20
Middle Tennessee MTS 4-8 , 3-5
23
Winner Sam Houston SAM 3-9 , 2-6
Middle Tennessee MTS
4-8 , 3-5
20
Final
23
Sam Houston SAM
3-9 , 2-6
Winner
Score By Quarters
Team 1st 2nd 3rd 4th F
MTS Middle Tennessee 10 0 3 7 20
SAM Sam Houston 3 6 7 7 23
Trevor Williams returns an interception against Middle Tennessee
Matt Piasecki

Game Recap: Football |

Kats swat away Middle Tennessee in finale

HUNTSVILLE — The first season of FBS is in the books, and the final chapter featured excitement, heroics and more importantly, a Bearkat victory.
 
Sam Houston overcame a fourth quarter deficit and made a defensive stand with the game on the line in a 23-20 win over Middle Tennessee on Saturday at Bowers Stadium.
 
The Blue Raiders (4-8) retook the lead with under three minutes to go in the game as it looked like another close one would go against the Bearkats (3-9), who lost five contests by seven points are fewer. This time, the odds were in Sam Houston's favor.
 
Quarterback Keegan Shoemaker hit a variety of wide receivers to get the game-winning drive rolling, including a pair of 16-yard receptions by Simeon Evans, who had a breakout game with 11 catches for 110 yards.
 
The final pass to Evans got the Kats down to the MSTU 3-yard line, and running back John Gentry punched it in on the next play to make it 23-20 following an extra point by Colby Sessums.
 
Middle Tennessee had one final chance with 57 seconds left on the clock, but a key stop on third and long forced a 47-yard field goal attempt that sailed wide right as time expired to lift the Kats to victory.
 
Senior linebacker Trevor Williams provided a huge spark for Sam Houston in the third quarter after the offense kept coming up short of finding the end zone.
 
The Bearkats' all-time leading tackler snagged a pass from MTSU quarterback Nicholas Vattiato out of the air near the Blue Raider 31-yard line. Williams, playing in his final game at Sam Houston, then weaved his way through the offense turned defense for a 31-yard touchdown and a 16-13 lead at the 8:35 mark.
 
The Bearkats did not have trouble moving the ball in the first half. They just had to settle for field goals.
 
The Blue Raiders jumped out to a quick 7-0 lead on their first possession. Middle Tennessee took the opening kickoff and went 62 yards for the score.
 
Sam Houston came right back and answered with a 26-yard field goal by Colby Sessums five minutes later. Malik Phillips had a pair of catches for 27 yards and a 19-yard run by John Gentry were the highlights of the scoring drive.
 
The Blue Raiders pushed the lead back to seven with a field goal right before the end of the first quarter, but the Bearkats closed the half strong behind the leg of Sessums.
 
He blasted a 51-yard field goal with just over 12 minutes left in the half. Sessums cut the lead to one with a 26-yard kick to close out the second quarter.
 
Print Friendly Version

Scoring Summary

Scoring Summary
Scoring Play Visiting Team Score Home Team Score
1st Quarter MTS SAM
MTS
10:41 - MTS - Peasant,Frank 3 yd run (Rankin,Zeke kick), 10 plays, 62 yards, TOP 04:13
7 0
SAM
05:42 - SAM - Sessums,Colby 26 yd field goal 13 plays, 62 yards, TOP 04:53
7 3
MTS
01:29 - MTS - Rankin,Zeke 32 yd field goal 10 plays, 60 yards, TOP 04:13
10 3
2nd Quarter MTS SAM
SAM
12:28 - SAM - Sessums,Colby 51 yd field goal 9 plays, 44 yards, TOP 03:54
10 6
SAM
02:43 - SAM - Sessums,Colby 26 yd field goal 9 plays, 34 yards, TOP 03:38
10 9
3rd Quarter MTS SAM
MTS
10:28 - MTS - Rankin,Zeke 31 yd field goal 4 plays, 4 yards, TOP 02:02
13 9
SAM
08:35 - SAM - Williams,Trevor 31 yd interception (Sessums,Colby kick)
13 16
4th Quarter MTS SAM
MTS
02:50 - MTS - Riles,DJ 5 yd run (Rankin,Zeke kick), 6 plays, 97 yards, TOP 02:56
20 16
SAM
00:57 - SAM - Gentry,John 3 yd run (Sessums,Colby kick), 12 plays, 72 yards, TOP 01:48
20 23

Related Headlines