Western New Mexico 48, Saint Paul's 6

August 27, 2005

SILVER CITY, NM – They waited 17 years to take the field as a NCAA competitor and that wait is now over. They have waited longer than that for a victory, yet that wait continues. The last time that the Tigers competed in the NCAA they were on an eleven-game losing streak, and today that streak extends to twelve.

The SPC football team kicked-off their return to the Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association (CIAA) with a cross-country trek to Silver City, NM. The trip may have been too much for the Tigers who dropped their first contest of the season to the Mustangs of Western New Mexico University 48-6. The Tigers had a very dismal first-half performance at they headed into the locker room scoreless (27-0). It wasn’t until the last play of the third quarter that the Tigers drew blood on a 77-yard completion from Demetrius Brown to Emory Addison. The two-point conversion failed and that would be the last time that the Tigers put points on the board during this contest.

Although the time of possession was similar for both teams (SPC 27:33, WNMU 32:06), the similarities would end there. The Tigers collected only 195 yards of total offense, while WNMU would almost double that, turning in 369 yards of total offense. The Mustangs would double another statistic, this time on the defensive side of the ball. While WNMU’s offensive line only allowed their quarterback to be sacked twice, the SPC quarterback rotation was taken down four times. In addition to falling victim to four sacks, the Tigers recorded four fumbles on the afternoon.

The Saint Paul’s College Tigers will take the field again next weekend against the Marauders of Central State University. This game is scheduled to take place on Sunday, September 4th at 5:00 PM.