ABILENE, Texas – Perhaps this year's installment of the crosstown showdown was not what many expected, as McMurry University was edged 24-21 in a tight battle with No. 7 Hardin-Simmons on Saturday for the Wilford Moore Trophy.
The War Hawks (1-3 overall, 1-3 American Southwest Conference) stunned the home crowd by taking the opening kickoff to the crib and leading the entire first half. The top-ten ranked Cowboys (4-1, 3-1) would eventually pick things up in the second half, taking the third quarter lead and holding on to survive the upset.
This is the closest score in the rivalry since it restarted in 2015.
The No. 7 Cowboys had the offensive advantage with 456 total yards, but McMurry played a complete game and scored one offensive, one defensive and one special teams touchdown. Though HSU moved the ball well, McMurry shut down the Cowboys seven times on third down and twice on fourth down.
Another key stat from the game was penalties, as Hardin-Simmons racked up 12 penalties for 137 surrendered yards. McMurry had just six for 65 yards.
For the second straight game, McMurry forced at least one turnover without an offensive turnover allowed. That one turnover led to a fourth quarter touchdown for McMurry as Jalen Gomez stripped one away near the goal line and Xavier Gayle fell on it for the score.
The War Hawks finished with 395 total yards – including 222 on offense and 173 on returns.
First Quarter – McMurry 6, Hardin-Simmons 3
HSU won the coin toss and chose to defer. This allowed McMurry's Dee Robinson to have the first touch, as he returned the opening kickoff to the house for a 90 yard touchdown. On the play, Robinson split the kickoff team right down the middle and ran over a would-be tackler at midfield, staying on his feet and following lead blocker Jermond Lovely all the way to the end zone.
The War Hawks went for the two-point conversion right away and caught the Cowboys off guard, but Dexter Wyble's pass attempt fell unsuccessful.
The Cowboys answered with a field goal on their first offensive drive, including a long 3rd-and-15 conversion on a 39 yard pass from Kyle Jones to Cade Bell. The next third down came closer to the red zone at the McM 22 yard line, but the defense buckled down. Senior linebacker Josh Smith forced a rushed throw, forcing HSU to attempt a field goal. Longtime kicker Jamie Pogue kicked it through for three.
McMurry went three-and-out on its next offensive possession, but returned the favor on defense to retain the lead. A penalty on third and short harmed the Cowboys and McMurry went on to force a punt.
The War Hawks did move the ball on the next drive, including a first down run by Kameron Session, but a long sack on third and short forced another punt. HSU took over near midfield and moved the ball into the red zone for the first time, but true freshman Adonte Wilkerson stuffed HSU's Myles Featherston on 4th-and-3 for a clutch turnover on downs. Prior to that play, junior Christopher Baker made a solo tackle to prevent a likely third down conversion.
McMurry took over at its own 20 and ran two play before the quarter, the latter of which was a long 35-yard pass from Wyble to fellow sophomore Kristopher Martin. This play led to the quarter break.
Second Quarter – McMurry 13, Hardin-Simmons 10
The McMurry offense began finding its rhythm after the big completion to end the quarter, finding paydirt three plays into the second frame. Wyble connected with true freshman Xavier Williams for a 38 yard score to cap the drive. Williams caught the pass on the nine yard line near the visiting sideline and beat the defender to the pylon for his first career touchdown on his first career catch.
Coming off his D3football.com National Team of the Week honor on Tuesday, junior kicker Jared Mendoza came on to kick the extra point. He split the uprights to make it 13-3. This would be McMurry's largest lead of the game, as momentum wore maroon.
The McMurry defense made another huge stop on the next drive, as HSU drove all the way from its own 25 yard line to the opposing 28 yard line on seven plays. That seventh play turned out to be an incompletion out of bounds on third down, setting up 4th-and-8 just outside the red zone.
HSU head coach Jesse Burleson elected to go for it again – but was unsuccessful again. Jones dropped back and chunked one into the end zone for Jalen Crawford, but McMurry cornerback Jervarius Seals broke up the play and denied the score. The McMurry defense, led by defensive coordinator John Jennings, held HSU to 3-of-10 on third down and just 1-of-3 on fourth down.
The McMurry offense took over again and nickled and dimed its way into enemy territory, utilizing the talents of running backs Kameron Session and Dee Robinson the entire drive. HSU's Matt Mitchell had a big sack on second down, which eventually led to a punt from the HSU 41 yard line.
This would be where HSU finally broke through offensively, scoring on the first play of the drive with an 81 yard pass from Jones to Kevi Evans on a deep route. The extra point made it 13-10 with 4:10 to go. This score would hold through the half.
Third Quarter – Hardin-Simmons 17, McMurry 13
The Cowboys came up less sluggish in the third quarter, scoring on the opening drive of the second half. The opening kickoff was ran out to midfield, then a McMurry personal foul brought the ball even closer to the red zone.
After that, Featherston rushed four times from 27 yards out and scored from one yard out to make it 17-13.
Both teams traded punts the rest of the quarter, eating the clock with sustained drives. HSU had a little more offensive success in the third quarter, but were harmed by four personal foul penalties for 60 total yards against them. Two plays before the fourth quarter, HSU was called for two personal fouls, turning 3rd-and-managable in field goal range into 3rd-and-35 back in their own territory.
Those penalties ended up not costing them, as the quarter ended with a 23 yard run to set up a closer fourth down.
Fourth Quarter – Hardin-Simmons 24, McMurry 21
The fourth quarter opened on what might've been the turning point of the game, as HSU elected to go for it on fourth down for a third time. After two unsuccessful fourth down tries, the third one was the charm. Jones found Gatlin Martin just one yard past the marker to move the chains.
This led to a score just five plays later, as HSU punched it in from one yard away on a run by Colton Marshall. One play prior, senior Josh Smith had stuffed him at the goal line. Pogue's kick made it 24-13 in favor of the home team – the largest lead of the game.
The War Hawks were devastated on the next drive, needing a touchdown, a two-point conversion and a field goal to tie. McMurry killed nearly six minutes with a methodical 12-play, 58-yard drive, including nine runs to move the chains three times. Two short passes by Wyble set up 4th-and-5 inside the 10 yard line, but Mendoza's kick missed just left of the uprights. This kept the score at 24-13 with 6:32 to go.
HSU would have taken over on the 20 following the tough miss, but a personal foul following the missed kick moved the ball back to its own 10 yard line. This proved costly, as Jalen Gomez stripped Marshall on a right-side run and the ball rolled all the way into the end zone. Xavier Gayle would dive on it, giving McMurry life at 24-19 with 6:19 remaining.
Needing a two-point conversion to make it a three-point game, Coach Jordan Neal dialed up a pass to the left for tight end Markeis Williams. The true freshman caught it wide open, pushing the score to 24-21.
Unfortunately, HSU was able to chew the final six minutes on its final drive, keeping the ball out of McMurry's hands to survive the scare. Two big moments on the drive came when Jones completed two long passes to turn second and long into a first down with time still running.
A couple of six yard rushes by Kolby Youngblood sealed the deal, as HSU was able to kneel out the clock in the final minute.
Stats Summary
Defensively, junior safety Ke'Shaun Jnofinn is the new season leader for single-game tackles as he finished with 15 total – including six solo. Senior Josh Smith and junior Brenden Torrence each had 10 tackles, including three solo. Torrence added a pass break-up, while Smith had a QB hurry.
With Smith's season-high 10 tackles, he moves into third on the all-time career tackles list at McMurry ahead of Kevin Hirst (1991-94). He now has 328 tackles for his career – including a team-best 31 this season – and moves closer to Colby Witt (2002-05) for second place with 344. He is 51 tackles away from tying Chris Joseph (1982-86) for the all-time lead at 379.
Gayle also had a big game outside of his fumble recovery, totaling eight tackles, two for loss, and one sack. Coryell Fillmore also had a strong day with eight tackles and a pass breakup.
On the offensive side, Dexter Wyble finished with an efficient day passing. He went 13-for-15 for 144 yards and a touchdown with no interceptions.
Senior Kameron Session led the backfield with a strong performance, rushing 18 times for 75 yards for 4.2 yards per carry. His longest run came on that last fourth quarter drive – a 26 yarder for a first down to flip field position. Session also had four catches for 27 yards.
Junior Dee Robinson added 22 yards on seven carries, as well as three catches for 15 yards.
True freshman Xavier Williams had a breakout performance, making his first collegiate receptions. He had three catches for 57 yards and a touchdown to lead the way, while sophomore Kristopher Martin added one catch for 35 yards.
Up Next
McMurry and HSU will each have bye weeks this upcoming week. McMurry returns to Wilford Moore Stadium for Homecoming Weekend on Saturday, Oct. 16 at 1 p.m. against new ASC member Austin College.
