- TARLETON GAMEDAY CENTRAL
- WEEKLY GAME NOTES
 
The Game
The Tarleton State Texans (1-0, 1-0 LSC) will head to San Angelo this weekend to play in its first official road game of the 2013 season, taking on the Angelo State Rams (1-1, 0-0 LSC) this Saturday, Sept. 21. Kickoff between the Texans and Rams is set for 7 p.m. at Angelo Stadium.
 
Covering the Game
Saturday's contest will be broadcast live on KSTV (93.1 FM) with Casey Hogan calling play-by-play and Mike Young joining him for color commentary. Joanna Hensley will provide reports from the sideline for the broadcast team.
 
Live Web Stream
The game between the Texans and Rams will also be web streamed live via Fox Sports Southwest. Fans can click here to view the game via live web cast.
 
Last Week
Tarleton State opened the 2013 season defeating then No. 13-ranked Midwestern Stat, 27-24, this past Saturday at AT&T Stadium in the Lone Star Football Festival.
 
The Texans fell behind 10-0 midway through the second quarter before reeling off 27 straight points and taking a 17-point lead with 14:57 left to play in the fourth quarter. MSU battled back with a pair of touchdowns, but its last gasp at trying to tie or takeover the lead ended with 13 seconds remaining when freshman Jared Thames sacked Jake Glover on fourth-and-11.
 
Texan quarterbacks Aaron Doyle (75 yards) and Jake Fenske (107 yards) combined to throw for 182 yards, completing 24 of their 27 passes. Fenske had just one incompletion on the day, finishing the game 11-for-12 with a pair of touchdown passes and Doyle managed to find the end zone on the ground.
 
Le'Nard Meyers and Bubba Tandy were each on the receiving end of Fenske's TD passes and Jerome Regal scampered into the end zone from 42 yards out.
 
Marc Martinez recorded a game-high 13 tackles and Charles Moore followed with eight tackles in the contest.
 
Rankings
Neither team enters Saturday's contest ranked in the American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) Top-25 Poll, however the Texans did receive 54 total points in this week's current poll.
 
Scouting the Rams
Angelo State is led by Will Wagner, who enters the contest with an all-time record of 11-13 following last week's 45-24 loss to No. 5 Colorado State-Pueblo in Arlington. The Rams are 1-1 on the season after picking up a 38-26 home-opening win over Black Hills State in San Angelo on Sept. 5.
 
The Rams are ranked ninth nationally in rushing offense (304.5 ypg) and 20th overall in total offense (516.0 ypg). ASU defensively ranks tied for 133rd in the nation in total defense (485.0 ypg) and tied for 111th in scoring defense (35.5). The Rams are ranked tied for 74th in the nation after giving up 31.0 points per game in its first two contests.
 
ASU quarterback Kyle Washington ranks 30th in the nation and first in the Lone Star Conference in rushing (118.0 ypg). Running back Jermie Calhoun ranks 52nd nationally in rushing (95.5 ypg) and is right behind Washington ranked second in the LSC.
 
Ryan Clapsaddle is sixth in the LSC with 21 total tackles (10.5 tpg), while Rush Seaver ranks third in the league with his one interception on the season. Seaver's pick went the other way for 100 yards and six points.
 
Series History
Saturday's game marks the 30th meeting between the two teams with Tarleton leading the all-time series 15-14 after last season's 54-37 win over the Rams in Stephenville. ASU leads the all-time series 10-6 when playing in San Angelo, but the Rams have not beaten the Texans inside San Angelo Stadium since Nov. 18, 2000. That game in 2000 marks the last time an ASU team has defeated Tarleton as the Texans head into Saturday's game with an 11-game win streak over the Rams.
 
Coming Up for the Texans
Tarleton State will remain on the road next week when the Texans battle former LSC rival Abilene Christian in a neutral site contest that will be played at Toyota Stadium in Frisco.
 
The Wildcats are in its first season as an NCAA Division I (FCS) member of the Southland Conference. ACU enters the game with a 19-11-4 edge in the series and have won three straight contests against the Texans. The Wildcats defeated Tarleton 34-31 in last season in Arlington.
 
Texan Head Coach Cary Fowler
Tarleton's Cary Fowler is in his fourth season at the helm of the Texan football program and brings in an overall record of 16-17.
 
Tarleton went just 4-13 in Fowler's first 17 games, but since then the Texans have won 12 of the last 16 contests under him. The Texans have won four straight under Fowler dating back to last season. 
 
Texans in Season-Openers
Since becoming a senior college in 1961, the Texans are now 25-28 overall in season-openers following last week's 27-24 win over Midwestern State. Tarleton is now 10-10 overall in season-openers since joining NCAA Division II and the Lone Star Conference and are 9-5 since 2000.
 
Texans in AT&T Stadium
Tarleton State improved to 1-1 overall in games played at AT&T Stadium. The Texans are averaging 29.0 points inside the home of the Dallas Cowboys and average more than 188 yards on the ground. Defensively the Texans have limited its two opponents to just 67.0 yards on the ground after holding MSU to just 79 rushing yards last Saturday.
 
Shutting Down the Run
The Texans limited the high-octaned Midwestern State rushing attack to just 79 yards on 34 carries in Saturday's three-point win over the Mustangs. MSU backs were held to just 2.3 yards per carry and did not have a run longer than 15 yards.
 
The last time an MSU team led by head coach Bill Maskill was held to less than 100 yards on the ground came back on Oct. 2, 2010, when rushing for just 92 yards against Incarnate Word. It was MSU's lowest rushing output since racking up just 47 yards on the ground against Angelo State back on Sept. 26, 2009.
 
MSU's Keidrick Jackson, last season's LSC leading rusher, tallied just 46 yards on 17 carries (2.7 ypc) against the Texan defense. Jackson averaged nearly 130 yards rushing in 2012.
 
Shutting Down the Run Part II
After limiting MSU's rushing offense to less than 100 yards last Saturday, the Texan defense has now held opponents to no more than 100 yards in six games under head coach Cary Fowler.
 
Tarleton limited a pair of opponents (Abilene Christian, 55 yards; A&M-Commerce, 20 yards) to less than 100 yards on the ground last season.
 
Winning With Duel QB's
The Texans entered the 2013 season with a plan to play both senior quarterbacks, Aaron Doyle and Jake Fenske. Doyle started the first six games for the Texans in 2012 before giving way to Fenske after being sidelined with an injury. Both quarterbacks combined to throw for 2,864 yards and 21 touchdowns last season and helped lead Tarleton to a season-opening win last week.
 
Running Away From the Defense
Sophomore running back Jerome Regal returned to the field after sustaining a season-ending injury in 2012, carrying the ball 18 times for 86 yards that included a 42-yard touchdown run. Regal broke his jaw in last season's game against Abilene Christian and was awarded a medical redshirt season.
 
Fellow sophomore Zach Henshaw led the Texan rushing attack with 87 yards on 19 carries in the win over Midwestern State and tallied a team-high 110 yards (87 rush, 23 receiving) in all-purpose yards.
 
Tandy's Breakout Game
Highly touted freshman wideout Bubba Tandy had four catches for 40 yards in his first game as a Texan last week. He was on the receiving end of an eight-yard scoring strike from Jake Fenske as well, giving him the first touchdown of his young and upcoming career.
 
Meyers notches First TD
Sophomore wide receiver Le'Nard Meyers scored his first touchdown of his career with an 18-yard pass to the end zone from Jake Fenske. Meyers finished the game with three catches for 48 yards in the contest.
 
Clifton Rhodes III Catching On
Junior wide receiver Clifton Rhodes III caught a team-high eight passes for a team-high 50 yards in Saturday's win over Midwestern State. Rhodes has tallied at least eight catches for in eight of his 22 games played for the Texans. He has recorded 50 yards receiving or more in 15 of those 22 games as well.
 
Martinez Shines in Season-Opener
Junior linebacker Marc Martinez notched a game-high 13 total tackles (seven solo) in Tarleton's 27-24 win over MSU on Saturday and was later named the LSC's Defensive Player of the Week for his efforts.
 
The Waco native recorded a new career-high in tackles, collecting four more total tackles from his previous high of nine tackles that he recorded twice last season.
 
Barnes' Streak Ends
Sophomore kicker Blake Barnes saw his extra point streak end at 42 this past Saturday when his point-after-attempt in the fourth quarter failed. The Stephenville native was 39-for-39 last season and had made his first three attempts before missing the fourth attempt.
 
On the Rhodes Again
Junior wideout Clifton Rhodes III entered the 2013 season having eclipsed 100-yards or more receiving in seven games. He tallied four 100-plus yard games in 2012. His career-high was a 147-yard effort against West Alabama back on Sept. 10, 2011.
 
Wadley is a One-Man Wrecking Crew
Senior linebacker Marquis Wadley has led the Texans in tackles the past two seasons after registering 83 total tackles in 2012 and 119 total tackles in 2011. Wadley recorded 6.5 tackles-for-loss last year and had one interception as well. The Dallas native has 115 solo tackles and 13.5 tackles-for-loss in his two seasons donning the Purple and White.
 
Texans against ranked Opponents
Tarleton is now 12-22 against ranked opponents since 2000, with six of those wins coming against a top-25 ranked MSU team. The Texans are now 6-2 when the Mustangs are ranked.
 
Tarleton's next ranked opponent is likely to be West Texas A&M (2-0, 0-0 LSC) who enters this weekend's set of games ranked No. 4 in both the AFCA and D2Football.com Top-25 Polls.
 
Closing in on Win no. 450
The Texans are now just three wins shy from picking up its 450th all-time win in school history. Tarleton brings in an all-time record of 447-453-22 (.496) to Saturday's contest. Since becoming a senior college in 1961, Tarleton is 256-279-3 all-time.
 
Tarleton's Scoring Streak
The Texans have now scored a touchdown in 29 straight games dating back to the 2010 season. The last time a Tarleton team did not score a TD came against Abilene Christian in a 65-3 loss back on Sept. 25, 2010.
 
Tarleton State has scored at least a field goal in 40 straight games heading into Saturday's contest against Angelo State.
 
Texans in LSC-Openers
The Texans are now 2-2 in Lone Star Conference-opening games under head coach Cary Fowler. Since joining the league the Texans are 7-12 in conference-opening games after last week's win over MSU.
 
Texans From the Cross-Timbers
The 2013 Texan Football squad boasts seven players (Alex Sanchez, Blake Barnes, Chase Varnado, Brayden Coverdale, Kade Cole, Nick Perez and Kody Travis) from Stephenville, with a pair of players (Cody Burtscher and Jared Thames) from Glen Rose and one player (Tyler Wright) from Granbury.
 
Wearing No. 96
Sophomore defensive end Patrick Bettiol was awarded the Zach Shaver Award this past spring and he will honor the memory of the former Texan by donning the No. 96 this season.
 
Shaver passed away from a traumatic brain injury on Mar. 29, 2010. As a memorial to Shaver, each year a Texan player is chosen to wear the No. 96 jersey because of their dedication, their attitude, their heart and their love for the game of football.
 
Texans in the National Spotlight
Tarleton had a handful of former players in the national spotlight this offseason and it began with former defensive end Rufus Johnson (2011-12) going to the New Orleans Saints in the sixth round of the 2012 NFL Draft. Johnson recorded four tackles in four preseason games with the Saints and will serve on New Orleans' practice squad to start the 2013 NFL season.
 
Former Texan quarterback Nick Stephens (2010-11) played in two preseason games for the Dallas Cowboys, which included the national televised Hall of Fame Game on NBC.
 
Former running back Derrick Ross (2004-05) and former kicker Garrett Lindholm (2006-09) squared off against each other in the Arena Football League's Arena Bowl this past August. Lindholm was named the AFL's Kicker of the Year, while Ross became the AFL's career leader in rushing yards.
 
When the Texans score First
Tarleton went 5-2 last season when the team put up the first points of the game. The two losses came to West Texas A&M and Texas A&M-Kingsville in 2012. The Texans are 13-8 overall when scoring the game's first points under head coach Cary Fowler.
 
Starting Strong on Offense
The Texans went 4-0 last season when scoring on its first offensive possession. Tarleton is 8-6 overall under head coach Cary Fowler when scoring on the first offensive possession.
 
Texans in September
The Texans are just 4-9 overall in September games since 2010, but Tarleton is now 30-11 overall during the month of September since 2000 following last weekend's victory over MSU. The Texans improved to 6-1 all-time when facing MSU during the month of September and head into Saturday's game 2-2 against Angelo State in September contests.
 
Putting up a 30-Spot
The Texans are 13-3 overall when putting up 30 points or more under head coach Cary Fowler. That record includes a 7-0 mark when scoring 40 points or more. Tarleton was 5-2 last season when eclipsing the 30-point barrier.
 
Winning the Ground Attack
Under head coach Cary Fowler, the Texans are now 12-5 when out-rushing the opposition. Tarleton is just 4-12 under Fowler when the opposing team out-gains the Texans in rushing yardage.
 
Turnovers are Key
Over the past three seasons, Tarleton is a combined 10-2 when winning the turnover battle. The Texans are 4-4 when they have tied its opponent in turnovers and just 2-11 when coughing up more turnovers.
 
Tarleton lost the turnover battle against MSU last Saturday, but did come away with the victory.
 
Passing Precision
Jake Fenske notched a 91.7 passing percentage last week against Midwestern State after completing 11 of his 12 passes in the game. His only incompletion of the contest was an interception that came deep into the end zone at the beginning of the second quarter.
 
Fenske set a single-season school record in 2012 with a 66.2 pass-completion percentage. After taking over at quarterback in the final five games last season, Fenske completed 102 of his 154 passes.
 
Aaron Doyle finished the season with a 62.7 completion percentage, which rank third best in a single-season. He connected with 153 of his 244 passes last year.
 
Doyle's Record-Breaking Game
Quarterback Aaron Doyle set a single-game school record with 39 pass completions against Abilene Christian last season. He broke the previous record of 33 completions that was set by Chase Sugarek, which was set against Northeastern State back on Oct. 26, 2002.
 
The Offense is Back
The Texan offense gained 4,625 total yards of total offense in 2012, which ranks fifth most in school history. It was Tarleton's best offensive production since the 2009 squad racked up 5,021 total yards.
 
Last season's 286.4 passing yards per game ranks fourth all-time in school history and was just a little under four yards shy of 2011's output of 290.6 passing yards per game.
 
Texans picked 3rd in LSC Poll
Tarleton State was picked to finish third in the Lone Star Conference after receiving one first-place vote for a total of 99 points. West Texas A&M was the top choice to repeat as the LSC football champion according to the preseason poll.
 
Preseason honors
The Texans had nine different players earn preseason All-American honors prior to the 2013 campaign.
 
Dashaun Phillips (1st Team) and Blake Barnes (3rd Team) were each tabbed D2Football.com Preseason All-Americans, while Jerome Regal (2nd Team), Marquis Wadley (2nd Team), Barnes (2nd Team), Zach Henshaw (3rd Team), Lucas Love (HM), Nick Perez (HM), Clifton Rhodes III (HM), Desmond Jackson (HM) and Phillips (HM) were all named to the USA College Football Preseason All-American Team.