Week 1 – RV Azusa Pacific (8-4, 2018) vs. West Texas A&M (6-5, 2018)
Location – J. Ferg Field at Buffalo Stadium, Canyon, Texas (first ever game played at stadium)
Video Stream --
http://lonestarconferencenetwork.com/wtamu/
Game conditions – Saturday, 6:00 p.m. CDT (4:00 p.m. PDT), weather projected to be partly cloudy and 90 degrees at kickoff,
Coaches – Azusa Pacific: Victor Santa Cruz (14
th season, 83-60). West Texas A&M: Hunter Hughes (3
rd season, 9-13)
Preseason Predictions – Azusa Pacific was voted the preseason favorite in the GNAC, receiving two of the four first place votes. West Texas A&M was projected to finish sixth in the nine-team Lone Star Conference. The preseason favorite is defending champion Tarleton State, who defeated the Cougars in the first round of the playoffs last season.
Cougar Offense – Redshirt junior QB Tyrone Williams returns to lead an offensive attack that averaged 30 points a game during the regular season en route to Azusa Pacific’s fourth GNAC title in the last six years. Williams completed 61.7% of his passes last season, throwing for 2,679 yards and 23 touchdowns, while also adding 336 yards and 4 scores rushing. Bryce Grandison (558 yards, 6 touchdowns) and Zikel Reddick (424 yards) figure to both see action in the backfield, while the receiving corps is led by the returning Brandon Jackson (47 receptions, 534 yards, 5 touchdowns) and Darrell Adams (39 receptions, 553 yards, 3 touchdowns). The biggest change to the Cougar offense will be up front, as four-year starter Sakalaia Hungalu has graduated, and the Cougars will be starting a new center on Saturday, but the line still boasts plenty of experience from the likes of Joe Murphy, Eric Esquer, and Mataio Fatuesi.
Cougar Defense: While the Cougars will miss GNAC Defensive Player of the Year Aaron Berry in the middle of the defense, his linebacking cohort Willie Fair returns to lead the way for the Cougars’ defensive scheme. Fair had 75 tackles last season, leading all returning players for Azusa Pacific, including 5.5 sacks. The real strength of the defense this year figures to be the secondary, where sophomores Josh Olave (44 tackles, 5 interceptions, 8 pass breakups) and Quentin Frazier (66 tackles, 3 interceptions, 5 pass breakups) were both first team all-conference selections in 2018. They will be joined on the back line by returning seniors Ulysses Pickett (62 tackles) and Lee Pitts to form a formidable ball-hawking group. Alex Benter (34 tackles, 4 sacks) and Robert Bohanna (24 tackles, 2 sacks) will be in charge of leading the defensive line.
Changing of the Herd – While the Buffaloes return all-conference running back Duke Carter (818 yards rushing, 11 receptions for 88 yards and 9 total touchdowns last season), they will be breaking in a new quarterback on opening night for the second consecutive year. Redshirt sophomore Nick Gerber transferred in from Texas Tech and won the starting job over last year’s leading returner Mitch Hood. In Gerber’s senior season in high school he set a Texas state record, throwing for 5,617 yards and 77 touchdowns at Levelland High School. Gerber’s leading targets coming back from last year figure to be senior WR Semaj Mitchell (34 receptions, 400 yards in 2018) and Peyton Gonzales (20 receptions, 300 yards, 2 TDs)
Buffs D – Defense may be the Buffaloes’ strong suit, based on the honors bestowed on returning players. In all, three returning West Texas A&M defenders found spots on the all-LSC team: Freshman of the Year safety Tobias Harris (48 tackles, 7 interceptions), second-team sophomore linebacker Eric Collins (77 tackles, 3 sacks, 2 forced fumbles), and defensive end Gerred Johnson (38 tackles, 2 sacks).
Series History – This will be the fifth consecutive season that the Cougars and Buffaloes will open the season against each other. West Texas won the first meeting between the two schools in a blowout, 75-13 back in 2008 while the Cougars were still in the NAIA. But Azusa Pacific has won all four meetings since. Despite leading the head-to-head series 4-1, the Cougars still have been outscored by West Texas A&M, due to that 62-point margin in the first meeting.
Last meeting – Azusa Pacific 17, West Texas A&M 7 (Sept. 1, 2018, at Citrus Stadium) Zikel Reddick had a career day for the Cougars, rushing for 201 yards and a touchdown on 27 carries to lead the way on opening night. Junior safety Lee Pitts had two first-half interceptions, including a critical one in the end zone just before halftime to preserve what at the time was a 14-7 lead. The Cougars’ most successful drive was the opening one, marching 75 yards downfield on 12 plays, capping off a 7-minute possession with a 12-yard touchdown pass to Brandon Jackson. Tyrone Williams was held to only 12 completions for 121 yards on the night in his second-career start, but the defense did its job, forcing three turnovers and holding the Buffaloes to 76 rushing yards and 4-15 on third down conversions.
Up next – The Cougars will play the second half of their two-game road trip to open the season when they pay their first ever visit to Missouri S&T from the Great Lakes Valley Conference next Saturday night. West Texas A&M will also be heading up to the Show Me State when they visit William Jewell for a non-conference game on Sept. 8.
| GNAC Preseason Poll |
Points (1st place votes) |
| Azusa Pacific |
24 (2) |
| Central Washington |
18 (1) |
| Western Oregon |
16 (1) |
| Simon Fraser |
6 |
| Lone Star Preseason Poll |
Points (1st place votes) |
| Tarleton State |
217 (19) |
| Midwestern State |
185 (2) |
| Texas A&M - Commerce |
169 (1) |
| Eastern New Mexico |
130 |
| Angelo State |
122 (2) |
| West Texas A&M |
119 |
| Texas A&M - Kingsville |
88 |
| Texas – Permian Basin |
67 (1) |
| Western New Mexico |
28 |
