ABILENE, Texas —  No. 10 Hardin-Simmons rolled to its 17th straight Homecoming victory Saturday afternoon, routing Howard Payne 69-14 at Shelton Stadium to open American Southwest Conference play.

Senior quarterback Kyle Brown led a relentless Cowboys offense that piled up 708 total yards, throwing for 351 yards and four touchdowns while adding another score on the ground. HSU (4-0, 1-0 ASC) scored touchdowns on its first three possessions and never looked back, extending its series-winning streak over HPU to 19 straight games.

It was a career-high passing day for Brown.

Brown hit Wes Douglas twice for touchdowns — part of Douglas' 104-yard day on four receptions — and connected with Dozie Ifeadi for a 90-yard strike, the longest play of the season for the Cowboys. Noah Garcia added a receiving touchdown, while Guy Powell and Keagan Ables each ran for scores.

HSU led 31-7 at halftime and kept its foot on the gas, scoring 38 points in the second half. The Cowboys converted 11 of 15 third downs, did not punt in the game, and went 5-for-5 in the red zone.

The defense joined the highlight reel, holding Howard Payne (2-3, 0-1 ASC) to 249 yards and forcing the game's lone turnover — a 30-yard interception return for a touchdown by linebacker Kaiden Roden. Hayden Hays led the defense with five tackles and three tackles for loss, while Kade Sink added five stops and two tackles for loss.

HPU running back Blessing Ngene broke free for a 67-yard touchdown run in the second quarter and finished with 110 yards on 10 carries. Quarterback Kahliq Paulette threw for 56 yards and a touchdown to Mateo Hernandez, who caught a 12-yard scoring pass in the fourth quarter.

Kicker Pedro Altamirano went 9-for-9 on PATs and hit field goals of 47 and 32 yards for HSU. The Cowboys dominated time of possession (35:03 to 24:57) and outgained the Yellow Jackets 708-249.

Hardin-Simmons will stay home next Saturday to host Mary Hardin-Baylor in a marquee ASC matchup.

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