SAN MARCOS, Texas – Lamar University fell behind 15-0 in the first quarter and trailed 18-0 at halftime to Texas State but the Cardinals never quit fighting. The Cardinals pulled within four points early in the third and had the ball down seven late but fell to Texas State, 34-27, Saturday night at UFCU Stadium.The Cardinals finished the night with 288 yards of total offense the majority of which came in the second half, while Texas State finished the night with 486.
Senior Robert Coleman got the start and completed 16-of-34 passes for 237 yards and two touchdowns. He connected with eight different receivers led by junior Kyndon Fuelier's six catches for 107 yards. Sevonne Rhea (2-50) and Jayden Boyd (2-48) each caught a touchdown pass on the night.
Senior Khalan Griffin led the Cardinals ground attack with 16 carries for 71 yards including a long of 19 yards. Damien Moore recorded the team's lone rushing touchdown on an 18-yard scamper through the heart of the Bobcats' defense breaking numerous tackles for the score.
Texas State scored on its first two possessions and took an 18-0 lead into the locker room before Lamar was able to answer back with a Damien Moore 18-yard touchdown run that saw him break several tackles to cross the goal line. Moore's TD made it 18-7 less than two minutes into the second half.
The Cardinals got a field goal from Chris Esqueda to pull the Cardinals within 11, and Big Red would close out the third with a Codey Martin interception. Just 66 seconds into the fourth, Coleman would take advantage of the extra possession hitting Rhea on the near sideline. With two blockers in front of him, Rhea used his speed and got LU in the endzone trimming the deficit down to four, 21-17.
Unfortunately, that would be as close as the Cardinals would get as Texas State responded with consecutive scores to take a 34-17 lead with less than 5:30 to play. The Cardinals would answer with a Coleman to Jayden Boyd connection from nine yards out to pull Lamar back to within 10. Esqueda would tack on a 27-yard attempt late to trim the deficit down to seven.
The Cardinals return to action Saturday, Sept. 7, when they open the home portion of their schedule against Mississippi Valley State. The game against the Devils will kick off at 6 p.m. from Provost Umphrey Stadium – and will be the first of three straight at home for the Red and White. The game will be broadcast live on Newstalk 560 KLVI and streamed live on ESPN+.