Stephen F. Austin
Houston Baptist
Lumberjacks Roar Past Huskies, 55-20, on Senior Day
11/14/2015 12:00:00 AM | Football
NACOGDOCHES, Texas – Behind nearly 700 yards of total offense and a 28-point third quarter, Stephen F. Austin pulled away en route to a 55-20 win over Houston Baptist on Senior Day at Homer Bryce Stadium. SFA improves to 4-6 on the season and 4-4 in Southland Conference play, winning four of its last five games.
“I thought we did a lot of things well tonight and certainly pleased with the effort,” said head coach Clint Conque. “Any time you can put up nearly 700 yards of total offense, and then have your defense make the type of plays that they did, you’ll put yourself in a good position to win. I’m happy for these seniors as it is special to be able to win in your final home game, and we’ve got a little bit of momentum going now as we finish out the season.”
SFA mounted a very balanced offensive attack against HBU, throwing for 355 yards and rushing for 343 in the win, averaging just shy of nine yards per play. Defensively, the Lumberjacks held the Huskies to just 322 total yards and registering a defensive touchdown for the second-straight home game.
Quarterback Zach Conque paced the offensive attack, completing 20 of his 30 attempts for 270 yards and three touchdowns, playing less than three quarters. Conque also rushed for two touchdowns, racking up 53 rushing yards as he accounted for 323 yards of total offense and five scores.
Three Lumberjack rushers kept HBU off balance, led by Loren Easly’s 112 yards on the afternoon – his third 100-yard rushing performance of the season. Jacolby Whitaker posted his most productive outing as a Lumberjack, running for a career-best 88 yards and a touchdown, with Joshawa West adding 82 yards on the ground for the ‘Jacks.
10 different receivers recorded at least one catch for SFA as Justice Liggins hauled in a team-high four catches for 26 yards and a touchdown. De’Quann Ruffin led the ‘Jacks in total yards with 66 on three catches while Aaron Piper tallied 57 yards on three receptions with a touchdown as well. Easly and Robert Sylvester both had three catches apiece with Judah Jones catching two balls for 27 yards and a score.
Defensively, SFA posted eight tackles for loss and two sacks on the night, led by Justin Owens’ team-best nine tackles. Trevon Smith added five stops and a 32-yard pick-six to help solidify the win as John Franklin and Mitchell Zimmerle each recorded sacks on the night to complement their five tackles.
Mason Juhl also had another solid showing in the kicking game, making two of his three field goal attempts and knocking
Looking to build some momentum in the final home game of the season, SFA came out firing as the Lumberjacks marched 72 yards on their opening drive, capped by a 10 yard strike from Conque to Jones to give SFA the early 7-0 lead.
The Lumberjacks were looking to add more on their ensuing drive, but a fumble deep in HBU territory thwarted swung momentum in the Huskies favor as HBU turned around and went 72 yards for a score to tie the game at 7-7 at the end of the first quarter.
Juhl punched through a pair of field goals in the second quarter, connecting from 38 and 39 yards on back-to-back possessions, then Conque connected with Liggins from eight yards out to extend SFA’s lead to two scores at 20-7. HBU would trim the halftime lead to 10, delivering on a 27-yard field goal in the final minute to cut the lead to 20-10.
SFA then used a 28-point third quarter to break the game open behind a pair of rushing touchdowns from Conque. The junior punched in a one-yard attempt, followed by a 40-yard scamper down the near sideline, then connected on a 34-yard strike to Piper, giving the ‘Jacks the 41-13 lead with 4:23 remaining in the third quarter.
That would end Conque’s night as the SFA reserves grabbed the baton and kept on running. Whitaker recorded his first collegiate touchdown on an eight-yard rush to end the third as the ‘Jacks held a comfortable 48-13 lead after three.
It was the defense’s turn in the fourth as Smith put the exclamation point on the win, intercepting HBU’s Max Staver at the 32-yard line and returning it back for his first collegiate score, extending SFA’s lead to 55-13. A late Husky touchdown rounded out the scoring as the ‘Jacks celebrated the 55-20 victory.
SFA improves to 2-0 all-time against HBU as the Huskies are in their second season in the Southland Conference. The win gives SFA a 3-2 record at Homer Bryce Stadium in 2015, the seventh-straight season the Lumberjacks have finished with a winning record at home and the 29th time in the 43 years SFA has played between the hills.
Up next for SFA is the annual Battle for Chief Caddo with border rival Northwestern State. 2015 marks the 50th battle for the Chief, the largest traveling trophy in sports, as kickoff between the Lumberjacks and Demons is set for 3 p.m. Saturday, November 21st at Turpin Stadium in Natchitoches, Louisiana.
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