WT football opens the season with 44-6 win over Western Colorado

COLLEGE FOOTBALL

NON-CONFERENCE

WEST TEXAS A&M 44, WESTERN COLORADO 6

What this game means: The Buffs started this year off exactly the way they ended last year: With a satisfying win. After closing 2021 with five wins in six games, they opened the 2022 campaign with a 44-6 triumph against a Western Colorado team that won 10 contests last season. The offense was sensational in the first half while the defense bent, but never broke. The scoring slowed in the second half, but the defense stepped up. In that sense, the Buffaloes gave a complete effort.

Area football results from week two

Game highlights: The Buffs were hot early on as they took the ball 76 yards down the field, culminating in Nick Gerber's 27-yard touchdown pass to Noah Bogardus. The Mountaineers responded by driving all the way down to the Buffs' 3-yard line, but the WT defense held them to a field goal. On the next possession, Gerber faked a hand off and took it himself down the left field sideline 45 yards for a score to make it 13-3 after a missed extra point. Western Colorado fumbled the ensuing kickoff, giving the Buffs the ball on the Mountaineer 19-yard line. Four plays later, Gerber hit Tyrie Tipton for a 4-yard touchdown. In the second, Western Colorado found momentum and moved the ball down to the WT 5-yard line, but the Buffalo defense again held them to a field goal. Gerber connected withBogardus for a 50-yard pass to put the Buffs on the Mountaineer 10 the next possession and Isaiah Smallwood punched it in from two yards out just three plays later. Gage Urias hit a 23-yard field goal in the fourth quarter to make it 30-6. Jaden Jackson later recovered a fumble deep in Western territory and Smallwood ran it in from four yards out three plays later. The reserves came in from there and the scoring ended when backup QB Caleb Arreola hit Kenneath Redd Jr. for a 58-yard touchdown pass.

Texas Panhandle high school football standings following Week 2

Stars of the game: Gerber was far more than a game manager on Saturday night. The sixth-year senior was outstanding from the get-go and finished the night with 15-of-25 for 186 yards, two touchdowns and one interception while rushing for 63 yards and another touchdown on eight carries. Bogardus had himself an evening as well, ending the game with six catches for 118 yards and a score. Smallwood (two touchdowns) and Jarrod Compton (86 yards) combined to lead the rushing attack. Linebacker Christopher Thomas led the way on defense with 10 tackles, a sack and a pass breakup while Preston Stezewski finished with seven tackles and an interception. Eric Goodmen and Antonio Iwuagwu each had sacks, Ty Dillon had an interception and Gage Smith forced a fumble which was recovered by Carson Oltworth.

WT head coach Hunter Hughes on which group of newer players stood out: "Without watching the film, I thought our secondary played extremely well. They got tested a couple of times and not like they would playing some other teams with the caliber of receivers some other teams will have. For their first game without looking at the film and being critical I'd give them an A-minus because (Western Colorado) didn't score and we got two picks. My concern coming in was the youth in the secondary and I thought they played extremely well."

Up next: WT will visit Adams State at 7 p.m. Sept. 10 in Alamosa, Colorado.

WEST TEXAS A&M 44, WESTERN COLORADO 6

Western 3 3 0 13 -- 6

WT 20 7 0 0 -- 44

First Quarter

WT- Noah Bogardus 27 pass from Nick Gerber (Gage Urias kick) 10:37

Western- Alec Fonseca 20 kick 7:18

WT- Gerber 45 run (kick no good) 3:23

WT- Tyrie Tipton 4 pass from Gerber (Urias kick)

Second Quarter

Western- Fonseca 20 kick 9:32

WT- Isaiah Smallwood 2 run (Urias kick) 5:59

Fourth Quarter

Bushland- King 67 pass from Jaco (Forbes kick) 8:47

WT- Urias 22 kick 13:27

WT- Smallwood 4 run (Urias kick) 10:42

WT- Kenneath Redd Jr. 58 pass from Caleb Arreola (Gage kick) 2:54

TEAM STATISTICS

WT Western

First downs 24 17

Rushes-yards 49-229 35-125

Passing yards 250 170

Comp.-att.-int 17-28-2 17-33-2

Punts-avg. 3-22.3 5-32

Fumbles-lost 0-0 2-2

Penalties-yards 5-40 6-58

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS

RUSHING

WT- Nick Gerber 8-63, Jarrod Compton 18-86, Isiah Smallwood 19-59, Hesston Marshall 2-13, Brian Okoye 1-7, Shakell Brown 1-1; Western Colorado-Braeden Hogan 18-86, Matthew Cordova 5-27, Damian Macias 4-16, Luke Nethercot 3-3, Connor Desch 5-(-7)

PASSING

WT- Gerber 15-25-1 186, Caleb Arreola 2-3-0 64; Western Colorado- Connor Desch 10-21-1 103, Luke Nethercot 7-11-1 67, Damian Macias 0-1-0 0

RECEIVING

WT- Noah Bogardus 6-118, Tyler Sweet 3-26, Tyrie Tipton 3-25, Kris Sims 2-10, Kenneath Redd Jr. 1-58, Compton 1-7, Marshall 1-6; Western Colorado- Hogan 3-34, Macias 3-27, Nathan Meyer 3-24, Cordova 2-25, Sage Yazzie 2-25, Kai Emmsley 1-10, Hudson Grant 1-10, Victory David 1-9, Andrew Montez 1-6

This article originally appeared on Amarillo Globe-News: WT football opens the season with 44-6 win over Western Colorado