One week of conference championship elimination games in the book, and another on the schedule this week.

Last Saturday it was Valdosta State who kept its hopes for at least a share of the GSC title alive with a rally to knock off West Florida, virtually eliminating the Argonauts from the championship picture unless a lot of craziness happens over the next two weeks.

That leaves three GSC teams with one loss in league play, Valdosta State, Delta State, and West Georgia, with the latter two teams set to clash in the nightcap on Saturday in a game that will not only shape the league title chase but potentially the Division II playoff field as well.

No. 14 Delta State (7-1, 5-1) at West Georgia (6-2), 6 p.m. ET

Despite sitting at home last week with a bye, a lot went right for Delta State, both in the league chase and in their playoff rankings.

Valdosta State knocking off West Florida means a win from the Statesmen on Saturday would put them a win away from at worst a share of the GSC title, while the Statesmen have also climbed to No. 2 in the most recent NCAA Super Region rankings.

The layoff has given DSU time to regroup, as their last time out, they were downed by West Florida in a game that saw the Argonauts rally in the fourth quarter to hand the Statesmen their only loss on the season.

On the other side of the coin, West Georgia nearly saw its title hopes dashed before it could get to games against Delta State and then Valdosta State, going on the road last Thursday to Shorter and watching the host Hawks nearly erase a 20-point deficit in the fourth quarter, coming within a score before the Wolves were able to run out the clock and setup this week’s showdown.

On paper, Delta State holds nearly every advantage from a statistical sense. In scoring offense, they average 14 more points per game, on defense, they give up 9 fewer points each week. Yardage gained is around 82 more every game, but yardage allowed, the Wolves have been stout, ranking third in the league at 336 per game, just ahead of Delta State.

Lots of movement in the @GulfSouth standings ? pic.twitter.com/WocHAT7ISo

— FloFootball (@FloFootball) October 30, 2023

In a way, the big difference between the two teams is their ability to pass the ball for Delta State, its rushing offenses No. 1 and No. 3 in the GSC squaring off, but DSU is averaging close to 80 yards more per through the air, this despite blowing out nearly every opponent that isn't named West Florida.

West Georgia’s Rajaez Mosley is the name to watch for the Wolves, he leads the GSC in rushing yards, yards per game, and yards per carry, sitting at 762 yards for the season and averaging eight yards per tote, a yard more than the next closest big-play threat on the ground, Delta State quarterback Patrick Shegog. Mosley and Wesley Kennedy, who himself is averaging nearly six yards per carry in limited duty, give the Wolves a 1-2 punch that would be the envy of most teams in the league.

Delta State has Shegog, who leads the league in rushing scores with nine, in addition to being one of the most efficient passers in the country, and combines him with running back Kelvin Smith, who averaged over six yards per carry and has seven rushing scores of his own.

If either team can find a way to slow down one of the other’s big rushing threats, it could well be the difference in the game. 

Another weird wrinkle to the game: It may benefit Delta State to be on the road. The Statesmen’s two losses over the last two years have come at home, including one to West Georgia last season, while DSU has a double-digit road winning streak, one of the longest in the nation at any level of football.

The Wolves played spoiler last season, knocking off then-undefeated Delta State by a 52-42 final, rallying for 28 points in the fourth quarter to complete the upset and prevent the Statesmen from winning the outright GSC title.

Gulf South Games at a Glance

*All games scheduled for Saturday

Shorter (3-6, 1-5) at North Greenville (4-5, 3-4), Noon ET

Shorter comes in off a tough loss to league-leader West Georgia, but put up a valiant effort to nearly rally from down 20 points in the fourth quarter. Their 35 points against one of the better defenses in the league in terms of yards allowed. The Hawks did so despite gaining less than 300 yards of offense. Justus Durant posted a big game of 122 yards and two scores in the defeat.

NGU looks to even up its conference and overall mark at .500 with a win, and comes in with momentum after a 34-10 whipping of Mississippi College last week, racing out to a 28-7 first-half lead and coasting the rest of the way. NGU racked up a massive 615 total yards in the win, including 270 on the ground, while the passing game hit for a 92-yard scoring strike.

Shorter took last season’s game by a 31-14 final.

No. 20 Valdosta State (8-1, 5-1) at West Alabama (4-4, 3-3), 1 p.m. CT

Valdosta State kept its hopes for at least a share of the GSC title alive last week with a comeback for the ages against West Florida, rallying for a 31-28 win in Pensacola. The Blazers scored 10 points in the final 10 minutes of the game against the No. 1 defense in the GSC, with Sammy Edwards and Ted Hurst hooking up with just over 30 seconds to play for the winning score.

West Alabama locked down the West Florida offense in an upset win three weeks ago and will look to do it again against the high-powered Blazers. They’ll need to lean on that defense, as the Tigers have scored just 24 points in their last two games, but are 2-0 in those games thanks to a defense that’s given up just 12 in those games, including a 14-6 win over Chowan last week.

West Florida (6-3, 4-2) at Mississippi College (3-5, 2-4), 2 p.m. CT

While West Florida is likely eliminated from GSC contention, there is still plenty to play for in the last two weeks, as the Argos will need to win out if they’re going to make a return to the postseason. The Argos let one get away last week in a home loss to Valdosta State, that despite holding the Blazers to a season-low in yards, including -3 rushing counting sacks.

Mississippi College will try to play playoff spoiler in its last two games and looks to rebound after their defense gave up over 600 yards to North Greenville a week ago. 

West Florida took both meetings handily between the two teams last year, winning 50-26 and 56-21.