BOLIVAR, MO -- On a beautiful Homecoming afternoon, the SBU Bearcats picked their first win of the 2006 season, defeating Fort Hays State 39-21. The 'Cats rolled up 435 yards in total offense and scored three times in the fourth quarter to pull away with the victory. SBU head coach Jack Peavey called the victory "much needed" and praised his guys for the good things they did on the field. "I'm really proud of them, for always believing and working hard in practice. We tackled better and played better as a team."
After the two teams played a scoreless first quarter, SBU jumped on top with the first play of the second quarter. On a fourth down and three play, Robert Clardy hit Nick Smart on a short pass that Smart turned into a 34-yard touchdown. Clardy avoided disaster on the extra point attempt, diving into the endzone for the two-point conversion. Lester Shelton intercepted a pass on the Tigers' next possession, which the Bearcats converted into a 22-yard Ryan Smith field goal. Fort Hays got on the board on a 10-yard run by quarterback Shane Jackson. The 'Cats had other chances to score in the first half but failed to convert on 38-yard and 41-yard field goal attempts. The Bearcats would lead at halftime 11-7.
The Bearcats would add to that lead on 1-yard touchdown plunge by Moine Nicholson, which capped a 12 play, 93-yard drive to start the third quarter. Fort Hays scored with 3:05 left in the third on a 1-yard run by Jordan Hickel to cut the SBU lead to 18-13. That's where the score stood after three quarters of action.
SBU senior WR Robert Woodson would score his first rushing touchdown of the season on a nice 14-yard run early in the fourth quarter. That pushed the lead to 25-13. The 'Cats would add to the lead minutes later when John McCoy hit Durrel Pride on a 41-yard touchdown pass. FHSU would cut into the lead with 5:42 left in the game on a 32-yard pass from Jackson to John Luke Snyder. Robert Clardy and Nick Smart would hook up for SBU's final tally of the contest on a 19-yard pass with three minutes left.
Robert Clardy led the Bearcats, going 12 of 14 passing for 190 yards and two scores. With those yards, Clardy moved ahead of Missouri Southern's Matt Cook (7000 yards - 1989-93) for 10th place on the MIAA's career total offense list with 7169 yards. His two touchdown passes also tied him atop SBU's career passing touchdown list. Clardy joins Trevor Spradley (1990-92) and Chris Lowe (1999-2002) with 29 touchdowns each.
SBU's Moine Nicholson gained 107 yards on 22 carries and one touchdown. Durrell Pride and Nick Smart had six catches each, with Pride gaining 110 yards and one TD and Smart amassing 88 yards and two scores. Shane Jackson of FHSU threw for 213 yards while Jordan Hickel gained 131 yards on the ground.
Defensively, Terry Jones led the Bearcats with 12 tackles (6 solo). Jarred Schumpert had 11 tackles including 7 solos and a sack. Lester Shelton also had seven stops and two interceptions. David Martin also recorded seven tackles and picked up three sacks. Hoang Mai had 11 tackles for the Tigers.
The Bearcats go on the road for the next two weeks, traveling to Warrensburg to take on the Mules of Central Missouri next week, with kickoff at 1:30 pm. October 21 they'll be at Pittsburg State before returning home on October 28 to play Missouri Western.
