leading the Tigers to the regional final of the NCAA postseason in a 28-21 loss to eventual national runner-up West Florida that season.
 
NO SHUTOUTS
The Blazers lead all of NCAA Division II with 347 consecutive games without being shutout dating back to a 12-0 loss to Central Florida on Sept. 14, 1991.  VSU only has been shutout five times in program history.  Behind the Blazers is Grand Valley State who hasn't been shutout in 338 games.
 
A HISTORY OF SUCCESS
The Blazers have had an outstanding 39 years of football since the program began in 1982.  The Blazers have the second-highest winning percentage all-time in NCAA Division II with a 308-127-4 record (.703) behind Grand Valley State (409-143-3) with a .738 clip.  VSU went 88-27 from 2010-2019 for a .765 average which is good for eighth in NCAA Division II for the decade.
 
A VICTORY OVER WEST ALABAMA WOULD  . . .