Nov. 3, 2007

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SAN MARCOS - Texas State scored 24 second-half points while the Bobcat defense forced Southeastern Louisiana to settle for a Southland Conference record six field goals as the Bobcats (4-5, 3-2 SLC) won their third straight game with a 45-31 win over the Lions (2-7, 1-4 SLC) Saturday night.

Karrington Bush ran for 179 yards on only 20 carries while Stan Zwinggi added 71 yards and two scores to pace the Bobcat offense, while Bradley George completed 12-of-24 passes for 186 yards and two more touchdowns in the win.

Jeff Turner's six field goals summed up a frustrating day for the Lions' offense, as half of his kicks came from within 25 yards thanks to tough red zone defense by the Bobcats. Jay Lucas gained 130 yards on 19 carries for the Lions while also scoring SLU's only two touchdowns, but he was limited to only 31 rushing yards in the second half. Brian Babin also completed 23 passes for 292 yards but failed to find a receiver in the end zone.

After the Bobcats went three-and-out on their first possession, SLU struck first with an eight play, 70-yard drive. Lucas rushed six times for 52 yards on the drive, including a touchdown from two yards out to make it 7-0 Lions with 9:19 left in the opening quarter.

Bush wasted no time answering, taking a handoff on Texas State's first play to the left side, breaking two tackles and outrunning the rest of the SLU defense for an 80-yard touchdown that tied the game at 7-7 while taking only 13 seconds off the game clock.

Another Bobcat punt coupled with Eric Jackson's 23-yard return set the Lions up with good field position at the Texas State 37. An 11-yard completion to Lucas on third-and-10 kept the drive alive, as SLU marched down to the three before settling for a 20-yard field goal by Jeff Turner with 53 seconds on the first quarter clock.

Texas State took its first lead of the game on its next possession thanks to some gutsy play-calling, as the Bobcats converted two fourth downs. The first came on a fourth-and-2 from the SLU 42 when Bush took a pitch right for four yards, and the second came seven plays later on a fourth-and-two from the 19 where Zwinggi ran up the middle for five yards. After the first down, Zwinggi got the call again, this time cutting left and finding paydirt from 14 yards out to cap a 14 play, 76-yard drive that took up 6:34 and made it 14-10 Texas State with just over nine minutes left in the first half.

SLU retook the lead by going 59 yards in only three plays, 30 of which came on Lucas' second touchdown run of the half. The Lions missed the extra point attempt but still held a 16-14 lead with 7:53 on the clock.

A 61-yard punt by Chris MacDonald pinned the Lions at their own four on SLU's next possession, but a 67-yard pass down from Babin down the left sideline to Ross coupled with a 20-yard pass to Lui Sobalvarro on the next play had the Lions knocking at the door for another score. The `Cats defense held though, forcing another Turner field goal, this time from 24 yards, that extended SLU's lead to 19-14 with 4:01 remaining in the half.

Cameron Luke gave the Bobcats the lead back before half, hauling in a 34-yard pass from George with 2:07 in the half to put the `Cats up 21-19. The pass was George's longest since hooking up with Luke for a 42-yard touchdown against Stephen F. Austin and capped a three-play, 68-yard drive that took only 50 seconds to complete and left only 2:07 left on the clock.

The lead would fail to hold before the half ended though as SLU kicked its third field goal of the half, this one from 43 yards with 18 seconds left in the half, after moving 26 yards downfield to set up the score in eight plays.

SLU opened the second half with another scoring drive resulting in a field goal as Turner connected on a 47-yard attempt to set a new career long. The kick extended the Lions' lead to 25-21 after a six play drive covering 26 yards in 2:27.

George guided Texas State to points on its first possession of the second half as well, passing for 63 yards, 42 coming on a long throw to Luke, as part of a nine-play drive that covered 72 total yards and ended with a touchdown when George completed a 10-yard pass to Alvin Canady with 7:58 left in the third quarter. The touchdown gave Texas State a 28-25 lead.

After an SLU punt, the Bobcats tried to mount a drive to extend their lead, but MacDonald was stuffed for a loss on a fourth-and-one fake punt call at the Texas State 37-yard line. The Lions took over on offense and put together another short drive, moving 30 yards to the Bobcat five yard line but settling for another field goal, this time from 22 yards, to tie the game at 28-28 with 12:12 remaining in the game.

Texas State took its next possession into Lion territory at the SLU 28, but a pair of incompletions and a six-yard loss left the Bobcats attempting a 52-yard field goal. Ireland connected, tying the school record for longest field goal and giving the lead back to the `Cats with 9:28 to play.

Turner continued the fourth quarter kicking battle for SLU with a 47-yarder on the Lions' next possession. The kick marked his sixth of the game, setting a new Southland Conference record for field goals in a game and tying the game again at 31-31 midway through the fourth.

Momentum and the lead swung back to Texas State on the Bobcats' ensuing possession when Zwinggi ran left for 48 yards to the end zone for the eventual game-winner with 5:26 left in the game. The run capped a five-play, 66-yard drive where all 66 yards came via the running game.

With the Lions still looking to tie the game and plenty of time left on the clock, Ireland's squib kick was fumbled by Sobalvarro and recovered by Courtney Smith at the SLU 36-yard line. The Bobcats churned out a seven-play drive that resulted in a five-yard touchdown run by Blake Burton and chewed up nearly four minutes of the game clock, leaving the Lions with only 1:37 left in the game to score twice.

SLU drove 36 yards in three plays looking to score, but Daniel Varvel sealed the win with an interception, allowing Texas State to run out the final 1:09.

The Bobcats next head to Thibodaux for one of their most difficult road games of the season as Texas State will try to reclaim victory in the Battle for the Paddle against No. 19 Nicholls State. Kickoff is scheduled for 2:00 p.m.