By Cody Stark Huntsville Item
MACOMB, Ill. - Just when it looked like the light was beginning to turn on for a young Bearkats squad, Western Illinois flipped off the switch.
The Leathernecks assaulted the end zone from the ground and through the air and used three third-quarter scores to start the second half to turn what was once a close game into a runaway.
Senior Matt Barr tied a career-high with three touchdown passes and set a school record for rushing yards by a quarterback with 125 as Western Illinois routed Sam Houston State 56-14 Saturday afternoon at Hanson Field.
"I thought this was a game we could have easily scored 35 points, we just couldn't sustain any drives in the second half," Kats head coach Willie Fritz said.
"Defensively, we just gave up too many big plays and we didn't tackle well at all. We had several chances to sack their quarterback and stop a play from happening. There were 10 or 12 times we had the right play called and didn't execute. We have to go back to square one on tackling."
Down 28-14 at the half, the Bearkats (0-2) weren't having any trouble moving the ball. The second half was a different story, though. Sam Houston had three-and-outs on its first three possessions of the third quarter.
Western Illinois, in the meantime, couldn't stay off the scoreboard. Barr ripped off a 42-yard run to start the second half and hit Justin Morgan for a 13-yard touchdown strike to help the Leathernecks (2-1) grab a 35-15 lead.
Senior wide receiver Todd Speight added a score on a 27-yard reverse and Barr capped his day with a 43-yard scoring pass to Terriun Crump with 2:04 to go in the third, pushing the lead to 49-14.
"We didn't execute the way we wanted to," SHSU junior defensive end E.J. Nduka said. "We need to come play more physical and a little bit harder. The opportunities were there, we just didn't execute."
The first half was the complete opposite of the second for Sam Houston, at least offensively.
The Bearkats finally snapped out of their offensive funk after falling behind 14-0 following a fumble on their own 1-yard line, which led to a scoring run by Leathernecks sophomore Caulton Ray. Sam Houston put the ball in the hands of redshirt freshman running back Tim Flanders and the Kansas State transfer delivered.
Flanders had carries of 6 and 13 yards to capitalize on a 53-yard kickoff return by senior Brandon Closer. A false start backed the Kats up, but it didn't matter. On the next play, Flanders bobbed and weaved his way through the Western Illinois defense for a 33-yard touchdown, Sam Houston's first of the season.
Just when it looked like the Bearkats were finally starting to figure things out, Barr dashed 69 yards to push the lead to 21-7 on the first play of the next possession.
Flanders was just warming up though.
Freshman quarterback Brian Bell, who replaced senior Bryan Randolph in the second quarter, showed some nice touch on a pass over the middle that found its way into Kevin Matthews' hands for a 34-yard gain.
Behind the blocking of Kaleb Hopson, Cameron Pound, Travis Watson, Riley Smith and Chris Crockett, Flanders ripped off an 18-yard run, then found the end zone again from 31 yards out to get the Bearkats back to within 21-14 following Miguel Antonio's extra point.
By the time the first half was over, Flanders had 153 yards on 17 carries.
"I made a mental mistake in the first quarter, but I told the guys I was going to get it back," Flanders said. "The offensive line did a great job opening up the holes. Even though we lost, we did make some plays today."
Western Illinois tacked on another touchdown late in the second quarter when Barr hit wide receiver Lito Senatus from 9 yards out. The Bearkats had one more opportunity to get on the board, but a drive that featured an 18-yard run by Flanders, a 15-yard scramble by Bell and a 20-yard reception by Seth Patterson stalled and Antonio missed a 41-yard field goal attempt.
The stats were almost even in the first half. Western Illinois accumulated 270 yards of total offense, while Sam Houston accumulated 249.
The major difference was the turnover and five penalties by the Bearkats that cost them 30 yards. The Leathernecks didn't give the ball away or pick up a single flag in the first 30 minutes.
Bell threw an interception that bounced out of the hands of wide receiver Grant Merritt in the fourth quarter that led to Western Illinois' final score.
"We can't afford to make mistakes and beat ourselves," Fritz added. "There was a big turnover when we were backed up and that kind of changed the momentum a little bit. We are a young club, but we have to play like a mature club. We made a lot of mistakes, a lot more today than we did against Baylor. We had a lot of unforced errors."
Sam Houston will play its home opener Saturday, Sept. 25 against the Gardner-Webb Bulldogs at 6 p.m.
Bearkat Family Weekend will highlight the contest next Saturday with the "Hillcrest Ford Heroes" salute to Walker County area veterans and police and fire department emergency service personnel, an appearance by the Houston Texans Cheerleaders, military flyovers by U.S. Army helicopters, the SHSU band's "March from the Mall" to kickoff tailgate and a postgame fireworks show.
Tickets are on sale online at www.gobearkats.com/tickets or at the Sam Houston athletic ticket office. The ticket office is located in the Ron Mafrige Field House at Bowers Stadium. Hours are 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. The ticket office telephone is (936) 294-1729.
