Khalil

McClain

Middle Tennessee once again had trouble slowing down McClain (6'4/227), who caught six passes for 75 yards and two touchdowns in the first meeting between the two teams (a 47-14 Troy win on September 19). But they did manage to keep the senior wide receiver from scoring twice this time around, which was one of the differences as the Blue Raiders held on for the 20-17 victory. McClain is up to 27 receptions, 325 receiving yards and five touchdowns (tied with Reggie Todd for the team lead) on the season. What also helped Middle Tennessee was slowing down Todd (three receptions for 17 yards) and Kaylon Geiger (four receptions for 34 yards), Troy’s top two receivers. The Trojans will look to rebound next Saturday at Appalachian State.

Both of McClain’s touchdowns came inside the red zone; as he connected with Gunnar Watson an eight-yard strike in the first quarter and a five-yard dart a quarter later. The 6-foot-4, 227-pound wideout scored seven touchdowns on 45 receptions for 562 yards, and even in a shortened campaign, it looks like he’s going to beat those numbers -- at least based on what we saw Saturday. He should be the go-to target again next Saturday against BYU.

McClain (6'4/227) went over the 100-yard mark for the second time this season on Saturday, with the first being the Trojans’ Sept. 14 loss to Southern Miss. While the yardage numbers haven’t been the best for the junior wideout, he has managed to reach the end zone on a consistent basis. McClain has now scored a touchdown in five of his last six games, and for the season he boasts a receiving line of 28-365-6. Next up for he and the Trojans is a game at Coastal Carolina next weekend.

There were four Trojans who went off for over 100 yards in this thrilling game -- assuming you like offense -- but it was McClain who found the end zone twice. Both touchdowns were over 30 yards and both came in the fourth quarter; including a 35-yarder with just 2:18 left to get the Trojans to within 47-42. McClain will try and remain as involved -- but on the winning end -- next Saturday against Akron.