ABILENE, Texas - The McMurry War Hawks made an emphatic statement in their 2026 home opener, pulling away for a commanding 42-16 victory over Huntingdon College at Wilford Moore Stadium. A blistering, 21-point third quarter propelled the War Hawks (2-1) to their second win of the season as the defense forced turnovers in bunches and the offense delivered explosive scoring strikes.
McMurry shook off an early turnover and went right to work on its second possession of the contest. Capping a methodical 10-play, 87-yard drive that featured tough running from
Corey Layne, quarterback
Carson Roper found tight end
Rhett Butler over the middle for a 14-yard touchdown pass.
Jax Rodriguez split the uprights on the PAT to put the War Hawks on the board with a 7-0 lead. Special teams quickly made an impact on the ensuing series when
Elijah Windham broke through the line to block an opponent field goal attempt. While Huntingdon managed to capitalize on a War Hawk fumble shortly after to knot the game at 7-7, McMurry quickly responded by driving deep into enemy territory to close out the opening frame.
The War Hawks regained the lead midway through the second quarter behind an 11-play, 70-yard march. Roper was sharp throughout the drive, connecting with
Thomas Chandler and
Jadyn Pruitt before hitting Butler on a 19-yard touchdown strike for the tight end's second touchdown grab of the afternoon. Rodriguez converted the extra point for a 14-7 advantage. After the War Hawk defense stood tall on a critical fourth-down stop at McMurry's 35-yard line, the offense struck with lightning speed. Roper connected with Chandler on a 39-yard pass down the sideline, paving the way for
Tedrick Williams to dart into the end zone on a 16-yard touchdown run. Huntingdon punched in a short touchdown run in the final minute of the half, sending McMurry into the locker room holding a 21-14 lead.
McMurry blew the contest wide open coming out of halftime, erupting for 21 unanswered points in the third quarter. Roper jump-started the half with a 24-yard scramble before launching a 41-yard touchdown bomb to
Kason O'Shields, stretching the War Hawk advantage to 28-14. Less than four minutes later, the defense delivered a backbreaking blow. Defensive back
Maurice Campbell stepped in front of an errant Huntingdon pass, securing the interception and sprinting 30 yards to the house for a pick-six. On the very next play from scrimmage following a change of possession,
Zach Mitchell jarred the ball loose on a strip-tackle, allowing defensive lineman
Aamanni Strahan to scoop up the fumble and return it 20 yards for another defensive touchdown. Rodriguez drilled his third PAT of the frame, handing the War Hawks an insurmountable 42-14 cushion.
Huntingdon capitalized on a safety early in the fourth quarter, but McMurry's defense clamped down to snuff out any further momentum. Linebacker
Jaylen Gude,
Bryce Neves, and
Tre Sharp swarmed the line of scrimmage, denying Huntingdon on a late fourth-down attempt to turn the ball over on downs. Backup quarterback
Dylan Plake came on to pilot a clock-killing, 11-play drive behind power running from
Alex Idaho and receptions from
Javon Goss and
Bryce Thurman, ultimately sealing the 42-16 victory.
Next week, the War Hawks hit the road to Iowa to face off with the University of Dubuque on Saturday, September 26, with kickoff scheduled for 1:00 p.m. at Chalmers Field.
