September 12th, 2026 4:30pm
LIVINGSTON, Ala. — The University of West Alabama defeated Pittsburg State 24-23 on Saturday in their home opener.
UWA's (3-0) electric defense forced five turnovers, with three interceptions and two fumble recoveries in their one-point win over Pittsburg State (0-3).
"This was a full out war," said head coach Scott Cochran. "The defense had to step up so many times that I lost count and towards the end, it was so fun to look into the defense's eyes and see that there was zero doubt."
The Gorillas opened up the scoring with a 32-yard field goal after completions of 31 and 21 yards through the air. After a West Alabama punt and a Gorillas series that ended with Nate Thomason's tackle for loss and a third-down incompletion, West Alabama took over at its 21 at 4:22 and put together a six-play, 79-yard drive. Brayden Jenkins' 23-yard run and Contravious Blanks' six-yard pickup moved the chains before Luther Richesson hit TD Parker for a 44-yard touchdown at the 1:55 mark of the first. Richesson and Parker's Touchdown connection highlighted the period as the Tigers went into the second quarter, up 7-3.
Pittsburg State struck first in the second quarter with a 37-yard field goal, cutting UWA's lead to 7-6. West Alabama's offense went three-and-out on their next drive before Jacobi Green intercepted PSU's Bobby Bacon to give the ball back to the Tigers' offense. UWA turned the takeaway into points with an eight-play drive, including Blanks' 11-yard run and Richesson's eight-yard completion to Parker on third down, before Walsh made a 46-yard field goal to extend the lead to 10-6 at the half.