Big task ahead for Greyhounds

PORTALES — The assembly line keeps moving for Eastern New Mexico’s football team. And it’s getting faster.

Fresh off a comeback road victory against a formidable Midwestern State team, the Greyhounds return home to face Tarleton State, another Lone Star Conference foe. This one is 5-0 overall, 3-0 in the LSC, and is ranked fourth in the nation in the AFCA Division II poll. The Texans, ranked lower only than Valdosta State, Ferris State and Minnesota State, even received one first-place vote in this week’s poll.

And that is the team that comes into Greyhound Stadium Saturday, with kickoff slated for 6 p.m.

“We play a lot of great teams. It’s just one after another,” ENMU head coach Kelley Lee said. “Obviously, Tarleton’s the best of the bunch.”

Eastern is pretty good too, and will take a 4-1 record, 2-1 LSC, into Saturday’s game. An upset victory would shake up the conference standings and, possibly, the national rankings as well.

“Oh, it would be huge,” Lee said. “If you win an LSC game against the preseason favorite, that’d be something special.”

It is, though, going to be a difficult task bringing down a team that hasn’t lost a regular-season game since 2017. The Greyhounds did beat the Texans 24-15 that year, but dropped last year’s matchup 48-28.

Tarleton knocked off ranked and previously-unbeaten Angelo State 30-13 last weekend, and those 30 points are the Texans’ lowest output so far this year. They’ve sailed well past 50 twice — one of them a 51-0 lead at the half — hit 49 another time and rang up 37 in their season opener.

The grand total is 230 points, an average of 46 per game.

Fueling that offense is senior quarterback Ben Holmes, who hails from the Buffalo Bills’ home of Orchard Park, New York. So far he’s completed 62 percent of his passes (84-of-136) for 1,287 yards and 13 touchdowns, with just two interceptions. His passer rating is 169.9.

The Texans can also run the ball effectively enough to take pressure off Holmes. Senior Daniel McCants is their leading rusher with 589 yards, and has four rushing touchdowns. Junior Khalil Banks is their leader in touchdown runs with eight, and has rushed for 435 yards.

There is good news for the Greyhounds heading into Saturday’s contest. They have the kind of offense that can help contain Tarleton’s, as in a clock-killing, ground-control offense capable of shortening the game and keeping the Texans off the field.

Eastern’s rushing attack has been relentless through five games. Including last week’s 391 yards on the ground at Midwestern, the Greyhounds have piled up 2,098 yards on 361 carries (5.8 per carry), and have rushed for 18 touchdowns. They have averaged 419.6 rushing yards per game.

Senior Paul Terry leads ENMU with 887 rushing yards, followed by redshirt senior quarterback Wyatt Strand’s 483 and redshirt senior Johnny Smith’s 336. Senior Darryl Wiggins’ 175 rounds out the Hounds’ three-digit rushing club.

Strand’s seven touchdown runs is a team-high, two in front of Terry.

That’s the kind of ground game that can render Tarleton’s offense as spectators longer.

“You can’t score if you don’t have the ball,” Lee said. “So if we’re able to maintain drives, 1) that’ll keep our defense fresh, and 2) that’ll keep their explosive offense on the sidelines.”

When Eastern’s defense is on the field, it will have the challenge of trying to thwart that prolific Tarleton attack.

“We’ve got to slow them down,” Lee said. “No one’s been able to do that yet. ... They’ve got a lot of weapons. I think if you take away the big play you make them do what everyone else does.

“Make ’em work. I think that’ll be key.”