It’s “Battle for the Belt” week … sort of.

South Alabama and Troy are currently in what amounts to an extended bye week, with their annual rivalry game the next one on the schedule. The Jaguars (2-4, 1-1 Sun Belt Conference) host their in-state and conference rival Trojans (1-5, 0-2) at 6:30 p.m. next Tuesday, Oct. 15.

And while many coaches might seek to minimize the magnitude of a rivalry game, South Alabama’s Major Applewhite isn’t one of them.

“I want it to feel different, playing in rivalry games,” Applewhite said. “You hear some coaches will come down the hallway, ‘this is no different than any other game.’ And you’re like, ‘how do you say that?’

“(Fans are) leaving work at noon; of course this is a different game. It is different. It means a lot to the people in this part of the country and it means a lot to our university and their university. So I want them to understand it is different. It’s gonna feel different. People are gonna play a step faster. I know in the rivalry games I had a chance to play in, they happen a hell of a lot quicker than those other 10 games.”

Which team has the most pressure on it entering this year’s game depends upon whom you ask. But the short answer is, probably both.

South Alabama has lost its last six to Troy, and still has outside hopes of winning the Sun Belt Conference West Division despite last week’s 18-16 loss to Arkansas State. However, Troy not only wants to keep its streak alive, but is desperate for a win of any kind after dropping five of six this season under first-year coach Gerad Parker.

“We have to continue to improve,” Parker said. “And certainly, our standards, our core values, and all the things that we’ve set in place since I’ve got this job will not change. And I will stand by them very firmly. The second piece that’s gonna happen is we have to continue to look at everything we’re doing in our program in every phase and every area of our program to continue to find ways to improve.

“We’re going to do that at each position, each unit, each place on and off the field, administratively, and everything we do in our program is gonna be looked at, we’ll change the way we practice in some ways. The standards of practice will never change. The only thing that our players and our staff can do is continue to find ways to improve and show our players that they’re improving.”

Through the first half of the season, South Alabama has alternated looking like a serious conference title contender and an also-ran. The Jaguars set a Sun Belt record with an 87-10 win over Northwestern State on Sept. 12 and throttled preseason conference favorite Appalachian State 48-14 on Sept. 19, but have also lost winnable games against Arkansas State and Ohio.

South Alabama was carried by its offense through the first four weeks, but had trouble putting points on the board in losses to Arkansas State and LSU. Applewhite said penalties — including 11 for 100 yards in the loss to the Red Wolves — have been the biggest culprit.

“We need to line up correctly, so we don’t have 50-yard scrambles that are down to the opponent’s 20 called back. There are some holding calls that are always questionable, but nonetheless, we’ve got to coach that better. We’ve got to stop holding. We’ve got to cut down on the motion penalties. Some of the things that we’re doing up front and communicating from the quarterback position, is leading to too many penalties. It has been talked about, but it hasn’t been addressed because it hasn’t changed.

“So those are things that during this extra practice (Tuesday) in these next few days before we get into our true [game] week on Thursday, we’ll address and we’ll get after those things.”

With the extra three days before the “Battle for the Belt,” South Alabama and Troy won’t begin hardcore preparation for each other until later this week. They will use the next few days to make corrections from last week’s losses and to rest and heal.

That’s especially important for Troy, which has been ravaged by injuries throughout its roster and particularly at quarterback. The Trojans have started three different players behind center this year, most recently sophomore Tucker Kilcrease in a 38-17 loss to Texas State last Thursday night.

“I feel like no matter who’s behind center, we’ll all be ready to go,” said Kilcrease, who 249 yards and two touchdowns in his first career start vs. Texas State. “Just because Coach Parker and (offensive coordinator Sean) Reagan have done a great job to make sure we always prepare, prepare, prepare.

“We’re ready to go no matter the circumstance, because you never know what can happen in this physical game we play. And so I feel like everybody will be ready to go. Not just the quarterbacks, but everybody in the facility.”

Troy leads the all-time series with South Alabama 9-3, including the six straight victories. The “Battle for the Belt” will be televised live by ESPNU.

SOUTH ALABAMA VS. TROY

‘BATTLE FOR THE BELT’

ALL-TIME RESULTS

2012: Troy 31, South Alabama 10

2013: Troy 34, South Alabama 33

2014: South Alabama 27, Troy 13

2015: South Alabama 24, Troy 18*

2016: Troy 28, South Alabama 21

2017: South Alabama 19, Troy 8

2018: Troy 38, South Alabama 17

2019: Troy 37, South Alabama 13

2020: Troy 29, South Alabama 0

2021: Troy 31, South Alabama 24

2022: Troy 10, South Alabama 6

2023: Troy 28, South Alabama 10

* — first year of “Battle for the Belt” designation