FORT WORTH, TX:  The Texas Wesleyan University football team (0-7, 0-4 CSFL) fell by a final score of 33-18 on Homecoming at Farrington Field against Bacone College (2-5, 2-3 CSFL) on a hot North Texas Saturday.

Bacone put all 33 of their points on the board before the Rams finally got going in the fourth quarter.  Texas Wesleyan actually had the Warriors on their heels early on, but the Rams were unable to capitalize on Bacone mistakes while the Warriors made the Rams pay for each of their miscues.

"I thought our kids really competed today," Head Coach Joe Prud'homme said after the game.  "You can't expect to win with some of the mistakes that we made, but we are getting better and we will continue to fight.  We've got freshmen and redshirt freshmen playing against seasoned teams, but our guys are going to continue to fight to the end."

After the Rams kicked-off, the Warriors fumbled the snap on their first play from scrimmage.  Jason Ramsland recovered the ball at the BC 14 yard line and the Rams were in business.  Texas Wesleyan eventually lined up for a 22-yard field goal, but the attempt was blocked.



Bacone then drove 69 yards before Michael Miller picked off a Samuel Sewards pass in the end zone.  Bacone later fumbled a Colby Reed punt and Marcus Haynes recovered the ball at the BC 13.  Again Bacone's defense held, but this time, the Rams elected to go for it on fourth and one.  Texas Wesleyan failed to convert, but had the Warriors pinned at their own five yard line.

A quick stop would have set the Rams up with terrific field position again, but BC's Johnny Thomas ripped off a brilliant 92-yard run after hurtling the last defender near the 30 yard line to put the Warriors on top 7-0.

Bacone's next drive was a methodical 16 play, 99-yard affair that ate up the first 6:12 of the second quarter and left the Warriors with a 14-0 advantage.  The game was one-sided in the second and third quarters as the score reached 33-0 following a John Jackson TD run early in the fourth quarter.

The Rams did recover to win the second half with 18 points in the fourth quarter.  The initial spark came on the point after attempt following Jackson's touchdown.  The kick was blocked and Jordan Sutherlin picked the ball out of the air and went 100 yards for a defensive two-point conversion.

The Rams got a 16-yard run from Da'vonte Mitchel-Dixon and a 22 yard scamper from Jermarcus Jones during a 56-yard drive that was capped by a 5-yard pass from Erik Richards to Colton Wade.

A pooch kick from Bryce Nye was then recovered by Michael Haynes at the BC 21 and the Rams put a 38-yard Nye field goal on the board to cut the score to 33-12 with 6:32 to play.

A 12-yard power run from Jermarcus Jones put the ball at the BC 23 yard line and eventually set up a 16-yard run from Richards that capped the scoring at 33-18.



"Erik Richards was a real spark for us," Prud'homme said.  " He can make things happen with his legs and the game seems to slow down for him allowing him to make good decisions with the ball.  We had a total of six healthy offensive linemen to start the game and he was still able to create and that bolds well for us in the future."



Richards made his first start of the season at quarterback.  In spite of six sacks for 52 yards, he still rushed for 72 yards and a score.  He was also 8-of-25 passing with a touchdown and no interceptions.

Jones carried the ball 20 times for 85 yards, as the Rams outgained the Warriors on the ground 191-152.

Punter Colby Reed continued to be a weapon on special teams, averaging 30.4 yards on five punts and repeatedly delivering good field position.  Donovan Davidson racked up 110 yards on five kick returns with a long of 29 yards.

Johnny Thomas touched the ball only six times and ran for 110 yards and three touchdowns for Bacone.  Sewards was 15-of-30 passing for 165 yards and a score for the Warriors.

The Rams will return to action on Oct. 21, when they travel to Batesville, AR, to take on Lyon College.  Their next home game is scheduled for Oct. 28, when they host Wayland Baptist University at Farrington Field.

 

Ramblings

- Welcome to Ramsland: Jason Ramsland made his presence felt with a half-sack and a fumble recovery.  Dylan Briscoe also had 1.5 sacks and 2 tackles for loss totaling 15 yards for the TXWES defense.

- After a forgettable first half, the Rams once again won the second half (18-12).  Texas Wesleyan has outscored its opponent in the second half four times this season.  In total, they have outscored their opponents 67-66 following the intermission this season.