Fielding perhaps the most inexperienced team in the program's NCAA Division I football history this fall, Sam Houston State's young Bearkats rolled up a record-breaking year during the 2010 season.
Losing 28 lettermen (the most in 24 seasons of Football Championship Subdivision play) from a 5-6 squad in 2009, less than half of the players who reported for preseason camp the first week of August had participated in spring drills in April. The Bearkats' 44-man two-deep for the season opener listed 12 freshmen, 16 sophomores, 10 juniors and only six seniors.
The outlook looked bleak after a 34-3 loss to Baylor and a 56-14 defeat at Western Illinois to open the schedule.
But new head coach Willie Fritz and his staff retooled the Bearkat offense with young but eager newcomers and relied on a gambling, aggressive defensive to turn the year into one of Sam Houston's most exciting seasons ever.
The Kats bounced back after the WIU loss to win four straight games, outscoring opponents by 151 to 38. The wins came over Gardner-Webb, Lamar, Nicholls and Southeastern Louisiana.
Predicted in the annual Southland Conference head coaches' preseason poll to finish seventh in the eight team race, the Bearkats rolled up a 4-3 league mark to tie for third place. The three losses came to the Southland champion, runner-up and a third-place team by a combined margin of only 11 points. Sam Houston ended the season with victories over Central Arkansas and Texas State.
"These youngsters did a great job of buying into what we are trying to do and putting out the effort to get it done," Fritz said. "The best thing is that we lose only six senior lettermen. It certainly was an exciting year."
The season was one for the record books as well.
Tim Flanders, a freshman transfer from Kansas State, set a school record for most 100-yard rushing performances in one season with seven. Six of those performances came in consecutive games, also a Sam Houston record.
Flanders became the second running back to lead the Southland in rushing, gaining 948 yards on 172 carries in 10 games. His total of 948 yards is a school freshman record and stands No. 8 among single season performances by Bearkat backs. Flanders' 13 rushing touchdowns also is a freshman best and ranks No. 6 all-time at Sam Houston.
Return specialist, a junior from Arlington, set school records both for most yards on punt returns and on kickoff returns. Closner returned 33 punts for 380 yards and 38 kickoffs for 981 yards. His 224 kickoff return yards at Western Illinois stand as a single game Bearkat record.
After just two years as Bearkat, Closner ranks No. 3 in career punt return yardage (43 for 486) and No. 4 in career kickoff return yardage (51 for 1,244).
Will Henry, a junior linebacker from Waco, tied former NFL star Michael Bankston's school record for most quarterback sacks in one game with four against Nicholls.
The Sam Houston defensive set a school mark and tied the Southland Conference record with 12 total sacks in the Nicholls victory.
Other team records set this year included most punt return yards in a single game (126 vs. SFA at Reliant Stadium), fewest rushing attempts allowed (9 vs. Lamar) and fewest total plays allowed (49 vs. Lamar).
Miguel Antonio, sophomore kicking specialist from Lovelady, now rank sixth in career kick scoring with 151 points including 26 of 42 career field goals and 70 of 71 career extra points.
