No. 4 Stephen F. Austin Wins Battle of 2009 Champions with 32-27 Decision at McNeese State
No. 4/5 Stephen F. Austin 32, McNeese State 27
LAKE CHARLES, La. - Stephen F. Austin struggled early, but rallied for a thrilling 32-27 victory at McNeese State Saturday night. The win moves the No. 4/5 Lumberjacks to 4-1 on the season, and 1-0 in Southland Conference play, while the Cowboys fall to 2-3 and 1-1.
After a rough first half of play that that saw missed opportunities and numerous penalties for both teams, the Lumberjacks managed to scratch out a two-point lead heading into the locker room. Things did not look good early as SFA fell behind by 10 points in the first quarter.
The Lumberjacks finally cracked the scoreboard with 11:20 remaining in the half. Following a McNeese State punt, senior Jeremy Moses found pay dirt three plays later. Moses hit freshman Ayron Morgan for a 34-yard scoring strike to cut the lead to 10-7. Following a missed field goal after a Devin Ducote interception deep in Cowboy territory, SFA got another chance. Again it was the defense setting up a scoring opportunity. Sophomore Josh Aubrey intercepted a pass, which led to a 20-yard Logan Barrett field goal to tie the game with 1:50 remaining in the half.
The defense closed out the half with one more highlight. After forcing the Cowboys to punt, the snap went over the punter's head through the end zone to give SFA its first lead of the game, 12-10. SFA had one more opportunity late in the half but fumbled the ball away deep in McNeese State territory.
SFA finished the half with only 102 yards of total offense. Moses struggled in the opening half connecting on only 9-of-21 passes for 87 yards. The two teams combined for 12 penalties for 126 yards in the first 30 minutes.
The Lumberjacks came out in the second half and appeared to be on the march, but a Moses interception led to a McNeese State touchdown as the Cowboys reclaimed the lead, 17-12. The pick was the Moses first interception in the past two games.
The Lumberjacks responded with two touchdown drives within seven minutes. Moses found freshman Kris Lott for a 19-yard touchdown reception. SFA came right back when sophomore Gralyn Crawford added a nine-yard touchdown reception.
The Cowboys answered with a 11-play, 84-yard drive that ended in a Wes Briscoe 27-yard touchdown reception on fourth-and-nine to give McNeese State back a one-point lead with just over five minutes remaining.
After SFA had a 39-yard field goal blocked with just under four minutes remaining it appeared that McNeese State was going to record the upset win, but the defense gave Moses and company one more opportunity. Moses took advantage taking SFA on a 12-play, 83-yard drive that culminated in a 15-yard scoring strike to Cordell Roberson.
The scoring strike tied Moses for the Southland Conference record with 100 career touchdowns. Moses becomes only the second player in conference history to record 100 touchdown passes. After a slow start Moses finished the game 29-of-52 for 339 yards. SFA finished the game with 374 yards of total offense, while the Cowboys racked up 282 yards.
The Lumberjacks return action Saturday when they will host Central Arkansas in the conference home opener. The game against the Bears is slated to begin at 2 p.m. from Homer Bryce Stadium.
Northwestern State 14, No. 22 Central Arkansas 19
CONWAY, Ark. - A red-zone stand at the end of the game coupled with the return of injured quarterback Paul Harris and the emergence of true freshman running back Rumeall Morris produced a 24-19 Southland Conference upset win by visiting Northwestern State over 22nd-ranked Central Arkansas Saturday night.
The Demons picked up their first conference win in two seasons under coach Bradley Dale Peveto, improving to 2-4 overall and 1-1 in the Southland.
Central Arkansas, coming off an open date preceded by a 41-14 loss at Tulsa, slipped to 3-2 in its conference opener. It was only the seventh time in the last 35 games, spanning five seasons, that the Bears were beaten at Estes Stadium.
Northwestern held Central Arkansas out of the end zone at game's end, after missing a chance to convert a fourth-and-1 at its 43 with 1:39 remaining. The Bears made it to the Demons' 15 as time expired.
"We finally played together for 60 minutes and that's how we won this game," Peveto said. "I'm so proud of the team. We won this on offense; we won this on defense; we won this on special teams. This should give us a whole lot of confidence, because it was a fight to the bitter end and we beat a very fine, ranked football team on their home field."
Morris ran for 122 yards on 15 carries, highlighted by a 58-yard touchdown dash that pushed Northwestern ahead to stay, 17-13 late in the third quarter. Harris came off the bench with an ankle injury to spark an ineffective Northwestern offense, contributing a 34-yard touchdown scamper shortly before halftime while steerineg the Demons to a pair of 13-play scoring drives.
Harris entered the game with the Demons down 10-0. He immediately guided a 13-play drive that covered 59 yards and netted a 29-yard John Shaughnessy field goal with 3:32 left in the second quarter.
It took Harris and the Demons only 24 seconds to tie the game. On the ensuing kickoff, Northwestern stripped the ball loose and Demons' cornerback Kevin Perry recovered on the UCA 34. After an incomplete pass on first down, Harris followed right guard Destry Hesskew's block on a draw play, broke free and covered the distance for the tying touchdown.
"Destry did the work and I just followed him," Harris said. "The offensive line did a great job all night."
The Bears didn't falter, however. They traveled 66 yards on 12 plays to bounce back up 13-10 with 31 seconds left before halftime on the second short field goal by Eddie Carmona, a 25-yarder to follow the 31-yard kick that opened the scoring 14:09 before the half.
Central Arkansas had stretched its lead to 10-0, scoring on its second straight series at the 10:48 mark of the second quarter on a 5-yard pass from Nathan Dick to Dominque Croom. Then Harris entered the contest and engineered a response, chewing 7:22 off the clock on the way to Shaughnessy's field goal to get on the board.
The Northwestern defense, shredded for 215 yards in the first half, stepped it up afterward to help the Demons surge into a two-score lead. Central Arkasnas managed only 34 yards in the third quarter. Morris had more than that on one play, bursting free up the middle and outrunning defenders on a go-ahead 58-yard touchdown scamper with 5:18 to go in the third quarter.
That vaulted the Demons ahead 17-13 and was the front side of a tremendous turnaround. After the kickoff, the Northwestern defense posted a three-and-out, forcing a punt, giving Harris and company the ball at the Northwestern 8 with a precarious four-point lead.
Thirteen plays later, having worked 6:27 off the clock, Northwestern moved up 24-13 with 12:11 remaining as
Harris looped a third-down pass form the 3 to his roommate, Bradley Brown. The centerpiece of the drive was a 34-yard hookup between Harris and tight end Justin Aldredge down to the UCA 23, followed by an 11-yard Harris to Brant Legendre play down the Demon sideline to a first-and-goal at the 7.
Again, Central Arkansas roared to life after two back-to-back Northwestern scores. The Bears used 11 plays to cover 71 yards, relying on a controlled passing game to draw within 24-19 with 8:36 left when a hotly contested pass interference flag in the end zone put UCA at the 2, where Terence Bobo plunged in for the touchdown.
The Bears tried to get closer but a two-point conversion pass was batted away by Perry.
Then Central Arkansas forced a three-and-out, taking over at its own 34 with 6:45 remaining.
Dennis Clark and Ledell Love sandwiched the UCA quarterback on first down, netting a 5-yard loss and setting a good tone for Northwestern. But a familiar Achilles' heel surfaced, with Central Arkansas converting a third-and-11 with a 22-yard pass from Dick to Isaiah Jackson, followed by a 12-yard Dick keeper to the Demons' 34 with 4:25 to go.
Three incompletions followed, leading to a fourth-and-10 with 4:14 left. Dick rolled left against a two-man rush, waited for somebody to break open against a jam-packed secondary, and finally looped a cross field pass for Croom inside the 10. It momentarily looked good, but Northwestern sophomore safety Brashard Booker ripped the ball loose for a drive-killing incomplete pass and the Demons took over.
"We're coached real hard to stay in our zones no matter where the quarterback goes, and I stayed home enough to be in position to make the play," Booker said. "A lot of guys covered great on that play and he couldn't find anybody open enough to complete it."
Northwestern then faced a third-and-two at the Northwestern 42, with UCA having burned all its timeouts. The Demons ran the clock down as far as possible, called time out with 2:29 left, and plotted their biggest third-down conversion of the year. Harris plunged ahead for a yard, and the clock grinded down.
Northwestern went for it from the 43, and failed. Harris rolled left, and his throw to tight end Jake Bryan was low.
Central Arkansas took over with 1:39 to go but couldn't cover the distance to spoil Northwestern's night. The Bears got off eight plays, the last a 3-yard Dick scramble to the 15, and time expired before they could get off another snap.
Southeastern Louisiana 49, No. 15/17 Texas State 24
HAMMOND, La. - Southeastern Louisiana rolled up 493 yards of total offense on the way to a convincing 49-24 win over nationally ranked Southland Conference foe Texas State in the league opener for both teams Saturday afternoon at Strawberry Stadium.
For the second consecutive season, the Lions (2-3, 1-0 Southland) opened its league slate with a win over Texas State (3-2, 0-1 Southland), which had won the previous 12 meetings in the all-time series prior to last season's 51-50 Southeastern win. Southeastern held the No. 15/17 Bobcats to 238 total yards and 14 first downs, forcing Texas State into four turnovers.
Senior quarterback Tyler Beatty completed 27-of-40 passes and posted career highs with 368 passing yards and five touchdowns. Beatty and junior wide receiver Simmie Yarborough hooked up on three scoring tosses. With the three scoring catches, Yarborough, a Brookhaven, Miss., native, who was celebrating his 21st birthday on Saturday, became the school's career leader with 24 receiving touchdowns.
Yarborough led the Lions with eight catches for 114 yards, while junior Kory Theodore added six catches for a game-high 118 yards. Junior Brandon Collins pitched in with four catches for 74 yards and his first touchdown as a Lion. Sophomore running back Zeke Jones totaled 69 all-purpose yards and finished with a touchdown both rushing and receiving.
Defensively, seniors Tommy Connors and Mark Newbill led the way with nine and eight tackles, respectively, for the Lions. Seniors Clint Coleman, Re'Keem Wilson and Curtis Strong all had interceptions for Southeastern, while sophomore Devan Walker, junior Lindsey Leavoy, junior Devin Boutwell and freshman Doc Ward each were credited with sacks.
Texas State quarterback Tyler Arndt completed 13-of-28 throws for 158 yards with a touchdown and three interceptions. Dexter Imade (15-for-51) and Karrington Bush (10-for-50) shared the rushing load for the Bobcats. Darius Bolden led Texas State with four catches for 62 yards and a score.
The Bobcats took the opening kickoff and drove 61 yards. A 29-yard pass from Arndt to David Lewis keyed the march that was capped by an Imade one-yard scoring plunge.
After the two teams traded fumbles, the Lions evened the score with a nine-play, 47-yard scoring march. Jones powered in from two yards out to knot the score at 7 with 4:18 left.
The two teams combined for 35 points in a wild second quarter. Southeastern struck first with a 28-yard scoring pass from Beatty to Collins that put the Lions up, 14-7, with 13:19 left in the half.
Texas State answered on its next drive, as Arndt found Bolden for a 30-yard score that knotted the score at 14 with 9:41 remaining in the second quarter.
Southeastern retook the lead after a seven-yard punt by Ben Follis allowed the Lions to take over at the Bobcat 22-yard line. Four plays later, Beatty found Yarborough on a deep crossing route for a 20-yard score and a 21-14 Southeastern lead.
Texas State drove into Lion territory, but Coleman picked off Arndt at his own 35-yard line. Coleman attempted to lateral the ball to Wilson, but it fell from Wilson's grasp. DaMarcus Griggs scooped up the loose ball and ran in from 28 yards out to tie the score at 21.
Southeastern took over at its own 41-yard line with 34 seconds remaining in the half. Beatty hooked up with Theodore on passes of 17 and 22 yards to set the Lions up deep in Texas State territory. Beatty found Yarborough from 13 yards out to put Southeastern up, 28-21, heading into the half.
Southeastern padded its lead on the opening drive of the third quarter, as Beatty led the Lions on an eight-play, 75-yard scoring march. A 28-yard touchdown pass to Yarborough put Southeastern on top, 35-21, with 10:45 remaining in the third quarter.
Texas State cut the lead to 35-24 with a 28-yard field goal by Justin Garelick with 5:12 left in the third quarter, but from that point forward it was all Lions. A juggling Wilson interception at the Bobcat 22-yard interception set the Lions up with prime field position as the third quarter ended.
Sophomore Brian Young came in after Beatty was briefly shaken up and rushed inside the 5-yard line. T.P. Miller stripped Young, but senior offensive tackle Kevin Hughes fell on the loose ball in the end zone for a 42-24 Southeastern lead.
On the ensuing Texas State possession, Southeastern recorded three consecutive sacks to force a Bobcat punt. Follis mishandled the snap and freshman Walter Smith wrapped him up, allowing the Lions to take over at the Bobcat 10-yard line.
On the first play, Jones took a Beatty shovel pass in from 10 yards out to put the game out of reach with 11:54 remaining in the contest.
The Lions will hit the road next Saturday for a 2 p.m. league contest versus Sam Houston State in Huntsville, Texas.
Sam Houston State 19, Nicholls 7
THIBODAUX, La. - Led by junior linebacker Will Henry, the Sam Houston defense set a school record with 12 quarterback sacks to earn a 19-7 victory over Nicholls in the opening Southland Conference football game for both teams at Guidry Stadium.
Henry tied All-America defensive lineman Michael Bankston's individual school mark with four sacks. Bankston, who played eight years in the NFL for the Cardinals, totaled four sacks against Angelo State in 1991. J.T. Cleveland accounted for three sacks and Eric Fieilo posted two and Kenneth Jenkins and E.J. Nduka had one sack apiece.
The Bearkat defense limited the Colonels to 97 total yards, creating three turnovers including a pair of interceptions by Jenkins. And the specials teams units picked up their first punt block of the 2010 season.
Defensive back Robert Shaw had a hand in both of Sam Houston's first half touchdowns. The sophomore from Converse Judson recovered a muffed punt late in the first quarter. The turnover set up a 32-yard field goal by Miguel Antonio that gave the Bearkats a 3-0 lead with 14:57 to play in the second quarter.
LaQuintin Caston completed a five-play, 49-yard scoring drive with a 13-yard touchdown run to put Nicholls up 7-3 with 8:02 left in the first half. The Nicholls took possession to start the drive on an interception by Siega Vergenal.
With the Colonels punting from their own 27-yard line, Shaw broke through to block the kick and fell on the ball in the end zone to put Sam Houston up 10-7 with 2:17 to play in the half.
The block was the first of the 2010 season, but marked the return of the "block party" on special teams originated in 1991 when new head coach Willie Fritz was special teams coach as an assistant at Sam Houston. The "block party" tradition saw Sam Houston special teams block 80 punts, field goals and extra points in the 14 seasons between 1991 and 2004.
A bad snap on a fourth down punt gave the Colonels a third quarter scoring opportunity at the Bearkat 32. On third and 12 at the Sam Houston 15, sophomore safety Kenneth Jenkins picked off a pass in the end zone and returned it out to the 49-yard line. A personal foul penalty on the Colonels gave the Kats a first down at the Colonel 36.
Nine plays later, Miguel Antonio booted a 26-yard field goal to give Sam Houston a 13-7 lead with 1:58 to play in the third period.
Bottled up for the first three quarters, the Bearkat offense finally got on track in the fourth quarter. Quarterback Brian Bell scored on a seven-yard run to complete a 10-play 74-yard drive with 9:55 to play. Tim Flanders added a four-yard scoring run with 5:40 remaining after a four-play 44-yard drive.
Flanders ended the game with 105 yards on 22 carries. He becomes only the third Sam Houston running back to string together four consecutive 100-plus rushing performances. The other two were Roger Wiley in 1982 and D.D. Terry in 2006.
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Lamar 14, Langston 0
BEAUMONT, Texas - Lamar broke out its best balancing act Saturday night, accounting for 204 passing yards and a season-high 147 rushing yards in a hard-fought 14-0 victory over Langston.
Andre Bevil completed 14 of 25 passes and hooked up with Marcus Jackson on two long touchdown passes, while the defense pitched the Cardinals' first shutout since a 41-0 blanking of Sam Houston State in 1989.
Jackson got 105 of his 112 receiving yards on his breakaway touchdowns. The first covered 47 yards in the first quarter, and the second was a 58-yard bomb midway in the fourth quarter.
The Cardinals, who were held to a negative 23 yards rushing in the previous week's 38-10 loss to Sam Houston State got their ground game churning early as a couple of strong runs by new running back starter Octavious Logan drew in the Lion defense and helped set up the first Bevil-to-Jackson touchdown.
The 5-foot-6, 170-pound Logan went on to post a career-high 96 yards on 12 carries, including a 32-yarder that got the Cardinals out of a hole on their 97-yard yard drive for their final touchdown.
"I wished we could've gotten four more yards for Octavious," said Lamar coach Ray Woodard, who saw his Cardinals pull to 3-3 on the season. "It would've been nice for him to have a 100-yasrd game.
"We moved the sticks much better tonight (the Cardinals accounted for 17 first downs as opposed to their season-low of nine in their earlier loss to Stephen F. Austin). We played a lot better second half than we did in the first half when we were sluggish at times."
Bevil, who carried a 300.0-yard passing average into the game, was glad to see Jackson help take up some of the slack left when leading receiver J.J. Hayes had to sit out the game because of an injury.
"Before our first touchdown, we had run the ball well for a few plays, and then we went with a play-action call," said Bevil. "I threw the ball over the top, and Marcus did a good job of getting up there and getting the ball.
"The second touchdown was a slow-developing play. Marcus ran a slant; I hit him, and he did a great job of busting it all the way."
The standing-room-only crowd of 17,306 saw the Cardinal defense keep the Lions out of the end zone despite allowing 354 yards of total offense. They helped their cause by blocking a second-quarter field goal attempt and by coming up with a clutch goal-line stand in the final quarter.
Rover Michael Allen helped the Cardinals preserve the shutout by successfully defending a fourth-down pass in the end zone early in the fourth quarter as the Cards were clinging to their 6-0 lead.
"He ran a corner route," said Allen of the Lions' intended receiver on the critical play. "Out linemen did a good job of getting a push, and our linebackers did a good job in coverage.
"Luckily, he (Lion quarterback Chad Miller) threw the ball to my guy. I fought hard and made the play. It took all 11 of us playing as hard as we could to pull this thing (the shutout) off. We knew if everyone did their jobs, we could get it done.
"As a defense, we let ourselves and the whole team down in our last two games. To get this win was nice, but to get it by shutout made it super nice."
Jackson, who also scored Lamar's lone touchdown in the Sam Houston State game, admitted to feeling "a little more pressure" because of Hayes' absence.
"It wasn't an easy job playing without J.J. on the other side," Jackson said. "I appreciate the effort he gives in every game. He's a big part of our offense, and I'll be the happiest guy on the team when he gets back."
Langston drove 54 yards on 12 plays after receiving the opening kickoff, but the Cardinals' defense eventually stiffened, forcing a missed 33-yard field goal attempt by Anthony Fernandez.
Logan broke a 17-yard run - the Cardinals' longest of the season to that point - four plays deep into the ensuing possession, setting up Bevil's play-action pass to Jackson for the game's first touchdown. It covered 47 yards. Then freshman kicker Justin Stout missed his first extra-point attempt of the season, leaving the Cards with a 6-0 lead with 5:40 left in the first quarter.
During the scoreless second quarter, the Cardinal defenders thwarted the Lions with Jordan Garrett's fumble recovery and Branden Thomas' block of a 37-yard field goal attempt. Then, on the next-to-last play of the half, the Lions were dismayed again when Fernandez's 23-yard field goal try ricocheted off the right upright.
Logan got 51 of his yards on seven first-half carries, and Miller passed for 152 yards on 11-of-22 accuracy. Bevil went 6-for-11 for 86 yards.
Lamar's first possession of the second half ended on Bevil interception, and the Cardinals were forced to punt on the second. Late in the third quarter, however, the Cards went on the move behind the passing of Bevil and the running of Kwabena Asante.
On consecutive plays, Bevil connected with Billy Chavis for 11 yards, Kendrick Prejean for 11 more and Chavis again for six yards to gain the Lions' 18-yard line. Three-straight runs by Asante advanced the ball to the nine-yard line, and a pass interference call gave the Cards a first-and-goal at the two.
From there, the stubborn Lions stuffed Asante on three-straight gouges into the middle of the line, and they did the same to Bevil on a sneak on the first play of the fourth quarter.
The Cardinal defense countered with its own heroic stand, halting the Lions on downs on an incomplete Miller pass on fourth down from the 3-yard line.
The offense then responded with a brisk four-play, 97-yard drive ended by the Bevil-to-Jackson connection of 58 yards. Bevil then threw to Josh Powdrill in the right corner of the end zone for the 2-point conversion to make it 14-0 with 7:38 remaining.
The Cardinals will remain at home for the third-straight week next Saturday when they host the South Alabama Jaguars in a 6 p.m. game in newly-renovated Provost Umphrey Stadium.