The #7 ranked WTAMU Buffs faced every obstacle possible Oct. 16 in Kingsville against the #9 ranked Javelinas. Although they survived a pre-game power outage and a homecoming crowd of 14,500, the Buffs were unable to defeat Kingsville, losing 28-24.
WT didn’t get on the board until the 6:43 mark of the first quarter. Quarter back Taylor Harris found wide receiver Stephen Burton over the middle and eventually broke through the TAMUK defense to score from 24-yards out making the score 7-0 Buffs.
On the next possession, the Buffs drove deep into Kingsville territory thanks to a 62-yard run by running back Kelvin Thompson. The drive eventually led to a 20-yard field goal from Sergio Castillo making the score 10-0 with 2:16 left in the first quarter.
TAMUK struck back in the second quarter when QB Nate Poppell found Robert Armstrong for a 29-yard touchdown pass. WT’s Rashad Sanders blocked the point after touch down to take the score 10-6 Buffs with 13:50 remaining in the second quarter.
On the next possession, Harris connected with Tyson Williams for a 67-yard touchdown pass to boost the Buffs lead to 17-6 with 12:56 left in the first half.
After forcing a Javelina punt, WT was on the move again. The drive culminated with Harris finding Burton again, this time from 20-yards out to give the Buffs a 24-6 lead with 8:19 left in the second.
TAMUK made a switch at quarterback on their next drive with Daniel Ramirez replacing Poppell. The switch paid off as Ramirez found Armstrong from 29-yards out to trim the lead to 24-13 with 5:41 remaining before halftime. This score held for the rest of the quarter.
In the third quarter, TAMUK drove 69 yards in 12 plays and got a 41-yard field goal from Christian Brom to trim the Buffs lead to 24-16 with 8:25 left in the quarter.
Kingsville got another field goal from Brom before the quarter ended from 21-yards out to make the score 24-19 at the end of three.
The fourth quarter started out as a defensive struggle with WT clinging to a five point lead. TAMUK got another field goal from Brom with 6:19 left in regulation, this one from 20-yards out.
With the score 24-22 WT desperately needed to sustain a drive. Unfortunately, the Kingsville defense had other ideas and forced the Buffs to punt.
The Javelinas covered 73 yards in 1:13 on the ensuing possession, culminating with a 13 yard touchdown pass from Poppell to Sherman Batiste to make the score 28-24 with 3:24 left in the game.
WT came up empty on its ensuing possession and the clock counted them out with Kingsville claiming the 28-24 upset victory over the Buffs.
QB Taylor Harris was 17-31 passing for 236 yards and three touchdowns. WR Stephen Burton had seven catches for 99 yards and two touchdowns. WR Tyson Williams caught five passes for 96 yards. RB Kelvin Thompson rushed for 107 yards on nine carries. This marked the first time all season Kingsville had allowed an opponent to rush for more than 100 yards.
WT returns home Oct. 23 playing host to #15 ranked Midwestern State with kickoff scheduled for 6:00 p.m. from Kimbrough Memorial Stadium.
