CONWAY -- Works in progress for the University of Central Arkansas are led by an offensive line stocked with former reserves.
To a man, they progressed throughout UCA's rain-soaked 26-13 victory over the Murray State Racers at Estes Stadium on Saturday night. The Bears capped the game with a 14-play, 87-yard, 7:47 drive capped with a quarterback kneel down.
"We challenged our line," UCA Coach Nathan Brown said. "In a game like this, to finish off a team in this kind of environment, you can't rely on the pass every play, and I think they rose up to the challenge. That was awesome for those guys."
Four of UCA's five first-string offensive linemen did not start before this season. Only sophomore left guard Adrian Harris returned from UCA's starting lineup last season when the Bears won the Southland Conference championship and finished second in the conference in rushing, passing and total yards.
"As an O-line, we've gotten to the point that we're starting to get on the same page," Harris said. "It showed as this game went on. We started to drive the ball more, started to pick up some movement."
Brown included the offensive line with the Bears' defensive backfield in his list of main concerns before the season opener, a 38-27 loss at Tulsa from the FBS on Sept. 1. George Odum and Tremon Smith, both All-American defensive backs last season as seniors, are on NFL 53-man rosters -- Odum with the Indianapolis Colts and Smith with the Kansas City Chiefs.
UCA's current defensive backfield faced a challenge against Murray State senior quarterback Drew Anderson, who completed 19 of 36 passes for 209 yards and 1 touchdown. He was intercepted once and also had a receiver fumble a catch into the end zone for a touchback.
"We got crossed up a few times, but our defense came up with two big turnovers," Brown said.
Murray State took a 3-0 lead on the game's opening possession after a drive that featured a 35-yard pass from Anderson to sophomore receiver Sylvaughn Turner.
UCA responded with a 48-yard kickoff return by senior Cedric Battle, followed by an eight-play, 51-yard drive completed by sophomore quarterback Breylin Smith's 1-yard sneak.
A series of punts led to UCA junior Duke Upshaw's muff when the ball bounced off his lower leg and was recovered by Murray State junior Rajai Perkins at the UCA 22. The turnover resulted in a 23-yard field goal by junior Gabriel Vicente that pulled Murray State within 7-6 early in the second quarter.
"We did go toe to toe for a while with a top-notch program," Murray State Coach Mitch Stewart said. "UCA has tremendous athletes, tremendous players, and we stayed with them until the end of the third quarter and into the fourth quarter, but then our execution and our poise went away."
UCA's subsequent possession was led by Smith in his second career start and the pass blocking by the offensive line. Ten plays covered 72 yards, with the final one a 1-yard run by junior Carlos Blackman. Smith completed a stress-free 5 of 5 passes for 58 yards.
"After a couple of years here, I've noticed that we've always had great pass blockers," Harris said. "But run blocking is something we have to establish. We have to establish a running game, and that starts up front. If we do that, we'll be an unstoppable team."
Smith completed 24 of 31 passes for 301 yards and 1 touchdown.
After Blackman's score, UCA held Murray State without a first down and scored on a three-play drive highlighted by Smith's 25-yard touchdown pass to senior receiver Lester Wells to give the Bears a 20-6 lead with 7:56 left in the second quarter. Wells finished with 9 catches for 158 yards and 1 touchdown.
Four minutes after Wells' score, nearby lightning led to a delay that lasted 1 hour and 13 minutes.
Play resumed with an exchange of punts, and Murray State gained the advantage when UCA junior Taylor Wallace's 15-yard punt gave it possession at the UCA 45. Three plays later, the Racers were within 20-13 after Anderson's 31-yard touchdown pass to junior receiver James Sappington with eight seconds left in the first half.
"I was pleased with the way we progressed," Brown said. "I thought our team just battled. There were some momentum swings, but I think our defense came up big in big moments."
Sports on 09/09/2018