The Howard Payne Yellow Jackets spotted the Mary Hardin-Baylor Crusaders three touchdowns in the first six minutes and never recovered, dropping their 2023 season finale by a 35-10 count Saturday afternoon at Gordon Wood Stadium.
Howard Payne (6-4, 3-4) finished with its third consecutive winning season, but the Yellow Jackets lost three of their last four games – all against American Southwest Conference foes.
Meanwhile, Mary Hardin-Baylor (6-4, 6-1) will likely miss the postseason for the first time since 2003, but still ensured itself of another winning record.
An interception on Howard Payne’s second play of the game set Mary Hardin-Baylor up with a first-and-goal at the Jacket 2 just 39 seconds into the contest. Kenneth Cormier Jr. later scored on a 1-yard run and the Yellow Jackets faced a 7-0 deficit at the 12:29 mark of the opening stanza.
The Yellow Jackets lost 3 yards on their second possession before punting, and UMHB needed just three plays to travel 54 yards as Isaac Phe connected with AJ Williams on a 33-yard touchdown pass at the 9:58 mark of the first period for a 14-0 edge.
Another HPU three-and-out, followed by a 15-yard punt, resulted in a one-play, 30-yard scoring drive for the Cru as Phe found Stanley Asiegbu for a touchdown and a 1-0 cushion at the 9:21 mark of the first quarter.
Howard Payne was able to close the gap to 21-10 at halftime on a 9-yard touchdown pass from Landon McKinney to Casey Dufner, which capped an eight-play, 70-yard trek, with 59 seconds left in the period. Then, at the 11:24 mark of the second period, Michael Fields accounted for the final Yellow Jacket points of the season on a 37-yard field goal, the end result of a nine-play, 63-yard drive.
Leading by11 points at the break, UMHB added a pair of second-half touchdowns on a Williams 22-yard touchdown pass from Phe with 6:51 left in the third quarter, then Jerry Cephus hauled in a 20-yard scoring toss from Phe with 9:36 remaining.
The Yellow Jackets finished with 353 yards of total offense – 315 passing and 38 rushing – but turned over the ball three times. UMHB amassed 320 yards – 205 through the air and 115 on the ground – with one giveaway.
McKinney completed 27 of 48 passes for all of HPU’s yards through the air with one touchdown and a pair of interceptions. Deon Collins led the way with six catches for 63 yards followed by Jordan Carroll with five for 83, Samuel Sims with four for 55, Klyderion Campbell with four for 38 and Dufner with four for 38 and a touchdown. Campbell also rushed for 33 yards, Konlyn Anderson added 9 and Reece Rodgers finished with 5.
Phe connected on 15 of 27 passes for 194 yards with four touchdowns and one interception for UMHB. Williams led the way with three grabs for 65 yards while Jerry Day contributed three receptions for 64 yards. Kenneth Miller Jr. led the ground game with 68 yards.
HPU’s defense was spearheaded by KJ Kelley’s nine tackles, seven each from Jacob Korrodi and Justin Kay, and five from Nicholas Acker. Brevin Wilson and Trevonn Williams-Franklin each registered a sack and Kadarius Carr picked off a pass.
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| American SW Conference |
Conference Wins |
Conference Losses |
Overall Wins |
Overall Losses |
|
| Hardin-Simmons | 7 | 0 | 9 | 1 | |
| Mary Hardin-Baylor | 6 | 1 | 6 | 4 | |
| East Texas Baptist | 4 | 3 | 5 | 5 | |
| McMurry | 4 | 3 | 6 | 4 | |
| *Sul Ross | 3 | 4 | 4 | 6 | |
| Howard Payne | 3 | 4 | 6 | 4 | |
| Texas Lutheran | 1 | 6 | 2 | 8 | |
| Austin College | 0 | 7 | 1 | 9 |
* Not eligible for ASC Championship due to reclassification
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Week 11 Games (Nov. 9-11)
Mary Hardin-Baylor 35, Howard Payne 10
Hardin-Simmons 42, East Texas Baptist 27
McMurry 37, Sul Ross 23
Texas Lutheran 29, Austin College 10
END OF REGULAR SEASON
