VALDOSTA – Last year, the Valdosta State Blazers traveled to Florence, Ala. and watched their playoff hopes slip away with a 31-24 overtime loss to the Lions. This year was a different story.
After two straight loses to North Alabama, the Blazers prevailed with a huge conference-shifting win.
Despite all of the talk that had surrounded the game, Valdosta State stayed confident, but quiet. Then, as they emerged from the locker room their real confidence and pride showed, as the players donned “TUNA” shirts.
The Lions refer to themselves as “The University of North Alabama,” so VSU did as well, with shirts that read “TUNA” on the front and “Gotta eat” on the backs.
The rivalry lives on.
No player on the team knows the rivalry better than junior wide receiver Josh Rayam. Rayam has seen both sides of the game, having transferred from UNA.
“Coming from that school and getting this win, it feels good,” said Rayam after the game.
Rayam knew going in that he would hear from his old teammates, but he decided to let the game do the talking for him. He had two catches for 15 yards on the day, both of which came on scoring drives.
“I spoke with a couple guys before the game, and they had a little bit of trash talk, but I kept my composure and said we’d talk after the game,” said Rayam.
“After the game a couple of them were a little bit sour, but a lot of them said, ‘Congratulations’ and, ‘We’ll see you next year.’”
Rayam also had a lot to say about VSU’s players too, most importantly the seniors. And one senior in particular had his best game of the year on possibly the biggest day of the year.
Senior wide receiver Clay Callaway had four catches for 43 yards and one touchdown, his first since 2005. His touchdown reception was the only one for the Blazers, and his catches and yards were both second to Cedric Jones.
“Our team has some of the biggest hearts I’ve ever been around. It’s fun to be a part of,” said Callaway. “It was pretty emotional, a very good game between two very good schools.”
Callaway’s afternoon wasn’t going too well in the first half. He had one catch for seven yards in the first quarter, then on VSU’s last drive of the half he made a nine yard catch for a big first down.
But after the catch, Callaway scuffled with a UNA player on the sideline and drew a personal foul penalty that brought VSU back 15 yards.
So in the second half, he had to make up for it, and he did. After the VSU defense made a big fourth down stop, the offense went to work. After a six-yard pass from Willie Copeland to Rayam, VSU was looking at third-and-4 on the UNA 12-yard line.
The Lions jumped off sides, but with the free play, Copeland lobbed a pass into the end zone. There on the receiving end was Callaway for the 12-yard score.
Later in the game, he had another big catch, a 16-yard reception on fourth-and-2 that eventually led to Michael Terry’s game-winning touchdown for the Blazers.
“I had that personal foul in the first half, and there’s no excuse for that, but I think I went out and belittled that in the second half,” said Callaway. “I guess the touchdown couldn’t have come in a bigger win. That was great.”
For the Blazer players that have been there, whether it’s been for one year or five years, this win was big, and maybe the biggest.
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