Hardin-Simmons 31, Willamette 22
ABILENE, Texas – — ABILENE, Texas –
Hardin-Simmons' 14th-ranked football team started a stretch
of three straight games against ranked teams with a 33-21 win over
No. 13 Willamette, in front of a crowd of 3,622 fans at the home
opener at Shelton Stadium in Abilene.
In a game that featured hard-hitting and aggressive defenses from
both sides, the Cowboys were able to fight off the Bearcats with a
46-yard touchdown pass from Justin Feaster to Travis Tatsch with
8:20 to play.
The Bearcats are known for their fly offense that is usually one
of the top running attacks in the nation. However, WU used an over
the top passing attack to stay with the Cowboys for most of the
night. Scott Schoettgen was a one-man wrecking crew for the
Bearcats as he had eight catches for 222 yards and three
touchdowns. He had touchdowns of 78, 71 and 34 yards. HSU limited
the Bearcats to 96 yards on 32 rushing attempts.
Trailing 17-9, Willamette struck first in the second half when
Schoettgen scored on a 34-yard pass from Brian Widing. Willamette
went for two, but the pass was overthrown and HSU remained in the
lead at 17-15 with 12:43 to play.
Justin Feaster then capped a 12-play, 70-yard drive that took 5:18
off the clock with a 9-yard run at the 7:25 mark of the third.
Schoettgen's 78-yard touchdown on a perfectly thrown pass
between two defenders from Widing made the score 24-22 with 12:42
to play in the game.
HSU then had a quick three-and-out and Whitworth went for it on
fourth down from their own 43 with 9:03 to play. Caleb Christian
knocked down the pass and HSU took over. Steven Rockwell was
stopped for a three-yard loss on the first play, but Feaster hit
Travis Tatsch over the top for a 46-yard touchdown to make it
31-22. HSU's defense shut the door the rest of the way.
HSU took a lead it would never relinquish in the first quarter on
a 2-yard Derrick Grant run to cap a nine-play, 63-yard drive with
5:11 to play in the first. WU received a 36-yard field goal from
Mitchell Rowan to make it 7-3 with 11:03 to play in the half.
HSU then got a 17-yard interception return for a touchdown to make
it 14-3 with 2:05 to play in the half. However, Kevin Ramay hit
Schoettgen over the top to make it 14-9 and the Cowboys blocked the
PAT. HSU came back and Scott Newberry hit a 28-yard field to make
it 17-9 at the halftime buzzer.
Feaster shook off two first-half interceptions to go 24-of-33 for
288 yards and a touchdown. ZaVious Robbins had nine catches for 79
yards and Steven Rockwell had 54 yards rushing and Derrick Grant
had 33 against a punishing Bearcat defense.
HSU's defense was pretty solid on its own. They limited the
fly offense to three yards a carry. Caleb Christian led the way
with nine tackles and Bronson Buzzard added eight. HSU broke up 10
passes on the night, with Jay Wise having four and Christian
three.
The Cowboys now have back-to-back games with the ASC co-champions
from a year ago starting with a home date with Mississippi College
on Saturday at 2 p.m. HSU is 2-0 on the year and Willamette is now
1-1.
