From THE HUNTSVILLE ITEM
By Cody Stark
Assistant Sports Editor
CONWAY, Ark. ? Sam Houston State and Central Arkansas combined for 988 yards total offense and 94 points in a wild shoot out that saw the Bears win 48-46.
Bearkat quarterback Rhett Bomar completed 29 of 47 passes for 361 yards and added 64 more on the ground on 15 carries. Running back James Aston rushed 16 times for 136 yards. Justin Wells caught six of Bomar's passes for 101 yards.
Three turnovers, some missed tackles and an average UCA starting field position of its own 46-yard line to hand the Bearkats a 48-46 loss in the Southland Conference opener for both teams.
“We didn't tackle very well, and I think that has to do with their speed,” SHSU head coach Todd Whitten said. “We knew they had a very good offense and I thought we played well at times, but they got the ball to their skill guys and made some plays.”
The Bearkats and Bears pretty much did what they wanted to on offense, as the defenses might as well have set this one out. The two teams combined for 917 total yards and the game came down to the wire.
It wasn't until UCA defensive back Derrick Boyd knocked away a two-point conversion pass from SHSU quarterback Rhett Bomar, following a 2-yard scoring run by Catron Houston with 1:40 left in the fourth, that decided the game.
The Bears (5-1 overall, 1-0 in SLC) totaled 414 yards of total offense behind a solid performance from reigning league player of the year Nathan Brown en route to beating Sam Houston for the third straight season. The senior quarterback completed 20-of-28 passing attempts for 269 yards and three touchdowns, including a 60-yard pass to Willie Landers with 5:51 to go in the game.
“They have a real good offense and we knew that coming into the game,” said Bearkats defensive end Ryan Gloston, who had an interception in the game. “We made some formation adjustments in the second half and that helped. It's a tough loss, but like coach told us before the game, ?This won't make our season or break our season.' We just need to refocus and come back from this.”
The Bearkats (2-2, 0-1 in SLC) were just as unstoppable, gaining 503 yards of offense behind Bomar and running back James Aston. Bomar threw for three scores, the final one coming from 9 yards out to Houston to help SHSU tie the game at 34 to start the third quarter.
Aston reached the century mark on the ground, rushing for 136 yards on 16 carries and a touchdown. Justin Wells caught six passes for 101 yards, while Houston reeled in five for 96 in the loss.
It didn't take long for the scoreboard to light up when the Bearkats took the opening drive of the game and marched 75 yards to the end zone highlighted by a 31-yard touchdown strike from Bomar to Houston.
Sam Houston's lead was short lived as Central Arkansas answered right back. Eric Ware took an end around from Brown and galloped 61 yards down to the Kats' 5-yard line. After a delay of game penalty, Brown connected with Landers on a quick slant to tie it at 7 following the point-after kick.
That's when things almost got out of hand thanks to shady ball protection by Sam Houston State.
The first fumble came around midfield when a UCA defender popped the ball out of sophomore running back TyMagic Robinson's hands and Phillip Johnson returned it all the way down to the SHSU 8. The Bearkats were able to buckle down and get out of the jam by holding the Bears to a 19-yard field goal.
The fumble bug hit again on the ensuing kickoff when Wonseleh Brewer coughed up the ball and the Bears recovered it in Bearkat territory. But once again the SHSU defense came up with a stop and held UCA to a 37-yard field goal to make it 13-7.
“We made some mistakes early and I'm just glad that we didn't let the game get out of hand,” Bomar said. “We kept fighting and hanging in there. I'm proud of the guys and they way they played.”
Things got less defensive after that. SHSU and UCA combined for 673 yards of offense in the first half.
Sam Houston scored on a 4-yard run by Bomar thanks to a 73-yard burst by Aston to knot things at 13. UCA running back Leonard Ceaser then gave the Bears a 20-10 lead going into the second quarter with a short touchdown run.
The two teams traded touchdowns twice in the second frame. The Bearkats scored on a 4-yard run by Aston and a 6-yard pass from Bomar to Chris Lucas. The Bears found the end zone on a 10-yard run by Brent Grimes and another touchdown pass by Brown to go into the half up 34-27.
“We got things fixed in the second half and only gave up 14 points,” Whitten added. “Both sides made good adjustments at the half. This wasn't by any means all on the defense. We had some turnovers and we struggled again in the kicking game. There are some areas we really need to fix.”
