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NATIONAL CHAMPS! No. 8 Lions defeat West Florida 37-27 to win school’s first ever NCAA National Championship.
KANSAS CITY, Kan.– The Texas A&M University-Commerce football team etched their names into history with a 37-27 win over West Florida in the NCAA Division II National Championship game. The Lions had nearly 500 yards of total offense and never trailed in the game.
It is the first NCAA Division II National Championship in school history and the second National Championship in Lion football history, 45 years after the Lions won the 1972 NAIA National Championship.
The Lions are the first team in the Lone Star Conference to win a Division II Football National Championship since 1981 and the only current team in the LSC to hoist the trophy.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
– Harlon Hill trophy winner Luis Perez threw had 23 completions for 323 yards and two touchdowns. During the first quarter, he broke a Division II record for most passing yards in a single post-season. He also became the first player in school history to throw for more than 5,000 yards in a season.
– Reggie Kincade returned a kickoff 99 yards for a touchdown in the first quarter. It tied a Division II National Championship game record for the longest return.
– E.J. Thompson rushed for 110 yards and rushed for a touchdown in the third quarter.
– Shawn Hooks had 104 yards receiving, including a 50-yard touchdown catch and ran in the first quarter.
– Marquis Wimberly had 64 yards receiving, including a 40-yard touchdown catch in the third quarter. Vincent Hobbs had five catches for 71 yards.
– Kristov Martinez made all three of his field goals and all four of his extra points.
– Jalon Edwards-Cooper had an interception in the second quarter. The Lions overcame four turnovers in the game.
– Alex Shillow had 1.5 tackles for loss. Brucks Saathoff, DD Fletcher, Michael Onuoha, Peyton Searcy and Jaylon Hodge all had sacks in the game.
– The Lions had 201 more yards in the game, winning both the air and the ground battle. The Lions had three touchdowns of at least 40 yards.
HOW IT HAPPENED
1ST QUARTER
After a crafty UWF kickoff pinned the Lions deep in their territory to begin the game, a rush from Hale gave the Lions some breathing room. Perez then found Hobbs for 28 yards. After dragging a defender five yards, he stopped at midfield. It took just one more play to score as Perez found Hooks on the right side. A hole opened up, and a downfield block from Wimberley sprung Hooks to the end zone for a 50-yard touchdown. The Lions took a 7-0 lead.
The Lion defense also had a good showing on their first opportunity on the field, causing a UWF three and out. The Lions took the ball but were forced to bring out the punting team. The Lions faked the punt, but a pass from Perry was intercepted and returned to midfield, giving the Argos good field position.
UWF took advantage and got a drive going. Passes of 11 and 15 yards moved the sticks inside the one-yard line. It made the Argos take two plays to score, but they punched the ball in to tie the game at 7.
The game didn’t stay tied for long as Kincade took the kickoff at the one-yard line. He cut through a hole on the left, ran toward the left sideline and showed off his All-American sprinter speed, racing around one final defender and down the sideline. The 99-yard touchdown return tied an NCAA Division II Championship game record for the longest in history and gave the Lions a 14-7 lead.
The Lion defense again held firm, forcing another Argonaut punt after just three plays.
2ND QUARTER
The Lions then started to drive as Perez found Landry down the right sideline. He stumbled forward into the red zone before losing his footing. The Lions were unable to punch the ball into the end zone as Martinez was called upon to kick a field goal. The 29-yard kick was perfect, and the Lions led 17-7 early in the second quarter.
The Lion defense again made a play. Flushing the UWF quarterback to the right outside the pocket, he threw an errant pass right into the arms of Edwards-Cooper. He returned the ball 11 yards and set the Lion offense up inside of midfield.
UWF’s defense held the Lions once they entered the red zone. A Lion penalty also drove A&M-Commerce back, and they again had to kick a field goal. Martinez split the uprights again, and the Lions led 20-7.
The teams traded punts on their subsequent possessions. UWF then looked for more points on their final drive of the half. The Argos drove into Lion territory. A sack from Onuoha forced a long third down, but UWF converted a 16-yard pass to move the chains. After another 15-yard pass completion, the Argos got into the end zone on a 20-yard catch. The Lion’s lead cut to 20-14 with 58 seconds remaining.
The Lions looked for one more drive to end the half. Perez hit passes of 12 and 18 yards to put the Lions close to field goal position. However, two UWF sacks finished the half with the score at 20-14.
LION HALFTIME STATS
– Perez was 15-of-18 in the first half for 195 yards and a touchdown.
– Carandal Hale had 12 carries for 64 yards.
– Hobbs had four receptions for 60 yards.
– Kincade returned a 99-yarder for six.
3RD QUARTER
The Lion defense forced an Argo punt on UWF’s first possession of the half. The Lions got the ball back, but a Hale fumble on the first play gave the Argonauts the ball back inside of the red zone. The Lion defense held true, with Searcy sacking the quarterback on third down to keep UWF to a field goal. The Lions led 20-17.
Thompson had two eight-yard rushes, and Perez hit Hobbs for 11 yards to take the Lions into enemy territory on their next drive. Perez then found Wimberly for 11 yards to carry the Lions into the red zone. Thompson finished off the trip, rushing up a massive hole in the middle to give the Lions a 27-17 lead.
After the Lion defense forced a punt on UWF’s next possession, the Lions again started a promising drive. However, the Argo defense then made a play. Andre Duncombe made a one-handed interception of Perez. A personal foul penalty against the Lions gave the Argos a short field. The Lion defense buckled down to hold UWF to a field goal. The Lions led 27-20.
The Lions took the next kickoff and moved their way down the field with ease. Thompson had two rushes before Perez hit Wimberly on a perfect throw for a 40-yard touchdown pass. It gave the Lions a 34-20 lead headed into the fourth quarter.
4TH QUARTER
After the Lion defense forced another punt on UWF’s next possession, the Lions again drove down the field. Thompson had a 19-yard rush as the Lions had five consecutive rushes. Perez then found Hooks cutting across the field. He cut around defenders, being tripped up inside the 10-yard line after a 43-yard catch and run. The Lions were unable to get the ball into the end zone and settled for a 19-yard field goal from Martinez, giving them a 37-20 lead, their largest of the game.
UWF drove for a touchdown of their own on the next possession. The Lions had two pass interference penalties before UWF hit a 38-yard pass inside the red zone. Two plays later, a rusher crossed the goal line, cutting the Lion lead to 37-27 with less than five minutes to play.
UWF attempted an onside kick but was unsuccessful. The Lions ran on their first two plays to force UWF to use their timeouts. The Lions punted, pinning the Argonauts deep inside their territory with 4:20 to play.
UWF had a 33-yard pass on its second play of the drive. Two downs later, D.J. White looked to have the dagger with an interception. However, replay review changed the call, and the Argos continued their drive. The Lion defensive front continued to harass the UWF quarterback, and the Lions had stellar play in the secondary. Edwards-Cooper had a pass breakup on third down and the defense held on fourth down to force a turnover on downs.
The Lions needed one first down to ice the game and turned to Thompson. On three carries, he gained just enough yards for a first down, allowing the Lions to end the game in victory formation.
BASKETBALL
Reggie Reid
No. 22 Lions suffer first loss of the season with a heartbreaking 63-62 loss to No. 11 Arkansas-Fort Smith.
FORT SMITH, Ark.– The No. 22 Texas A&M University-Commerce men’s basketball team suffered a 63-62 loss to No. 11 Arkansas-Fort Smith on Saturday. It was a back-and-forth slugfest as both sides battled until a late UAFS bucket gave them the win.
The loss brings the Lions to 10-1 on the season while UAFS improves to 12-0 on the year.
The Lions will return to the court on Tuesday with a road game against Texas A&M-International. The game will be at 6:00 p.m. at the Kinesiology-Convocation Building in Laredo.
INSIDE THE BOX SCORE
– Reggie Reid led the Lions with 20 points while also posting seven rebounds, five steals, and four assists.
– Daquane Willford had nine points and a team-high eight rebounds.
– Willie Rooks had seven points while Joseph Williams-Powell, Aaron Horne, and Srdan Budimir each had six points.
– There were ten ties and eight lead changes in the game.
HOW IT HAPPENED
The teams traded baskets early in the contest as Armstrong had two early buckets. UAFS then took a five-point lead first in the game. Reid assisted on a three-pointer and then hit one of his own as the Lions climbed back into the game with an 11-0 and took a 21-15 lead with eight minutes to play in half.
UAFS went on a run of their own to tie the game late. Reid hit another three to keep the Lions on top before UAFS hit a three-pointer with two minutes left to take a one-point lead. The Lions tied the score late and went into halftime tied at 33.
Reid had 12 points in the first half to go along with four steals.
UAFS scored the first five points of the second half as they retook the lead. Reid hit a jumper and had two free throws, as well as a three-point play in Lion’s 11-0 run to take a six-point lead of their own with 11 minutes left in the contest.
UAFS then went on a run of their own, scoring 11 points in a row to retake the lead at 51-46 with nine minutes to play. UAFS pushed its lead to as many as eight points before the Lions went on a 6-1 run to cut the UAFS lead to 56-53 with four minutes to play. The Lions continued to claw, and a layup from Conrod gave the Lions the lead back with three minutes to play.
Horne hit a three with 1:35 to give the Lions a three-point lead. UAFS scored on its next possession to cut the lead to just one. After both teams missed shots, UAFS scored a jumper with 12 seconds remaining to give UAFS a 63-62 lead. The Lions had a chance late with Reid driving down the lane. However, officials charged him for a charge with 0.5 seconds on the clock.