Southeastern Louisiana, McNeese State, Texas State Start With Wins
Southeastern Louisiana 41, Texas A&M-Commerce 7
HAMMOND, La. - Behind career nights from senior quarterback Brian Babin and sophomore tight end Simmie Yarborough, as well as a stifling defensive effort, the Southeastern Louisiana football opened the 2009 campaign with a dominant 41-7 win over visiting Texas A&M-Commerce Saturday night in Strawberry Stadium.
The Lions (1-0) won their home opener for the seventh consecutive season and held Texas A&M-Commerce to just six first downs and 198 total yards. The win was the program's most lopsided victory in a season opener since a 35-0 win over Louisiana-Monroe in 1956. Conversely, Southeastern was able to rack up 470 yards on offense and posted 28 first downs.
"It was a total team effort," said Southeastern head coach Mike Lucas, who coached his first game on the sideline since undergoing a heart valve procedure on Oct. 30, 2008. "I was really pleased with the job of our defense and the job that (defensive coordinator) Matt Webb did in getting our defensive staff ready."
Babin completed 37-of-55 passes for a career-high 379 yards and three touchdowns. His favorite target was Yarborough, who finished with 12 catches for 128 yards and two touchdowns - all career-highs. Senior Chris Wilson also caught a Babin pass for a score, while freshman Zeke Jones and senior Jasper Ducksworth each added rushing touchdowns.
The Lions held A&M-Commerce to two first downs on the way to a 17-0 halftime lead that grew to 34-0 early in the fourth quarter. Junior linebacker Ryan Godare led Southeastern with eight tackles, a forced fumble and a fumble recovery.
A&M-Commerce was led by running back Marcus Graham, who rushed for 68 yards on eight carries. Defensively, Cory Whitfield had a game-high 15 tackles for the visiting Lions and was one of three A&M-Commerce defenders with double-digit tackles.
Southeastern took a 3-0 lead in the first quarter on a career-long tying 47-yard field goal by senior placekicker Jeff Turner. Turner's field goal capped an 11-play, 38-yard drive to open the game.
The score remained the same until Southeastern's opening drive of the second quarter. Babin engineered a seven-play, 65-yard march that ate up 3:19 off the clock. Babin was 7-for-7 on the drive and ended it with a perfect 17-yard fade that Yarborough hauled in at the back of the end zone for a 10-0 lead.
Both teams traded empty possessions before the Lions hit pay dirt again late in the first half. A 37-yard strike from Babin to senior Merrick Lanaux highlighted a seven-play, 72-yard scoring drive. A 12-yard reception by sophomore Kory Theodore on third-and-nine set Southeastern up with first-and-goal. On the next play, Babin and Yarborough connected on a four-yard score to send the Lions into halftime with a 17-0 cushion.
Southeastern padded the lead late in the third quarter on Turner's second field goal of the game, as the Houston, Texas native capped the Lions' seven-play, 50-yard march with a 22-yard field goal to give the Lions a 20-0 lead.
Southeastern put the game away for good early in the fourth quarter. A blocked punt by freshman Zach Albin gave the Lions the ball deep in A&M-Commerce territory. Three plays later, Jones bulled in from two yards out for his first collegiate touchdown.
On the ensuing Texas A&M-Commerce possession, sophomore linebacker Lindsey Leavoy sacked A&M-C quarterback Adam Farkes, forcing a fumble that Godare recovered at the Commerce one-yard line. Ducksworth dove in the end zone to put the Lions ahead, 34-0, with 11:08 left.
Southeastern was looking for its first shutout victory since a 28-0 win over Western Kentucky on Sept. 29, 1984. However, Graham broke out loose for a 55-yard run deep into Southeastern territory. Three plays later, Farkes scored on a draw from three yards out to put A&M-Commerce on the board.
Southeastern answered back with its longest drive of the contest - an 11-play, 74-yard march. Babin hit Wilson on a nine-yard strike to cap the scoring and provide the final 41-7 yard margin.
Southeastern will be back in action on Thursday when it plays host to Union College at 7 p.m. in Strawberry Stadium.
No. 15/15 McNeese State 27, Henderson State 24
LAKE CHARLES, La. - No. 15/15 McNeese State punched across two fourth quarter touchdowns for a 27-24 season opening football victory over Henderson State here Saturday night.
The Cowboys had trailed for all of the game up until that last minute touchdown drive. They were down 17-6 at the end of the first half, down 24-12 at the end of three periods and down 24-19 with only five minutes remaining.
It was then that senior quarterback Derrick Fourroux and senior tailback Toddrick Pendland ignited the offense for the game winning drive. Fourroux put the Cowboys ahead on a fourth down, 4-yard touchdown run and Pendland tacked on the PAT with a run.
Besides being the home opener, it was also a night during which McNeese inducted into its Hall of Fame, football greats Billy Blakeman, Henry Fields and Terry Irving, baseball's Terry Burrows and track and field's Sita Waru as 12,235 spectators watched.
"We didn't play good on either side of the ball," Cowboy head coach Matt Viator said. I give them credit for giving themselves a chance to win it. It's a first game and we got the victory. We're just going to have to try and improve on this.
"It was very competitive just like I knew it would be. They have some great athletes. We just found a way to win."
Henderson State kept the Cowboys backed up for most of the game. In the first quarter McNeese had the football for only one minute and 22 seconds and about 15 seconds of that was watching Pendland scamper 70 yards for the game's second touchdown. The Cowboys total possession in the first half was only 7 minutes, 16 seconds.
In the meantime, Henderson State rolled up a 17-6 halftime lead, pushing up 274 total yards to the Cowboys 129.
McNeese did score the first time it had the ball in the game, Pendland getting off his 70-yard touchdown run, but then they had it for only three more plays.
Henderson State scored on an 11-yard pass from Nathan Nall to Kenard Springer and on a 38-yard field goal by Allen in the first quarter. The Reddies added a 1-yard touchdown run by Marcus Jamison with 10:18 left in the second period.
Scoring in the third period was even as Henderson tallied on a 6-yard run by Springer and the Cowboys on a 2-yard pass from Fourroux to Wes Mangan.
Pendland brought the Cowboys one touchdown closer with 10:44 left in the game on his second touchdown run, a 2-yard burst, and after forcing Henderson State to punt, Fourroux led McNeese on its game winning drive.
It started at the McNeese 48 with 5:39 left on the clock. Pendland covered 35 yards on three rushes, Fourroux connected on two passes for 23 yards and he added nine yards rushing, the payoff his four yard jaunt with 1:24 left on the scoreboard.
Pendland then bulled across for the two point conversion to get the Cowboys up by three.
In the final statistical totals, Henderson State nipped McNeese 391 to 390 but the Cowboys had a 261-117 edge in the second half.
Pendland led all rushers with 152 yards on 19 carries while Fourroux completed 15-of-24 tosses for 184 yards. Chad Davis was tops in the receiving department with five catches for 100 yards and freshmen Malcolm Bronson and Hayden Dobbs led the team in tackles with seven each.
Springer, who at times would line up at quarterback as well as tailback, led Henderson in rushing with 99 yards while Stefon Ceasar had 90 yards and Nall completed 12 of 26 passes for 123 yards.
Next week the Cowboys head out of town as they travel to play No. 1 ranked Appalachian State in Boone, N.C.
No. 20/21 Texas State 48, Angelo State 28
SAN MARCOS, Texas - Bradley George threw for 328 yards and three touchdowns to lead No. 20/21 Texas State to a 48-28 victory over Angelo State to open the 2009 season with a 48-28 victory over Angelo State Saturday night on the Jim Wacker Field at Bobcat Stadium.
The Bobcats jumped out to an early 7-0 lead on their first possession of the game as George hit Da'Marcus Griggs on a two-yard slant and freshman Justin Garelick kicked the extra point with 10:19 left in the opening period.
Angelo State scored their first points of the game when Garrett Tidwell returned the ensuing kickoff 96 yards for a touchdown and tied the score. Texas State came right back and seized the lead with a pair of touchdown runs. The first came on a wide receiver reverse by Cedric Alexander, who ran the ball around the left side for a 10-yard touchdown run. Then, Trey Hampton closed out the scoring in the opening period with a one-yard plunge up the middle to give the Bobcats a 21-7 lead.
Alexander scored his second touchdown of the night with 3:58 left in the first half when he caught a 48-yard pass from George to put the Bobcats up 27-7 after Texas State's Justin Garelick missed the extra point.
Freshman running back Frank Reddic gave the Bobcats a 34-7 lead with 4:49 left to play in the third quarter as he scored on a six-yard run to cap an eight-play, 60-yard drive.
Angelo State climbed back into within 13 points with a pair of touchdowns as Dwight Pete ran for a two-yard TD and Josh Neiswander hit V'Keon Lacey on a five-yard TD pass to close to within 34-21 with 10:30 left to play in the game.
Texas State answered after the second touchdown when Daren Dillard recovered the onside kick and returned it 38 yards for a touchdown to give Texas State some breathing room at 41-21.
Angelo State scored their final points in the game when Josh Neiswander hit Brandon Ritchey for a 14-yard touchdown pass with 8:21 left.
Texas State closed out the scoring with 3:33 left in the game when George threw his third touchdown pass in the game as he hit Kyle Anderson with a one-yard touchdown to make the final score 48-28.
The Bobcats play their next game at TCU on Sept. 19.
SMU 31, Stephen F. Austin 23
DALLAS, Texas - Despite six Stephen F. Austin turnovers, the SMU Mustangs had to rally to defeat the Lumberjacks, 31-23, Saturday night at Gerald J. Ford Stadium. SFA starts the season 0-1, while SMU begins 1-0. SFA has now dropped four of its last five season openers.
"I'm really proud of our guys tonight," SFA coach J.C. Harper said. "I felt that our guys really came out prepared to play, but you can't turn the ball over. We gave SMU too many opportunities. I take my hat off to SMU, they have good coaches and players, and they did a real good job tonight."
The start of the game was a quarter of big plays for both sides. Following a Jeremy Moses interception, senior Cory Barlow returned the favor by picking off a Bo Levi Mitchell pass and returning it 75 yards to the SMU 5-yard line to set up the 'Jacks first score of the season. Two plays later Moses found freshman Gralyn Crawford in the middle of the end zone for the score.
After consecutive failed drives by each team, SMU tied the game when Emmanuel Sanders returned a Drew Nelson punt 79 yards for the score. Despite being intercepted three times in the first quarter, the punt return was the only SMU score in the opening 15 minutes.
SFA battled right back to reclaim a three-point advantage when Moses guided SFA on a 12-play, 61-yard drive that ended in a 47-yard field goal by Derby, Kansas, freshman Evan Engwall. The scoring drive began at the SFA two-yard line.
The Mustangs took their first lead of the game when Darius Johnson caught an 18-yard pass from Mitchell with 2:45 remaining in the half. SMU took the four-point lead into the half, 14-10.
The Lumberjacks reclaimed the lead in the second half by scoring six unanswered points off the leg of Engwall. One of two freshman kickers on the team, Engwall drilled kicks of 38 and 48 yards to give SFA a 16-14 lead. Following a Chad Haynes interception which was returned to the SMU five, Moses found senior Aaron Rhea in the corner of the end zone for the score.
SMU finally got on the scoreboard when kicker Matt Syzmanski nailed a 53-yard field goal with 14:01 remaining in the game. The field goal spark life back into the Mustang squad, forcing a turnover SMU moved the ball down the field and Mitchell capped the drive with a one-yard TD run putting the home team back in front by one, 24-23. The Mustangs closed out the game by tacking on one final score.
Moses finished the game 31-of-52 for 391 yards and two touchdowns, but also had five interceptions. Rhea was SFA's top target hauling in eight passes for 167 yards and a touchdown. Rhea finished the game just 10 yards shy of a career-high. SFA racked up 460 yards, while holding the Mustangs to 355. Haynes led the SFA defensive effort recording seven tackles and picking off his first pass since the 2007 season. Barlow added six stops, and an interception.
The Lumberjacks will host Texas College Saturday next Saturday in Homer Bryce Stadium. The game is slated to begin at 6 p.m.
Houston 55, Northwestern State 7
HOUSTON, Texas - It was the liftoff the Houston Cougars wanted, and it was a debut Northwestern State would love to forget.
With quarterback Case Keenum launching his Heisman Trophy campaign, Houston scored on its first five possessions and shackled the Demons at the same time while posting a dominating 55-7 victory Saturday night at Robertson Stadium.
Keenum, a junior who led the nation in total offense last year with a 403-yard average, threw for 359 yards and four touchdowns on 23 of 30 aim in two-and-a-half quarters. The Cougars finished with 447 passing yards and 538 total, 25 under last season's average that ranked second nationally.
Northwestern didn't get a first down in its first four possessions, but showed some flashes of production while finishing with 263 yards, 157 on the ground. The Demons' only score came at the end of a 97-yard, 16-play drive in the second quarter.
It was hardly the performance expected from Northwestern by new coach Bradley Dale Peveto.
"Let's put it squarely on me. I have to do a better job coaching us up. As coaches, we have to do a better job. This was unacceptable. This is not who we are. Houston's got a great football team but I never thought it was a 55-7 difference. There it is on the board. We've got a lot of work to do before we go to play a very good Grambling team next Saturday night," he said.
Houston, coming off an 8-5 finish in 2008, including an Armed Forces Bowl win over Air Force, looked the part of a Conference USA championship contender.
"Houston's a team that would win a lot of games in a lot of leagues. I thought that coming in, and nothing I saw changed my mind. They played great," Peveto said. "Case Keenum is everything we thought he was, and then some. He's going to play this game for a long time. He does a great job of looking you off and finding the open guy. He's very accurate and he rarely makes a mistake."
The Demons took a while to recover from the Cougars' game-opening onslaught. UH raced to a 35-0 lead on its first 26 plays of the night, while holding Northwestern to four three-and-out series to begin the game.
"We needed a good start and we needed to keep them from getting one. Neither happened," Peveto said.
Keenum hit 17-of-21 passes for 293 yards and three touchdowns in the first half. He found Charles Sims for a 23-yard score on the first UH series, a five-play, 86-yard march. The second touchdown, a 17-yard Bryce Beall run, was the fourth play of a 63-yard drive for 14-0 lead.
Keenum cashed in with a 22-yard gift score for a 21-0 lead, when a Demon defensive back fell down covering L.J. Castille on the Northwestern sideline. That was the third play after short punt set up UH at the Northwestern 47.
Sims scored again on a 1-yard plunge to cap an eight-play, 58-yard drive that made it 28-0 with 2:30 left in the first quarter.
Then, the teams swapped field-length scoring drives. Houston went 98 yards in six plays, going up 35-0 when Beall scored on a 15-yard pass from Keenum.
The Demons manufactured an invigorating 97-yard, 16-play drive to get on the scoreboard. Northwestern converted two third downs and two more on fourth down.
The first big conversion came on third-and-6 at the Demons' 18 during the march, with John Hundley hitting Darius Duffy for an 8-yard gain out to the 26 to get things going. Four snaps later, William Griffin burst through the middle on fourth-and-1 and was an ankle tackle away from going the distance, instead getting 20 yards into UH territory at the 45. Two straight Hundley-to-Duffy passes pushed Northwestern 22 yards closer, then Hundley dashed 12 yards on a bootleg and picked up a late hit penalty to give Northwestern a first-and-goal at the 4.
It took four more downs to score. On fourth down at the 1, after a timeout, Hundley faked a handoff and rolled right, drifted back and looped a pass to tight end Justin Aldredge at the back of the end zone.
When the Demons forced a 3-and-out by the Cougars after the kickoff, there seemed to be a shift in the current, if not the tide. But the punt clipped a Northwestern blocker and was recovered by Houston. Keenum scored on a 7-yard keeper on the next play for the 41-7 lead.
"Does that change the outcome? No, but it sure changed the momentum," Peveto said. "We had a great drive. We converted two fourth downs in the drive. We showed some moxie. Then our defense responds, and we had a freak turnover that sucked the wind out of our sails."
Griffin led the Demons with 63 yards on 10 carries. True freshman quarterback Paul Harris added 54 yards on nine runs. Hundley threw for 106 yards, completing 22 of 35 without an interception. Duffy caught five passes for 39 yards to lead 10 different pass catchers for Northwestern.
Safety Gary Riggs was the top tackler for Northwestern, with 10 stops. Houston native Cortez Paige, a freshman safety, made eight stops.
The Demons play at Grambling next Saturday at 6 p.m.
Air Force 72, Nicholls 0
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. - Nicholls never found its groove in Saturday's season opener, while Air Force looked polished as the Falcons defeated the Colonels 72-0 on Saturday afternoon in Falcon Stadium.
The margin of victory was the second largest in Falcon history, while the margin of defeat was the greatest in the Colonel record books. The margin of defeat eclipsed the previous record of 53 points, 56-3, set in 1995 in a loss against Stephen F. Austin.
Junior preseason All-American Patrick Dolan punted a total of seven times on the afternoon, and had an average of 46.7 yards per punt. Dolan had three punts of more than 50 yards, including a career long 59-yard boot that pinned the Falcons on their own 4-yard line.
"We seen a lot of things that we need to work on and clean up. I have all the confidence that these guys will bounce back," Nicholls coach Jay Thomas said. "In a game like this, you have to steal some momentum because you have everything going against you, and we were unable to ever get that momentum swing."
Senior Yashua Wilis led all tacklers with a career-high 10 (five solo), while true freshman Darrell Brown and junior Marquis Russell turned in seven each in their first collegiate game.
"One positive about today's game is that a lot of young guys, including a lot of freshman got a chance to play. We are a very young football team, and it showed today. We have a lot of football left and we will definitely improve," said Thomas.
Nicholls failed to score on its opening possession to start the game, and Air Force marched right down on its, scoring on a 3-yard touchdown run by Jared Tew. The scoring drive consisted of 8-plays, 63 yards, and used 3:18 of the clock. Erik Soderberg tacked on the point after and the Falcons took a 7-0 lead at the 10:18 mark of the first quarter. Tew finished the game with 57 yards on nine carries with three touchdowns.
The Colonels followed up with what seemed to be another three-and-out, but were given a breath of life with a fake punt that senior running back Marlin Meeks took up the gut from the Nicholls four-yard line to the 32. However on the next play, the Colonels fumbled and the Falcons answered with a 6-play, 24-yard scoring drive that was capped off with a 23-yard field goal by Soderberg. With the field goal, Air Force took a 10-0 lead.
Then it only got worse for the Colonels with another turnover deep in their own territory, and the Falcons wasted no time extending its lead to 17 points with a two-play scoring drive. Jefferson did the honor from 1-yard out, and Air Force led 17-0 with 2:58 left in the first quarter. Jefferson finished with 22 yards on five carries with two touchdowns, while the Colonels finished with a total of four turnovers, all fumbles.
The scoring continued in the second quarter for Air Force, finding the end zone at the 13:31 mark as Jefferson crossed the plain from a yard out. Soderberg went on to add the PAT, and the Falcons led 24-0 early on in the second quarter.
The Falcons went on to score three more touchdowns to close out the half, and take a 45-0 lead to the locker room. Air Force scored on every offensive possession on the first half with the exception of one, while the Colonels sputtered with eight penalties for 52 yards and only 59 yards of total offense.
Air Force continued to score in the second half, but not at as often or as quick as they did in the first.
However, the Falcons did put four more touchdowns in the books to cruise to a 72-0 victory.
Nicholls finished with 151 yards of total offense, while its counterpart racked up a total of 571 yards, 474 of which came on the ground. Leading Nicholls in rushing was Meeks with 28 yards on one carry, and senior Antonio Robinson led the Colonels in receiving with 32 yards on four receptions.
Nicholls will bounce back next week with its home opener in John L. Guidry Stadium against Duquesne next Saturday with kickoff at 1 p.m.