SAN MARCOS, Texas -- What was supposed to be an aerial show between two of the top passing teams in Division I-AA was anything but that.
Barrick Nealy threw for 331 yards and four touchdowns and Texas State got a pair of 100-yard performances from K.R. Carpenter and Terrell Harris as it scored 24 unanswered points and defeated Southeastern Louisiana, 38-17, Saturday night before an announced crowd of 11,762 at Bobcat Stadium.
Southeastern (2-3), playing the first of three straight Southland Conference opponents, lost its third straight game as it was stymied by a Bobcat defense that held the Lions to a season-low 154 yards through the air on 21 of 43 aim. The youthful Lions, playing their first season on the gridiron since dropping the program in 1985, return to face No. 1-ranked McNeese State next Saturday at Strawberry Stadium before travelling to face Northwestern State on Oct. 11.
"We scheduled these games to see where we stood among Southland Conference opponents and despite the score tonight I thought we competed well," Southeastern head coach Hal Mumme said. "About half of the players on our travel roster are freshmen, but in 2005 when we (officially) join the Southland, they'll have a ton of experience and that's what we're working towards."
Texas State (3-2) piled up 579 yards of total offense, including 248 on the ground as it remained unbeaten in seven tries against its future Southland Conference opponent. Carpenter rushed for 115 yards on seven carries for the Bobcats while Harris, the Bobcats' leading rusher, churned for 102 yards.
Southeastern managed to find its running game, as it rushed for a season-high 124 yards, including 120 yards from Ray Perkins. But the Lions had trouble jump-starting their offense as they compiled n 278 yards of total offense and were 2-for-13 in third-down conversions.
Texas State, which officially changed its name from Southwest Texas on Sept. 1, wasted no time getting on the scoreboard as Nealy found Carpenter for a 70-yard touchdown strike on the second play of the game. A 20-yard pass from Nealy to Carpenter on the play before a Bobcat penalty nullified the apparent first down, but the pair connected again as Vernon Russell barely missed breaking up the pass and Carpenter raced to the end zone.
After Steven Dietz missed a 35-yard field goal that would have given the Bobcats a 10-0 lead, Southeastern's Ray Perkins tied the score at 7-7 when he took a handoff on second-and-15 and raced down the left sideline for an 85-yard touchdown.
Trailing 10-7 in the second quarter, the Lions got a break when Jarred Jenkins intercepted a Nealy pass and returned it 32 yards to the Bobcat 35. A 25-yard pass to Perkins moved the ball to the Texas State 10 before Josh Taylor was dropped for a four-yard loss and Perkins gained a yard to the 13. But on the next play at the Bobcat 13, Hankins was hurried by the Bobcat rush and his pass to Perkins in the right flat was intercepted by Jeremy Castillio at the 20.
That led to a 12-play, 80-yard drive as the Bobcats drove down the field and scored on a 5-yard touchdown pass from Nealy to Carpenter with 9:01 left in the first half giving the Bobcats a 17-7 lead it carried into the half.
Texas State took advantage of excellent field position on its first two drives of the second half as it built a commanding 31-7 lead. On the first drive, Nealy threw his third touchdown of the game when he hit Kenneth Samuels on a 24-yard touchdown pass to cap a four-play, 47-yard drive.
After a 22-punt by Jim Hall on the Lions' ensuing possession gave the Bobcats the ball at the Lion 44, Antoine Harden capped an eight-play drive when he raced around right end on fourth-and-2 and scored on an 8-yard touchdown that put the Bobcats up 31-7.
Southeastern closed to within 31-17 on a 1-yard plunge by Perkins and a 37-yard field goal by Hess Crockett, but the Bobcats sealed the win as Nealy hit John Tyson with an eight-yard touchdown pass with 3:37 left.
Southeastern Louisiana 7 0 7 3 - 17
Texas State 10 7 14 7 - 38
FIRST QUARTER
TXST -- Carpenter 70 pass from Nealy (Dietz kick) 13:44
SLU -- Perkins 85 run (Crockett kick) 6:01
TXST -- FG Dietz 21 3:41
SECOND QUARTER
TXST -- Carpenter 5 pass from Nealy (Dietz kick) 9:01
THIRD QUARTER
TXST -- Samuels 24 pass from Nealy (Dietz kick) 12:49
TXST -- Harden 8 run (Dietz kick) 8:06
SLU -- Perkins 1 run (Crockett kick) 3:55
FOURTH QUARTER
SLU -- FG Crockett 37 10:10
TXST -- Tyson 8 pass from Nealy (Dietz kick) 3:37
A - 11,762
SLU TXST
FIRST DOWNS 19 30
RUSHES-YARDS (NET) 23-124 46-248
PASSING YDS (NET) 154 331
Passes Att-Comp-Int 43-21-2 38-25-1
TOTAL OFFENSE PLAYS-YARDS 66-278 84-579
Fumble Returns-Yards 1-0 0-0
Punt Returns-Yards 1-0 5-38
Kickoff Returns-Yards 5-59 4-118
Interception Returns-Yards 1-32 2-0
Punts (Number-Avg) 7-44.4 2-47.5
Fumbles-Lost 2-0 3-3
Penalties-Yards 5-60 12-90
Possession Time 25:09 34:51
RUSHING
Southeastern La. - Ray Perkins 11-120, Keylam Davis 4-21, Scott Goldberg 3-10, Seth Babin 1-(minus 9), Martin Hankins 4-(minus 18).
Texas State - K.R. Carpenter 7-115, Terrell Harris 15-102, Barrick Nealy 10-25, Antoine Harden 9-5, Morris Brothers 4-4, Jarivs Smith 1-(minus 3).
PASSING
Southeastern La. - Martin Hankins 21-43-2 154
Texas State - Barrick Nealy 25-38-1 331
RECEIVING
Southeastern La. - Hutch Gonzales 6-39, Josh Taylor 5-39, Ray Perkins 2-25, D.J. Jackson 2-14, Jeffrey Howard 2-4, Scott Goldberg 1-19, Choni Francis 1-10, Brooks Jordan 1-3, Byron Ross 1-1.
Texas State - Kenneth Samuels 6-92, K.R. Carpenter 5-98, Antoine Harden 5-45, John Tyson 4-41, Terrell Harris 2-23, Devin Freeman 2-18, Jarvis Smith 1-14.
