BOWLING GREEN, Ky. — Sam Houston could not slow down Western Kentucky's passing attack in a 41-24 loss at Houchens-Smith Stadium in the season opener on Saturday evening.
The Bearkats gave up more than 400 yards through the air and played mostly from behind in head coach Phil Longo's Sam Houston debut. Quarterback
Hunter Watson and running back
Alton McCaskill combined to rush for more than 150 yards to lead the Kats offensively.
The Hilltoppers wasted no time breaking a scoreless tie, finding the end zone on their second possession of the game. Quarterback Maverick McIvor, who was 33 for 51 for 401 yards and three touchdowns, found Matthew Henry for a 26-yard scoring pass to make it 7-0 midway through the opening quarter.
The Bearkat went three and out once again on their next possession, but
Adrian Murdaugh took advantage of a WKU mistake on a muffed punt and recovered it to put Sam Houston in business. The Hilltoppers dug in to force a 41-yard field goal attempt by
RJ Lopez who split the uprights to cut the lead to 7-3.
Sam Houston began to move the ball after that only to come up empty on a 43-yard field goal attempt minutes later. The defense stood strong again and held WKU to a punt.
Watson then made the Toppers pay when he took a quarterback draw untouched up the middle for a 55-yard touchdown run to put the Kats up 10-7 to begin the second quarter.
WKU scored 13 unanswered points to take a 20-10 lead into halftime, but the Bearkats started the third quarter on fire.
Running back
Alton McCaskill took a handoff off up the middle, broke a few tackles then raced his way for a 52-yard gain deep into Hilltopper territory. After a key unnecessary roughness penalty, McCaskill capped the drive with a 2-yard touchdown plunge.
It didn't take long for Sam Houston to go back on top. Jamair Diaz scooped up a fumble forced by
Alonzo Edwards Jr., and took it 43 yards for the go-ahead score to make it 24-20 moments later.
Western Kentucky didn't make another mistake. The Hilltoppers scored 14 straight to retake the lead and capped the evening with another touchdown following a Watson interception, the Kats' only turnover of the game, for the final score.
Sam Houston returns to action Friday when UNLV comes to Houston for a clash at Shell Energy Stadium. Kickoff is set for 8:30 p.m.
POSTGAME NOTES
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Hunter Watson's 55-yard touchdown run in the second quarter marked the second run of 50+ yards in his Bearkat career. His career long was a 67-yard touchdown vs NM State in 2024
- Of the 22 starters between offense and defense, 10 were newcomers to the Bearkat roster. That number included 7 on the defensive side of the ball
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Alton McCaskill had a 52-yard rush on the opening drive of the second half, capping the drive with a 2-yard dive into the end zone. It was his first touchdown since the 2021 season at Houston with the 52-yarder being a collegiate long, surpassing his previous long rush of 36 yards in that same 2021 season
- The game was the first time since 2022 at Tarleton that the Bearkats had multiple rushes of 50 or more yards in a single game
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Alonzo Edwards Jr. Forced a fumble and
JaMair Diaz returned it 43 yards for a touchdown in the third quarter to give the Kats the lead. It marked the 20th consecutive game for the SHSU defense to force a turnover, and was the first fumble recovery for a touchdown since Tony Williams recovered a fumble for a score at Eastern Kentucky in 2022
