SAN ANTONIO -- The University of the Incarnate Word's quest to
Restore the Order got off to a smashing start in the first game of the 2026 football season.
The Cardinals scored in all three phases, setting a single-game program scoring record in a 76-14 rout of Oklahoma Panhandle State in a week zero matchup at Gayle and Tom Benson Stadium Saturday night. It topped the previous high score of 73,
which came in a 2022 game against Houston Christian.
"It's great, awesome," coach
Clint Killough said after the game. "You work long years just to get 12 opportunities. So I'm glad we took advantage of it. I thought their energy and focus was good coming out. We went pretty deep in the depth chart. I was overall happy with how (we played)."
The record was set with 5:28 remaining in the fourth quarter, when quarterback
Jackson Fields, one of four Cardinal signal callers to see the field, broke a tackle, then spun out of two more in a great effort that resulted in a 3-yard touchdown run.
And while the offense certainly did its part, the scoring began before the unit even took the field.
After the defense forced a three-and-out,
Jayden Hibbler fumbled a punt, but upon picking it up, saw no Aggie defenders around him, eventually racing 58 yards for a touchdown.
Hibbler was only getting started, as the West Texas A&M transfer put a great cap on his first game as a Cardinal, returning another punt 65 yards for a touchdown in the second quarter.
He is the second UIW player to return two punts for touchdowns in a game, joining Kole Wilson, who did so
in a 2022 game against Faulkner. And according to Hibbler, he envisioned the result himself coming into the game.
"I believe in manifestation," he said. "Last night, I had a dream about me returning at least one punt. So whenever that happened off my first touch, I was just happy for myself, happy for my team, just to be able to get the season kicked off."
As for the offense, it needed almost no time to get in the end zone, as UIW scored 41 first-quarter points while possessing the ball for just 2 minutes, 7 seconds.
The first two scores came via a 22-yard pass from
Emmett Brown and
Price Morgan and a 40-yard run by
Lontrell Turner.
UIW then put together back-to-back one-play drives, with Brown hooking up with
Isaiah Champagne from 51 yards out and
Jacob Emmers for a 48-yard catch-and-run.
Brown finished the night 5-of-7 for 127 yards and three touchdowns with one interception.
Sandwiched in between the one-play drives was a defensive touchdown, as a
Braden Hay strip sack resulted in a 15-yard
Jeremiah Young scoop-and-score.
Turner, who led all players with 81 yards rushing, added a second touchdown run of three yards in the second quarter, with
Cedric Lott Jr. giving UIW at 62-0 halftime lead with a 12-yard touchdown catch from quarterback
David Rasor.
Rasor had a second touchdown pass to
Jamir Roberts from six yards out in the third quarters.
Roberts, who had a team-best 81 receiving yards, set the score up with a spectacular 59-yard catch and run the play before, where he bounced off a vicious hit at the line of scrimmage, stayed up and cut all the way across the field before being tackled at the six-yard line.
The defense was led by
Jachai Pulley, who had seven tackles, two tackles for loss and a sack. The Cardinal defense held the Aggies to negative-15 yards on the ground while recording 10 tackles
for-loss and four sacks.
Faced with an extremely early bye week, the Cardinals are off week one before facing a challenging road game against No. 24 Northern Arizona on Sept. 12. The Lumberjacks won a thriller in their opener Saturday, overcoming a 21-point deficit to top Eastern Washington 34-27.
