Cowboy Defense Propels Another Victory

Boxscore

ALPINE, Texas — Hardin-Simmons football team evened its record at 4-4 with a 29-6 win at Sul Ross State in American Southwest Conference action Saturday afternoon in Jackson Field.

The Cowboys used the big play to take a 20-0 halftime lead. On the first drive of the game, Taylor Byrd hit Thomas Labian on a screen pass that went 77 yards for a touchdown. The two hooked up again in the second quarter, this time on a perfectly thrown pass over the top for a 64-yard touchdown to make ti 13-0.

With 1:18 to play in the half, Byrd found a wide-open Justice Baker for a 58-yard touchdown to make it 20-0 at halftime. Byrd completed four passes in the first half for 208 yards. The Cowboys went to a more conservative attack in the second half and Byrd finished the game 5-for-10 for 222 yards and three touchdowns.

HSU’s defense stymied the Sul Ross State offense for most of the game. The Lobos ran for 282 yards on 60 carries and had 28 yards passing. HSU stopped the Lobos twice on downs in the red zone. Wes Liles led the defense with 12 tackles, Paul Girard had 11 and Cooper Haralson had 10, Defensive linemen James Morgan-Hadnot, Garrison Hardin and Hank Hornsby controlled the line of scrimmage most of the game.

HSU drove the ball down into the red zone on its first drive in the second half and Alex Wymore hit a 31-yard field goal to make it 23-0 with 8:26 to play in the third quarter. Sul Ross State came back and had their only score of the game when they went 67 yards in three plays. Alex LoVan scored from four yards out and a 2-point conversion was no good for Sul Ross State.

The last score of the game came from the Cowboy defense when Roy Gamboa scooped a fumble and returned it 23 yards for a touchdown to make it 29-6 and Wymore missed the PAT.

HSU is now 4-4 overall and 3-3 in ASC action. Sul Ross State fell to 2-5, 2-3. The Cowboys will close out its home slate with a game against winless Texas Lutheran next Saturday at 2 p.m. at Shelton Stadium.



--- HSU ---