2018 Texas A&M–Commerce Lions football team

2018 Texas A&M–Commerce Lions football
2018 Texas A&M–Commerce Lions football
NCAA Division II second round, L 28–34 vs. Tarleton State
Conference	Lone Star Conference
Record	10–3 (7–1 LSC)
Head coach	Colby Carthel (6th season);
Offensive coordinator	Matt Storm (6th season)
Offensive scheme	Spread
Defensive coordinator	Scott Power (1st season)
Base defense	3–4
Home stadium	Memorial Stadium
	Seasons ← 2017 2019 →

2018 Lone Star Conference football standings
v t e
Team	W		L	W		L
No. 5 Tarleton State $^	8	–	0	12	–	1
No. 9 Texas A&M–Commerce ^	7	–	1	10	–	3
No. 25 Midwestern State	6	–	2	8	–	2
Angelo State #	4	–	4	6	–	6
West Texas A&M	4	–	4	6	–	5
Eastern New Mexico	4	–	4	5	–	6
Texas A&M–Kingsville	2	–	6	4	–	7
UT Permian Basin	1	–	7	2	–	9
Western New Mexico	0	–	8	0	–	10

$ – Conference champion ^ – NCAA Division II playoff participant # – C.H.A.M.P.S. Heart of Texas Bowl participant Rankings from AFCA poll

The 2018 Texas A&M–Commerce Lions football team represented Texas A&M University–Commerce in the 2018 NCAA Division II football season. They were led by head coach Colby Carthel, who was in his sixth season at Texas A&M–Commerce. The Lions played their home games at Memorial Stadium and were members of the Lone Star Conference.

The Lions finished the regular season with a record of 9–2 and second place in the conference. The team made the NCAA Division II playoffs, losing in the regional semifinal to Tarleton State.

Schedule

The schedule consisted of six home games and five away games in the regular season. The Lions hosted conference foes Texas A&M–Kingsville, Tarleton State, West Texas A&M, and Angelo State and traveled to Eastern New Mexico, Midwestern State, Western New Mexico, and Texas–Permian Basin.

The Lions hosted non-conference foes Lock Haven from the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference and Colorado State–Pueblo from the Great Plains Athletic Conference and traveled to William Jewell from the Great Lakes Valley Conference.

Date	Time	Opponent	Rank	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
August 30	7:00 p.m	Texas A&M–Kingsville	No. 1	Memorial Stadium Commerce, TX (Chennault Cup)	ESPN3	W 37–36 ^2OT	7,141
September 8	12:00 p.m.	at William Jewell*	No. 1	Greene Stadium Liberty, MO		W 27–17	650
September 15	8:00 p.m.	at Eastern New Mexico	No. 1	Greyhound Stadium Portales, NM		W 21–11	1,601
September 22	6:00 p.m.	No. 22 CSU Pueblo*	No. 1	Memorial Stadium Commerce, TX		L 13–23	6,737
September 29	6:00 p.m.	Lock Haven*	No. 9	Memorial Stadium Commerce, TX		W 68–6	8,488
October 7^[a]	2:00 p.m.	vs. No. 4 Midwestern State	No. 9	Apogee Stadium Denton, TX		W 20–19	8,122
October 13	4:00 p.m.	No. 16 Tarleton State	No. 7	Memorial Stadium Commerce, TX (President's Cup)		L 21–47	6,875
October 20	1:00 p.m.	at Western New Mexico	No. 18	Ben Altamirano Field Silver City, NM		W 55–7	0
October 27	4:00 p.m.	West Texas A&M	No. 18	Memorial Stadium Commerce, TX (East Texas vs. West Texas)		W 41–16	9,168
November 3	6:00 p.m.	at Texas–Permian Basin	No. 16	Ratliff Stadium Odessa, TX		W 20–17	3,958
November 10	4:00 p.m.	Angelo State	No. 14	Memorial Stadium Commerce, TX		W 41–13	6,887
November 17	1:00 p.m.	at No. 5 Minnesota–Duluth*	No. 15	Griggs Field at James S. Malosky Stadium Duluth, MN (Regional Quarterfinal)		W 33–17	1,029
November 24	1:00 p.m.	at No. 6 Tarleton State*	No. 15	Memorial Stadium Stephenville, TX (Regional semifinal)		L 28–34	5,231
*Non-conference game Homecoming Rankings from American Football Coaches Association Poll released prior to the game

^ Kickoff was at 7:00 p.m. the night before at Memorial Stadium in Wichita Falls, TX. The game was suspended at halftime tied 10–10 due to inclement weather. The second half of the game resumed the following day at the neutral site of Apogee Stadium in Denton.

^[1]

Roster

2018 Texas A&M–Commerce Football Roster

Quarterbacks

7 Kane Wilson – junior (6'4, 230)
14 Gunnar Palacios – freshman (6'0, 190)
18 Chase Pemberton – senior (6'4, 190)
19 Preston Wheeler – junior (6'3, 181)
23 Mason Ray – freshman (6'3, 210)

Running backs

26 Carandal Hale – sophomore (5'11, 190)
32 Nate Davis – freshman (5'9, 180)
35 Ovie Urevbu – senior (5'11, 210)
38 E.J. Thompson – sophomore (5'9, 200)
46 Antonio Leali'ie'e – sophomore (5'11, 210)

Wide receivers

2 Marquis Wimberly – senior (6'2, 205)
3 Darrion Landry – senior (6'3, 200)
17 Ryan Stokes – junior (6'3, 185)
29 Michael Coley – junior (6'2, 200)
81 Arnezz Archie – freshman (6'1, 170)
83 Kelan Smith – sophomore (6'1, 170)
84 Deonta Adams – freshman (6'1, 170)
85 Chance Cooper – sophomore (6'3, 200)
86 Dequan Dudley – junior (5'10, 160)
87 Lorenzo Rosario – senior (6'3, 200)
88 Matt Childers – freshman (6'4, 180)

Tight ends

11 Tyler Guice – junior (6'3, 250)
15 Vincent Hobbs – senior (6'3, 255)
40 Drake Flores – sophomore (6'3, 240)
80 Dom Velasquez – freshman (6'4, 240)

Long snapper

82 Wyatt Leath – sophomore (6'4, 245)

Offensive linemen

53 Christian Hernandez – sophomore (6'1, 265)
61 Ty Cole – sophomore (6'4, 290)
62 Nic Smith – freshman (6'5, 275)
63 Solomon Ndukwe – freshman (6'3, 300)
64 Travis Dafft – freshman (6'1, 255)
65 Jonah Brown – junior (6'5, 315)
66 Emerald Faletuipapai – junior (6'7, 350)
67 Jackson Richmond – freshman (6'4, 305)
68 Kendall Mathis – sophomore (6'3, 300)
70 Abdul Shammaa – junior (6'5, 310)
71 Malik Ellis – senior (6'6, 280)
72 Brian Taylor – junior (6'2, 275)
73 Ryan Peschka – junior (6'2, 290)
74 Richard West – freshman (6'6, 240)
75 Coleton Lasseter – sophomore (6'3, 225)
76 Amon Simon – sophomore (6'5, 275)
77 Jordan Smith – senior (6'4, 315)
78 Daronte Shaw – senior (6'5, 320)
79 Matt Mora – sophomore (6'7, 300)

Defensive linemen

13 Josh Reynolds – senior (6'4, 210)
48 Vili Paea – junior (6'3, 260)
49 D.D. Fletcher – junior (6'1, 270)
51 Ty Reed – freshman (6'2, 220)
52 Peyton Searcy – senior (6'0, 275)
55 Pierre Leonard – junior (5'10, 300)
56 Montre Bonner – junior (6'3, 230)
69 Devin Beamon – freshman (6'1, 290)
90 David Brazil – junior (6'0, 230)
91 Elijah Earls – sophomore (6'0, 240)
92 J.R. Rocha – freshman (6'0, 270)
93 Jaylon Hodge – sophomore (6'0, 275)
94 Brandon Bascue – freshman (6'4, 260)
95 Dequan Wilson – junior (6'5, 250)
96 Dylan Davis – freshman (6'3, 215)
97 Nick Petitti – freshman (6'4, 220)
98 Deionte Haywood – senior (6'3, 225)
99 Michael Onuoha – senior (6'5, 255)

Linebackers

28 Mark Westbrook – junior (5'11, 195)
31 Jay Bias – sophomore (5'9, 190)
33 Neema Behbahani – junior (6'1, 230)
36 Tristen Slaughter – senior (6'2, 210)
39 Joe Butler – junior (6'4, 215)
43 Jaquorius Smith – sophomore (5'9, 195)
44 Dayne Douglass – sophomore (6'2, 220)
45 Jordan Johnson – freshman (6'3, 205)
47 Bryse Burris – freshman (6'3, 205)
50 Xavier Morris – sophomore (6'1, 220)
54 Garrett Blubaugh – senior (6'2, 230)

Defensive backs

1 L.A. Dawson – junior (6'0, 180)
4 Jalon Edwards-Cooper – junior (5'11, 175)
5 Felipe Chambers – junior (6'1, 190)
6 Danny Huckaby – senior (6'1, 180)
8 Kader Kohou – sophomore (5'9, 190)
10 Alex Shillow – sophomore (5'10, 185)
20 Dominique Ramsey – sophomore (5'9, 180)
21 Davion Bradley – freshman (6'0, 175)
22 Darent White – senior (6'1, 160)
24 Chris Smith – senior (6'1, 170)
25 Reggie Kincade – senior (5'11, 170)
27 Darius Williams – freshman (5'9, 165)
41 Rashad Fisher – sophomore (5'10, 180)

Placekickers

59 Jake Viquez – sophomore (5'10, 190)
60 Andrew Gomez – sophomore (6'2, 210)
89 Kristov Martinez – senior (5'6, 135)

Punters

37 Tristan Perry – sophomore (6'1, 200)
59 Jake Viquez – sophomore (5'10, 190)

Game summaries

Texas A&M–Kingsville

	1	2	3	4	OT	2OT	Total
Javelinas	0	13	10	0	7	6	36
No. 1 Lions	0	0	13	10	7	7	37

Statistics

Statistics	TAMUK	TAMUC
First downs	20	24
Total yards	414	396
Rushing yards	94	94
Passing yards	320	302
Turnovers	2	3
Time of possession	35:05	24:55

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Texas A&M–Kingsville	Passing	Koy Detmer, Jr.	33/46, 320 yards, 4 TD, 2 INT
	Rushing	Jeff Carr	9 rushes, 33 yards
	Receiving	Ty Chisum	5 receptions, 82 yards, 2 TD
Texas A&M–Commerce	Passing	Preston Wheeler	23/48, 302 yards, 3 TD, INT
	Rushing	Ovie Urevbu	14 rushes, 62 yards
	Receiving	Marquis Wimberly	8 receptions, 99 yards, TD

At William Jewell

	1	2	3	4	Total
No. 1 Lions	14	10	3	0	27
Cardinals	0	7	3	7	17

Statistics

Statistics	TAMUC	WJC
First downs	19	19
Total yards	346	249
Rushing yards	122	93
Passing yards	224	156
Turnovers	3	1
Time of possession	26:10	33:50

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Texas A&M–Commerce	Passing	Preston Wheeler	25/31, 181 yards, TD, 2 INT
	Rushing	Carandal Hale	16 rushes, 81 yards, TD
	Receiving	Chance Cooper	8 receptions, 103 yards
William Jewell	Passing	Will Schneider	19/33, 156 yards, TD
	Rushing	Will Schneider	20 rushes, 79 yards, TD
	Receiving	Bulla Graft	7 receptions, 69 yards, TD

At Eastern New Mexico

	1	2	3	4	Total
No. 1 Lions	14	0	0	7	21
Greyhounds	0	3	0	8	11

Statistics

Statistics	TAMUC	ENMU
First downs	14	14
Total yards	289	215
Rushing yards	186	209
Passing yards	103	6
Turnovers	1	2
Time of possession	22:42	37:18

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Texas A&M–Commerce	Passing	Preston Wheeler	11/30, 103 yards, INT
	Rushing	Carandal Hale	14 rushes, 101 yards, TD
	Receiving	Marquis Wimberly	1 reception, 30 yards
Eastern New Mexico	Passing	Wyatt Strand	2/7, 6 yards, INT
	Rushing	Paul Terry	24 rushes, 88 yards, TD
	Receiving	Russell Montoya	1 reception, 4 yards

Colorado State–Pueblo

	1	2	3	4	Total
No. 22 ThunderWolves	0	6	10	7	23
No. 1 Lions	10	0	0	3	13

Statistics

Statistics	CSUP	TAMUC
First downs	15	9
Total yards	299	179
Rushing yards	215	40
Passing yards	84	139
Turnovers	2	5
Time of possession	36:30	23:20

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Colorado State–Pueblo	Passing	Brandon Edwards	11/28, 84 yards
	Rushing	Marche Dennard	17 rushes, 72 yards
	Receiving	John Todd	3 receptions, 29 yards
Texas A&M–Commerce	Passing	Kane Wilson	7/15, 108 yards, INT
	Rushing	E.J. Thompson	15 rushes, 48 yards
	Receiving	Ryan Stokes	4 receptions, 60 yards

Lock Haven

	1	2	3	4	Total
Bald Eagles	0	0	6	0	6
No. 9 Lions	14	24	16	14	68

Statistics

Statistics	LHU	TAMUC
First downs	12	26
Total yards	268	612
Rushing yards	52	121
Passing yards	216	491
Turnovers	0	1
Time of possession	31:16	28:44

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Lock Haven	Passing	Cameron Tobias	22/42, 205 yards, TD
	Rushing	Chantz Swartz	9 rushes, 19 yards
	Receiving	Jalen Jackson	9 receptions, 81 yards
Texas A&M–Commerce	Passing	Kane Wilson	20/31, 373 yards, 4 TD
	Rushing	Nate Davis	4 rushes, 62 yards, TD
	Receiving	Marquis Wimberly	9 receptions, 195 yards, 2 TD

Vs. Midwestern State

	1	2	3	4	Total
No. 9 Lions	10	0	3	7	20
No. 4 Mustangs	7	3	7	2	19

Statistics

Statistics	TAMUC	MSU
First downs	24	27
Total yards	420	426
Rushing yards	190	192
Passing yards	230	234
Turnovers	3	1
Time of possession	29:32	30:28

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Texas A&M–Commerce	Passing	Kane Wilson	17/28, 230 yards, TD, 2 INT
	Rushing	E.J. Thompson	26 rushes, 150 yards
	Receiving	Ryan Stokes	7 receptions, 93 yards, TD
Midwestern State	Passing	Layton Rabb	22/47, 234 yards, INT
	Rushing	Vincent Johnson	17 rushes, 108 yards, TD
	Receiving	Juwan Johnson	6 receptions, 106 yards

Tarleton State

	1	2	3	4	Total
No. 16 Texans	10	14	3	20	47
No. 7 Lions	7	7	7	0	21

Statistics

Statistics	TSU	TAMUC
First downs	28	17
Total yards	485	363
Rushing yards	282	131
Passing yards	203	232
Turnovers	0	2
Time of possession	29:20	30:40

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Tarleton State	Passing	Ben Holmes	16/31, 203 yards, 3 TD
	Rushing	Xavier Turner	26 rushes, 166 yards, 2 TD
	Receiving	Savon Rollison	3 receptions, 78 yards, TD
Texas A&M–Commerce	Passing	Kane Wilson	18/31, 232 yards, TD
	Rushing	Carandal Hale	13 rushes, 61 yards
	Receiving	Ryan Stokes	3 receptions, 73 yards

At Western New Mexico

	1	2	3	4	Total
No. 18 Lions	0	34	14	7	55
Mustangs	0	7	0	0	7

Statistics

Statistics	TAMUC	WNMU
First downs	20	14
Total yards	349	263
Rushing yards	143	157
Passing yards	206	106
Turnovers	2	3
Time of possession	26:54	33:06

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Texas A&M–Commerce	Passing	Kane Wilson	12/21, 136 yards, 2 TD, INT
	Rushing	Nate Davis	14 rushes, 55 yards, TD
	Receiving	Marquis Wimberly	6 receptions, 97 yards, 2 TD
Western New Mexico	Passing	Gabriel Tomaszewski	6/15, 56 yards, 2 INT
	Rushing	Arkemus Baskerville	10 rushes, 74 yards
	Receiving	Kourde Roberts	3 receptions, 41 yards

West Texas A&M

	1	2	3	4	Total
Buffaloes	7	6	3	0	16
No. 18 Lions	7	10	17	7	41

Statistics	WT	TAMUC
First downs	12	16
Total yards	286	375
Rushing yards	22	244
Passing yards	264	131
Turnovers	3	0
Time of possession	27:46	32:14

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
West Texas A&M	Passing	Justin Houghtaling	21/32, 264 yards, INT
	Rushing	Marshawn Brown	5 rushes, 29 yards, TD
	Receiving	Payton Gonzales	4 receptions, 79 yards
Texas A&M–Commerce	Passing	Kane Wilson	12/15, 131 yards, TD
	Rushing	Ovie Urevbu	20 rushes, 118 yards
	Receiving	Ryan Stokes	3 receptions, 85 yards

At Texas–Permian Basin

	1	2	3	4	Total
No. 16 Lions	10	3	0	7	20
Falcons	7	7	0	0	14

Statistics

Statistics	TAMUC	UTPB
First downs	18	10
Total yards	400	137
Rushing yards	195	-69
Passing yards	205	206
Turnovers	2	1
Time of possession	34:56	25:04

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Texas A&M–Commerce	Passing	Kane Wilson	19/29, 205 yards
	Rushing	Ovie Urevbu	27 rushes, 195 yards
	Receiving	Kelan Smith	8 receptions, 93 yards
Texas–Permian Basin	Passing	Taylor Null	18/34, 179 yards, 2 TD
	Rushing	Leroy Giles	4 rushes, 4 yards
	Receiving	Kristian Brown	4 receptions, 86 yards, TD

Angelo State

	1	2	3	4	Total
Rams	13	0	0	0	13
No. 14 Lions	14	13	14	0	41

Statistics

Statistics	ASU	TAMUC
First downs	8	21
Total yards	243	451
Rushing yards	80	230
Passing yards	163	221
Turnovers	1	2
Time of possession	25:40	34:20

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Angelo State	Passing	Payne Sullins	14/37, 163 yards, INT
	Rushing	Tony Jones	7 receptions, 42 yards
	Receiving	Lawson Ayo	5 receptions, 83 yards
Texas A&M–Commerce	Passing	Kane Wilson	16/28, 221 yards, 2 TD, 2 INT
	Rushing	Ovie Urevbu	30 rushes, 184 yards, 2 TD
	Receiving	Vincent Hobbs	3 receptions, 63 yards, TD

At Minnesota–Dululth (Regional Quarterfinal)

	1	2	3	4	Total
No. 15 Lions	10	7	7	9	33
No. 5 Bulldogs	0	14	0	3	17

Statistics

Statistics	TAMUC	UMD
First downs	13	13
Total yards	276	188
Rushing yards	63	42
Passing yards	213	146
Turnovers	2	2
Time of possession	28:43	31:17

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Texas A&M–Commerce	Passing	Kane Wilson	14/31, 213 yards, TD, 2 INT
	Rushing	Ovie Urevbu	27 rushes, 65 yards, TD
	Receiving	Ryan Stokes	5 receptions, 100 yards
Minnesota–Duluth	Passing	Ben Everhart	10/20, 79 yards, INT
	Rushing	Mike Rybarczyk	12 rushes, 21 yards
	Receiving	Obi Ibeneme	3 receptions, 48 yards

At Tarleton State (Regional semifinal)

	1	2	3	4	Total
No. 15 Lions	3	6	6	13	28
No. 6 Texans	0	17	10	7	34

Statistics

Statistics	TAMUC	TSU
First downs	21	19
Total yards	386	556
Rushing yards	-2	350
Passing yards	388	206
Turnovers	3	4
Time of possession	30:30	29:30

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Texas A&M–Commerce	Passing	Kane Wilson	25/60, 388 yards, TD, INT
	Rushing	Ovie Urevbu	9 rushes, 15 yards
	Receiving	Marquis Wimberly	7 receptions, 139 yards
Tarleton State	Passing	Ben Holmes	10/21, 206 yards, TD, 2 INT
	Rushing	Daniel McCants	19 rushes, 181 yards, 2 TD
	Receiving	DeShun Qualls	3 receptions, 91 yards, TD

Rankings

Ranking movements
**Legend:** ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking
	Week
Poll	Pre	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	Final
AFCA	1	1	1	1	9	9	7	18	18	16	14	14	15	9

References

^ "2018 Football Schedule". Texas A&M University–Commerce Athletics. Retrieved January 16, 2021.

[1] Kickoff was at 7:00 p.m. the night before at Memorial Stadium in Wichita Falls, TX. The game was suspended at halftime tied 10–10 due to inclement weather. The second half of the game resumed the following day at the neutral site of Apogee Stadium in Denton.

[2] "2018 Football Schedule". Texas A&M University–Commerce Athletics. Retrieved January 16, 2021.

[a]

[1]

v t e East Texas A&M Lions football
Venues	Lion Stadium (–1949) Ernest Hawkins Field at Memorial Stadium (1950–present)
Bowls & rivalries	Tarleton State: President's Cup Texas A&M–Kingsville: Chennault Cup West Texas A&M: East Texas vs. West Texas
People	Head coaches NFL draftees
Seasons	1916 1917 1918 1919 1920 1921 1922 1923 1924 1925 1926 1927 1928 1929 1930 1931 1932 1933 1934 1935 1936 1937 1938 1939 1940 1941 1942 1943–1945 1946 1947 1948 1949 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024
National championship seasons in bold