East Texas Baptist (3-3, 1-0, ASC) at 7/7 Hardin-Simmons (4-0, 1-0, ASC)

 
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Opening Kickoff
Hardin-Simmons will celebrate homecoming this weekend and hosts East Texas Baptist in a 1 p.m. American Southwest Conference game. The Cowboys have won 17 straight Homecoming games. It is the eighth time since 2003 that ETBU has been the Homecoming opponent. HSU comes into the game ranked No. 7 in the nation and is 4-0 on the year. ETBU, joins HSU and Mary Hardin-Baylor, as the only undefeated team in league play after one week. ETBU is 3-3 overall and 1-0 in league play.

The Series
Hardin-Simmons leads the all-time series against East Texas Baptist 25-2 and is a perfect 13-0 against the Tigers in Abilene. The Cowboys have won 11 straight games against ETBU, dating back to the 2015 "Mud Bowl" in Marshall. During that stretch, HSU has won every game by double figures with an average margin of victory of 30.2 points.

Up Next
Hardin-Simmons steps out of conference play for the final time this season when it travels to face Nelson University (formerly Southwestern Assemblies of God University) at 1 p.m. in Waxahachie. The Cowboys are 2-0 all-time against the Lions and earned a 68-14 victory in Abilene last season.

In The Polls
Hardin-Simmons remained No. 7 in both the D3football.com Top 25 and the American Football Coaches Association poll. The Cowboys have been ranked for 135 consecutive weeks, including 76 straight weeks in the top 10. HSU owns the nation's third-longest active ranking streak. North Central leads the way with 231 consecutive weeks, followed by Saint John's at 146. Wheaton ranks fourth with 89 consecutive weeks. HSU was also ranked No. 2 in the first NCAA NPI rankings of the season. The NPI rankings are used to select and seed teams for the NCAA playoffs.
 
A Cowboy Win Would
• Be the 533nd victory in school history.
• Be the 12th straight win over ETBU and improve the all-time series record to 26-2.
• Be the 121st win of the Jesse Burleson era.
• Mark the 18th straight homecoming victory and improve the Cowboys to 51-13-5 all-time on homecoming.
• Extend HSU's October winning streak to 25 games.

Streaks
• HSU has won 24 straight games in October, dating back to Oct. 26, 2019. The last October loss came on a walk-off field goal by Mary Hardin-Baylor.
• The Cowboys are 25-1 in their last 25 conference games.
• HSU has won its conference opener 13 times in the last 14 seasons following last week's victory at McMurry.
• HSU has won 13 straight games at home against ETBU.
• Opponents have not scored a touchdown on their first possession of the second half in 35 consecutive games. During that stretch, the Cowboys have forced eight turnovers in that situation. The only points allowed on an opponent's opening second-half drive during that span came on a field goal by Chapman earlier this season.

Last Time Out
The Cowboys forced five second-half turnovers, blocked a punt that was recovered at the one and returned an interception for a touchdown in a 48-17 win at McMurry. HSU dominated for most of the first half but two fumbles and an interception allowed McMurry to have a 10-7 halftime lead. HSU had 280 yards to 70 in the first half. In the second half, it was a total dominating effort for the Cowboys. ETBU beat Schreiner, 62-28, to move to 3-3 on the year. The Tigers are averaging 50 points per game but allow 34.2 points per contest.

Welcome To the Hall of Fame
The game caps a busy week for HSU Athletics as Mychal Carrillo, Will Wagner, Tyler Brunnemann and Rachel Goold will be inducted into the Hardin-Simmons Athletic Hall of Fame on Friday night. Carrillo was one of the top receivers in a long line of Cowboy greats. He was a three-time all-ASC selection including two-times on the first team and was named a first-team all-American as a senior. He finished his career with 3,292 receiving yards, one of just three Cowboys to go over 3,000 yards for his career. He also ranks third in career receptions with 265 and is tied in receiving touchdowns with 38. He ranks fifth in all-purpose yards for the Cowboys. His 40 total touchdowns rank sixth all-time. Wagner is one of the top defensive backs in the history of the school and holds the all-time record for interceptions in a career with 23. He played in 47 career games for the Cowboys and was a four-year starter. He was twice named to the all-TIAA team and was an all-American. Wagner led all four of his teams to the NAIA playoffs.

Tsunami Warning
The Cowboys trailed 10-7 at halftime, but totally dominated the second half. Starting on the first possession Colyn Donnelly strip sacked and Lucas Ragsdale recovered. HSU tied the game with a 37-yard field goal by Pedro Altamirano. Ragsdale intercepted Jess Hoel and returned it to the 1-yard line. Nate Rodriguez scored on the next play. The defense forced a punt and Dylan Hardin returned it 75 yards for a score. Phillip Meyers then intercepted Carson Roper in the end zone. Altamirano hit again from 51 and HSU went up 27-10. It continued with a blocked punt, recovered at the 1-yard line, a Harrison Foster interception return for a touchdown and a Foster forced fumble at the goal line that Keyon House recovered.

No. 1 Rush Defense In The Country
The Cowboys have the No. 1 rush defense in the country heading into the week. They are allowing just 29.8 yards per game on the ground (113 net yards) and are limiting opponents to 1.2 yards per rush. The Cowboys have not allowed a rush longer than 17 yards this season. The Cowboys are ranked 38th in the nation in scoring defense allowing 15.3 yards per game.

Sack Attack
The Cowboys added four more sacks last week and are up to 16 on the year. They have had exactly four sacks in all four games. Kaiden Roden leads the way with 3.5 for 11 yards and freshmen Tyett Morris has 2.5 sacks for 20 yards. HSU ranks fourth in the nation in sacks and fifth nationally with 9.5 tackles per loss per game.

Five Turnovers
The Cowboys went into the game on Saturday with just one turnover forced on the year. That changed with five against McMurry. HSU is now -1 year in turnover margin. 

Big Day For QRF
The Cowboys quick reaction forces group had a huge day on Saturday against McMurry across the board.
• 37.3 yards per punt return with a 75-yard TD.
• Blocked Punt – recovered at the 1-yard line.
• Seven touchbacks on nine kickoffs.
• 2-of-2 on field goals, including a 51-yader
• 6-of-6 on PATs
• 47.5-yard punting average.
• 23.5-yard average on two kickoff returns.

Between The 20s
The first half was deceptive because of three turnovers: a Harison Brockway fumble at the McMurry 24-yard line, a Ty Thompson interception and a Cayden Jones fumble at the McMurry 5. HSU also dropped a potential touchdown on fourth down during the opening drive. The Cowboys totaled 280 first-half yards and converted 8 of 10 third-down opportunities but had only seven points to show for it. In the second half, HSU consistently benefited from short fields and finished with 426 total yards, 48 points and 282 rushing yards. The Cowboys rank 17th nationally in total offense at 468.3 yards per game and 12th in scoring offense at 44.5 points per contest.

Hardin To The House
Dylan Hardin returned a punt 75 yards for a touchdown and also had an 85-yard punt return wiped out by a penalty. He now has both a punt-return and kickoff-return touchdown this season. Hardin ranks first nationally with a 27.5-yard punt-return average. He also averages 39.3 yards per kickoff return but does not have enough attempts to qualify for the NCAA statistical rankings. If qualified, he would rank third nationally. Hardin earned his second ASC Special Teams Player of the Week honor.

Foster Earns Second Campbell Trophy Honor
Harrison Foster has been named a semifinalist for the William V. Campbell Trophy, awarded by the National Football Foundation and College Football Hall of Fame to the nation's top scholar-athlete. Finalists will be announced Oct. 21. Foster previously earned ASC Man of the Year honors and was recognized as an AP All-American, College Sports Communicators Academic All-American, ASC Distinguished Scholar-Athlete for football and HSU's recipient of the ASC Medal of Honor. The award is given the top scholar-athlete and combines academic success, football performance and exemplary leadership. He had a 3.90 GPA in finance and is pursuing an MBA. Against McMurry, he recorded his third career interception return for a touchdown, including his second 97-yard return, forced a fumble at the goal line and totaled seven tackles. He was named to the D3football.com Team of the Week.

Big Leg For Pedro
Pedro Altamirano continues to build an impressive résumé and was named to the Fred Mitchell Award Watch List, which recognizes the nation's top kicker across all levels of college football. Altamirano is 8-for-9 on field goals this season and connected on a 51-yard field goal Saturday, the second-longest in HSU history. His lone miss was a 52-yard attempt that struck the upright. He is also 22-for-22 on PATs this season, while 24 of his 35 kickoffs have resulted in touchbacks. He ranks second nationally in touchbacks. His 18th career field goal moved him into a tie for fourth place in school history with Brian Beddow. Altamirano needs three more field goals to tie the school record of 21, shared by Pogue and Mark Smith. For his career, Altamirano is 18-for-21 on field goals, and his 85.7 percent conversion rate ranks as the best in school history. He was also named to the D3football.com Team of the Week.

First Time Touchdowns
The Cowboys had two players scored their first career touchdowns on Saturday. Nate Rodriguez scored the big man touchdown on the tush push. He also pushed Keagan Ables into the end zone on the same formation later in the game. Freshman Tank Scott scored his first career touchdown on a 36-yard run on Saturday. HSU has had nine different players score a rushing touchdown this season and 14 different players have found the end zone.  

About ETBU
The Tigers bring one of the nation's most explosive offenses into Saturday's game. ETBU ranks fifth nationally in scoring offense at 50.0 points per game and fifth in total offense at 513.3 yards per contest. Paul Woodward leads the way, averaging 206.5 all-purpose yards per game, which ranks second nationally. He averages 25.4 yards per kickoff return and ranks second nationally with 901 rushing yards. Woodward leads the nation with 12 rushing touchdowns and averages 9.2 yards per carry. His 90 points also lead the country. Quarterback Jack Crawford has thrown for 1,503 yards, ranking seventh nationally. He also ranks eighth in yards per completion at 16.7 and sixth in passing efficiency. Defensively, the Tigers have struggled. They rank 211th out of 242 teams in total defense, allowing 426.2 yards per game, and 188th in scoring defense, surrendering 34.2 points per contest. ETBU has scored 44, 54 and 36 points in its three losses this season, but has allowed 45, 61 and 50 points in those games. Rayvon Sauls leads the Tigers with 50 tackles, while the defense has recorded 12 sacks this season.
 
 

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