Albany State pleased at midpoint of season

ALBANY — The Albany State Rams have reached the midway point in their season and seem to be in good shape as they continue to work towards the SIAC championship game.

The Rams currently sit at 2-3 overall, 2-1 in the conference and 1-0 in the SIAC East Division. This is comparable to their 3-2 record this time last season.

Albany State is averaging 311.8 total yards of offense, while holding its opponents to 294.6. With five games under his belt, quarterback Caleb Edmonds has completed 76 of 157 passes for 767 yards, two touchdowns and eight interceptions.

Running back Jarvis Small leads the team in rushing with 100.6 yards per game. Quadrey Simmons is the Rams’ leading receiver with 20 catches for 244 yards, followed by Yancy Burns with 13 catches for 169 yards and two touchdowns.

Defensively, the Rams have continued to play at a high level. Safety Nick Scott recorded a career-high 12 1/2 tackles against Delta State and leads the team with 29 solos. Defensive back Kelderion Miller has picked off four passes this season to lead the team.

Head coach Dan Land is content for the most part with where his team sits during the bye week. But he still feels they let a few games get away.

“Conference-wise, yes [we’re where I expected us to be]. Overall no,” he said. “We played some tough teams and I know that we can compete with them, and we competed with them, but it’s just certain things that we didn’t do well and when you’re playing those good playoff teams like that, you’re not gonna win. I’m comfortable with where we are, but I think we should’ve won a few more of those games.”

He mentioned Valdosta State and Tuskegee specifically as games they should’ve had. After suffering brutal double-digit losses to VSU the last few years, the Rams took the Blazers down to the wire in their season opener. Against rival Tuskegee, the Rams were tied with the Golden Tigers for more than half the game before it came down to a questionable call in favor of the Tigers.

Albany State still managed to shake those two losses off as well as the most recent 40-0 Delta State loss to defeat Miles 29-16 last week. The Rams overcame a 14-0 first half deficit to win, and Land said his team responded to his halftime challenge.

“First half, we came out flat,” he said. “At halftime, we told them to stop focusing on what they’re doing and just concentrate on what we do best. And that’s what we did. Defense started playing the defense they normally play, offense needed to get some points on the board and that’s what they did.”

Land noted that the bye week came at a perfect time as they try and get some of their key players recovered from injuries. Wide receiver Jesse Atkins suffered a wrist injury during the Tuskegee game and despite having screws implanted in his wrist, he’s expected to play next week.

Burns, however, may be lost for the rest of the season after chipping a bone in his elbow in the Delta State game.

Aside from those two injuries, Land said they have several players who’ve suffered the usual bumps and bruises that come with their respective positions. This week was a chance to let them rest.

The Rams have a manageable schedule moving forward. For homecoming next week, they play a Morehouse team they’ve defeated six straight times followed by a winless Clark Atlanta team before the much-anticipated showdown against former head coach Mike White and his 0-5 Benedict Tigers on Oct. 31.

After that is the annual Fountain City Classic against Fort Valley State (3-2).