Bobcats Down Demons in Road Thriller

In a game that was anticipated to be an offensive shootout, defense stole the show on a cold night in Natchitoches, Louisiana as Texas State defeated Northwestern State 20-17.

The Bobcats trailed 17-14 with 11:49 left in the fourth quarter but took the lead late thanks to two field goals by freshman kicker Justin Garelick. Texas State was able to run out the remaining 32 seconds left on the clock after a game-clinching forth down stop for the bobcat defense. The win gave the 'Cats their second straight game in the state of Louisiana following Texas State’s 34-28 victory at Nicholls last week.

Defense and untimely penalties combined to keep the score low in the first half for both teams. The bobcats took their first lead of the game when Bradley George hit Da’Marcus Griggs for a five-yard touchdown pass and Garelick added the extra point to make the score 7-3 at halftime.

Senior tailback Alvin Canady helped the Bobcats light up the scoreboard midway through the third quarter with a season-long 39-yard touchdown run giving his team a 14-3 lead.

Northwestern State answered back with a touchdown of their own after elusive true freshman quarterback ran for a 14-yard touchdown, cutting the bobcat lead to 14-10. The Demons added one more score before Garelick cashed in on his two big field goal to give the bobcats the victory.

The win improves Texas State’s overall record to 4-3 and the Bobcats improve to 2-1 in conference this season heading into next Saturday’s homecoming game against Stephen F. Austin at Bobcat Stadium, that game will kick off at 2:00 p.m. KTSW will have pregame coverage starting at 12:30 pm on 89.9 FM, ktsw.net and txstatebobcats.com.

-Luke McBroom, KTSW Sports Staff Writer