N.M. Highlands Grabs 60-14 Football Win over OPSU
—By Scott Puryear of OPSU Sports on 09/11/2011 Las Vegas, N.M.—The Oklahoma Panhandle State Aggie football team visited the Cowboys of New Mexico Highlands on Saturday night and the Cowboys got the 60-14 victory. It was a game that saw some tense moments as well as some very wild moments, including a 40-point third quarter.The Aggies got the ball first to begin the game and gave it up after three downs and a punt. With 12:20 on the first quarter clock, the Cowboys took over, went on a strong drive and with 8:50 left, Jordan Campbell punched it in from a yard out. A two-point conversion followed and the Cowboys had an 8-0 advantage.
The second OPSU possession also sputtered, but Aggie punter Sean Livengood nailed a 48 yarder resulting in a touchback and the Cowboys took over on their own 20-yard line. They again went on the march and with 3:46 on clock, Campbell scored his second TD of the quarter with a two yard plunge. The PAT failed, but the Cowboys were up 14-0.
On the third OPSU possession, the Cowboys' Gary Doxy picked off a Kevin Lauchland pass and returned it 59 yards to the OPSU six-yard line. However, a short time later, OPSU linebacker Trevor Lutz made a touchdown-saving interception at the goal line and returned it 15 yards. The opening quarter ended with the Cowboys up 14-0.
Midway though the second quarter, OPSU defensive back Justin Fogle made a nice interception and returned it 27 yards, but the Aggies could not turn it into any points. However, with 2:01 left on the first half clock, the Cowboys scored again on a pass (of 24 yards from Emmanuel Lewis to Keondrick Reynolds) and with a failed conversion attempt, the home team led 20-0.
As the first half was coming to a close, the Aggies were fighting for a score before the break, but in the final seconds Cowboy defender Tony Udley picked off a Klay Kuban pass and took it back 98 yards for a touchdown. With the two point conversion, the Cowboys increased their lead to 28-0 and that score stood at halftime.
The second half started with a bang, and things got wilder with 40 points scored in the third quarter alone.
The Cowboys Abdul Kanneh returned the second half opening kickoff 97 yards for a TD and the Cowboys went up 35-0.
Not quite a minute later, OPSU's Justice Patterson raced 77 yards for a TD and with Carlos Nieto's PAT the score stood 35-7.
At the 11:45 mark, the Cowboys' Harold Mobley ran one in from 15 yards out and his team was up 42-7 after the extra point. One minute later, OPSU's Jose Mendoza scored on a nice 58-yard run and Nieto's extra point kick was true, but the Cowboys had the 42-14 advantage.
With 9:35 left on the third quarter clock, the Cowboy's Jermaine Holmes slammed over from six yards out, the PAT failed, but the Cowboys had increased their lead to 48-14.
With 7:57 left in the third, Eric Pesante ran one in from 23 yards out to put the Cowboys up 54-14.
In the fourth quarter, the Cowboys stayed in control and went on to a 60-14 victory, raising their season record to 2-0 while the Aggies dropped to 0-2.
Stats leaders for the Aggies included Lauchland with 15 pass completions in 22 tries for 71 yards, along with Patterson, who ran for 79 yards in just five carries and caught five balls for 32 yards. For the OPSU "D," linebacker Hector Clavijo was in on a dozen tackles and Lutz was in on nine stops.
The Aggies will be back in Goodwell this coming Saturday night for a contest with Eastern New Mexico (0-2) and both teams will be hungry for their first victory of the 2011 season. The opening kickoff is set for 7:00 p.m. and the game will open to the public at no charge, thanks to the patronage of Tri-County Electric.