A pair of first quarter touchdowns set the tone and No. 15 Coastal Carolina used another stingy defensive effort to defeat visiting South Alabama 23-6 on Saturday night at Brooks Stadium in Conway, S.C.

The Chanticleers held South Alabama to 93 rushing yards on homecoming.

Coastal Carolina quarterback Grayson McCall threw for a touchdown, completing 17 of 24 throws for 209 yards.

The Chanticleers (7-0, 5-0 Sun Belt Conference), who are the highest-ranked Sun Belt team in history, have won eight games in a row dating to last season.

It was the second consecutive game in which Coastal Carolina didn't allow a touchdown. This came on the heels of a 51-0 shutout of Georgia State.

South Alabama (3-4, 2-2) threatened in the third quarter with a drive that included three fourth-down conversions. But the 17-play march ended on a failed fourth-down play when the Jaguars were stopped inside the Coastal Carolina 1-yard line.

The Chanticleers, who were playing as a nationally ranked team for the third week in a row, led 17-6 at halftime. They tacked on field goals of 30 and 27 yards by Massimo Biscardi in the fourth quarter.

Biscardi also hit a 26-yarder in the final minute of the first half.

Coastal Carolina was boosted by Reese White's game-high 81 rushing yards on nine carries as part of the team's 236 yards on the ground.

The Chanticleers opened the scoring on Shermari Jones' 1-yard run to cap their first possession of the game. McCall flipped a pass to CJ Marable behind the line of scrimmage and that turned into a 9-yard touchdown play later in the first quarter.

South Alabama scored on Diego Guajardo field goals from 31 and 43 yards in the first half, completing 11- and 13-play drives. Quarterback Desmond Trotter was 22-for-31 for 243 yards.

Both teams committed two turnovers.

Coastal Carolina, which is in its fourth season in the Sun Belt, won two conference games in each of the past three seasons.

--Field Level Media