Semi-random thoughts on McNeese

It’s already been talked about, but the pass that went off Ware’s hands to the defender was a killer. Just like SFA, we got off to a slow start thanks in part to a penalty and a high snap. Once we finally recovered, made a defensive stop, and had a chance to cut the game to three, we end up down 24-7 instead.



We had a pretty good sized crowd there. A lot of their fans stayed home because of the rain, but those that showed were vocal and proficient in cowbelling. They used their video board to play the SNL clip (more cowbell) and that was probably the loudest it got all night. Of course they had a lot to cheer about.



Our band, even just 20% or so, is good, and as far as I know didn’t steal any pillows. The cheerleaders and dance team did a good job as well.



Statistically we really played a decent game offensively. McNeese usually gives up just 350 yards of offense. We had 411 and were 50% on third down conversions. That included the previously mentioned interception at the 12 and the fumble by Branson at midfield after a 16 yard pass. We also continue to drop passes that should have been caught. You can’t make those mistakes ever, especially against a team as good as McNeese. I would like to give some credit to the offensive line that didn’t allow a single sack. I can only even remember one time that they even got close and Nathan somehow escaped.



Our run defense was once again just gashed by runs that seemed primarily up the middle. Anytime you allow almost seven yards a carry, something isn’t working right. The defense actually appeared to do a good job on most plays. The problem was that when they didn’t make the stop the Cowboys offense was making big gains. And every time the McNeese offense reached the red zone, they scored (6-of-6).



There’s obviously a lot more that could be said about the game, but I’m going to try to get some sleep tonight.



Special thanks for the weekend goes to: Kenny and Dee, The Youngs, Danny and Mary F., Danny P and Mary Ann, Jeff, Chuck, Greg, Doc, Andy and Joanna, Chris and Joyce, the Petro-Chem group, and I’m sure there were more. I hope I got everyone’s name right.

Seniors win final game at Estes

If anyone had hoped to get the starters some rest against a 0-9 team, you didn’t get your wish Saturday night. But the Bears did turn a 10-0 deficit into a 21-10 halftime lead on their way to the 35-23 win over winless Stephen F. Austin.



It took UCA 25 minutes to get on the scoreboard for the first time, but in the final 4:16 of the half, the Bears offense took advantage of short fields to score three touchdowns. The longest drive in the scoring spree was just 54 yards.



Special teams played a huge role in the game. On the opening kickoff, senior Tristan Jackson found a lane on the outside of the field. Just when it looked he might be able to take it all the way, an SFA player reaches in from behind to strip the ball. SFA recovered, squandering an entire offensive possession. The defense was able to stop SFA on fourth and three though.



Then, down 3-0, senior kicker James Paul missed a 37-yarder just wide to the left. More on the special teams to come.



The Lumberjacks took a 10-0 lead on Jabara Williams’ 12-yard run. The defense struggled to stop Williams all night. He finished with 109 yards and a touchdown on 20 carries.



The UCA offense finally responded on the next drive thanks to a pooch kick and a personal foul penalty on SFA that gave the Bears the ball at the SFA 39. Leonard Ceaser carried the ball three times in the drive for 23 yards, including a two-yard run to finally put UCA on the board.



SFA started their next drive with a 25-yard pass completion, but on a fourth down attempt, the UCA defense got tremendous pressure and forced a fumble on QB Jeremy Moses. The stats show that UCA recovered, but I’m almost positive SFA did. It just didn’t matter because it was fourth down, and UCA took over possession at the 50.



Senior Ross Brown took the second play 44 yards, apparently stepping out at the three. (If I remember correctly there wasn’t any contact that forced him out of bounds. It was a little odd.)



But they left Brown in to run the ball in on the next play to give the Bears their first lead, 7-14, on just three plays and 47 seconds.



The defense held SFA to three plays for minus two yards to force a punt. Then, Jackson would do his best to make up for his earlier mistake. Catching a punt at the 11, his 44-yard return set the offense up at the SFA 45 with 1:30 remaining in the half.



Nathan Brown completed two passes sandwiched around an 11-yard run from Brent Grimes. The second a 21-yard reception from senior Cedric Logan. After a celebration penalty, the extended extra point made it 21-10.



Jackson wasn’t done though. The defense again held SFA to three-and-out. This time for minus five yards. And Jackson returned the punt 69 yards for the touchdown, 10-28.



SFA responded with a touchdown of their own to cap a drive that lasted 6:35, and the 17-28 score lasted until the fourth quarter.



After the Bears had a three-and-out possession of their own, SFA had another time-consuming touchdown drive. Twelve plays and 80 yards later they were down 23-28. They went for two to try and cut it to a field goal, but the attempt was no good.



Each team followed with short drives, and then UCA tried to put the game away with one play, but the deep ball to Willie Landers went off his fingertips. The following play was a 71-yard touchdown catch and run by Preston Echols. This wasn’t another shot down the field; this was just a short pass and a lot of good downfield blocking and running by Echols.



The 35-23 lead held up as SFA’s fourth down attempt with 3:16 came up two yards short. The Bears were able to move the ball 74 yards on the final drive to run out the clock at the SFA nine yard line.



Jackson ended the night with 196 yards on just four returns. Paul punted five times for an 40.6 yard average, pinning SFA inside the 20 twice and another probably should have been downed at the one but the gunner couldn’t locate the ball that bounced twice inside the five.





While Nathan Brown had an efficient game, completing 16-of-24 passes for 193 yards and two touchdowns, Ross Brown led the ground attack with 87 yards and one touchdown on just nine carries. The run game was split pretty evenly between Brown, Ceaser (8 carries, 65 yards and a touchdown) and Grimes (10 carries, 82 yards).



The defense several big plays, but Taylor Scott and the defensive line put up some impressive numbers. Scott led the team with nine tackles, two sacks and another tackle for loss. The unit combined for four sacks and nine total tackles for loss.



Phillip Johnson and Jarrod Dale had eight tackles each in the secondary. And the linebacking corp of Tok Opeloye, Corey McMurrian and James Lancaster totalled 22 tackles and two of the tackles behind the line of scrimmage.



It might not have been what fans expected on paper, but the win still preserved the opportunity for next weekend’s matchup with McNeese to be for a part of the conference title. I think it’s safe to say that a performance like tonight’s probably won’t cut it in Lake Charles.

Senior Day Saturday

Mack – WR/DB #1 Chijuan Mack After transferring from Oklahoma State as a wide receiver, Chijuan Mack caught 15 passes his junior year for the Bears and was fourth in receptions for returning wide receivers. But he was moved to the secondary in the offseason, most likely due to the number of defensive backs lost to graduation. Mack’s been used as a gunner on special teams. He’s totalled just eight tackles this season, but three of those came against Nicholls. With the Bears down 27-21, Mack made a tackle after an option pitch and then just two plays later made a third-down tackle short of the first-down marker.

Jackson – DB/RS #2 Tristan Jackson A lot has been said about how vital Tristan Jackson is to the Bears defensively. Jackson, listed at just 5-9, is one of just two returning starters on that side of the ball and has played cornerback, kick returner, punt returner and even safety this season. Jackson was the fourth-leading tackler in 06 and the top returner this season as a wealth of experience was lost throughout the defense but especially in the secondary. Last season he had six interceptions to finish third in the country. Jackson was a presesason selection to the SLC’s second team as a defensive back and a punt returner. B ut quarterbacks may be avoiding throwing his direction this year because he has just a single interception. That doesn’t mean he hasn’t been making plays. He leads the team in pass break ups and is the third leading tackler on the team despite missing two full games to an injury. He’s been the conference player of the week for his performance against Missouri State. Jackson had eight tackles, 1.5 for loss, in just half the game. He also received the recognition afer his 86-yard punt return for a touchdown against Southeastern Louisiana. The touchdown tied the score at 23-23 and was critical to UCA’s comeback win.

Jones – WR #3 Che Jones For those that have followed Bear football the last few years, you know the story of Che Jones. Jones has battled Crohn’s disease throughout his time at UCA. It’s been hard as fans to follow his struggles with the disease that has no cure; but there’s no doubt the multiple trips to the hospital and the subsequent stays have been even harder for Jones. As each new season rolls around, hopes are high that maybe the disease will go into remission long enough to allow Jones to make it back to the playing field. Jones is one of just four seniors that came to UCA out of high school. Jones first showed off his talents in 2005, his redshirt sophomore year. Playing in 12 games, Jones had 28 receptions for 371 yards and 3 touchdowns. His coming out game was in the playoffs against Presbyterian College when he had five receptions for 144 yards and a touchdown. Jones sat out last season to continue receiving treatment and hasn’t been able to play this year. Jones, if healthy, was expected to be a key reciever in replacing the departed Aaron Fairooz and David Robinson.

Logan – WR #5 Cedric Logan Like Mack, Cedric Logan transferred in prior to the 2006 season to play wide receiver. Logan played in just eight games but was able to catch 16 passes for 194 yards. This season through nine games he has 15 receptions and two touchdowns. Logan’s first touchdown gave the Bears the lead with just 1:20 left in the Missouri State game. We know now that it the 30-yard touchdown catch might have come a little too quickly as MSU was able to score again and win the game. The second against Southeastern Louisiana on a fourth down completion that to give UCA a 7-3 lead. But Logan’s most productive game of the season was just last week as he caught six passes for 49 yards.

Twilley – FB/TE #9 Charles Twilley Charles Twilley and fellow senior Kendrell Barksdale transferred into the UCA program before the spring semester in 2006. Twilley came in to play the tight end position and was a quick learner in filling the shoes of some pretty solid tight ends before him. Twilley caught 18 passes, good enough for fifth on the team, for 181 yards and three touchdowns. The three fullbacks on the roster last season were gone at the end of the fall, and Twilley began learning the new position. He’s had to battle through injuries throughout the year, but even from the fullback position, the coaches have found ways for Twilley to catch the ball. He’s totalled 11 catches for 85 yards and a touchdown.

Paul – K/P #13 James Paul James Paul has found his way into the UCA record books as a field goal kicker and punter, but he’s also handled the kickoff duties as well. Pauls records include: longest punt (81), most extra points made (57) and attempted (59) in a season, career PAT percentage (97%) and just recently set the record of 57 consecutive made extra point attempts, which is still on-going. He’s in the top ten in many other kicking categories. This season he’s been a perfect 36-of-36 on extra point attempts and 2-of-4 on field goal tries. He’s punting the ball a career best 41.8 yards per kick and has placed nine of his 32 attempts inside the 20. Paul is just seven extra points away from holding that record as well. The coaches were hoping to spell Paul of some of his kicking duties this season by giving field goals to a newcomer, but Paul took back over the job three games into the season.

Brown – RB #22 Ross Brown Ross Brown came to UCA at a time when the backfield was full of talented backs. After waiting his turn, Brown took advatange of his quickness last season to lead the team in rushing with 823 yards and touchdowns with 8. Brown once again finds himself surrounded by talented runners and has split carries with several backs this season. He’s second on the team in carries (85) and yards (332). He’s also caught 10 passes for 90 yards. After last week’s game, Brown now has 1713 yards rushing in his career and 2003 total yards.

Johnson – DB #27 Dathan Johnson Dathan Johnson entered the season penciled into the starting corner back position, opposite Tristan Jackson, after playing in 11 games last season. Johnson had 22 tackles and an interception in 2006, but has been injured most of 2007. So far, Johnson has played in only the first three games of the season, but had nine tackles and a pass breakup in those.

L. Barksdale – DT #98 Lendrell Barksdale Lendrell Barksdale joined his twin brother, Kendrell, at UCA a semester after Kendrell arrived. The defensive tackle played in nine games last year and had three tackles. This season Lendrell has played in just a single game and has one tackle.

K. Barksdale – DT #99 Kendrell Barksdale Kendrell Barksdale played in 11 games last season and was listed as the starting defensive tackle to begin the season. He had eight tackles last year and has nine this year while only playing in 6 games.