FRISCO, Texas — Two last-second finishes in East Texas brought about the dramatics becoming of October football in the Southland Conference. With the regular season nearing its midpoint the conference table has begun to take shape and four teams made affirmations about their placements Saturday evening.
No. 7/5 SFA 28, NR/RV UIW 26
UIW gave SFA all it could handle in the SLC Commissioner's Game of the Week, but the 'Jacks survived to maintain an unblemished record. SFA raced out to a 14-3 lead in the first quarter after a Jaylen Jenkins 45-yard receiving touchdown and a two-yard punch-in by JT Kitna. The Cardinals battled back, however, pulling the margin to 14-13 after Emmett Brown found Isaiah Champagne with 5:44 to go in the second quarter. UIW took the lead in the third quarter but two Gavin Rutherford touchdown passes put SFA up 28-20 with 14:55 to play. That separation held until the clock showed 22 seconds remaining and Brown found Jacob Emmers for a 53-yard score. However, the two-point try was backed up after an offensive pass-interference call on the Cardinals and ultimately came up short on the final attempt.
SFA Next: @Nicholls, Oct. 17, 3 p.m.
UIW Next: @Lamar, Oct. 10, 3 p.m.
East Texas A&M 20, NR/RV UTRGV 17
The Lions delivered a massive win in front of their home crowd on Homecoming Weekend. East Texas A&M leaned on Major McBride early on, watching the running back score twice to build a 14-0 lead. UTRGV answered before halftime with Aidan Jakobsohn finding Kyran Lee from seven yards out to make the score 14-7 at the break. The teams traded field goals in the third but the Vaqueros would pull even at 17-17 with 5:32 to play when Jakobsohn found Jaydon Smith for the game-tying touchdown. Each team would get another chance with the ball though both drives were ultimately unsuccessful, setting up the Lions with the ball and 1:46 to play. Luke Glass orchestrated a 55-yard drive that set up Ozlo Rigby for the game-winning 51-yard field goal as time expired.
ETAMU Next: @HCU, Oct. 17, 6 p.m.
UTRGV Next: Southeastern, Oct. 10, 7 p.m.
No. 14/13 Lamar 42, Northwestern State 14
Lamar exceeded 40 points and won in dominant fashion for the second week in a row, this time handling Northwestern State in their first game at Provost Umphrey Stadium since August. The Cardinals amassed 250 yards on the ground, averaging 7.8 yards per carry. Six different Cardinals found the end zone with Blake Thomas leading the bunch, finishing with 80 yards on four carries.
LU Next: UIW, Oct. 10, 3 p.m.
NSU Next: McNeese, Oct. 17, 12 p.m.
HCU 16, Nicholls 2
Defense and special teams carried the day for HCU who controlled all 60 minutes of action in Houston. Three Lukasz Smolen field goals lifted the Huskies to a 9-0 lead at halftime and their command of this contest would remain from there. The Husky defense put a seal on the game in the third quarter when Jevon Bejarano returned an interception 48 yards to put this one out of reach for the Colonels who struggled to find any offense throughout.
HCU Next: East Texas A&M, Oct. 17, 6 p.m.
Nicholls Next: SFA, Oct. 17, 3 p.m.
OTHER RESULTS ACROSS THE SLC
No. 11/11 LSU 63, McNeese 14
Week 6 Outlook