Week 8 Wrap: Falcons ground Hounds

ODESSA, Texas — It was going Eastern New Mexico’s way.

The Greyhounds football team had a two-score advantage over host UT Permian Basin at halftime of Saturday night’s Lone Star Conference game in Odessa. They were only halfway there, but seemed in good shape, on their way to their sixth overall victory and a winning record in LSC play.

But a house-on-fire UTPB attack out of the second-half gate found Eastern trailing by the third quarter’s end, and trailing for good as it turned out. The Greyhounds lost 48-38, dropping to 5-4 overall, 3-4 in the LSC.

Permian Basin rang up 41 second-half points, erasing a 21-7 ENMU halftime lead. With that third-and-fourth-quarter barrage, the Falcons notched their first LSC win of the season, improving to 1-5 in conference play, 3-6 overall.

Eastern was on the board early, opening the game with an eight-play, 75-yard drive capped off by a 35-yard touchdown pass from Wyatt Strand to Johnny Smith. Tyler Vargas’ extra point made it 7-0 with 10:57 left in the first quarter.

UTPB answered fairly quickly, staging a 10-play, 75-yard march topped off by a 10-yard Clayton Roberts touchdown run and Hayden Decossas’ extra point, tying the game at 7 with 6:50 to go in the first.

ENMU, however, controlled the second quarter, recording a pair of touchdown runs — an eight-yarder from Paul Terry at the 7:29 mark, and a nine-yarder by Smith with 3:05 to go before the break. And with the Greyhounds’ defense keeping UTPB scoreless in the second period, it all resulted in a 21-7 halftime lead for Eastern.

All was well so far. But then came the second half.

Permian Basin went to work early in the third quarter and began a 21-0 run. Just 3:17 into the new half, UTPB closed to within seven on a 16-yard Roberts pass to Kyle McBride, followed by another Decossas extra point.

After the ensuing kickoff, Eastern set up shop in great field position, at its own 45, but the Greyhounds’ drive lasted just one play when Permian Basin’s Donta Stuart forced a Smith fumble, and the loose ball was recovered by UTPB’s Diego Assad at Eastern’s 47.

UTPB’s drive also lasted one play, but not in a way that Eastern would have liked, as Roberts slung a 47-yard touchdown strike to McBride. Decossas’ extra point tied it at 21, just 26 seconds after the Falcons’ previous touchdown.

Just like that, it was anyone’s ball game.

And it seemed like UTPB might quickly score again when Justin Manyweather fumbled the ensuing kickoff and it was recovered by the Falcons’ Ben Galaviz at Eastern’s 32. But the Hounds’ defense forced a turnover on downs.

It didn’t take long, though, for Permian Basin to score again. On the Falcons’ next possession, they marched 76 yards for a touchdown in less than three minutes, the capper coming on a 31-yard Marquis Simmons run with 4:32 left in the third quarter, giving UTPB its first lead of the night. After Decossas’s fourth extra point, the Falcons led 28-21.

The Greyhounds responded by driving from their own 25 to Permian Basin’s 21 — thanks in large part to Darryl Wiggins’ 42-yard run on the possession’s first play — but were pushed back five yards before settling for a 43-yard Vargas field goal to climb within 28-24 at the 1:20 mark of the third quarter.

The Falcons’ next possession after the Eastern Field goal began in the third quarter and spilled over into the fourth, and carried them 70 yards in four plays. It was all about Sutton, who carried all four times for all 70 yards, including a five-yard scoring run that gave UTPB its first double-digit lead of the night.

Permian Basin went for two, but Caleb Forrest’s run was thwarted, so the score remained 34-24 with 49 seconds gone by in the fourth quarter.

Eastern never had the margin down to single digits again. A 10-yard Kameron Mathis touchdown pass to Jeremiah Cooley, along with another Decossas extra point, made it a 41-24 game with 7:27 left in the fourth.

Eastern drew within 10 points on an eight-yard scoring toss from Strand to Manyweather followed by a Vargas extra point, and the Greyhounds were well into UTPB territory on the next possession looking to close within three, when Stuart came up with another big defensive play, this time a 65-yard pick-six to just about wrap it up for the Falcons.

Strand and Manyweather connected on a 73-yard scoring pass with 3:41 left in the fourth, but it was one for the too-little-too-late file.

Despite the 10-point final difference, the teams played it pretty even offensively, with Eastern racking up 480 yards, UTPB 440. The Greyhounds held a slight edge in first downs (24-21) and time of possession (32:00-28:00).

The passing numbers were also fairly even, unusual for run-happy Eastern. Strand threw for 190 yards and three scores, with two interceptions. Roberts passed for 182 yards, with two touchdowns and an interception. Kobe Robinson had 17 yards passing and Mathis added 10 yards, including his touchdown pass to Cooley.

Terry posted a game-high 158 rushing yards. Sutton rushed for 118 yards to lead UTPB.

Eastern will play its last home game of 2019 this Saturday, when hosting Angelo State, beginning at 6 p.m.