SAN MARCOS, Texas – Despite career days from several offensive players, the Texas State Bobcats (2-7, 1-4 SBC) dropped a shootout against the New Mexico State Aggies (4-5, 2-3 SBC), 45-35 at Bobcat Stadium on Saturday afternoon, November 4.

Texas State marched 75 yards down the field in nine plays on the opening drive of the game as Elijah King came up big with four catches for 44 yards and the Bobcats used a bit of trickery to take an early 7-0 lead.  Jaylin Nelson lined up at quarterback in the Wildcat formation with Damian Williams split out at wide receiver. Nelson took the snap, rolled left, flipped it back to Hutch White. White, a receiver by trade, took the pitch and scrambled towards the right sideline before finding Gabe Schrade in the flat for the score. James Sherman added the extra point to give TXST its first lead. White has now tossed a pair of scores this season while Schrade has registered a touchdown catch in two consecutive contests.

On the ensuing drive, New Mexico State answered with a touchdown drive of its own. Tyler Rogers was able to find some holes in the defensive secondary, connecting Jaleel Scott on a pair of long hookups. The second reception went for 36 yards and set the Aggies up inside the Bobcat five-yard line. On the next play, Rogers took the snap and plunged up the middle for a two-yard touchdown run. Dylan Brown tacked on the extra point to even the score at 7-7.

Continuing the offensive domination, Texas State went 11 plays for 75 yards and a second straight score in the first frame.  The Bobcats were balanced in the attack, hitting on several run-pass-option (RPO) plays.  Williams found King, his go-to receiver early in the game, for an 11-yard score on a slant route as TXST regained the advantage, 14-7, following Foster Hilborn's point after conversion.

Midway through the second quarter the Aggies found the end zone again when they drove 81 yards in just three plays.  Rogers connected on a back shoulder fade route with Scott down the left sideline for 31 yards.  The next play Rogers found Jonathan Boone on a deep crossing post route.  Boone scampered into the end zone, untouched, for 44 yards.  The point after was true, tying the game for the second time at 14-14.

As expected in the back-and-forth nature of the game throughout the first half, Texas State answered immediately with a touchdown. On the second play of its next drive, Tyler Watts took a reverse pitch and darted down the left sideline. Watts picked up a handful of key blocks and headed towards the end zone. He had one man to beat, which he did with a slick spin move for a 76-yard run.  Hilborn added the extra point, giving TXST a 21-14 lead. The 76-yard play was the longest play from scrimmage for Texas State this season. 

New Mexico State would tack on a 35-yard field goal from Brown before the end of the second quarter as the Bobcats led, 21-17, at halftime.

In the second half, the Aggies drove 81 yards in just five plays on their second drive to regain a 24-21 lead. Quarterback Tyler Rogers put on a clinic, accounting for all 81 yards on the drive. He hit on all four of his passes, including connections of 12, 14 and 26 yards. Finally, Rogers found Anthony Muse wide open on a corner route. Muse tiptoed the sideline and found the end zone from 29 yards out.  Brown drilled the point after attempt, giving New Mexico State the lead for the first time in the game.

The Aggies extended their lead following an interception of Damian Williams when they took advantage of the short field, going 49 yards in five plays.  The drive culminated with a 22-yard strike to Jaleel Scott from Nick Jeanty after Rogers was injured two plays prior to touchdown. The touchdown was his first pass attempt of the season. 

The Bobcats were up to the task offensively. Williams led a great 10-play 82-yard drive. Anthony Smith was able to break loose with a pair of 10-yard runs and King snagged two passes for 29 yards on the drive. The final play of the drive was a 13-yard connection with Watts. The speedy wide out broke open on a wheel route after motioning across the formation. Hilborn tacked on the extra point, cutting the NMSU lead to 31-28 at the end of the third quarter.

Two years removed from being the Sun Belt Conference Offensive Player of the Year, Larry Rose III made his presence felt early in the fourth quarter. On the opening play of a four-play 75-yard touchdown drive, Rose took a short pass from Rogers and dashed down the sideline for a 68-yard gain. Three plays later Rose punched it in from one yard out to extended the lead to 38-28.

The Bobcats went to their bag of tricks once more when Willie Jones III took the snap and handed to running back Jaylin Nelson on what appeared to be an outside zone play. Nelson popped up and threw the ball downfield to a wide open Caleb Twyford, who took the ball 69 yards for a touchdown. It was the first touchdown play for both Bobcats. Hilborn added the extra point to pull Texas State to within 38-35 with 9:02 left to play in the game.

However, the Aggies answered that score with another impressive drive.  Rogers connected on 5-of-6 passes for 80 yards and a score.  The biggest play came on a third down in which he found Muse on a 40-yard post.  A handful of plays later Rogers found OJ Clark in the flat.  Clark dove towards the pylon for a 14-yard touchdown reception.  The point after sealed the victory for the Aggies, 45-35.

For the second straight week, Damian Williams set career highs across the board in the passing game.  The graduate transfer hit on 31-of-47 pass attempts for 321 yards and a pair of scores.  He did toss one interception and coughed up a pair of fumbles. 

Elijah King nearly set the school record with his career-best 11 receptions, keeping him one shy of the school mark. He also set a career-high 129 yards and had one touchdown. Tyler Watts tied his career-mark with eight grabs, 161 total scrimmage yards and a pair of scores.

Bryan London III paced the defensive effort with 13 tackles (12 solos, one assist).  Gabe Loyd also notched double-digit stops, securing 10 tackles (eight solos, two assists) and a sack.

Texas State will stay at home next Saturday, November 11, as hosts to Georgia State. The Sun Belt Conference contest will mark the final home game of the 2017 season for the Bobcats. Kick is scheduled for 3 p.m. on Saturday afternoon with the game broadcast on ESPN3.