ABILENE – Lamar University spotted Abilene Christian University a 3-0 first-quarter lead, then scored 31 unanswered points en route to a 38-10 Southland Conference victory over the Wildcats Saturday night at Shotwell Stadium.
Wildcat nemesis Kade Harrington ran for 145 yards and one touchdown to help Lamar keep ACU winless on the season (0-6 overall and 0-4 in conference play). Carson Earp completed 16 of 19 passes for 211 yards and a touchdown in leading the Cardinals to a 2-3 record overall and 2-1 in the Southland. Lamar's league-leading pass defense limited ACU's nationally ranked pass offense to 119 yards through the air.
Harrington has rushed for 635 yards in his last three games against the Wildcats, including a league record 347 in 2015. He added two catches for 89 yards and a score against ACU on Saturday, good for 234 all-purpose yards.
Zae Giles added 87 yards on the ground and scored two of the Cardinals' four rushing touchdowns.
De'Andre Brown ran for 49 of ACU's 187 rushing yards. The Wildcats' lone TD came on a 7-yard pass from
Parker McKenzie to
Cody Ennis in the third quarter.
The Wildcats are on the road to play Southland Conference leader Sam Houston State University next Saturday at 3 p.m. Lamar hosts Northwestern State University at 6 p.m.
SCORING DRIVES
- 1Q (12:34) – A 22-yard field goal by Nik Grau put the Wildcats on the scoreboard first, capping a quick opening drive with two big plays covering 66 yards to start the game. ACU 3, Lamar 0 (Drive: 6 plays, 69 yards, 2:26)
- 2Q (13:03) – Although he's a wide receiver, sophomore Zae Giles started the drive with a 21-yard run and finished it with a 38-yarder to put the Cardinals on the scoreboard. Lamar 7, ACU 3 (Drive: 9 plays, 81 yards, 4:29)
- 2Q (5:28) – Alex Ball's 21-yard field goal capped a Lamar drive, making up for a 47-yarder the Wildcats blocked late in the first quarter. Lamar 10, ACU 3 (Drive: 14 plays, 76 yards, 6:18)
- 2Q (0:43) – Zae Giles caught a 7-yard scoring pass from sophomore quarterback Carson Earp, three plays after a Wildcat offsides penalty on an attempted field goal gave Lamar a first-and-goal gift deep in ACU territory. Lamar 17, ACU 3 (Drive: 9 plays, 84 yards, 3:25)
- 3Q (10:04) – An interception by senior cornerback Brendan Langley gave Lamar the ball at the Wildcat 32-yard line. Kade Harrington's 29-yard catch-and-run play put wide receiver DeWan Thompson in position to run 7 yards for a Cardinal touchdown. Lamar 24, ACU 3 (Drive: 3 plays, 32 yards, 1:36)
- 3Q (10:04) – Kade Harrington's 28-yard run up the middle put Lamar further ahead. Lamar 31, ACU 3 (Drive: 8 plays, 76 yards, 4:33)
- 3Q (00:10) – Freshman wide receiver Josh Fink dropped sure scoring passes on first and second downs before sophomore tight end Cody Ennis caught a 7-yarder from Parker McKenzie to give ACU its first points since the opening drive of the game. McKenzie passed or rushed himself on 10 of the drive's 12 plays. Lamar 31, ACU 10 (Drive: 12 plays, 61 yards, 2:36)
- 4Q (12;05) – Austin Krautz ran untouched up the middle for 19 yards and Lamar's final touchdown. Lamar 38, ACU 10 (Drive: 12 plays, 61 yards, 2:36)
PLAYS THAT MATTERED
- • ACU opened the game with two big plays: a 23-yard pass from Parker McKenzie to junior H-back Trevor Crain and a 43-yard run by freshman wide receiver Justin Miller.
- • Senior defensive tackle Josh Bloom blocked Alex Ball's attempted 47-yard field goal with 5:05 left in the first quarter.
- • An offensive pass interference penalty wiped out a 59-yard touchdown pass from McKenzie to redshirt freshman wide receiver D.J. Fuller with 3:10 left in the first quarter.
- • Kade Harrington's 60-yard catch-and-run just before halftime was a potential back-breaker for the Wildcats. The senior bounced off tackles and sped away down the left sideline until caught at the ACU 18-yard line.
- • An offsides penalty on ACU with 1:39 left in the first half – as the Cardinals were lining up for a field goal attempt – gave Lamar a first down on the Wildcat 7-yard-line. Three plays later, the visitors scored their second touchdown of the night.
- • Following an ACU turnover, Harrington's 29-yard catch-and-run in the third quarter put his team in position to score again, building its lead to 24-3.
- • On fourth-and-1 from the ACU 45-yard line, Lamar quarterback Earp ran five yards for a first down, but a Wildcat penalty (sideline interference) advanced the ball to the ACU 29. Harrington ran for a TD on the next play to pad its lead to 31-3.
WILDCAT PLAYERS OF THE GAME
Offense
De'Andre Brown's 49 yards of rushing led ACU's resurgent running game, which totaled 187 yards after several lackluster weeks this season.
Defense
Senior free safety
Richard Griffin III tied junior linebacker
Sam Denmark in tackles with nine each; eight of Griffin's were solo. Senior defensive tackle
Josh Bloom blocked a Cardinal field goal in the first quarter.
QUOTABLE
- "Lamar did a good job against us defensively. The disappointing thing is that I feel like we put our guys in position to make plays, but we just didn't make enough of them. We had way too many dropped balls and overthrows. We just weren't very sharp in the passing game." – ACU head coach Ken Collums
NOTABLE
- • Lamar entered the game with the Southland Conference's best pass defense (186.6 yards per game) and having intercepted seven passes. The Cardinals held ACU to 48 passing yards in the first half.
- • Each of Lamar's first three opponents – Coastal Carolina (16th in FBS), Houston (sixth in FBS) and Sam Houston State (third in FCS) – were nationally rnaked.
- • Lamar senior runningback Kade Harrington rushed for a combined 490 yards in his two previous games against ACU, one a 347-yard confereence record last year in a 44-28 win at home in Beaumont.
- • Despite its 0-5 record, ACU entered the game nationally ranked (FCS) in three categories: 14th in passing offense (305.6 yards per game), 29th total offense (428.8 yards per game) and tied for 38th in scoring offense (30.8 per game). The Cardinals limited ACU to 119 yards passing and 306 yards of total offense.
- • ACU's 3-0 advantage heading into the second quarter tonight was its first lead after the first quarter all season. They didn't score again until 10 seconds remained in the third quarter.
- • Lamar led ACU in total yards (327 to 161) while building a 17-3 lead in the first half. The Cardinals gave up just 145 yards of Wildcat offense in the second half.
NEXT GAME
Southland Conference play continues for both teams next Saturday. ACU travels to Huntsville for a 3 p.m. game with Sam Houston State University at Bowers Stadium and Lamar hosts Northwestern State University at 6 p.m. in Provost Umphrey Stadium.
