Carrollton, GA - One week after suffering a tough loss on the road, the West Georgia Wolves righted the ship by returning to the confines of Ra-Lin Field at University Stadium and delivering an impressive performance, knocking 9th-ranked Delta State from the ranks off the unbeatens with a 24-16 victory on Saturday afternoon. It was the Wolves' second-straight home victory over a ranked opponent.

"This was such a tremendous team victory for us today with a fantastic game plan where all three phases fit together very well," said UWG head coach Will Hall. "Offensively, we were able to keep the ball away from a fantastic Delta State offense and I couldn't be prouder of the way our defensive players executed defensive coordinator Scott Symons' plan against an offense that was averaging more than 50 points per game."

The Wolves rushed the ball 64 times on the day for 272 yards and a pair of touchdowns, but Dallas Dickey and the UWG offense were able to keep the ball away from a Delta State offense that came into the game as the top scoring team in the nation. That came to the tune of more than 40 minutes of possession for the Wolves, but the West Georgia defense was also solid on the day, keeping DSU quarterback Tyler Sullivan on the move for much of the game and shutting down the Statesmen in the red zone.

Senior running back Seth Hinsley had a career day, picking up career-highs in both carries and rushing yards, carrying the ball 25 times for 161 yards on the day. It was the second 100-yard game of the year for the Norcross native and the fifth of his career. His previous high for carries in a game came in his sophomore season against North Alabama, when he rushed 22 times for 115 yards.

"Seth is a special kind of player," Hall said. "He has been very patient this year because we have given a lot of guys carries this season, but he has stayed mentally strong and definitely put in the work today."

Both teams came into the game averaging more than 30 points per game, making the first half the exact opposite of what was expected by most in the crowd, as the Wolves and Statesmen found themselves embroiled in a nasty defensive battle. West Georgia took the ball first and started marching, but the 10-play, 59-yard drive was stopped short after an 11-yard run from Emmanuel Taylor, as the senior fumbled at the DSU 19 and the Statesmen recovered, giving the ball to Sullivan and the high-octane DSU offense.

Delta State took the ball and picked up one first down, but then nothing more, as the Wolves forced a punt, giving Dickey and the UWG offense took over at their own 34.

Dickey was in on seven of the next nine plays, including a 40-yard romp on the second play from scrimmage that put the Wolves back into Delta State territory. West Georgia's drive stalled inside the 10, and UWG was forced to settle for a 24-yard Hunter Heck field goal to take a 3-0 lead in the game. The scoring drive covered 59 yards in 10 plays and took 3:45 off the clock.

The two teams went scoreless over the next 18 minutes, as both teams exchanged punts and interceptions with their backs to the wall, as Carlos Hutton for West Georgia and Romelo Wilson of DSU each had interceptions just shy of the goal line to keep the other team out of the end zone. But after Wilson's interception, the Statesmen took over at their own six yard line, and Gabe Freeman forced a fumble on the first play. Darrius Caldwell recovered for the Wolves and Dickey wasted little time in putting the ball in the zone.

On the third play after the fumble, Dickey escaped a Delta State blitz and ran left, going untouched into the end zone for the first touchdown of the game with 1:45 left in the first half. A Hunter Heck field goal was good and West Georgia led 10-0.

But Delta State is known for it's "fast-break offense" and showed it on the ensuing drive, marching down the field at lightning speed, getting to the UWG 11 before the drive stalled out and forced a field goal to make it 10-3 heading into the locker rooms at the break.

In the second half, the Statesmen offense was on display again, going 69 yards in 11 plays on the opening drive to get into the UWG red zone yet again. From the 15, Sullivan had incomplete passes on first and second down, with Alex Armah pushing him on the second pass. Then on the third play, Sullivan saw one of his favorite targets, Casey Osborne seemingly open in the end zone. But Hutton was lurking behind and got his second interception of the game on the play, giving the Wolves the ball back.

After that, the Wolves looked to be in the driver's seat, but a drive stalled out at midfield and Delta State came right back down the field, tying the game at 10-10 with an 8-yard touchdown pass from Sullivan to Osborne.

The Wolves responded right back, marching down the field on 12 plays and taking nearly five minutes on a drive, but Delta State stood strong on a goal line stand, holding Hinsley out on a 4th-and-goal from the one. But West Georgia would get that score back two plays later, as sophomore linebacker Gabe Freeman intercepted Sullivan at the one and scored, giving the Wolves a 17-10 lead.

The UWG defense then held DSU to a three-and-out, and on the ensuing punt, Marcus Sayles broke free and blocked it, giving the Wolves the ball again with a short field at the Delta State 19. The Wolves took five plays to go 19 yards, and on the second play of the fourth quarter, Denarius Appling pounded the ball in from one yard out to give West Georgia a commanding 24-10 advantage.

Delta State scored once more, with just over two minutes remaining in the game. The Statesmen attempted an onsides kick, but West Georgia recovered and sealed the victory.

Dickey had another good day at the office, rushing 21 times for 70 yards on the day and going 9-for-18 for 114 yards through the air. Shaq Hall was his favorite receiver on the day, hauling in five passes for 76 yards. Tyrell Adams and Laronji Vason were the leaders in tackles on the day with 12 and 10, respectively. Hutton had six tackles and two interceptions.

Delta State completed 39 passes in 73 attempts on the day and Sullivan threw for 385 yards, but the Statesmen could get very little on the ground, managing just 32 total yards rushing on the day.

West Georgia moves to 6-1 on the year and 2-1 in Gulf South Conference play, while DSU falls to 5-1 and 3-1 against GSC competition. The Wolves will return to the road next weekend to take on the 4th-ranked North Alabama Lions in Florence.