ADAMS Cover
14
Adams State ADAMS 3-4
17
Winner West Texas A&M WT 3-4
Adams State ADAMS
3-4
14
Final
17
West Texas A&M WT
3-4
Winner
Score By Quarters
Team 1st 2nd 3rd 4th F
ADAMS Adams State 0 7 7 0 14
WT West Texas A&M 0 7 3 7 17

Next Game:

at Midwestern State

10/21/2017 | 5 p.m.

98.7 Lone Star FM

Next Game

Full Schedule
Oct. 21 (Sat) / 5 p.m.
at Midwestern State

Game Recap: Football |

Buffs Tame Grizzlies for 17-14 Homecoming Victory; Snap Three-Game Skid

Box Score

Season Stats

THE BASICS:
 
  • Score: West Texas A&M 17, Adams State 14
 
  • Records: West Texas A&M 3-4, Adams State 3-4
 
  • Location: Canyon, Texas (Kimbrough Memorial Stadium)
 
  • The Lead: The West Texas A&M football snapped a three-game skid Saturday evening with a 17-14 victory over visiting Adams State on Homecoming at Kimbrough Memorial Stadium.  The Buffs forced a season-high five turnovers in the game.
 
 
HOW IT HAPPENED:
 
  • On Adams State's second possession of the game and a 2nd and two from the WT 46, quarterback Nick Rooney was picked off by junior Chazz Slatinsky and returned for 14 yards to the Adams State 49.  The Buffs were unable to do anything with it.
  • On the third play of the second quarter, WT junior running back Warren Witherspoon scampered 36 yards for a touchdown capping a three play, 57-yard drive for a 7-0 lead with 13:50 left in the half. 
  • Adams State drove down to the WT 17 on the ensuing possession, but Rooney was picked off for the second time in the game as sophomore Kevon Thomas intercepted him in the end zone and returned 11 yards.
  • Following the pick, Witherspoon fumbled on the WT 11 as Adams State's Isaia Rosten recovered at the WT 13.  From there, Tyree Harris scored on the ground from one yard out for a 7-7 score with five minutes left in the half.
  • WT redshirt freshman Justin Hougtaling was picked off by Ashton Lawson at the WT 43 on the first possession of the ensuing drive. 
  • Rooney found Harris for eight yards to the WT 35, but sophomore Frank Honang forced Harris to fumble and Slatinsky picked up the loose ball for the third Adams State turnover in the game. 
  • WT had to punt on the ensuing drive and following a Grizzly punt, the Buffs had 31 seconds to work with in the half.  Hougtaling rushed for eight yards to the Adams State 48 and was hit late out of bounds setting up the Buffs at the ASU 35 with an untimed down.  Freshman kicker Alex Schrag attempted a 52-yard field goal, missing barely wide right for the final play of the half.
  • Offensively, the Buffs continued to struggle as they had just five first downs for 83 yards on 20 plays, while Houghtaling was 6 of 11 with one interception for 38 yards.  Witherspoon had 39 yards rushing on four carries in the half.
  • Adams State had 15 first downs, with 243 yards on 50 plays.  Rooney was 26 of 32 with two interceptions in the half, while passing for 198 yards.
  • WT moves down the field with some nice passing by Houghtaling and Schrag kicked a 37-yard field goal with 11 minutes left in the third quarter on a nine play, 55-yard drive.
  • The Buffs had the Grizzlies in a third and long following a sack and fumble, but Rooney found Chad Hovasse for a 26-yard touchdown pass for a 14-10 Adams State lead with 8:54 left in the third quarter.
  • WT moved right back down the field and got inside the 20, but a personal foul penalty on the Buffs proved costly as Schrag ended up missing a 32-yard field goal, wide right with 2:50 left in the third quarter.
  • Adams State was driving early in the fourth quarter as senior Daelin Young came up with a big sack on third down and Rooney threw it away on fourth down turning the ball over on downs. 
  • Following the turnover on downs, Witherspoon scampered for a 51-yard run to the ASU one and Houghtaling scored on a rush putting WT back in front 17-14 with 10:58 left.
  • Adams State moved right down the field, but Rooney overthrew his intended receiver at the WT five as Slatinsky had his second interception of the game, returning it to the WT 32 with nine minutes left.  The Buffs marched to the ASU two, but a fumble by the Buffs gave ASU the ball at its own three with 6:50 left. 
  • The Grizzlies had a great drive started with a leaping pass from Hovasse and a scramble run for 21 yards from Rooney to the WT 29 with 1:50 left.
  • Rooney then coughed up the ball as Honang stripped it from him as sophomore Hayden Dennis recovered at the WT 29 to seal the win.
  • WT tallied 360 yards in the game with 189 yards on the ground and 171 through the air.  Houghtaling went 14 of 23 with one interception, while rushing for a score.
  • Witherspoon had a career-high 160 yards rushing on 18 carries with a touchdown, while Young had a game-high 14 tackles with 12 solo stops and two sacks. 
  • Rooney went 45 of 55 with three interceptions and 385 yards passing with one score.  He rushed the ball 16 times for 47 yards.  Hovasse had 14 catches for 128 yards and a score.
 
 
INSIDE THE NUMBERS:
 
  • Slatinsky's interception was the first WT interception since the third game of the season and the fifth of the year for the team.  It was Slatinsky's first interception of the season and second of his career.
  • Thomas recorded his team-leading third interception of the season with the pick in the first half.
  • WT senior punter John Cummings had a great start to the game with three punts for a 57.7 yard average, one inside the 20 and two touchbacks with a long of 66 for a season-long.
  • The Buffs ran 20 plays in the third quarter, which was as many as they ran all of the first half.
  • WT improves to 6-1 all-time against Adams State and now has won four-straight in the series, while improving to 4-0 all-time against ASU in Canyon.
  • The Buffs snapped a two-game losing skid on Homecoming with the win and improved to 44-28-2 all-time, while winning the program's 507th game in school history (507-504-22).
  • Adams State fumbled the ball away twice in the game as it entered ranked second nationally in fewest fumbles lost with just one.
  • The Grizzlies entered the game averaging 36.8 points per game and scored a season-low 14 points against WT.
 
 
UP NEXT:
 
  • The Buffs head on the road next Saturday night (Oct. 21) as they travel to Midwestern State for the annual Highway 287 Challenge Cup game at 8 p.m. in Wichita Falls, Texas.
  • WT returns home to host Texas A&M-Commerce on Saturday, Oct. 28 at 6 p.m. at Kimbrough Memorial Stadium.
 
 
STAY CONNECTED:
 
  • For the latest on WT Athletics, follow the Buffs/Lady Buffs via social media on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube.  Also check back with www.gobuffsgo.com for the latest information on news, statistics, tickets and more on all of West Texas A&M athletics.
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Players Mentioned

John Cummings

#49 John Cummings

P
6' 0"
Senior
Hayden Dennis

#44 Hayden Dennis

LB
6' 2"
Sophomore
Frank Honang

#38 Frank Honang

DB
5' 10"
Sophomore
Chazz Slatinsky

#28 Chazz Slatinsky

DB
5' 10"
Junior
Kevon Thomas

#24 Kevon Thomas

DB
6' 0"
Sophomore
Warren Witherspoon

#33 Warren Witherspoon

RB
5' 8"
Junior
Daelin Young

#46 Daelin Young

LB
6' 2"
Senior
Alex Schrag

#12 Alex Schrag

K
5' 10"
Freshman

Players Mentioned

John Cummings

#49 John Cummings

6' 0"
Senior
P
Hayden Dennis

#44 Hayden Dennis

6' 2"
Sophomore
LB
Frank Honang

#38 Frank Honang

5' 10"
Sophomore
DB
Chazz Slatinsky

#28 Chazz Slatinsky

5' 10"
Junior
DB
Kevon Thomas

#24 Kevon Thomas

6' 0"
Sophomore
DB
Warren Witherspoon

#33 Warren Witherspoon

5' 8"
Junior
RB
Daelin Young

#46 Daelin Young

6' 2"
Senior
LB
Alex Schrag

#12 Alex Schrag

5' 10"
Freshman
K