1984: Mississippi Valley Time
In the 1984 season, it was Mississippi Valley who was applying all the pressure.
The Delta Devils had gone 7-2-1 in 1983, and looked to be even better this year. Without question, winning the SWAC was Valley’s goal that season. But it would have to take down Jackson to do it. There was no way around it.
Valley’s potent, high-powered offense flexed its muscles in the first two games of the season. It started with an 86-0 win at little Kentucky State. It followed that up with a 77-15 win over Washburn.
Unlike in previous years, Valley’s coach kept a pretty low profile in the media. He was Archie Cooley that week, not The Gunslinger.
Anticipation for the game built up all week, and simmered all Saturday long. The Vet was bubbling with energy as the bands played and the sun set over vintage stands over the stadium. It seemed all of Mississippi, was waiting to see if flashy Valley could finally knock mighty Jackson off its long-standing pedestal.
It was one thing to beat up on a Division II school. Something else to beat up on a white school nobody had ever heard of. But lil’ ole Valley and their cocky coach beating Gorden’s well-oiled machine? This is something folks had to see to believe.
Valley jumped out to a 14-0 lead in the first quarter on a pair of touchdown passes from Totten, the second of which went to Rice for a 21-yard score. JSU would counter in the second quarter with 17 unanswered points to take the lead less than four minutes into the quarter, the last of which came on a fumble by Totten in the end zone.
No doubt, the question reverberated through the hallowed stands at The Vet – was this the year Valley was going to take a lickin’ and keep on kickin,’ or would it be the Valley they all knew? The one that would put up a fight, but ultimately fold.
Totten dusted himself off and led Valley to two more scoring drives in the quarter to take a 28-17 lead into halftime. Pretty daunting in 1984 football – unless you had an offense like Valley’s – but then again, this was Valley. Remember what Robinson said about pressure?
The Delta Devils undoubtedly did, so they made sure to bring it in the second half. A solid kick return led to a one-play scoring drive, a 47-yard Totten-to-Rice connection that threatened to bury the defending SWAC champions.
JSU, the proud program that would be the most successful in the SWAC that decade, would fight back. It responded with back-to-back scores in the third quarter to cut the deficit to 35-32 with 2:32 left in the third.
The Valley fans amongst the crowd, no doubt felt at least some level of anxiety. They had seen their beloved school lose so many games at the hands of their bougie cousins from the city, and they couldn’t bear to get this close and not do it again.
It took Valley just 63 seconds to respond. Totten found Rice once again, this time for a 30-yard touchdown pass, capping a six-play, 80 yard drive. Valley had some breathing room as the game moved to the fourth quarter.
The final nail in the coffin would come as Totten found Joe Thomas for a 14-yard touchdown pass to make the score 49-32. The 49 points were the most JSU had EVER given up to another team at that point.
W.C. Gorden, who was writing his own legacy as one of the all-time greats, was gracious in defeat.
“It was inevitable we were going to lose to them sooner or later,” he said. “But we lost to a good football team.”
Totten finished 30-for-50 passing for 526 yards and six touchdowns. Rice caught 15 of those passes for 285 yards and four touchdowns. Thomas had seven receptions for 116 yards.
“That’s it. This is the year for the Valley,” Totten told reporters after the game. “We knew if we got the ball, we could score no matter what they did.”
Indeed, the offense was on fire by then. It was scoring better than a point a minute.
It was sweet redemption for the entire program, but particularly The Gunslinger. Cooley had labored long and hard to bring his program to where it could topple his alma mater. He had been outscored 159-36 in the previous four games.
He led his team on a victory lap around the stadium with his trademark hat waving the Valley flag.
“It’s a feeling you can’t describe,” Cooley told reporters. “I haven’t been this happy since my wife had her first child.”
Valley would go on to have a historic 1984 campaign, culminating in a game for the ages with its other in-state rival, Alcorn State. But in a season to remember, beating JSU was one of the highlights that no one around then will ever forget.