Southeastern Louisiana Gets Past Sam Houston State, 30-27, in Overtime
In a battle of two of the three second-place teams in the Southland Conference, McNeese State walked away with a 24-17 victory at Northwestern State. The Cowboys head to Conway, Ark. next week for a 4 p.m. game at Central Arkansas, which assured itself no less than a first-place tie in the league standings with a 49-41 win at Stephen F. Austin. Texas State kept itself alive in the race for the Southland championship and automatic playoff berth by turning back Nicholls State 34-10 today in San Marcos. Southeastern Louisiana pulled off a shocker in Huntsville, upending Sam Houston State 30-27 in overtime. Three teams, McNeese State, Texas State and Northwestern State remain in the championship race, while Southeastern, Sam Houston, Stephen F. Austin and Nicholls have all been eliminated from championship contention.
Southeastern Louisiana 30, Sam Houston State 27 (OT)
HUNTSVILLE, Texas ? After a first half in which it was outgained 323-46, Southeastern Louisiana played for its fallen coach in a place where he spent 15 years of his coaching career.
Quarterback Brian Babin found Chris Wilson on a 14-yard scoring pass in overtime and Southeastern rallied for an improbable 30-27 win over Sam Houston State on a chilly Saturday night at Bowers Stadium.
With head coach Mike Lucas, who was the defensive coordinator at Sam Houston State from 1987-2001, at home as he continued his recovery from a heart valve procedure, Southeastern (5-6, 2-4 Southland) played one of its best halves and withstood a 508-yard passing performance by SHSU quarterback Rhett Bomar.
“The ship was set with Mike, he laid the foundation for the course that this program has taken,” acting head coach Tommy Condell said. “The players came out in the second half and took it. It was all the players tonight. It had nothing to do with the coaches. They decided to step up and play for Coach Lucas and the program.”
Taylor Wilkins gave Sam Houston State (4-5, 2-4 Southland) a 27-24 lead with a 30-yard field goal on the first possession in overtime before the Lions got the ball at the 25-yard line.
Andre Cryer gained 10 yards to the SHSU 15 on an end-around before Jay Lucas was stopped for a 1-yard gain to the SHSU 14 on the following play. Babin, who finished 24-for-46 for 271 yards and three touchdowns, then lifted a pass into the left corner of the end zone where Wilson made a spectacular grab and gave Southeastern its first Southland road win since a 45-23 win at Stephen F. Austin on Oct. 29, 2005.
Lucas gained 98 yards on the ground while catching a team-high six passes for 78 yards as Southeastern gained 355 yards total offense after halftime.
And when Sam Houston scored late in the game after Patrick Robinson forced a Brian Babin fumble gave Sam Houston State a 24-17 lead, the Lions punched back.
James Aston scored on a 16-yard run one play after Babin’s fumble to give Sam Houston a 24-17 lead, but Southeastern found the end zone three plays later as Lucas caught a screen pass and raced 60 yards to tie the game with 2:58 left.
Southeastern forced Sam Houston to punt on the next possession where Derrick Raymer’s boot was downed at the SLU 4.
The Bearkats forced Southeastern to punt and took over at the SLU 41 with 34 seconds remaining. Bomar, who finished 35-for-69 for 506 yards, hit Trey Payne on a 15-yard pass to the SLU 15 before a penalty pushed SHSU back.
A penalty by Southeastern moved the ball to the SLU 15, giving Wilkins a chance to win the game, but Tommy Connors blocked his 32-yard attempt forcing Southeastern’s first overtime contest since a 31-24 win over Northwestern State on Oct. 14, 2006.
Southeastern took the opening possession of the second half and drove 64 yards in three plays as Lucas took a handoff from the SHSU 39, cut across the field and scored his fourth rushing touchdown of the season to get the Lions to within 10-7.
After Quinten Pierre broke up Bomar’s pass on fourth-down on the ensuing possession at the SLU 16, the Lions drove the distance as Babin connected with Kory Theodore on a 62-yard touchdown with 8:24 remaining.
One play later, Bomar found Houston on a quick slant and the speedster went the distance to complete a 76-yard scoring pass for a 17-14 Bearkat lead with 8:09 left.
Southeastern got a key break defensively as Connors picked off Bomar at the SHSU 16, but the Lions coughed up the ball four plays later when Babin was hit and fumbled at the SHSU 4.
After forcing Southeastern to punt on its first two drives, SHSU got on the board as Bomar connected with Houston on a 73-yard touchdown pass with 3:35 remaining in the first quarter.
Wilkins added a 30-yard field goal to cap a 16-play drive and give SHSU a 10-0 lead with 7:14 left in the second quarter. But the Lion defense stiffened as Curtis Strong broke up a fourth-down pass and Wilkins missed a 43-yard field goal attempt at the end of the half after Bomar drove the Bearkats 64 yards to the SLU 26.
Chris Lucas led Sam Houston State with 10 receptions while Payne added nine catches for 107 yards. Houston caught seven passes for 229 yards for the Bearkats while Aston gained 80 yards on 21 carries.
Southeastern will wrap up the regular season on Saturday at 1 p.m. when it faces arch-rival Nicholls State in the River Bell Classic at John L. Guidry Stadium.
McNeese State 24, Northwestern State 17
NATCHITOCHES, La. ? Todd Pendland set a school single season rushing record and Derrick Fourroux ran for three touchdowns in a 24-17 McNeese State victory over Northwestern State in a Southland Conference football game Saturday at Turpin Stadium.
Pendland ran for 105 yards which gives him 1,321 yards for the season, breaking the mark of 1313 yards that had been set in the 1952 season by Jules DeRouen.
Cowboy quarterback Fourroux scored on touchdown runs of 1, 4 and 14 yards.
The other Cowboy points came on a 32-yard field goal by Blake Bercegeay.
The victory over the Demons lifted McNeese’s record to 7-3 on the season and to 4-2 in league play, the Cowboys now sharing the SLC top spot with Texas State, a winner over Nicholls State on Saturday.
The loss dropped Northwestern to 3-3 in conference (6-5 overall) and probably eliminated the Demons from league title contention.
McNeese, which entered the game ranked No. 16 in the nation, has only Central Arkansas remaining on its regular season schedule. Those two teams to meet next Saturday in Conway. A win in that game would cinch no less than a tie for the title for the Cowboys.
“It was a typical McNeese-Northwestern State game,” said Cowboy head coach Matt Viator of Saturday’s outing. “It was what I expected.
“Give our defense credit. They kept us in the game. I thought that we had some good drives early in the game. In the second half we were able to put together a couple of good drives.”
Pendland finished the contest with 103 yards on 24 carries while Fourroux netted 69 yards rushing and also completed 11-of-22 passes for 138 yards.
It was the sixth time this season for Pendland to rush for more than 100 yards in a game.
Steven Whitehead led the Cowboys in receptions with five for 57 yards and linebacker Allen Nelson was tops in tackles with eight and had a sack and a tackle for a loss. Also coming up with sacks were Kenneth Lundy, Terrance Freeman, Brandon Zanders and Josh Ellison. Jamelle Juneau had the lone pass interception for the Cowboys.
Both teams got a touchdown and a field goal in the first half, the score settling at 10 all at the end of the half.
McNeese got the game’s first score on a 32-yard field goal by Bercegeay while the Demons came right back to score on a one yard plunge by John Hundley. Robert Weeks added a field goal for the Demons in the second quarter and the Cowboys got a touchdown from Fourroux on a 1-yard run.
The Cowboys appeared to gain an edge late in the second quarter when Fourroux teamed up with Immanuel Friddle on a completion to take the ball inside the Demon 10. However, Friddle was called for an offensive interference foul and the Cowboys were forced to punt.
Neither team scored in the third period and then the Cowboys took charge with two touchdowns in the fourth.
Fourroux capped a 15 play, 79 yard drive with 9:55 left in the final quarter by scoring on a 4-yard run.
McNeese then came right back with another touchdown. This drive had its beginning when Juneau intercepted a pass by Hundley. The Cowboy drive started on the McNeese 31 and took eight plays, Fourroux going over from the 14.
Northwestern State got the game final score on a 28 yard pass from Hundley to Dudley Guice with only 39 seconds left in the game.
The Cowboys totaled 404 yards in the game (261 rushing and 143 passing) to the Demons’ 227 (76 rushing and 151 passing). McNeese also held a 13 minute edge in time possession.
The victory was the fourth straight by the Cowboys over the Demons and gave McNeese a 37-20-1 edge in the series.
Texas State 34, Nicholls State 10
SAN MARCOS, Texas ? In a season in which they have struggled in home games, the Texas State football took advantage of a pair of Nicholls State fumbles and a short punt to win their first Southland Conference home game of the season with a 34-10 victory over the Colonels Saturday at Bobcat Stadium.
The Bobcats trailed 3-0 after the first quarter when Ross Schexnayder kicked a 40-yard field goal to cap a 53-yard, 13-play drive that used over seven minutes on the clock.
Texas State tied the score at 3-3 when Andrew Ireland kicked a 19-yard field goal to cap a 16-play, 74-yard drive with 11:39 left to play in the first half.
On the Colonels' next drive, Texas State's Travis Houston recovered a fumble by Marlin Meeks at the Nicholls 34-yard line to set up the first touchdown in the game.
The Bobcats took advantage when Alvin Canady rushed 19 yards and Bradley George threw a 26-yard touchdown to Cameron Luke to give Texas State a 10-3 lead.
The Bobcat defense forced another turnover on Nicholls next drive when Houston recovered another fumble at the Nicholls 18-yard line. After George gained five yards on a first-down run, senior running back Stan Zwinggi ran the remaining 13 yards in the next three plays, scoring on a 5-yard TD run with 1:50 left to play in the half to give the Bobcats a 17-3 lead.
After Nicholls State was forced to punt on its next drive a 24-yard punt by Patrick Dolan gave Texas State the ball at the Nicholls 46 yard line.
George completed a 12-yard pass to Luke to give the Bobcats the ball at the 34. Then Nicholls State was called for an offside penalty. On the first and five play, George hit Karrington Bush out of the backfield for a 29-yard TD pass that gave the Bobcats a 24-3 halftime lead.
Texas State began the second half with a seven-play, 51-yard drive that ended when senior tight end John Gilley scored the first touchdown of his career on a 14-yard pass from George with 10:49 left in the third quarter.
Nicholls State scored their only touchdown of the game with a 13-yard pass from Vincent Montgomery to Antonio Robinson to cap a seven-play 79-yard drive with 7:25 left to play in the third quarter.
The Bobcats closed out the scoring with a 21-yard field goal by Ireland with 14:52 left in the game.
The game also marked the final home game for Jeff Bowen, Blake Burton, Morris Crosby, Wellington Deshield, John Gilley, Corey Hickerson, Andrew Ireland, Donavan King, Cameron Luke, Freddy Paige, Brian Quackenbush, Michael Rutledge, Courtney Smith, Adrian Thomas, Clint Toon, Jamal Williams and Stan Zwinggi.
Zwinggi led the Bobcats in rushing with 73 yards and a touchdown on 12 carries. Canady finished with 54 yards on nine carries and Bush gained 43 yards on nine carries.
George ended the day completing 10 of his 14 passes for 136 yards and three touchdowns despite the fact that the game was played with a wind of 24-miles per hour.
Luke led the Bobcat receivers with 64 yards and a touchdown catch on five receptions and Bush ended the day catching three passes for 51 yards, including the 29-yard touchdown grab.
The victory gives the Bobcats a 7-4 overall record and a 4-2 mark in the Southland Conference standings heading into next Saturday's game at Sam Houston State.
Central Arkansas 49, Stephen F. Austin 41
NACOGDOCHES, Texas ? Central Arkansas can now finish no worse than tied for first in the Southland Conference football race. The Bears assured themselves of that Saturday night with a wild and wooly 49-41 victory over Stephen F. Austin at Homer Bryce Stadium.
Junior running back Brent Grimes tied a school record with five rushing touchdowns and safety Phillip Johnson made two key defensive plays in the fourth quarter to help the Bears to their ninth victory of the season (9-2, 5-1).
UCA hosts McNeese State next Saturday with a chance at an outright first-place finish on the line. The Bears, who were informed on Tuesday that the NCAA will not let them be crowned conference champs because of their transitional status from NCAA Division II, did what they had to do on the field with 524 yards of total offense on a whopping 95 plays.
Grimes finished with a career 145 rushing yards and also caught eight passes for 74 yards. He is now third in career touchdowns at UCA with 38. Senior All-SLC quarterback Nathan Brown completed 31 of 40 passes (77.5 percent) for 335 yards and two touchdowns, both to senior tight end Marquez Branson.
Johnson, a junior from Memphis who missed the past two games with a broken hand and played Saturday with a cast, intercepted the ’Jacks at the 10 with 11:05 left in the game, then knocked away a fourth-and-goal pass in the end zone 4:16 remaining to seal it.
“I’m extremely proud of our team,’ said head coach Clint Conque, who led the Bears to their last conference title in 2005 in the Division II Gulf South Conference. “This is a benchmark moment for our football program. I don’t think anybody thought we’d be at this point.”
The teams, two of the most prolific in the Southland, combined for 529 yards of offense in the first 30 minutes, with UCA gaining 270 on 53 plays. Brown had a 7-yard touchdown pass to Marquez Branson for the Bears’ other first-half score. SFA got a pair of scores from running back Cornel Tarrant and a pair of field goals from Cory Long.
Quarterback Jeremy Moses also hit Contrevious Parks with a 59-yard touchdown pass in the opening half.
The ’Jacks scored first on the opening series of the game, driving 59 yards in seven plays, capped by a 2-yard run by Tarrant at the 12:37 mark of the first quarter. The Bears answered with a 10-yard touchdown pass from Brown to tight end Branson and Eddie Carmona’s PAT tied it at 7-7 with 7:56 left in the period.
UCA’s defense held on SFA’s second possession but Long nailed a 36-yard field goal for a 10-0 lead with 5:44 on the clock. After the Bears failed on a fourth-down play from the SFA 35, Tarrant scored again, this time from 16 yards out to give the ?Jacks a 17-7 lead at the end of the first quarter.
Grimes pulled the Bears to within 17-14 with a 1-yard run with 11:35 left in the first half. Moses connected on a short pass to Parks, who went the distance for a 24-14 lead midway through the second quarter.
UCA drove deep into SFA territory, aided by a 41-yard kickoff return by Isaiah Jackson. Brown passed deep to Branson but he coughed up the ball at the SFA 13. The ’Jacks returned the favor when Derrick Boyd forced a fumble by Brandon Scott and Markell Carter recovered for the Bears at the SFA 26. UCA made the most of the exchange when Grimes went in untouched from the 4 to close the gap to 24-21 with 7:36 left in the half.
Grimes, a junior from Baton Rouge, La., had 82 yards rushing in the half, w Long connected again from 42 yards for a 27-21 SFA lead with five minutes left in the half. But the Bears put together a solid 11-play, 58-yard drive in the final four minutes, with Grimes doing the honors again from the 4. Carmona gave the Bears their first lead with 1:07 left in the half.
The Bears opened the second half with a costly mistake as an attempted punt went awry with a bad snap, giving the ?Jacks the ball at the UCA 28. A key completion from Moses to Duane Brooks move them to the 10 and SFA scored on a 3-yard pass to Dominque Edison with 9:32 left in the third period. Long’s PAT made it 34-28.
The Bears took advantage of a roughing the passer call on an apparent Brown interception and moved down to the SFA 35 after the penalty. Grimes scored for the fourth time on a 12-yard run and Caromona returned the lead to the Bears are 35-34 at the 6:07 mark of the third quarter.
SFA responded with another scoring drive, capped by Moses’ 12-yard TD pass to Marcus Taylor, good for a 41-35 lead. After UCA turned the ball over on downs, SFA drove deep again but junior Phillip Johnson intercepted Moses at the 10.
Brown hit Branson in the right corner of the end zone for the touchdown and a 49-41 with 7:39 remaining.
After Johnson broke up the ’Jacks’ pass attempt in the end zone, the Bears got a big 19-yard keeper by Brown to run out the clock.
UCA plays host to McNeese State at 4 p.m. Saturday on the Southland Conference Television Network.