South Alabama beats SE Louisiana 39-14

SE Louisiana0-214
South Alabama1-039Final
Sat, Sep 5 · Hancock Whitney Stadium, Mobile, Ala. · Crowd 15,087ESPN+

South Alabama beat SE Louisiana 39-14.

We had South Alabama favored. It won.

Next: SE Louisiana beat North Alabama 30-25, Sat Sep 12

Next: South Alabama lost to Tulane 28-24, Sat Sep 12

How it swung

Before kickoff, our ratings gave South Alabama an 88% chance, and the closing betting line (South Alabama was a 13.5-point favorite) put it at 86%.

Favored the whole way: South Alabama never fell below 89%.

SE Louisiana never had better than a 10% chance.

FinalSouth Alabama 39-14 SE LouisianaSouth Alabama wonMove across the chart, or tap a numbered swing, to see any play.
50%75%90%Q1Q2Q3Q4Won39-14Scores
50%75%90%Q1Q2Q3Q4Won39-14Scores
50%10%25%Q1Q2Q3Q4Lowest 0%Lost14-39Scores
50%10%25%Q1Q2Q3Q4Lowest 0%Lost14-39Scores

No single play moved the chance by 20 points.

No single play moved the chance by 20 points.

South Alabama’s chance to win after every play.
How to read this chartStarts from the pregame line (South Alabama -13.5), at 90% for South Alabama (the play-by-play feed's kickoff number, moved to match the line; our model's and the betting line's own numbers are in “The betting line, and the fans”). Dots are the biggest swings; ticks under the chart are scores.

Every drive

South Alabama scored on 7 of its 11 drives; SE Louisiana on 2 of its 10.

South Alabama’s drives are teal, SE Louisiana’s amber. A line runs from where a drive started to where it ended; a filled dot means it scored.

own goalgoal lineQ1South Alabama: Touchdown, from 55 yards out to 0TouchdownSE Louisiana: Turned over on downs, from 80 yards out to 65DownsSouth Alabama: Field goal, from 62 yards out to 17Field goalSE Louisiana: Safety, from 76 yards out to 73SafetySouth Alabama: Touchdown, from 50 yards out to 0TouchdownSE Louisiana: Touchdown, from 76 yards out to 0TouchdownSouth Alabama: Turned over on downs, from 77 yards out to 51DownsQ2SE Louisiana: Missed field goal, from 49 yards out to 30Missed FGSouth Alabama: Turned over on downs, from 70 yards out to 51DownsSE Louisiana: Punt, from 49 yards out to 42PuntSouth Alabama: Punt, from 85 yards out to 86PuntSE Louisiana: Turned over on downs, from 65 yards out to 56DownsSouth Alabama: Field goal, from 44 yards out to 12Field goalQ3SE Louisiana: Touchdown, from 65 yards out to 0TouchdownSouth Alabama: Field goal, from 53 yards out to 8Field goalSE Louisiana: Interception, from 88 yards out to 83InterceptionSouth Alabama: Touchdown, from 9 yards out to 0TouchdownSE Louisiana: Punt, from 77 yards out to 87PuntSouth Alabama: Touchdown, from 57 yards out to 0TouchdownQ4SE Louisiana: Punt, from 80 yards out to 46PuntSouth Alabama: End of game, from 98 yards out to 28End of game

Box score

South Alabama 39, SE Louisiana 14

South Alabama covered −13.5 by 11.5. The total, 53, stayed under 53.5.

SE LouisianaSouth AlabamaTotal yardsSE Louisiana 231South Alabama 395231395Passing yardsSE Louisiana 186South Alabama 154186154Rushing yardsSE Louisiana 45South Alabama 24145241First downsSE Louisiana 11South Alabama 271127TurnoversSE Louisiana 2South Alabama 020Time of possessionSE Louisiana 19:51South Alabama 40:0919:5140:09
Team totalsSE LouisianaSouth Alabama
Total yards231395
Passing12 of 20, 186 yds18 of 27, 154 yds
Rushing17 for 45 yds59 for 241 yds
First downs1127
Third down0 of 77 of 17
Fourth down0 of 12 of 4
Turnovers20
Penalties8 for 72 yds5 for 47 yds
Time of possession19:5140:09

SE Louisiana leaders

  • Passing Kyle Lowe 12 of 20, 186 yds, 2 TD, 2 INT
  • Rushing Calvin Smith Jr. 8 for 38 yds; Kyree Paul 3 for 10 yds
  • Receiving Chad Elzy Jr 2 for 70 yds; Lonnie Shinn 4 for 54 yds, 2 TD

South Alabama leaders

  • Passing Bishop Davenport 18 of 27, 154 yds, 1 TD
  • Rushing PJ Martin 18 for 69 yds, 1 TD; Keenan Phillips 13 for 66 yds
  • Receiving Brendan Jenkins 5 for 78 yds, 1 TD; Jeremiah Jones-Thomas 5 for 38 yds

No rain and calm

84° at kickoff · no rain recorded · wind 4 mph from the southwest, gusts to 9

Warmer than 9 in 10 of the 42 other games played at Hancock Whitney Stadium since 2016 (airport temperature during the game window).

Game-day temperatures at Hancock Whitney Stadium

Win chance with rain, wind and thunder from the nearest airport, by game timeQ1Q2Q3Q4South Alabama favoredSE Louisiana favored100%Win chanceSouth AlabamaRaininches per 10 min0.1 inNo rain recordedWindmph, average and gusts20 mph40 mph
Win chance with rain, wind and thunder from the nearest airport, by game timeQ1Q2Q3Q4South Alabama favoredSE Louisiana favoredRain · inches per 10 min0.1 inNo rain recordedWind · miles per hour2040

Drag along the chart, or step through the game.

First quarter, 15:00 left6:03 p.m.
SE Louisiana 0, South Alabama 0 · South Alabama 90% to win
no rain · wind 6 mph from the south-southwest · 84°
Martin 12-yd run
Where this weather comes fromMeasured at Mobile/bates Field, 3.2 miles away, and Mobile Downtown airport, 8.8 miles away. Rain is NOAA's radar-and-gauge estimate at the stadium and wind is an airport reading; neither is measured on the field. Game times come from the play-by-play, good to a minute or two. Source: National Weather Service, through the Iowa Environmental Mesonet; rain radar from NOAA MRMS, through Iowa State University. Field direction from OpenStreetMap contributors.

Before kickoff

Recent games, the series and the betting line below are as they stood going in; the season profile is the season so far.

Recent games

Last three games · 2025 season

SE Louisiana · 9-4

Rated 139th in our preseason ratings, 139th now.

2-1 in its last three — but nothing on this résumé beats a top-40 team yet.

L 3-21 vs Illinois State #118 of 667

lost by 18 as a 2.5-point favorite

W 38-26 vs Nicholls #198 of 667

won by 12 as a 17.5-point favorite

W 10-7 @ Incarnate Word #155 of 667

won by 3 as a 5.5-point favorite

L 12-14 @ Lamar #150 of 667

lost by 2 as an 8-point favorite

W 59-14 vs East Texas A&M #205 of 667

won by 45 as a 17.5-point favorite

W 38-14 @ Houston Christian #252 of 667

won by 24 as a 21.5-point favorite

W 49-0 vs Northwestern State #263 of 667

won by 49 as a 31-point favorite

W 38-0 @ McNeese #243 of 667

W 45-31 vs UT Rio Grande Valley #188 of 667

won by 14 as an 18-point favorite

L 10-56 @ LSUTop 25 #12 of 667

lost by 46 as a 48.5-point underdog

SE Louisiana lost 10-56 at LSU. Never had a real chance.

W 56-3 vs Mississippi Valley State #250 of 667

won by 53 as a 32.5-point favorite

W 45-24 @ Murray State #257 of 667

won by 21 as a 21.5-point favorite

L 0-24 @ Louisiana Tech #172 of 667

lost by 24 as a 14.5-point underdog

SE Louisiana lost 0-24 at Louisiana Tech. Chance to win started at 13%, low under 1%, high 26%.

Last three games · 2025 season

South Alabama · 4-8

Rated 60th in our preseason ratings.

L 26-49 @ Texas State #53 of 667

lost by 23 as a 9.5-point underdog

South Alabama lost 26-49 at Texas State. Chance to win started at 20%, low under 1%, high 20%.

W 42-35 vs Southern Miss #108 of 667

won by 7 as a 2.5-point underdog

South Alabama won 42-35 vs Southern Miss. Chance to win started at 54%, low 45%, high better than 99%.

W 26-14 @ UL Monroe #205 of 667

won by 12 as a 4.5-point favorite

South Alabama won 26-14 at UL Monroe. Chance to win started at 49%, low 11%, high better than 99%.

L 22-31 vs Louisiana #118 of 667

lost by 9 as a 3.5-point favorite

South Alabama lost 22-31 vs Louisiana. Chance to win started at 70%, low under 1%, high 74%.

W 38-31 @ Georgia State #164 of 667

won by 7 as a 5.5-point favorite

South Alabama won 38-31 at Georgia State. Chance to win started at 59%, low 34%, high 94%.

L 14-15 vs Arkansas State #138 of 667

lost by 1 as an 8.5-point favorite

South Alabama lost 14-15 vs Arkansas State. Chance to win started at 78%, low under 1%, high 96%.

L 24-31 @ Troy #87 of 667

lost by 7 as a 2.5-point favorite

South Alabama lost 24-31 at Troy. Chance to win started at 47%, low under 1%, high 63%.

L 22-36 @ North TexasTop 25 #78 of 667

lost by 14 as an 11.5-point underdog

South Alabama lost 22-36 at North Texas. Chance to win started at 16%, low under 1%, high 40%.

L 20-38 vs Coastal Carolina #118 of 667

lost by 18 as a 14.5-point favorite

South Alabama lost 20-38 vs Coastal Carolina. Chance to win started at 90%, low 5%, high 93%.

L 15-31 @ AuburnTop 25 #15 of 667

lost by 16 as a 26.5-point underdog

South Alabama lost 15-31 at Auburn. Chance to win started at 3%, low under 1%, high 4%.

L 31-33 vs TulaneTop 25 #48 of 667

lost by 2 as a 13.5-point underdog

South Alabama lost 31-33 vs Tulane. Chance to win started at 25%, low under 1%, high 83%.

W 38-21 vs Morgan State #189 of 667

won by 17 as a 28.5-point favorite

South Alabama won 38-21 vs Morgan State. Chance to win started at 97%, low 90%, high better than 99%.

The series

South Alabama leads the series 1-0

1 meeting since 2023 · South Alabama won the last meeting

  • 2023South Alabama 35-17South Alabama won 35-17 vs SE Louisiana. Chance to win started at 93%, low 75%, high better than 99%.

Each line is South Alabama’s chance to win through that meeting.

Line, fans and home field

The betting line, and the fans

Our model and the betting line agree on South Alabama’s chances here.

50-50Model 88% · Line 86%SE LouisianaSouth Alabama

South Alabama favored by 13.5 · Total 53.5

How games like this usually go

South Alabama by 13.5, and it went to form

50%90%Q1Q2Q3Q450%90%Q1Q2Q3Q4

Half of games8 in 10 gamesThis game

The band is where a favorite’s chance ran in the 385 games since 2025 with a favorite of 7.5 to 14.5 points.

The market

The spread moved 1 point toward South Alabama.

opened −12.5now −13.5

The total rose 1 point.

opened 52.5now 53.5

Spread: −12.5 → −13.5 · Total: 52.5 → 53.5

The books’ cut: 4.2%, the margin built into the odds

Weather at kickoff

Hot and dry. Feels like 88° at kickoff.

SE Louisiana at South Alabama · Saturday, Sept. 5, 2026 · Hancock Whitney Stadium, Mobile

  • 88°feels like at kickoff
  • Dryno rain at kickoff
  • 79weather score, Mixed
  • 2ndbest of the day's 7 kickoff times

Weather score: 0 to 100, higher is better, for the first 3 hours and 20 minutes of the game. Ideal is 100, Comfortable 90 to 99, Mixed 75 to 89, Rough 50 to 74, Harsh under 50.

Later kickoff times scored higher that Saturday

Games in this time zone used 7 kickoff times that day, local time (kickoffs within 30 minutes of each other count as one). This game, ringed, was the second best of the day's seven kickoff times. At Hancock Whitney Stadium that day, a 7 pm kickoff would have scored 90, against 79 at 6 pm.

  • 11 am: 54, Rough
  • noon: 46, Harsh
  • 2:30 pm: 48, Harsh
  • 3:15 pm: 47, Harsh
  • 4 pm: 55, Rough
  • 6 pm: 79, Mixed (this game)
  • 7 pm: 90, Comfortable

Weather score at each kickoff time.

Tap a dot to read that kickoff time.

Home field

South Alabama is worth +3.5 points (±3.9) more at home than on the road since 2018 — middle of FBS, 39th percentile.

47% at home, 33% on the road against FBS opponents (20-23 home, 17-35 away).

Our model gives every stadium the same flat 2.3-point home edge (why); the books use about 3. Against the closing line this stadium reads +0.0 at home vs. away over 103 games — inside the ±6.0 noise, so the flat number is the honest one here.

Night kickoff — historically worth about half a point more to the home side against the number, and not much more than that. The visitors travel about 136 miles to get here.

Where next