September 26th, 2024 5:00am
Week 3 Recap
Here are main highlights from Week 3 in the LSC:
Now, about last week:
Western Oregon wins at Sul Ross State 39-17
For most of the first half of this game, the score was WOU 11-3. Sul Ross State was hanging in there but struggling to move the ball outside of their 13-play, 58-yard drive that got them their first points, a 37-yard Carlos Arreola field goal. But a 12-yard Keyvaun Eady touchdown catch from Jordan McCarty (guess Kainoa Jones might not be a Jedi yet) put the Wolves up 18-3, and that was a gut punch to the Lobos. After halftime, WOU scored two more touchdowns in the third quarter to go up 32-3 and that was it. Sul Ross State scored two touchdowns as the second-teamers were coming in, but there was no true rally to be seen.
A host of Wolves contributed to a 264-yard game on the ground. As stated before, WOU used two quarterbacks, with both having their moments but neither standing out. Sor Sul Ross State, Andrew Martinez had his worst game of the season, passing for 112 yards and two interceptions. Yamil Oaxaca was the game’s top receiver with 57 yards on 7 catches and a touchdown. Quincy Blair led Sul Ross State and all defenders with 12 tackles.
Western Oregon improves to 1-2 and Sul Ross State falls to 1-3.
Texas A&M-Kingsville wins at Texas-Permian Basin 20-14
Down 20-14, UTPB was driving at the 50-yard line when not one, not two, but THREE consecutive 15-yard penalties were committed by TAMUK defenders, including two pass interference penalties by Khalen Leonard. Two plays later, the Falcons stood at the TAMUK 7-yard line looking to complete a comeback from 17-0 down and steal a win from the Javelinas. Then Leonard, who was sitting as the potential goat, makes a split-second hero turn by intercepting Dylan Graham’s game-tying pass at the goal line and returning it to the TAMUK 25-yard line. From there, it was Roger Hagan carrying the load for the Javelinas, who would run off the last 3:56 of game time and hold on for the win.
Hagan was far and away the leader of the TAMUK ground game with 116 yards on 27 carries. Teague Sedtal gave TAMUK much-needed efficiency in the passing game, passing for 196 yards and a touchdown on 15 of 24 passes. Dylan Graham completed just 17 of 37 passes for 244 yards, 2 touchdowns, and the one big interception. Of note for UTPB – their offense only gained 46 rushing yards, 41 of them from Kory Harris on 18 carries. A key aspect of the Falcons’ offense the last two seasons has been big numbers on the ground, keeping tired defenses guessing and prone to the Falcons’ big plays. TAMUK was able to keep the running game mostly in check and put the game in Graham’s hands more than UTPB would like.
Texas A&M-Kingsville improves to 2-1 and Texas-Permian Basin falls to 2-2.
https://www.mrt.com/sports/college/article/slow-start-dooms-ut-permian-basin-loss-texas-19783438.php
Angelo State wins at Western New Mexico 21-0
Angelo State should give their defense a raise. The Rams outgained WNMU by 383 yards to 160 yards and only got as far as the ASU 43-yard line in this game. At no point did they threaten to score. They could have played another 16 quarters, and I still don’t think they would have scored. So, it looks like that despite the solid games the Mustangs had the past two weeks, they’re not quite ready for prime time.
Angelo State, on the other hand, had a solid defensive effort but an uneven offensive effort. They had three drives end in WNMU territory, two on downs and another on a missed field goal. They had two touchdown drives of 70 and 79 yards, but no other drive of the 13 times the Rams had possession went for more than 41 yards. Braeden Fuller threw for 222 yards and 2 touchdowns and 23 of 38 passes and scored ASU’s other touchdown on a 39-yard run to make the score 14-0 early in the third quarter.
For WNMU, their defense deserves some credit for keeping the Mustangs in the game, although they broke enough to let ASU get out of Silver City with the win. Josh Magana only managed 91 passing yards and Jamon Chambers 73 total yards (57 rushing). Davey Morales led all receivers with 82 yards on 7 catches and Cole Lalama led all defenders with 11 tackles.
Angelo State improves to 2-2 and Western New Mexico falls to 2-2.
Midwestern State wins at Eastern New Mexico 36-15
On this night, Zeus ruled the air, delaying the start of the game for two hours and interrupting action at least twice during the game. Midwestern State and Eastern New Mexico just took the game to the ground. In a game where both teams combined for 105 passing yards, it was the Mustangs who re-established their running game after almost being nonexistent against Western Colorado. On MSU’s first drive, it was Devin Cross on 5 carries for 77 yards and a touchdown. Cross carried the ball three more times on MSU’s second drive, setting the Mustangs up for the first of a school-record five field goals by Joseph Carlson, this one from 28 yards. Cross (154 yards) and Jalen March (132 yards) combined for 286 of MSU’s 305 rushing yards on the game.
ENMU was not to be outdone on the ground, gaining 387 yards on the ground and outgaining MSU 416 to 379 yards. But that is not what the Greyhounds will be remembering from this loss – it will be the mistakes and turnovers. ENMU’s first drive ends in a fumble leading to an MSU field goal. ENMU’s third drive ended on downs in MSU territory. In the second half, ENMU gave up possession four times (one missed field goal, two interceptions, and one turnover on downs) in MSU territory, including a 59-yard pick-six by Ryan Melton that made the score 33-8 MSU. 20 MSU points came off these errors in what was an uncharacteristically sloppy game by the Greyhounds.
Midwestern State improves to 2-1 and Eastern New Mexico falls to 2-2.
#9 Central Washington wins at West Texas A&M 45-3
While Zeus decided Portales wasn't enough for his wrath, he brought the thunder and lightning for what seemed like ages over Canyon. I wonder the energy of the WT players was being bled away with the near 3-hour delay, because when they finally got to kickoff, the Buffaloes just flat out didn’t have it. Sure, a good deal of it was due to Central Washington being a really good football team, but WT has shown flashes the previous two weeks against other playoff-level opponents.
To compare the two teams, let’s look at the number 8, as in 8 drives:
Of the 10 times WT had the ball, 8 of their drives went for 30 or fewer yards. CWU, on the other hand, was in position to score on 8 of their 11 possessions, with Wyatt Redding’s two missed field goals the only reason the Wildcats didn’t finish the game with over 50 points.
CWU had nearly equal yardage on the ground (224) and passing (240), was 10-15 on third down, held the ball for 36:31 of the game, and didn’t turn the ball over. Kennedy McGill had 280 combined yards, 178 of those in the air. Tyler Flanagan also added 104 yards on the ground with 3 touchdowns as he improves every week. Tanner Volk got his first interception of the year with a 76-yard pick-six to make the score 21-0. For West Texas A&M, Sean Johnson Jr. was the lone bright spot on offense, combining for 158 yards, 85 on the ground. But even then, Johnson was bottled up by the CWU defense, who gave up just 219 yards and turned WT over twice, scoring touchdowns off both turnovers. For a team that is looking to work their way upward and has been competitive at times against Colorado Mines and Western Colorado, this is a result no one anyone in Canyon wanted to see. Well, unless you were hopping on a plane back to Ellensburg, I guess.
Central Washington improves to 2-1 and West Texas A&M falls to 1-3.
LSC Standings
School | LSC | Overall | |
|---|---|---|---|
Angelo State | 2-0 | 2-2 | |
Central Washington | 1-0 | 2-1 | |
Midwestern State | 1-0 | 2-1 | |
Texas A&M-Kingsville | 1-0 | 2-1 | |
Western Oregon | 1-0 | 1-2 | |
Texas-Permian Basin | 1-1 | 2-2 | |
West Texas A&M | 1-1 | 1-3 | |
Eastern New Mexico | 0-2 | 2-2 | |
Western New Mexico | 0-2 | 2-2 | |
Sul Ross State | 0-2 | 1-3 | |
Week 4 Preview
Eight of the LSC’s teams face off in conference play this week, headed by UTPB visiting Midwestern State in need of wins and West Texas A&M visiting Western Oregon in a game that has been quite exciting the last few years. Texas A&M-Kingsville looks to avoid a letdown against Sul Ross State, and Central Washington goes to the unfamiliar (?) confines of home to host WNMU.
All games are on Saturday, September 28. All game times are in the Central time zone.
West Texas A&M at Western Oregon, 3:00 PM
Series History: Western Oregon leads 3-0
Last meeting: 2023 (Western Oregon won 37-36)
For two teams that have only met three times, this has become a matchup I circle on the calendar each year because the 2021 and 2023 games both went down to the final possession in full-on shootouts. WT has to have some added motivation going into this game, if not just for the fact that Western Oregon has gone 3-0 against them, but WT has to watch the game film of their performance against Central Washington (which I certainly hope they burned afterwards). Both teams’ lone win is against Sul Ross State, and WOU looked a bit better than WT in their win, but again, at least this year you’re supposed to beat Sul Ross.
Both teams seem to be in a similar place right now, but I am a bit concerned about WT’s strength up front, especially along the offensive line. The only sustained offensive success the Buffaloes have had this season was when they were able to run the ball and create manageable downs, and that was against Sul Ross State. Much the same could be said for WOU, even down to the opponent. As bad as WT looked against CWU, they still have the better quarterback and some defenders, right? The thing is, a few good individuals doesn’t make a whole football team. It wouldn’t surprise me at all if this game went down to the last possession again, and it wouldn’t surprise me at all if the Wolves won again.
I think this is just about an even game, but the Buffaloes won’t win if they don’t get more from their offense outside of Sean Johnson. I haven’t seen enough of it the last three weeks, so I’m going with Western Oregon by a field goal.
Sul Ross State at Texas A&M-Kingsville, 7:00 PM
Series History: Texas A&M-Kingsville leads 26-5-1
Last meeting:2022 (Texas A&M-Kingsville won 35-14)
Sul Ross State heads to Kingsville to face a Javelina squad looking to avoid a letdown after last week’s win at UTPB. The Lobos have shown the ability to hang with LSC teams into the second half except for last week’s game with Western Oregon, but they still need to show they can match up with the defense Kingsville will bring. Kingsville has given up an average of 12 points a game and 270 yards a game on offense while forcing 6 turnovers. The Javelinas also got a solid game from Teague Sedtal at quarterback and Roger Hagan at running back.
This is a matchup tailor-made for Kingsville to dominate on the ground. Sul Ross State gives up 307 rushing yards a game and while Kingsville hasn’t exactly been ENMU running the ball, their ground game with Hagan is key to any Javelina success. With Sul Ross State’s difficulties against the run (also see WT and ENMU’s rushing success against them), I expect Kingsville will hold the ball for a good portion of the game and keep the Lobos’ offense on the sidelines. I also expect Sul Ross State to have a difficult time getting their passing game going as well. Texas A&M-Kingsville by 17 to 20 points.
Texas-Permian Basin at Midwestern State, 7:00 PM
Series History: Midwestern State leads 6-2
Last meeting: 2023 (Texas-Permian Basin won 21-13)
Texas-Permian Basin is in a situation where they may potentially need to win out to be in the playoff conversation with a deeper RMAC and always solid NSIC looking to place multiple teams along with CWU and ASU in contention in the LSC. UTPB is a bit of a different team this year compared to last year. The high-flying offense of last year has still scored plenty of points against low-level opposition but hasn’t fared well against tougher defenses. In particular, the UTPB running game that averaged 226 yards per game in 2023 is only averaging 154 yards a game in 2024. This combined with a more pocket-type quarterback in Dylan Graham, has made the Falcons offense a bit less quick-striking and a bit more methodical (although they still got that 71-yard touchdown pass last week).
Midwestern State went back to their primary offensive identity last week by going run-heavy the entire way against ENMU. Devin Cross and Jalen March more than made up for any issues that Sean Jastrab may have had throwing the ball. MSU was able to cause several momentum-changing plays against ENMU, and I think the biggest question is whether they can do the same against UTPB. If they can, the game can go their way. As it is, I think this game can go down to the wire, but I think UTPB has just enough depth on offense and a better quarterback to make a key play late and pull out a win in what I expect to be a game that maybe gets to the mid-20’s in points for the winner. Texas-Permian Basin by a field goal.
Western New Mexico at #9 Central Washington, 8:00 PM
Series History: Central Washington leads 6-0
Last meeting: 2023 (Central Washington won 55-17)
So, the scheduling gods have spoken and they are finally allowing Central Washington to have a home game. Familiar field, dorm rooms, all the works for the Wildcats this week. Except for one thing – anyone think CWU has gotten so used to the road routine that they might have trouble being at home, that being at home is now what isn’t familiar? Maybe, but I’m not so sure Western New Mexico is team equipped to make things uncomfortable for the Wildcats this week. The Mustangs did a lot of bending last week, but their offense literally did nothing against Angelo State in getting shut out. Against another tough defense in CWU, that could very well happen again. WNMU has shown signs of improvement so far in 2024, but like Angelo State last week, this is a team at the top of the LSC and not New Mexico Highlands or Adams State. Central Washington by 17 to 24 points.
Angelo State and Eastern New Mexico have the week off.