Nov. 19, 2004
The winner lands at least a share of a Southland Conference championship. Plain and simple, that's the storyline as No. 10 Sam Houston State plays host to Texas State in both teams' final regular-season game on Saturday.
Kickoff is slated for 2 p.m. at Bowers Stadium in Huntsville. The game will be broadcast on KTSW-FM 89.9 and can also be heard through College Sports Pass via Texas State's website, www.txstatebobcats.com.
Both Texas State (5-5, 3-1) and Sam Houston (8-2, 3-1), along with No. 16 Northwestern State (7-3, 3-1), are tied atop the SLC standings heading into the final week of the season. The winner of the Texas State/Sam Houston State game is assured of at least a share of the conference title. Northwestern State, which defeated Sam Houston 45-27 last week and posted a 44-7 win over Texas State a week earlier, travels to Stephen F. Austin on Saturday.
A win against SFA will give the Demons a share of the SLC championship and earn them an automatic bid to the NCAA Division I-AA Football Playoffs which begins Nov. 27.
If Northwestern State was to lose at SFA, the winner of the Texas State/Sam Houston State game would represent the SLC as the league's automatic bid recipient to the playoffs.
Sam Houston State is 6-0 at home this season including a 41-29 win over No. 7 Montana back in September at Bowers Stadium.
The Bearkats feature a high-octane, pass-oriented offense which centers around senior quarterback Dustin Long. Long, who transferred from Texas A&M for his senior year, has completed 203-of-328 passes for 3,153 yards and 30 touchdowns. He set a a school record, completing 34-of-52 passes for 577 yards and five touchdowns in the Bearkats' 52-47 win over McNeese State.
Long's leading targets are senior Jarrod Fuller and junior Jason Mathenia. Fuller has caught 66 passes for 1,000 yards and seven touchdowns while Mathenia has caught 47 passes for 958 yards and 11 scores.
While Sam Houston State's offense has generated 482 yards per game, the Bearkat defense is giving up 391 yards and an average of 23 points per game, including 92 points over the last two games.
Texas State junior quarterback Barrick Nealy is expected to start for the Bobcats after playing his first full game of the season in last week's 35-12 win over Nicholls State. In making his first start since the Bobcats' last home game against Stephen F. Austin, Nealy completed 10-of-13 passes for 186 yards and four touchdowns and ran for 97 yards and another score in the Nicholls victory.
For the year, Nealy has completed 77-of-133 passes (57.9 percent) for 1,118 yards and nine touchdowns. The Dallas native has now passed for 4,247 yards in his career, third-most in school history.
In addition to getting Nealy back healthy last week, junior wide receiver K.R. Carpenter returned from an ankle injury to catch three passes for 82 yards, including a 33-yard touchdown reception and a 40-yarder to set up another score. Also back at offensive tackle was Luke Horder who missed two games with a knee injury.
Defensively, another Texas A&M transfer leads Texas State in tackles. Senior Wade Lightsey has 43 tackles, 33 solo tackles and 20 assists. He has also been in on 3.5 tackles for loss.
One common denominator to winning a conference championship this season will be finding a way to get the job done on the road.
Southland Conference teams are 10-2 at home in league play this season. Sam Houston and Texas State are the only teams to so far win on the road.
To claim a share of the SLC title, Northwestern State will have to win its first conference game on the road this season. Sam Houston defeated Stephen F. Austin in Nacogdoches earlier this year while Texas State won at McNeese State.
Sam Houston State is 6-0 at home in Bowers Stadium. With its win over McNeese State, Texas State won on the road for the first time since September of 2001.
The Bearkats are looking for their second league championship in four years after sharing the 2001 trophy with McNeese State. It would be their third SLC championship all-time as they also shared with McNeese in 1991.
Texas State is in search of its first Southland crown. Texas State's best SLC finish was a tie for second in 2000, two games back of conference champion Troy State. Texas State's last football conference championship came in the early 1980s. The `Cat were Lone Star Conference co-champions in 1983 (6-1) and last won at outright title in 1982 (7-0).
Prior to this year, the Bobcats were a combined 2-15 in SLC play since the second-place finish in 2000. Texas State has rebounded from a 2-4 start this year to go 3-1 in conference play.
