NMSU falls to Georgia Southern
Andrew Allen had a career-high 253 passing yards and threw for three touchdowns as the NM State football team fell 56-26 to Sun Belt Conference opponent Georgia Southern on Saturday night in Paulson Stadium.
Allen, who had just his second career start for NM State (0-6, 0-2), completed 20 of his 37 pass attempts for 253 yards. The sophomore completed a long pass of 61-yards to Royce Caldwell and had just one interception on the evening. Caldwell had a career-high 130 all-purpose yards.
Larry Rose III led the Aggies in both rushing and receiving as he collected 82 yards on 13 runs and chipped in 31 yards on five receptions. Joshua Bowen had 15 yards and a career-high two touchdowns on four receptions.
Derek Ibekwe led the Aggies’ defensive efforts with 14 tackles and 1.0 tackles for loss. Dalton Herrington chipped in seven tackles and 1.0 tackles for loss.
Matt Breida led Georgia Southern (5-1, 3-0) with 137 rushing yards and a touchdown on 13 carries. Kevin Ellison completed 2-of-5 passes for 64 yards and a touchdown.
After both teams were forced to punt on their respective first possessions, the Eagles took a 7-0 lead. Wesley Fields capped a two-play, 35-yard drive with a 19 yard rush into the end zone. Georgia Southern then increased their advantage as Brieda scampered 20 yards for a touchdown with 3:23 left in the first quarter.
The home team added another two touchdowns before the break. Ellison capped a two-play drive with a quarterback keeper for the touchdown to make it a three-score game. L.A. Ramsby then used a 23-yard run to put the score at 28-0 Eagles with 5:18 left in the game.
The Aggies scored their first points of the game with 3:53 left in the half. Following a 61-yard pass to Caldwell, Allen capped a 4-play, 75-yard drive with a 3-yard pass to Jordan Bergstrom in the end zone. This score cut Georgia Southern’s advantage to 28-7.
Ellison connected with Fields for a 60-yard pass on the next drive. Fields found the end zone to cap the three-play, 74-yard drive to extend the home team’s lead before the half.
NM State used a 12-play, 86-yard drive to score the first touchdown of the second half. With the Aggies facing third down and seven yards, the Eagles were called for targeting to give the visiting team a first down and the ball on the six-yard line. Xavier Hall rushed for three yards on the next play, followed by a three-yard pass from Allen to Bowen for a touchdown.
The home team then pushed the advantage to 42-14 with 6:18 left in the third quarter. Ramsby completed a 6-play 68-yard drive with a 5-yard touchdown run for the Eagles. Favian Upshaw added two more touchdowns, both quarterback keepers, to extend the Eagles lead.
NM State then scored to cut the lead to 56-26. Allen capped a 6-play, 75-yard drive as he connected on an 8-yard pass with Bowen. Will Clement then added both his first career fumble recovery and his first career touchdown as he picked up a fumble and returned it 74-yards into the end zone.
After three-straight road games, NM State will return home next Saturday as they host Troy for a combination homecoming and Tough Enough to Wear Pink game. Kickoff is set for 6 p.m. MT. The game will air on AggieVision and will be broadcast on AM 570.
