Eastern Kentucky Colonels @ Jacksonville State Gamecocks
EKU rides Hayworth’s foot in 29-23 win over Jacksonville St
JACKSONVILLE, Ala. -- Samuel Hayworth made 5-of-6 field goal attempts -- including a 50-yarder -- and Conor Blount threw a touchdown and Eastern Kentucky beat Jacksonville State 29-23 on Saturday.
Hayworth made kicks from 34, 24, 25, 50 and 28-yards in the win.
Blount's 17-yard touchdown pass to Jack Berman to start the third quarter broke a 9-all tie. After the teams traded punts, Zerrick Cooper threw a 40-yard completion to Jamari Hester to put the ball at the Colonels' 10-yard line. On the next play, Cooper threw a 10-yard score to KJ Stephenson to tie it at 16 apiece.
Eastern Kentucky (7-5, 5-3 Ohio Valley Conference) took the lead for good when Alonzo Booth crashed in from a yard out with 3:47 left in the third.
Daryl McCleskey Jr. had 110 yards rushing on 24 carries for the Colonels.
Jacksonville State's (6-6, 3-5) Cooper threw all three of his touchdowns to Stephenson. Cooper threw for 311 yards on 21-of-35 completions with Hester catching nine passes for 186 yards. Cooper also had 44 yards rushing on 17 carries.
Game Information
Jacksonville, AL
2026 Standings
| United Athletic ConferenceUnited Athletic Conference | CONF | OVR |
|---|---|---|
| Abilene Christian | 0-0 | 0-0 |
| Austin Peay | 0-0 | 0-0 |
| Central Arkansas | 0-0 | 0-0 |
| Eastern Kentucky | 0-0 | 0-0 |
| North Alabama | 0-0 | 0-0 |
| Tarleton State | 0-0 | 0-0 |
| West Florida | 0-0 | 0-0 |
| West Georgia | 0-0 | 0-0 |
| Conference USAConference USA | CONF | OVR |
|---|---|---|
| Delaware | 0-0 | 0-0 |
| Florida International | 0-0 | 0-0 |
| Jacksonville State | 0-0 | 0-0 |
| Kennesaw State | 0-0 | 0-0 |
| Liberty | 0-0 | 0-0 |
| Middle Tennessee | 0-0 | 0-0 |
| Missouri State | 0-0 | 0-0 |
| New Mexico State | 0-0 | 0-0 |
| Sam Houston | 0-0 | 0-0 |
| Western Kentucky | 0-0 | 0-0 |
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