HUNTSVILLE, TEXAS – The University of the Incarnate Word football team puts their two-game winning streak on the line when they travel to #5 Sam Houston State on Saturday for a 6 p.m. kickoff at Bowers Stadium.

The Cardinals (2-1) are fresh off a pair of shutout victories at home over Texas College and Langston, but will have their hands full with the Bearkats (2-1).  Sam Houston has blowout victories over Houston Baptist and Texas Southern and their only loss came at Texas A&M.  The two teams met last year in Huntsville with the Bearkats winning 54-7.

The Cardinals enter the contest averaging 187.3 rushing yards and 199.7 passing yards per game.  Red-shirt freshman quarterback Trent Brittain (Eastland/Eastland HS) has been the catalyst with 178 rushing yards and 552 passing yards while completing 62.1 percent of his attempts.  The top receiver on the team has been Casey Jennings (Fremont, CA/Washington HS) with 14 grabs for 209 yards and a touchdown.

The UIW defense has been very stout holding opponents to only 41.7 rushing yards per game on 1.3 yards per carry.  They have accumulated 29 tackles for loss over the past two games and are led by senior defensive tackle Robby Horton (Beeville/Jones HS) who has 13 tackles and 4.5 tackles for loss on the season.

UIW senior punter Emmanuel Nunez (Dallas/Seguin HS) set a school record for punting yards in a game last year against Sam Houston.  This year, he is averaging 45.2 yards per kick and has yet to have a punt travel less than 40 yards.

The Bearkats will be a tough test for the Cardinals as they enter the game averaging 309 rushing yards per game.  They are led by Tim Flanders who is averaging nearly 110 yards per game and has scored five touchdowns on the ground.  He is set to become the all-time leading rusher in Southland Conference history needing only 132 yards to surpass Texas State's Claude Mathis who gained 4,694 yards between 1994 and 1997.  The SHSU offense also boasts the all-time winningest quarterback in school history, Brian Bell, and a big play threat in Richard Sincere who has nearly 3,000 career all-purpose yards.

The SHSU defense has the reigning Southland Conference Player of the Week in Tanner Brock who is currently second on the team with 19 tackles and has two sacks.  They are giving up 120.7 rushing yards and 226.3 passing yards per game this year.

The game will be broadcast on KKYX 680 AM with Gabe Farias and Shawn Morris on the call.
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