University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff Coach Cedric Thomas knew last week's road game at Football Championship Subdivision No. 3-ranked South Dakota State wouldn't be easy for the Golden Lions, but not even he could've envisioned what transpired once the game kicked off.
The Golden Lions suffered one of their most lopsided defeats in program history when the Jackrabbits jumped out to a 49-6 halftime lead and didn't let up until the final horn sounded in a 90-6 thrashing in front of a crowd of nearly 15,000. The loss was UAPB's worst since losing 70-0 to Grambling State in 2016, but in that one, the Golden Lions were on a level playing field considering it came against a Southwestern Athletic Conference foe. Against South Dakota State, UAPB was doomed from the start.
Junior quarterback Shannon Patrick, who'd thrown for 678 yards and 6 touchdowns over the first 2 games, sat out with a dislocation in his index figure, as did his backup, freshman Skyler Perry, who is dealing with a shoulder injury. The Golden Lions also were missing several defensive regulars. Those factors, along with the reality of facing a perennial FCS power, were a recipe for disaster.
South Dakota State averaged 16.2 yards per play in piling up 926 yards of offense, which was 39 yards short of an FCS record. The Jackrabbits never punted, and their defense held the Golden Lions to 310 yards and forced four turnovers.
UAPB third-string quarterback Roger Totten was 9 of 21 for 131 yards and 2 interceptions in place of Patrick, with freshman David Chapple also seeing action in the fourth quarter.
There were a few bright spots for the Golden Lions. Junior running back Taeyler Porter continued his impressive play by rushing for 106 yards on 21 carries while wide receiver Josh Wilkes caught four passes for 80 yards before leaving with an injury.
"It was good to take them to up there in a hostile environment to see what good I-AA football looks like," Thomas said. "In the journey of building a program, I want to see the guys go through a little adversity as much as possible, and that's what we're doing. We've got to keep our heads up, keep fighting and put a better product out there when we play those types of teams.
"But we ran into a buzz-saw when not at full strength and with all our weapons, and the outcome was an indication of it."
Thomas said there were rumblings about South Dakota State Coach John Stiegelmeier possibly running up the score on his short-handed team, but he admitted he didn't buy much into that theory.
"I've been on both sides of it," Thomas said. "When I talked to [Coach Stiegelmeier] when I shook his hand, I told him we'll be better. We'll look back at this one day and say, 'Hey, I can remember when we were in a situation where some adversity happened to us and we really got better from it.'
"It's our job defensively to be able to stop whatever it is that they're doing. But I also know it's some etiquette things that go on in this profession. We got to do a better job of tackling, getting the football down and not letting these types of scores rear its ugly head."
UAPB will open SWAC play at home against Prairie View A&M on Saturday, and Thomas said he doesn't think there will be much of a hangover from the South Dakota loss.
"I think they'll be ready to roll," he said. "I've got a lot of history with a couple of coaches on Prairie View's staff and I know them well. Coach [Eric] Dooley and them guys are doing a great job of scoring a bunch of points and playing really sound defensively and in the kicking game.
"So for one, we don't have time to hold our head down and wallow in self-pity over that situation because with the weapons they've got at Prairie View, it'll happen again. We've got to dust ourselves off and play a good football team on Saturday."
Plenty of bite
Prairie View A&M may have lost three of its first four games this season, but the Panthers have looked nothing like a sub-.500 team.
Conference USA challenger Rice needed a field goal with four seconds left to erase a nine-point, fourth-quarter deficit to beat Prairie View 31-28 in the season opener, and FCS No. 11 Sam Houston State held on late for a 41-32 victory at home. The Panthers also played well for a half before falling 46-17 to UNLV from the Mountain West Conference.
"As far as team growth and getting better each game that we play, we're where we want to be at," said Prairie View A&M Coach Eric Dooley, who took over the Panthers program five days before Cedric Thomas was hired at UAPB. "But of course, we're not there because we're 1-3, and I don't think anyone wants to start of the season with that type of record. We understand the challenges that we had, but that doesn't give an excuse.
"The record is not where we want to be at, but as far as team wise, the ability, the attitude. ... I think we're heading in the right direction."
The Panthers, whose lone victory came against North Carolina Central of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference, are led by running back Dawonya Tucker. The 5-foot-6, 175-pound junior is averaging 150.8 yards rushing per game, including 267 in the team's 40-24 rout of the Eagles. Quarterback Jalen Morton is back as well and has thrown for a conference-leading 902 yards and 8 touchdowns against just 1 interception. The Panthers also have Division I transfers on the outside in Tristian Wallace (6-3, 235 pounds) and Chris Thomas (6-2, 195). Wallace, who came from Oregon, is second in the SWAC in catches with 17 and averages nearly 18 yards per reception.
Sleeping Lions
Prairie View A&M Coach Eric Dooley, who was UAPB's offensive coordinator from 2011-2013 under then-coach Monte Coleman, believes his team will have its work cut out for them despite what the Golden Lions endured in South Dakota.
"It was a tough environment [last week], but I saw a team that continued to fight regardless of what the outcome of the game was," he said. "I know coach has been a part of a good program for the past three years so he understands the process that it takes to win. What happened on Saturday, that's not something we have to pay close attention to because I know they'll be a well-prepared team and a team that plays 60 minutes as well."
The Panthers have been a thorn in the Golden Lions' side as of late. Prairie View A&M has beaten UAPB five times in a row, including 35-12 last season in Texas, but Dooley's not taking any of that into account to what may happen Saturday night.
"They've got some exciting players that they have at Pine Bluff so we know it's gonna be a challenge for us," he said. "Of course, it's another conference game for them as well as for us. We know it's going to be a good football game and a well-coached team we have to face."
Sports on 09/21/2018