Photographer: Hannah TrojanThe Sam Houston State University football team’s chances at a
Southland Conference title have come to an end with a 31-28 loss against the
Northwestern State University Demons who came into the matchup against the Kats
with a 2-8 record. Following the upset, the Bearkats’ chance of an FCS playoff
bid hang by a thread.
“I’ve done this a long time,” head coach K.C. Keeler said.
“I don’t think I can remember one that hurts as bad as this one does. We put
ourselves in a position to get back in this thing and [if] we won out we’d be
conference champs and make the playoffs.”
The Bearkats have struggled all year at the quarterback
position. On several occasions head coach K.C. Keeler has spoken on the issue.
With sophomore quarterback Eric Schmid breaking his hand against the McNeese
University Cowboys on Sept. 28, the Bearkats went back to sophomore quarterback
Ty Brock who played less than ideally all season long. With one game remaining,
Brock has nine touchdowns and 11 interceptions.
On the other side of the ball, the
defense has been one of the best in the country with seniors Royce See and
Hunter Brown leading the way. See has been a force to be reckoned with causing
five turnovers and getting to the quarterback four times, and Brown leads the
team with 41 solo tackles so far on the season. The Bearkats gave up 31 points to
NSU in the upset— the second highest total this year (and the highest by a
Southland Conference opponent).
During the week the Bearkats also
lost senior wide receiver Nathan Stewart. Stewart was suspended indefinitely by
the team when he missed a mandatory team function.
“I’m pretty strict about everyone
being at everything that’s mandatory,” Keeler said. “He was suspended for it.” When
asked about a return next week, Keeler was brief: “He’s gonna have to talk to
the leadership council about that.”
Stewart leads the team with six
touchdowns and 779 yards and is in the Top-10 in the conference in multiple
statistics. This is Stewart’s fourth and final year of what has been one of the
most impressive collegiate careers of any receiver in FCS history, but it looks
like he may not get to finish it on the field.
With one game left in the season and
SHSU being eliminated from a conference championship, the Bearkats will need a
miracle to get an FCS playoff bid. While the chances of playing for pride are
greater than fighting for a playoff spot, hope is there for the Kats in a
must-win final game (however bleak it may be).
The Bearkats will close the
regular season with Fan Appreciation Day against the Houston Baptist University
Huskies Nov. 23 with kickoff slated for noon at Bowers Stadium.