Fresh off a big win over Allen last week, the Clark Atlanta University Panthers are on the road today where they will take on Savannah State at 3 p.m..

The game will be broadcast live on ESPN+ at.https://www.espn.com/watch/player/_/eventCalendarId/401328950?gameId=401328950&sourceLang=en&om-navmethod=espn%3Aglobalsearch%3Aresults.

The Panthers (2-4, 0-2 SIAC) defeated Allen 21-12 at home last week in a game in which quarterback Elijah Odom threw two touchdown passes and was named the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference's Offensive Player of the Week.

Today, the Panthers take on a Savannah State (5-1, 3-0 SIAC) that has won five straight games after a season-opening loss to Valdosta State, the third-ranked team in Division II.   It's also homecoming day for the Tigers.

The last time the two teams met was in 2019 when SSU was Clark Atlanta's homecoming opponent on a rainy Atlanta day.  Savannah State pulled out a late 22-15 overtime win.
Savannah State has the SIAC's second-ranked defense in scoring defense (12.3 points per game) and total defense (279.5 yards per game), just behind Albany State.  The Tigers are stingy both against the run and the pass, ranking fourth in both categories.

Brendan Jackson leads the Tigers in tackles with 25, 19 of them solo. He also has a sack and two tackles for losses.  Ny'em Bozeman (21 tackles, 18 solo, three tackles for loss, one interception), and Brian Roberts (20 tackles, 15 solo) are their other leading tacklers.  Le'Vonte Larry and Marvin Grunshie both had two interceptions for SSU.

Offensively, they sport the SIAC's second-best rushing offense, led by D'Von Gibbons (68 rushes, 432 yards, four touchdowns) and D'Angelo Durham (85 rushes, 379 yards, six touchdowns).  They also rank 13^th nationally in rushing so far this season.

Gibbons, who hails from metro Atlanta, is the team's starting quarterback.  He's thrown for 229 yards and two touchdowns.  He shares reps with JT Hartage who has thrown for 307 yards and three touchdowns.

Odom leads the CAU offense against SSU after throwing for 207 yards and rushing for 45 last week.  This season he has thrown for 545 yards and four touchdowns, with six interceptions.   He has shared time with freshman Shariif Brown, who has has thrown for 430 yards, four touchdowns and one interceptions.

Drakar Jerry has become one of their top targets, hauling in 24 passes for 264 yards and three touchdowns this season.

On defense, the Panthers have been stingy as of late, giving up an average of just 16 points over the past two games.  Rodney Lewis has led the defensive effort with 36 tackles, 7.5 tackles for losses and three sacks.  Last week against Allen, he had a huge game with 11 tackles, two sacks and four tackles for losses.

Charles Crawford has also been tough, with 27 tackles, 22 solo, three tackles for losses and a fumble recovery and has forced a fumble.   Timothy Jones (25 tackles, 20 solo, eight tackles for losses), Aderrius Barron (23 tackles, 15 solo), Tyrese Ross (23 tackles, 17 solo), and Travis Taylor (23 tackles, 14 solo, 2.5 tackles for losses, one sack) have also been stellar for CAU.