STEPHENVILLE – In front of a record-breaking homecoming crowd of 24,012 fans, Tarleton State Football (8-0, 4-0 UAC) remained undefeated by overpowering No. 23 nationally-ranked West Georgia 45-10 on Saturday night at Memorial Stadium.
Tarleton State is the first 8-0 team among FCS programs across all of NCAA Division I. The Texans’ eight-game winning streak is the longest in the Division I era and their four straight home wins mark their first 4-0 start at home since moving to Division I. Tarleton State has also won eight of its last nine homecoming games, moving its record to 13-3 in those contests.
Senior quarterback Victor Gabalis threw for 268 passing yards and three touchdowns in his first game back since his Sept. 20 injury. Sophomore quarterback turned running back James Paige once again led the Texans’ rushing attack, netting 106 yards to go with a score. Tre Page III also made heavy contributions in the run game in his first appearance back from injury, tallying 92 yards and a touchdown.
“It was a great win and it’s even better to win at homecoming,” head coach Todd Whitten said. “I’m so grateful for our fans, our alumni and our student body. They are incredible. That’s a big advantage for us playing at home with the support that we get. I thought we had an outstanding first half. That’s about as good of a half as we’ve played. All in all, we played really well. West Georgia has as good a roster as anyone in our league.”
Gabalis wasted no time in picking up right where he left off, connecting with junior wide receiver Cody Jackson on a 37-yard gain on the Texans’ opening drive. The drive was finished off by Paige, who rushed in the end zone for his sixth touchdown in two games to give the Texans an early lead.
Another Texan bouncing back from injury gave Tarleton State a spark, this time on the defensive side. On West Georgia’s second offensive play of the game, senior defensive back Kasyus Kurns came down with the interception to put the ball back in the offense’s hands.
The Texans marched down the field on their last drive of the first quarter, putting themselves in the red zone after the first 15 minutes. Tarleton State doubled its advantage on its first play of the second quarter, with Gabalis tossing it to Jackson for a 16-yard score.
Special teams made a special play following the Texans’ defensive stand, blocking West Georgia’s punt that resulted in the ball being placed on the Wolves’ 37 yard line. The offense capitalized once again, with Gabalis finding redshirt junior wide receiver Marquis Willis for a 26-yard touchdown. A 33-yard field goal by senior kicker Brad Larson capped off the first half scoring spree and put the Texans ahead 24-0 going into the locker room.
West Georgia was scheduled to possess to start the second half, but the Texans got the ball first after a successful squib kickoff by junior kicker Corbin Poston was recovered by senior linebacker Courtland Stephens. Tarleton State, however, was unable to score on its first possession of the half and West Georgia answered with a field goal to get on the board. The Texans answered the bell with their run game, with Page III going 39 yards to the house to extend the lead 31-3 entering the final quarter.
The Wolves got in the end zone for the first time in the fourth quarter, but the Texans quickly returned the favor with a touchdown of their own. Senior wide receiver T’iar Young caught a reception from Gabalis, taking it 75 yards for his first score as a Texan to extend the lead by 28 points.
Junior running back Braelon Bridges capped off a 14 play drive with his first touchdown of the season in the next offensive series for the Texans to make it a 35-point game. Senior defensive back Les Odimara ended West Georgia’s final offensive drive with an interception that allowed the Tarleton State offense to run out the clock.
Tarleton State goes on the road for two straight UAC games next, starting next week at Eastern Kentucky on Saturday, Oct. 25 at 2 p.m.
Be the first to comment