Troy University Athletics
Troy Football Opens Home Slate with Alabama State
9/7/2017 4:57:00 PM | Football
Puchase Tickets | Gameday Information | Gameday Central | Watch Live | Listen Live | Live Stats | Game Promotions | Gameday Need to Know
TROY, Alabama – After shattering attendance records last season, Troy makes its 2017 debut at The Vet on Saturday when the Trojans play host to in-state foe Alabama State. Kickoff is scheduled for 5 p.m. in Veterans Memorial Stadium.
Â
Troy (0-1) enters Saturday's contest looking to bounce back from a season-opening loss at Boise State that left a bitter taste in head coach Neal Brown's mouth the entire week.
Â
"I'm not over it, I won't be over it on Saturday," Brown said at his weekly press conference. "Some coaches get up here and say, 'It's over, we've got to turn the page,' but I'm not turning the page. We're going to remain upset and prepare with an edge and a hunger to not go out and repeat that performance."
Â
The Troy Sports Radio Network will have full coverage on its 16-station network and online at TroyTrojans.com beginning with the pregame show at 3 p.m. (CT). The game will also be broadcast live on ESPN3.
Â
Troy's defense was up to the task against the Broncos with 12 tackles for loss, four sacks and a pair of turnovers against one of the top offenses in the country. Sam Lebbie posted a pair of stops behind the line, Antione Barker forced a fumble and Blace Brown returned an interception 53 yards for a touchdown.
Â
"Defensively, I'm really proud of how our guys competed and played. We played a ton of guys; almost everybody we brought on defense played," Brown said. "We're going to consistently play good defense here. We're going to be great on defense at some point this year. We flew around, we played with passion, we played with energy, and I was proud of those guys because that's how Troy football should look."
Â
Brown will look to get the offense back on track after the Trojans mustered just 215 yards of offense and a pair of field goals at Boise.
Â
"Offensively, I'm extremely disappointed in how we played, and I don't think there's any better way for me to say that," Brown said. "We had three turnovers, six penalties and gave up four sacks. We made about two competitive plays in the game where we made somebody miss or we went up and made a competitive catch. I thought we were poorly coached and executed badly."
Â
Alabama State (0-1) dropped its season opener, 14-6, to Tuskegee last Saturday. The Hornets statistically dominated the game as they outgained Tuskegee by almost 200 yards.
Â
This is the first meeting between the two squads since a 38-0 Troy victory in 2006. Troy leads the all-time series 13-2 and have won the last 10 games dating back to 1992.
Notable
• Blace Brown is the NCAA's active leader with 0.44 interceptions per game in his career. A junior, Brown has intercepted seven passes in 16 career games.
• Troy played six true freshmen in its opener at Boise State and all six came from the defensive side of the ball - CB/PR Marcus Jones, S Tyler Murray, S Kevin Nixon, LB Kyle Nixon, S/KR Terence Dunlap, LB Justin Whisenhunt
• Troy's 12 tackles for loss at Boise State rank as the 12th most in a game in the school's FBS history
Â
TROY, Alabama – After shattering attendance records last season, Troy makes its 2017 debut at The Vet on Saturday when the Trojans play host to in-state foe Alabama State. Kickoff is scheduled for 5 p.m. in Veterans Memorial Stadium.
Â
Troy (0-1) enters Saturday's contest looking to bounce back from a season-opening loss at Boise State that left a bitter taste in head coach Neal Brown's mouth the entire week.
Â
"I'm not over it, I won't be over it on Saturday," Brown said at his weekly press conference. "Some coaches get up here and say, 'It's over, we've got to turn the page,' but I'm not turning the page. We're going to remain upset and prepare with an edge and a hunger to not go out and repeat that performance."
Â
The Troy Sports Radio Network will have full coverage on its 16-station network and online at TroyTrojans.com beginning with the pregame show at 3 p.m. (CT). The game will also be broadcast live on ESPN3.
Â
Troy's defense was up to the task against the Broncos with 12 tackles for loss, four sacks and a pair of turnovers against one of the top offenses in the country. Sam Lebbie posted a pair of stops behind the line, Antione Barker forced a fumble and Blace Brown returned an interception 53 yards for a touchdown.
Â
"Defensively, I'm really proud of how our guys competed and played. We played a ton of guys; almost everybody we brought on defense played," Brown said. "We're going to consistently play good defense here. We're going to be great on defense at some point this year. We flew around, we played with passion, we played with energy, and I was proud of those guys because that's how Troy football should look."
Â
Brown will look to get the offense back on track after the Trojans mustered just 215 yards of offense and a pair of field goals at Boise.
Â
"Offensively, I'm extremely disappointed in how we played, and I don't think there's any better way for me to say that," Brown said. "We had three turnovers, six penalties and gave up four sacks. We made about two competitive plays in the game where we made somebody miss or we went up and made a competitive catch. I thought we were poorly coached and executed badly."
Â
Alabama State (0-1) dropped its season opener, 14-6, to Tuskegee last Saturday. The Hornets statistically dominated the game as they outgained Tuskegee by almost 200 yards.
Â
This is the first meeting between the two squads since a 38-0 Troy victory in 2006. Troy leads the all-time series 13-2 and have won the last 10 games dating back to 1992.
Notable
• Blace Brown is the NCAA's active leader with 0.44 interceptions per game in his career. A junior, Brown has intercepted seven passes in 16 career games.
• Troy played six true freshmen in its opener at Boise State and all six came from the defensive side of the ball - CB/PR Marcus Jones, S Tyler Murray, S Kevin Nixon, LB Kyle Nixon, S/KR Terence Dunlap, LB Justin Whisenhunt
• Troy's 12 tackles for loss at Boise State rank as the 12th most in a game in the school's FBS history
Â
Players Mentioned
DE
/ Football
CB
/ Football
ATH
/ Football
CB
/ Football
LB
/ Football
DB
/ Football
LB
/ Football
DB
/ Football
LB
/ FootballSkylar Meade and Blake Cavill: Fall Ball Day 1
Wednesday, October 01
Football Press Conference - South Alabama Game
Monday, September 29
Gerad Parker Press Conference (South Alabama Game)
Monday, September 29
Stuart Gore Postgame - James Madison
Sunday, September 28