NACOGDOCHES, Texas _ The University of Central Arkansas Bears won a big game last week, knocking off then-No. 3 Sam Houston State 24-20 before a Southland Conference Television crowd at First Security Field at Estes Stadium.
But according to head coach Clint Conque, all that did was make this weekend’s game at Stephen F. Austin that much bigger.
The Bears (3-1, 1-0), ranked 14th and 16th in this week’s national FCS polls, take on the Lumberjacks (1-3, 0-0) at 6 p.m. Saturday at Homer Bryce Stadium. UCA leads the overall series 4-2 with SFA, including 2-1 in games played in Nacogdoches.
“I’m not going to downplay the fact that this was a tremendous win,’ said Conque, in his 13th season at the helm of the UCA program. “This (SHSU) team just won 14 games last year, was the national runnerup and were predicted by most to win the (FCS) national championship this year with all the starters they had coming back.
“But our guys made plays all night, especially in the final five minutes. We made the plays we needed to to win the game.
“With that being said, it’s just one game. It’s only the first conference game of the season. We have a long way to go, and it starts with a very talented and dangerous Stephen F. Austin team on Saturday. We have to approach this game the same way we did last week’s game.’
The Lumberjacks, picked second to UCA’s third in the Southland Conference preseason polls, have lost three straight games, but to quality competition. After beating Division II Southwestern Oklahoma to start the season, the ‘Jacks lost to SMU, Montana State and Texas State.
SFA has one of the top passing offenses in the nation, one averaging 405 yards a game through the air. UCA counters with one of the most efficient passing games in the country, led by junior quarterback Wynrick Smothers, who is seventh in FCS in pass efficiency and sixth in total offense.
Smothers led the Bears to two touchdowns in the final 3:18 against Sam Houston. He ran 17 yards for the first score that closed the gap to 20-17, then hit senior receiver Dominique Croom with a 26-yard touchdown pass with just 57 seconds left to win it.
The Bears and Lumberjacks have the top three rated receivers in the SLC in SFA’s Cordell Roberson and UCA’s Dezmin Lewis and Croom. Roberson is averging 9.8 receptions per game, while Lewis is second at 5.8 and Croom third at 5.2.
UCA’s Jesse Grandy is second in punt returns (21.2 yards per game) and kickoff returns (27.3). UCA linebacker Justin Heard is second in tackles for loss with 1.62 per game (6.5 total). The Bears lead the nation in tackles for loss with 10 per game.
Catch all the action from Nacogdoches at www.ucagameday.com.
