NACOGDOCHES, Texas - A brutal three-game road stretch reaches its midway point, as the University of the Incarnate Word football team (2-2) travels to face 5-0 Stephen F. Austin, the No. 5 team in the FCS and defending Southland Conference champion.

Despite a decisive loss to an FBS opponent a week ago, the Cardinals, who opened conference play with an overtime win over Houston Christian two weeks ago, have a chance to put themselves in a great position to compete for a league title with an upset win Saturday.

The Lumberjacks (2-0), Lamar (1-0) and UIW are the three lone teams still unbeaten in conference play. The Cardinals close their tough road stretch at Lamar next Saturday. 

Saturday's game, which will be played at Homer Bryce Stadium in Nacogdoches, Texas, kicks off at 5 p.m. and can be streamed on ESPN+.

LAST TIME OUT: TEXAS STATE 63, UIW 10

The Cardinals' lone 2026 game against an FBS opponent proved challenging, as the Bobcats gained 668 yards of total offense, with 439 of those yards coming in a first half that began with five-consecutive touchdown drives.

Even with such a rough week, UIW still has one of the top offenses in the FCS, ranking eighth in passing yards per-game (296.2) and 10th in total offense (470).

Quarterback Emmett Brown is 10th in the country in passing at 263.5 yards per-game. His top target thus far has been Isaiah Champagne (28 catches, 304 yards, one touchdown), who is seventh in the nation with seven receptions per-game.

The defense is led by Christian Barney, who has 36 tackles in four games, giving him the third-highest per-game tackle rate in the Southland Conference. 

On special teams, Jayden Hibbler is third in the country with 214 punt return yards.

The biggest issue for the Cardinals continues to be ball control, as their minus-nine turnover margin is tied for the worst in the FCS.

SCOUTING THE LUMBERJACKS

For over a year, Stephen F. Austin has been one of the most successful programs in all of college football.

Since starting the 2025 campaign 0-2, the Lumberjacks have gone 16-1, their lone loss a 44-28 defeat to eventual national champion Montana State in last season's FCS Playoff quarterfinals.

SFA's 2026 success is coming with great balance, as it enters Saturday first in the SLC in both scoring offense (40.4 ppg) and scoring defense (13.0). As is the case with their team ranking in the most recent FCS poll, the Lumberjacks come in ranked No. 5 nationally on both sides of the ball.

The offense has run through the excellent quarterback play of Gavin Rutherford, who leads the conference in passing yards (1,197) and passing touchdowns (12) and also leads the team with four rushing touchdowns.

Rutherford is surrounded by weapons like wideout Bugs Mortimer, who leads the SLC with four touchdown catches and is second with 342 receiving yards. In the backfield, the two-headed attack of Jaylen Jenkins (367 yards) and Jeffery Jones (259) are second and third in the Southland in rushing respectively, with the run game ranking 11th nationally at 207.6 yards per-game.

On the other side, SFA has the conference leaders in both sacks (Jaydon Eason, 4.5) and interceptions (Makai Frisby, three). Eason and teammate Lowote Jurkin are also tied for second in the SLC with six tackles for-loss.

MATCHUP HISTORY AND OTHER NOTES

The Lumberjacks hold a 6-3 all-time edge over the Cardinals, including a 31-17 win in San Antonio on Oct. 4 of last year. Prior to that, UIW had won three of the previous four meetings, including a very significant victory at SFA in 2024.

A sloppy game that featured seven turnovers was settled on a sloppy, multi-turnover play. With Incarnate Word facing third-and-goal from the Lumberjack 6-yard line, SFA defender Jermain Brown picked off a pass at the 1-yard line and returned if 45 yards, only to fumble to UIW's Jalen Walthall with 3:33 to play

Stephen F. Austin did get the ball back at its own 13 with under two minutes remaining, but managed to get just one first down, as the Cardinals eventually forced a turnover on downs.

This game was not only UIW's lone win in five previous trips to Nacogdoches, it clinched the 2024 Southland Conference championship. It was also the last time the Lumberjacks lost an SLC game, as they enter Saturday on a 10-game conference win streak.

FOLLOW ALONG  

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