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AROUND THE LEAGUE
-WEEK TEN-
-WEEK TEN-
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Been itching to get back into this...I'll be home sometime tomorrow afternoon, so expect updates shortly.Comment
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WEEK ELEVEN
WEST TEXAS OUTLAWS (3-4, 1-1)
VS.
ARKANSAS ST. RED WOLVES (5-3, 2-1)
Winter came early to the south this year, as a fresh blanket of snow covered Arkansas on Saturday in the opening week of November. The surprising weather did little to slow down the home team...but their opponents were a different story. Due in large part to their ineffective passing game, the Outlaws were shut out for the first time this season, falling to the Red Wolves 30-0.
Senior quarterback Ryan Aplin returned to top form this weekend, completing 55% of his 27 passes for 231 yards and three touchdowns with no turnovers to snap the team's two-game losing streak. His go-to man was senior wide receiver Allen Muse (pictured above), who had seven catches for 107 yards and a touchdown, while tight end Kedric Murry caught five balls for 75 yards and a score. Arkansas State also benefited from an effective ground game, where Aplin and junior runningback Gregory Thornton split 32 carries, rushing for 138 yards on the day. Defensively, senior Timothy Starson (DE) led the team with 11 tackles, one sack, and a forced and recovered fumble. As a whole, the Red Wolves limited their opponents to 223 yards of total offense which included just 93 passing yards, and held them scoreless through sixty minutes.
As for the Outlaws, true sophomore quarterback Charles Dickson continued to struggle under center, and may very well be in danger of losing his starting job to Xavier Rouse before the end of the season. Against Arkansas St., Dickson completed just 6 of 21 passes for 79 yards, completing a horrible 28% of his attempted throws. Max Drew and Jonathan Kaplan combined for 111 yards off 25 carries on the ground, but could not overcome the ineptitude of their aerial attack. Junior Brian Anderson (OLB) had two tackles, one sack, and an interception in limited play for the defense, but as a whole the team struggled, giving up over 400 total offensive yards and 16 points in four redzone trips.
Fresh off their first victory in nearly a month, the Red Wolves will now take to the road to face off against conference foes Texas State (3-5, 2-1) and Mid Tenn. State before wrapping up their season at home against North Texas (2-6, 1-3). As for the Outlaws, they will return home for the first time since mid-October to play host to the Blue Raiders (1-7, 0-3) next week, where they face a must-win situation if the team hopes to improve upon their 6-6 mark from last year.
West Texas Outlaws at Arkansas State Red Wolves Nov 3, 2012 1ST 2ND 3RD 4TH SCORE West Texas Outlaws (3-5, 1-2) 0 0 0 0 0 Arkansas State Red Wolves (6-3, 3-1) 7 3 14 6 30 Team Stats Comparison WTU ARST Total Offense 223 418 Rushing Yards 130 187 Passing Yards 93 231 First Downs 14 24 Punt Return Yards 30 45 Kick Return Yards 98 25 Total Yards 351 488 Turnovers 1 1 3rd Down Converstion 4-15 (26%) 5-13 (38%) 4th Down Conversion 0-1 (0%) 1-2 (50%) 2-Point Conversion 0-0 (0%) 0-0 (0%) Red Zone Touchdowns/Field Goals 2-0-0 (0%) 4-1-3 (100%) Penalties 10-70 13-95 Posession Time 28:24 31:36 Scoring Summary FIRST QUARTER SCORING WTU ARST 8:58 (ARST) TD: Joe Quinn, 40 yard pass from Ryan Aplin 0 7 SECOND QUARTER SCORING WTU ARST 0:01 (ARST) FG: Bobby Zalud, 31 yard kick 0 10 THIRD QUARTER SCORING WTU ARST 8:52 (ARST) TD: Allen Muse, 32 yard pass from Ryan Aplin 0 17 5:07 (ARST) TD: Kedric Murry, 14 yard pass from Ryan Aplin 0 24 FOURTH QUARTER SCORING WTU ARST 12:32 (ARST) FG: Bobby Zalud, 36 yard kick 0 27 2:45 (ARST) FG: Bobby Zalud, 33 yard kick 0 30 Comment
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AROUND THE LEAGUE
-WEEK ELEVEN-
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WEEK TWELVE
MID TENN. ST. BLUE RAIDERS (1-7, 0-3)
VS.
WEST TEXAS OUTLAWS (4-5, 2-2)
With blowout losses to conference leaders Troy and Arkansas State in recent weeks, the Outlaws have essentially been knocked out of contention for the Sun Belt title...but becoming bowl eligible is still a realistic goal. This Saturday, the team played host to one-win Mid Tenn State, and thanks to a career day by junior Michael Maynard (pictured above), they walked away with a 24-21 victory to put them just two wins away from matching last year's record with three to play.
A normally lackluster offense played above their ability on Saturday, racking up 421 total offensive yards and three touchdowns in the win. Charles Dickson had a much better outing than last week, completing 14 of 33 passes for 296 yards and two touchdowns with no interceptions. But the biggest story of the day was Michael Maynard, who shredded the Blue Raiders' secondary with ten catches for an incredible 256 yards and two touchdowns. With three games left to play, Maynard is less than 50 yards shy of matching his receiving total from last year, and currently ranks 5th in the conference with 687 yards and six TDs on the season. The Outlaws also brought a solid ground presence, where Max Drew and Jonathan Kaplan combined for 124 yards and a score off 29 carries, averaging 4.3 yards per touch. Defensively, the team recorded two sacks, forced two turnovers, and limited MTSU to just 252 total offensive yards. They did, however, allow 14 points in the opening minutes of the fourth quarter, but held solid after that to allow their team to escape with a three-point victory.
On the other side of the ball, Jeff Murphy completed just 28% of his 14 passes for 59 yards, one touchdown, and one interception before leaving the game at halftime with a concussion. Third-string quarterback Shaun White didn't fare much better, completing five of ten passes for 50 yards and a touchdown. What little offensive production the team did have came from backup runningback William Pratcher, who rushed for 117 yards and a touchdown off 28 carries. Mid Tenn State's defense recorded a sack, recovered two fumbles, and held the Outlaws to just 17 points in six redzone trips, but their best effort would not be enough to give the team their first win against an FCS or conference opponent.
The Blue Raiders are now on a seven-game losing streak, and with conference leaders Arkansas State and Troy still on the schedule, it's likely that the team may finish the season with eleven losses. Meanwhile, the Outlaws will head east to face off against UL Lafayette (3-6, 2-2), where they hope to reach .500 for the first time this year.
Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders at West Texas Outlaws Nov 10, 2012 1ST 2ND 3RD 4TH SCORE Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders (1-8, 0-4) 0 7 0 14 21 West Texas Outlaws (4-5, 2-2) 14 3 7 0 24 Team Stats Comparison MTU WTU Total Offense 252 421 Rushing Yards 143 125 Passing Yards 109 296 First Downs 14 22 Punt Return Yards 12 51 Kick Return Yards 76 52 Total Yards 340 524 Turnovers 2 2 3rd Down Converstion 6-15 (40%) 7-14 (50%) 4th Down Conversion 1-1 (100%) 0-1 (0%) 2-Point Conversion 0-0 (0%) 0-0 (0%) Red Zone Touchdowns/Field Goals 3-2-0 (66%) 6-2-1 (50%) Penalties 11-75 8-58 Posession Time 28:44 31:16 Scoring Summary FIRST QUARTER SCORING MTU WTU 11:10 (WTU) TD: Max Drew, 4 yard run 0 7 6:30 (WTU) TD: Michael Maynard, 68 yard pass from Charles Dickson 0 14 SECOND QUARTER SCORING MTU WTU 5:50 (WTU) FG: Caleb Reynolds, 33 yard kick 0 17 0:19 (MTU) TD: Tavarres Jefferson, 30 yard pass from Jeff Murphy 7 17 THIRD QUARTER SCORING MTU WTU 11:43 (WTU) TD: Michael Maynard, 5 yard pass from Charles Dickson 7 24 FOURTH QUARTER SCORING MTU WTU 12:36 (MTU) TD: Arthur Williams, 9 yard pass from Shaun White 14 24 10:08 (MTU) TD: William Pratcher, 3 yard run 21 24 Comment
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AROUND THE LEAGUE
-WEEK TWELVE-
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WEEK THIRTEEN
WEST TEXAS OUTLAWS (4-5, 2-2)
VS.
UL LAFAYETTE RAGIN' CAJUNS (3-6, 2-2)
It's been a rough season for Max Drew and the nation's 115th ranked rushing offense. Hip bursitis put the offense's star player on the bench for three games, and since then he has split carries with backup Jonathan Kaplan, seeing only a moderate amount of success. But against ULL on Thursday, Drew took center stage for the first time this season, scoring three times as he rushed for 153 yards in the team's 30-23 win to bring the Outlaws to .500 for the first time this year.
In what has become the norm this season, Charles Dickson struggled under center, completing just 8 of 26 passes for 150 yards, one touchdown, and one interception. Most of that production went to third-year sophomore Cam Beach, who broke a tie late in the 4th quarter with a 49-yard TD reception. Beach finished the day with three catches for 105 yards and a score in his relief role for injured #2 wide receiver C.J. Bellamy, who has been ineffective this year. Of course, the biggest story of the day was senior Max Drew, who had his best game of 2012 by rushing for 153 yards and three touchdowns off 30 carries, averaging 5.1 yards per touch. Backup runningback Jonathan Kaplan also made the most of his limited opportunities, racking up 68 yards off 13 carries. Defensively, junior Chris Kiniry (OLB) led the team with ten tackles and a sack, and as a whole the Outlaws held ULL to fewer than 300 offensive yards, and allowed just seven successful conversions out of twenty tries on 3rd and 4th downs, and two-point conversions.
As for the Ragin' Cajuns, sophomore QB Terrance Broadway performed well, completing 14 of 27 passes for 176 yards and three touchdowns. Leading the receiving corps was Javone Lawson, who had six catches for 125 yards and a score. But UL Lafayette was largely ineffective on the ground, where Broadway and junior runningback Aaron Spikes combined for just 79 yards off 24 carries. ULL's defense forced two turnovers, but also allowed 381 total offensive yards, three successful 4th down conversions, and 23 points in five redzone trips.
With their first win streak of the season snapped, the Ragin' Cajuns will look to finish the season strong when they host Texas State (3-7, 2-3) next week before travelling north to face off against in-state foe UL Monroe in their annual rivalry game to end the season. Meanwhile, the Outlaws are just one win away from becoming bowl eligible for the second straight year with two games to play, and hope to reach that six-win mark next week when they travel to face off against the ULM Warhawks (5-5, 3-2).
West Texas Outlaws at Louisiana-Lafayette Ragin' Cajuns Nov 15, 2012 1ST 2ND 3RD 4TH SCORE West Texas Outlaws (5-5, 3-2) 7 10 6 7 30 Louisiana-Lafayette Ragin' Cajuns (3-7, 2-3) 3 6 6 8 23 Team Stats Comparison WTU ULL Total Offense 381 272 Rushing Yards 231 96 Passing Yards 150 176 First Downs 20 17 Punt Return Yards 30 21 Kick Return Yards 66 136 Total Yards 477 429 Turnovers 2 1 3rd Down Converstion 6-15 (40%) 5-14 (35%) 4th Down Conversion 3-3 (100%) 1-2 (50%) 2-Point Conversion 0-1 (0%) 1-3 (33%) Red Zone Touchdowns/Field Goals 5-3-1 (80%) 3-2-1 (100%) Penalties 10-96 5-46 Posession Time 33:14 26:25 Scoring Summary FIRST QUARTER SCORING WTU ULL 13:05 (ULL) FG: Brett Baer, 22 yard kick 0 3 7:32 (WTU) TD: Max Drew, 8 yard run 7 3 SECOND QUARTER SCORING WTU ULL 10:13 (WTU) TD: Max Drew, 1 yard run 14 3 5:44 (ULL) TD: Jamal Robinson, 2 yard pass from Terrance Broadway (2-pt. conv. failed) 14 9 2:03 (WTU) FG: Caleb Reynolds, 34 yard kick 17 9 THIRD QUARTER SCORING WTU ULL 7:27 (ULL) TD: Ian Thompson, 9 yard pass from Terrance Broadway (2-pt. conv. failed) 17 15 0:15 (WTU) TD: Max Drew, 5 yard run (2-pt. conv. failed) 23 15 FOURTH QUARTER SCORING WTU ULL 4:59 (ULL) TD: Javone Lawson, 56 yard pass from Terrance Broadway (2-pt. conv. is good) 23 23 2:05 (WTU) TD: Cam Beach, 49 yard pass from Charles Dickson 30 23 Comment
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AROUND THE LEAGUE
-WEEK THIRTEEN-
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WEEK FOURTEEN
WEST TEXAS OUTLAWS (5-5, 3-2)
VS.
UL MONROE WARHAWKS (5-5, 3-2)
Trailing 17-7 midway through the 3rd quarter, the Outlaws showed tremendous resolve on Saturday, shifting momentum their way for the remainder of the game. 21 unanswered points later, the team left the field victorious, and bowl eligible for the second straight season after downing the Warhawks 28-17. But the win came with a steep price, as starters Jared Ingram (CB), Nathan Hills (TE), and defensive leader Chris Kiniry (OLB) were lost for multiple weeks due to injuries.
Charles Dickson had one of his better performances of the season, completing 17 of 32 passes for 240 yards, one touchdown, and one interception, and also reaching the endzone on the ground on his way to being named player of the game. Max Drew also made a healthy contribution to the winning effort, rushing for 120 yards and a score off 27 carries, while backup Jonathan Kaplan had six carries for 29 yards and a TD. Defensively, the Outlaws recorded two sacks, forced two turnovers, limited the Warhawks to just four successful conversions on thirteen 3rd down tries, and held them to 10 points in four redzone trips. But the big question is how much the team will be impacted in next week's season finale by the loss of three of the team's starters. Jared Ingram (CB) and Nathan Hills (TE) have been lost for the rest of the year with a broken wirst and torn pectoral respectively, while junior Chris Kiniry (OLB) has an outside shot at returning for the team's bowl game (should they get a bid) after pulling his hamstring. Hills has been a decent contributor to the passing game, where he has 21 catches for 229 yards and a score, but he'll be primarily missed as a blocker for Max Drew and the running game. Meanwhile, Kiniry and Ingram have combined for 106 tackles this season, and are largely considered to be the leaders of the defense.
As for the Warhawks, junior quarterback Kolton Browning completed 13 of 23 passes for 134 yards, two touchdowns, and one interception. Leading the receiving corps was Tavarese Maye, who had four catches for 57 yards and two TDs. As for the ground game, Browning and junior runningback Jyruss Edwards rushed for a respectable 139 yards off 33 carries, but the team struggled mightily in the redzone. While the Outlaws scored touchdowns in all four of their redzone trips, UL Monroe was held to just ten points inside the 20, ultimately dooming them to their sixth loss of the season.
After suffering their third loss in the last four games, the Warhawks will remain at home next week as they play host to in-state rival UL Lafayette (4-7, 3-3) in their season finale. Meanwhile, the Outlaws will return home for the first time in three weeks to take on in-state rival Texas State (3-8, 2-4), where they hope to not only strengthen their chances for a bowl bid in the offseason, but also improve upon the team's 6-6 mark from last season.
West Texas Outlaws at Louisiana-Monroe Warhawks Nov 24, 2012 1ST 2ND 3RD 4TH SCORE West Texas Outlaws (6-5, 4-2) 7 0 7 14 28 Louisiana-Monroe Warhawks (5-6, 3-3) 0 10 7 0 17 Team Stats Comparison WTU ULM Total Offense 389 306 Rushing Yards 240 134 Passing Yards 149 172 First Downs 22 19 Punt Return Yards 42 43 Kick Return Yards 90 165 Total Yards 521 514 Turnovers 1 2 3rd Down Converstion 5-14 (35%) 4-13 (30%) 4th Down Conversion 2-2 (100%) 0-0 (0%) 2-Point Conversion 0-0 (0%) 0-0 (0%) Red Zone Touchdowns/Field Goals 4-4-0 (100%) 4-1-1 (50%) Penalties 8-71 6-45 Posession Time 33:57 26:03 Scoring Summary FIRST QUARTER SCORING WTU ULM 5:20 (WTU) TD: Max Drew, 6 yard run 7 0 SECOND QUARTER SCORING WTU ULM 9:32 (ULM) FG: Greg Pierce, 24 yard kick 7 3 0:50 (ULM) TD: Tavarese Maye, 6 yard pass from Kolton Browning 7 10 THIRD QUARTER SCORING WTU ULM 14:10 (ULM) TD: Tavarese Maye, 43 yard pass from Kolton Browning 7 17 5:47 (WTU) TD: Michael Maynard, 9 yard pass from Charles Dickson 14 17 FOURTH QUARTER SCORING WTU ULM 8:25 (WTU) TD: Charles Dickson, 3 yard run 21 17 3:11 (WTU) TD: Jonathan Kaplan, 6 yard run 28 17 Comment
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AROUND THE LEAGUE
-WEEK FOURTEEN-
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