
STEPHENVILLE – All eyes were on the Tarleton State Texans nationwide on Saturday, and all eyes witnessed a Tarleton State Texan victory to start their season Won-and-0.
The Texans (1-0) staved off McNeese (0-1) 26-23 to win the second college football played nationally in 2024, the first on United States soil. The Week 0 contest was broadcast on ESPN2, the first time Tarleton State Football has played on linear television.
In Tarleton State’s first full-fledged NCAA Division I season, the Texans started 2024 where they left off 2023, extending their winning streak to five straight, their longest winning streak at the D1 level. This is the first time Tarleton has won five straight since beginning 2019 11-0.
“Winning’s hard,” head coach Todd Whitten said postgame. “We’re 1-0, that’s the good thing. There were some difficult conditions out there for both sides, and I thought both teams played really hard, I thought it was a really good college football game.”
The Texans won their fifth season opener over the past seven seasons on the heels of a strong offensive first half and a defense that forced four turnovers.
The Texans forced a fumble on the third play of the day, as new linebacker Bam Smith stripped quarterback Clifton McDowell, and defensive back Blake Smith jumped on it to give the Texans the ball early.
Tarleton State picked up one first down on its opening drive before new kicker Michael James booted one through from 53 yards out to make it 3-0 Texans. It was Tarleton State’s first 50-plus yard field goal make in 15 years (Nov. 14, 2009, at Texas A&M-Kingsville).
The Cowboys responded with a 75-yard touchdown scoring drive, a 43-yard connection from McDowell to Jamaal Levi to give McNeese the lead 7-3. The Texans didn’t let the Cowboys hold the lead long, or even again. Tarleton State marched 64 yards on 10 plays, punching it in a from a yard out with Derrel Kelley III.
On McNeese’s second play of the ensuing drive, Tarleton earned its second takeaway of the opening frame with a defensive touchdown. Linebacker Caimyn Layne forced running back Joshon Barbie to cough it up into DB Kasyus Kurns’ hands, who returned it 31 yards for the score. Tarleton ended the first quarter ahead 16-7.
Tarleton didn’t relent to start the second quarter on offense, taking it down 83 yards across 12 plays. Quarterback Victor Gabalis lobbed a perfect ball over a blanketing DB, and wide receiver Keylan Johnson showed off the hands to come down with a 26-yard touchdown to make it 23-7 Tarleton State.
James added a 34-yard field goal on Tarleton’s next drive to make it 26-7 Texans. The Texan defense forced two more turnovers before the half was over, as defensive back Omar Emmons picked off McDowell around midfield, and on the Cowboys’ very next drive, Kurns forced another Barbie fumble, as he recovered his second of the game.
The Texans led 26-7 at the break.
The second half was starkly different from the first half as Tarleton State lost its starting quarterback. Gabalis, who completed 11-of-18 for 140 yards and touchdown in the first half, suffered a thumb injury and didn’t return.
Tarleton’s offense couldn’t muster much in the second half, totaling 76 yards across seven drives. Texan backup quarterback Jaden Pete spelled Gabalis and finished 1-of-8 for four yards.
“Things got a little more difficult for us when we lost Vic at halftime, there was an injury to his thumb, I think he’ll be OK, I don’t know how long it will be, but he couldn’t grip the ball very well,” Whitten said. “So yeah, I think we were 1-of-8 throwing in the second half, so we couldn’t get anything going. They got a lot of opportunities, and our defense was on the field (for a long time). To overcome adversity like we did with the injury there, I was proud of our guys.”
Tarleton’s defense held the Cowboys at bay nearly the whole third quarter, allowing a 36-yard field goal with 46 seconds left in the frame. That broke a seven-straight-drive stretch of the Texans blanking the Cowboys, and Tarleton State took a 26-10 lead into the fourth quarter.
McNeese started to make things interesting with just under 10 minutes to play. Cowboy running back D’angelo Durham scampered from seven yards out to make it a 26-16 game, but McNeese missed the extra point to keep it a 10-point difference.
Tarleton’s running backs Kayvon Britten and Kelley powered the Texans down the field into a scoring chance, but the Texans missed a field goal to keep McNeese alive.
The Cowboys used that spurt on the very next play, as McDowell connected with Matthew McCallister for an 80-yard touchdown. Tarleton’s lead was down to just three, 26-23.
McNeese forced a three-and-out to get the ball back down three with 2:56 to play. Starting at their own 11-yard line, the Cowboys methodically drove to Tarleton’s 22-yard line with 11 seconds left. In field goal range, McNeese was penalized with a false start that forced them to take their final timeout to avoid a 10-second runoff that would have ended the game. That also pushed the Cowboys back five yards, which proved to be the difference from McNeese tying the game and losing the game, as the kick sailed just wide right.
The Texan faithful released a collective sigh of relief as Tarleton State left Memorial Stadium 1-0.
Britten showcased why he was a unanimous pick for UAC Preseason Offensive Player of the Year by rushing for 164 yards on 25 attempts, averaging 6.6 yards per carry. Kelley had 41 yards on 12 carries to go with his touchdown. Wide receiver Darius Cooper finished with six catches and 85 yards, and Johnson two catches for 37 yards and a score.
Defensively, Kurns had two fumble recoveries, a fumble return touchdown, a forced fumble, and six total tackles. Layne recorded a forced fumble and a sack, with four total tackles. Linebacker Caden Holt and defensive lineman Tramaine Chism each had a tied-team-high seven tackles. Ty Rawls had a sack and five total tackles. Bam Smith had one FF and five tackles, and Blake Smith had one FR and six tackles.
Adrian Guzman had a strong day punting, averaging 46.3 yards across his six boots, launching two 50-plus yards and two inside the 20.
McNeese’s McDowell completed 13-of-19 for 242 yards, two touchdowns, an interception and a fumble lost. Micah Davey had the big game defensively for the Cowboys, recording 14 tackles and a half-sack.
The Texans have now won nine straight games when wearing their purple helmets, dating back to 2022.
It was a packed day across the board at Tarleton State, as the Texans unveiled a new Texan Rider statue in front of the Memorial Stadium Ticket Office. Texas A&M University System Chancellor John Sharp was part of the ceremony and was honored by Tarleton State for his service, as the retiring chancellor conducted the coin toss and was given a special commemorative football.
The Texans playing on the big stage will continue next week, as Tarleton State heads to a much-improved Baylor squad in Waco. The Texans and Bears will clash on Saturday, Aug. 31, at 6 p.m. at McLane Stadium, for what will be Baylor’s season opener.
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