Above photo by Russell Marwitz/True To The Cru/russellmarwitz.com
There were plenty of great matchups around the ASC on Saturday afternoon, as Week 7 unfolded. Here is a look at what went on in the conference, as eight of the nine teams were in action.
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McMurry at Austin College
In a contest between the ASC’s two winless teams, McMurry came out with the victory, taking an early 21-0 lead and holding off AC’s second-half charge for a 24-21 win.
The Warhawks came out firing on all cylinders, and scored their first touchdown on a brilliant 58-yard return after a fumble recovery by Timothy Leather. That sparked a nine-play, 94-yard drive from McMurry that spanned 4:15, and ended in a three-yard touchdown run. Long drives proved to be successful for McMurry, as the Warhawks added a nine-play, 88-yard drive early in the second quarter to make it 21-0.
To their credit, the ‘Roos of AC battled back, reaching the end zone once in each of the final three quarters. After scoring with 1:52 left in the contest, AC recovered its onside kick, and needed only a field goal to tie it. The ensuing drive went nowhere, however. In fact, AC lost four yards on three plays, and kicker John Aldridge came on with just over a minute to attempt a 54-yard field goal. His kick came up short, and McMurry pulled out a well-earned victory in Sherman.
McMurry talled 374 yards of total offense, with 218 of those coming through the air, as quarterback Dexter Wyble was 14-of-22 passing. Herman Lee led the defense, with six tackles, 1.5 for loss, and one sack.
ETBU at Hardin-Simmons
The score favored HSU by just three points, 10-7, at the half, but 17 unanswered second-half points from the 10th-ranked Cowboys paved the way to their 27-7 victory.
All three of HSU’s touchdowns came on the ground, with two from running back Colton Marshall and another from quarterback Gaylon Glynn on a fantastic 57-yard run on the first drive of the third quarter.
The HSU defense stepped up in a big way, holding ETBU to just five first downs, and a third-down conversion rate of 13 percent. The Tigers’ lone score came after a fumble in the second quarter, as ETBU needed just three plays to reach the end zone.
Joey Verett had an exceptional performance for the Tiger defense, tallying 15 tackles, 3.5 of which went for a loss. Matt Mitchell led the HSU defense, with eight tackles, and 1.5 for loss.
Marshall had 87 rushing yards on 19 attempts, and Glynn picked up 80 yards on the ground, running the ball 12 times.
Southwestern at Howard Payne
The passing attack of HPU has gotten plenty of attention as of late, but against the Pirates, the HPU rushing unit gained plenty of credibility, picking up 242 yards on the ground in a 48-17 win.
HPU remains tied with UMHB atop the league standings, as both have 5-0 conference records.
Both defenses came out of the gate strong, as HPU led 3-0 at the end of the opening quarter. But a 24-point second quarter put the game away for the Yellow Jackets, with the HPU offense putting three touchdowns on the board in just over six minutes. That included Javian Myles’ 33-yard touchdown run with 6:31 left in the first half, and was one of four rushing touchdowns on the day for the Yellow Jackets.
Billy Reagins led HPU’s offense, with 60 rushing yards on 15 carries and a touchdown. HPU quarterback Landon McKinney was 10-for-24 passing for 144 yards, with one touchdown and two interceptions. He also ran for 40 yards.
For Southwestern, quarterback Landry Gilpin was 24-for-39 with 274 passing yards. Five interceptions, however, hurt his overall stat line, as HPU turned three of those forced turnovers into points.
UMHB at Texas Lutheran
The UMHB offense scored 28 points in the first quarter, and rolled to a 45-16 victory over TLU in Seguin. It marked UMHB’s second straight road duel, and the Crusaders appeared to be an improved team, coming out strong, as they moved to 5-0 in conference play.
Quarterback Kyle King completed four touchdown passes, three of which were in the first quarter, and was 28-for-39 passing, breaking the program record for completions in a game.
Sophomore Matthew Jackson had one of the game’s shining moments, as he returned a TLU punt 95 yards up the sideline for a touchdown, breaking the previous UMHB and ASC records for the longest punt return in history. His return put UMHB up 14-0, and by halftime, the Crusaders led 35-6.
For more on that contest, check out our game story below:
ASC Standings
UMHB: 6-1, 5-0 ASC
Howard Payne: 6-1, 5-0 ASC
Hardin-Simmons: 5-1, 3-1 ASC
Sul Ross State: 2-4, 2-2 ASC
ETBU: 2-4, 2-3 ASC
Southwestern: 2-4, 1-3 ASC
Texas Lutheran: 2-4, 1-3 ASC
McMurry: 1-6, 1-4 ASC
Austin: 0-6, 0-4 ASC
Week 8 Schedule
Texas Lutheran @ McMurry, 1 p.m.
Austin @ ETBU, 1 p.m.
Hardin-Simmons @ Southwestern, 1 p.m.
Sul Ross State @ UMHB, 1 p.m.
