MELTDOWN IN MONROE: Texas State squanders 21-point lead, falls to ULM

Despite being up 21-0 at the end of the first quarter, Texas State couldn’t fend off Louisiana Monroe as the Warhawks stormed back to win a thrilling 31-30 game.

The loss drops Texas State’s record to 3-6 overall, marking the third game the Bobcats have lost a one-possession game.

The first quarter success for the Bobcats can be attributed to both the offense and the defense playing at a high level.

“I thought it was an up-and-down (game) in all three phases,” Spavital said. “I thought the offense came out strong, running the ball well. We were mixing and matching it up well on the perimeter. We had some explosive plays. We got up 21-0, and we were playing some complementary football right there. We capitalized off of turnovers. We started fast. We had great energy.”

After the first quarter, the Texas State offense stalled as the Bobcats could only muster a field goal in the second quarter.

On the flip side, ULM began to heat up.

The Warhawks scored as quarterback Chandler Rogers hit Tyrone Howell for a 46-yard touchdown pass with just 24 seconds remaining.

Texas State failed to take advantage of the second to last drive in the first half, which Spavital said ended up costing the Bobcats points.

“They ended up scoring at the start of the second quarter, and then we traded field goals there for a little bit,” Spavital said. “In the first half, we had an opportunity to go in with a pretty good lead and capitalize off of it, but we couldn’t run the ball on third-and-one. We ended up giving the ball back to them, and instead of them getting into field goal range, they ended up scoring which makes it a 24-17 game at halftime.”

The second half started off well for the Bobcats as they forced two straight turnovers with an interception by Kordell Rodgers followed by a forced fumble on a kickoff return.

But similar to the second quarter, Texas State could only muster a field goal while also turning the ball over on downs.

“They come out (in the second half) and we get an interception early, and we get a field goal off of it,” Spavital said. “We get another turnover immediately on a kickoff, and we can’t run it on fourth-and-one. That’s the right call right there to go for it (on fourth down), but we probably need to go to another play because we’re not establishing the line of scrimmage”

The fourth-down stop proved costly as ULM scored on the following possession to make it 27-24.

Following another field goal by Texas State, ULM took its first lead of the game after a Warhawk running back Malik Jackson scored on a 4-yard run to make the score 31-30.

Texas State had three more chances to take the lead from the Warhawks.

The first chance ended in a punt with the drive ending in two straight incompletions.

The second chance saw Texas State move into ULM territory but the drive stalled ending on fourth down when quarterback Layne Hatcher was forced to throw it away.

The Bobcat defense came up with the huge opportunity as they forced the fumble to give the offense their third and final chance to retake the lead.

Despite having the ball on the ULM 16 yard line, the Bobcats took a sack then proceeded to throw two straight incompletions before Seth Keller looked to make it four for four on his field goal attempts.

However, the kick sailed right and allowed the Warhawks to take home the victory despite Texas State’s multiple opportunities to win the game.

“At the end of the game, we’re going back and forth and fighting our way back into it,” Spavital said. “We had a chance at the end, and Seth Keller missed a field goal. He’s probably one of the more consistent guys we’ve ever had in this program. I’m proud of that kid. He has made some great kicks for us. That game was not lost by him. I want to make that clear.”

For Spavital, the loss will be a tough one to swallow.

“I’m still at a loss of words on how that happened, but we knew it was going to be that way anyway,” Spavital said. “Our kids are a little bit shocked, too. I know they’ll be resilient and fight back again. That’s the nature of the program we’ve created. They will show up and they will keep fighting. Overall, a very tough loss again on the road.”

Texas State heads back on the road Saturday to face the South Alabama Jaguars. A loss would eliminate the Bobcats from bowl eligibility.