2025 Jacksonville State
9–5 (7–1 Conference USA), coached by Charles Kelly. Share
Schedule and results
- Biggest winBeat Murray State 45–10Sep 20
By 35 points, its widest win.
- Most excitingBeat UTEP 30–27Nov 8
The win probability swung the most, by CollegeFootballData.com’s excitement index.
| Date | Opponent | Result | Elo |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 28 | at UCF | L 10–17 | 58% |
| Sep 6 | vs Liberty | W 34–24 | 56% |
| Sep 13 | at Georgia Southern | L 34–41 | 56% |
| Sep 20 | vs Murray State | W 45–10 | 94% |
| Sep 27 | at Southern Miss | L 25–42 | 66% |
| Oct 9 | vs Sam Houston | W 29–27 | 65% |
| Oct 15 | vs Delaware | W 38–25 | 67% |
| Oct 29 | at Middle Tennessee | W 24–21 | 75% |
| Nov 8 | at UTEP | W 30–27 | 68% |
| Nov 15 | vs Kennesaw State | W 35–26 | 68% |
| Nov 22 | at Florida International | L 21–27 | 60% |
| Nov 29 | vs Western Kentucky | W 37–34 | 60% |
| Dec 5 | vsKennesaw StateConference USA Championship | L 15–19 | 65% |
| Dec 16Bowls & playoff | vs TroySalute to Veterans Bowl | W 17–13 | 48% |
Elo: a pregame chance from scores alone.
How it ended: Beat Troy 17–13 in the Salute to Veterans Bowl; unranked in the final AP poll; tied for first in the Conference USA.
In program history: The 4th-best season in program history by end-of-season Elo (of 46 on file).
Led the nationDeondre Johnson: yards per catch (24.1); Cam Cook: rushing yards (1,659 yds)
- Record
- 9–5
- Conference
- 7–1 shared first in Conference USA
- AP final
- Unranked
- Points
- 394–353
- Coach
- Charles Kelly
- Elo
- 1535 −30 this season
- SP+ rating
- -6.7 No. 92 of 136; offense No. 67, defense No. 102, special teams No. 123
- SRS
- −8.4 No. 99 of 136 in FBS
- Returning
- 12% of last season’s EPA, No. 121 of 134
- Recruiting class
- No. 110 roster talent No. 111 in FBS
- Offensive coordinator
- Clint Trickett
- Defensive coordinator
- Brian Williams
- Offense
- Multiple
- Defense
- 4–3
How good, play by play
| EPA per play | Success | Explosiveness | FBS rank | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Offense | 0.11 | 43% | 1.28 | 56th of 136 |
| Defense | 0.11 | 43% | 1.32 | 69th of 136 |
| Opponent-adjusted | 0.07 off 0.15 def | 40% off 45% def | — | 77th off 100th def |
Passing and running
| Pass success | Depth of target | Deep throws | Line yards | Stuffed | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Offense | 41% | 9.3 yds | 17% | 3.20 | 17% |
| Defense | 44% | 9.1 yds | 14% | 2.80 | 18% |
How these are measured
Play-weighted averages over games against FBS opponents; raw numbers, not adjusted for the strength of the opponent. EPA (expected points added) measures how much each play changed the expected score; success rate counts plays that kept the offense on schedule; explosiveness is the average EPA on successful plays. Lower is better on defense. Ranked by EPA per play among teams that were FBS that season. The opponent-adjusted row (offense / defense) is CollegeFootballData.com’s WEPA, which accounts for who each team played. Passing and running: depth of target is how far downfield passes traveled in the air; deep throws are the share thrown deep, of the passes whose depth and direction the play-by-play describes (about half); line yards are the running yards per carry credited to the blockers; stuffed is the share of carries stopped at or behind the line. The defense’s line is what its opponents did. From CollegeFootballData.com, 2025 on.
Drives and havoc
| Points per trip inside the 40 | Average start | Havoc | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Offense | 3.7 | own 29 | 14% allowed |
| Defense | 3.8 | own 28 | 17% caused |
CORE rating -10.5, 99th of 136 (offense -4.3, defense 6.2).
A trip inside the 40 is a drive that reaches the opponent’s 40-yard line; points per trip is how many it scored on average (allowed, on defense). Average start is where drives began (the defense’s line is where its opponents started). Havoc is the share of plays ending in a tackle for loss, a forced fumble, an interception or a pass broken up. CORE is CollegeFootballData.com’s context- and opponent-adjusted rating (points better than an average team; lower is better on defense). From CollegeFootballData.com.
Leaders
| Passing yards | Caden Creel QB | 1,514 yds |
| Passing touchdowns | Caden Creel QB | 9 TD |
| Rushing yards | Cam Cook RB | 1,666 yds |
| Rushing touchdowns | Cam Cook RB | 16 TD |
| Receiving yards | Deondre Johnson WR | 724 yds |
| Receiving touchdowns | Deondre Johnson WR | 6 TD |
| Tackles | Mac Sanders LB | 83 tkl |
| Sacks | Emmanuel Oybadejo DL | 4.5 sacks |
| Interceptions | Caleb Nix S | 4 INT |
Top recruits in the 2025 class
| Jack Moran QB | ★★★ | No. 1293 |
| Lance Johnson OL | ★★★ | No. 1325 |
| J.Q. Brooks CB | ★★★ | No. 1325 |
| Christopher Johnson DL | ★★★ | No. 1467 |
| Lucas Farrington RB | ★★★ | No. 1670 |
247Sports composite rankings via CollegeFootballData.com; national rank in the class.
The 2025 class by position
| Signed | Stars | Rating | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Quarterbacks | 1 | 3.0 | 0.861 |
| Running backs | 1 | 3.0 | 0.852 |
| Receivers | 4 | 3.0 | 0.842 |
| Offensive line | 3 | 3.0 | 0.840 |
| Defensive line | 3 | 3.0 | 0.841 |
| Linebackers | 1 | 3.0 | 0.843 |
| Defensive backs | 5 | 3.0 | 0.838 |
| Athletes and specialists | 1 | 3.0 | 0.850 |
| Whole class | 19 | 3.0 | 0.842 |
High-school signees by position group, with their average stars and 247Sports composite rating (out of 1), via CollegeFootballData.com. Athletes are signees with no set position.
Roster 121
The 2025 roster121 players, with numbers, heights, hometowns and each player’s 2025 line; 65 have a stat line. See the roster
Transfers in 22
The 2025 portal Cam Cook RB | ★★★ | from  TCU |
 Khurtiss Perry DL | ★★★ | from  Virginia Tech |
 Trevor Woods S | ★★★ | from  Colorado |
| Tre’Quon Fegans CB | ★★★ | from  UCF |
 Gavin Wimsatt QB | ★★★ | from  Kentucky |
 Jeremiah Orr OT | ★★★ | from  Hampton |
 Caleb Coombs WR | ★★★ | from  Florida Atlantic |
| Jacarvis Alexandre CB | ★★★ | from Ferris State |
 Jaheim Jenkins S | ★★★ | from  Eastern Michigan |
 Deondre Johnson WR | ★★★ | from  Rutgers |
 Dylan Gentry WR | ★★★ | from  Auburn |
| Kam Bell TE | ★★★ | from Florida Atlantic |
And 10 more, lower-rated or unrated.
Transfers out 27
 Zechariah Poyser S | ★★★★ | to  Miami |
| Cam Vaughn WR | ★★★ | to  West Virginia |
| Fred Davis II CB | ★★★ | to  Northwestern |
| Fred Perry S | ★★★ | to West Virginia |
| Jarod Bowie WR | ★★★ | to West Virginia |
| Will O’Steen OT | ★★★ | to  North Carolina |
| Derek Carter CB | ★★★ | to West Virginia |
| K.D. Arnold OT | ★★★ | to  UCLA |
| Daveion Harley OL | ★★★ | to  California |
| Demarcus Lacey WR | ★★★ | to  Marshall |
| Geimere Latimer CB | ★★★ | to  Wisconsin |
| Jabari Mack CB | ★★★ | to  Louisville |
And 15 more, lower-rated or unrated.
2025 Conference USA standings
Conference page| Team | Conf. | Overall | AP final |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kennesaw State | 7–1 | 10–4 | |
| Jacksonville State | 7–1 | 9–5 | |
| Western Kentucky | 6–2 | 9–4 | |
 Louisiana Tech | 5–3 | 8–5 | |
| Florida International | 5–3 | 7–6 | |
 Missouri State | 5–3 | 7–6 | |
| Delaware | 4–4 | 7–6 | |
| Liberty | 3–5 | 4–8 | |
 New Mexico State | 2–6 | 4–8 | |
| Middle Tennessee | 2–6 | 3–9 | |
| Sam Houston | 1–7 | 2–10 | |
| UTEP | 1–7 | 2–10 |
Ordered by conference winning percentage, then conference wins. Division splits and tiebreakers aren’t applied.