UIW newcomer Cameron Ward set a program record with six touchdown passes as the Cardinals went 600 yards on the offensive in 22nd and scored a 56-45 win over Southeast Louisiana # 16 at Benson Stadium on Saturday .
Ward made 26 of 47 passes for 407 yards without a break, associating hits with five targets. He also got a quick score while Kevin Brown accelerated the Cardinals offensive with 190 rushing yards and a touchdown.
Tre Wolf led UIW through the air with eight catches for 183 yards.
UIW were the first team in the Southland Conference to make it 3-0. The unbeaten and 6th place Sam Houston State wanted to play against Lamar on Saturday night.
The Cardinals played at Benson Stadium to an audience that was 25 percent busy and took up their home field for a game for the first time in 16 months.
After UIW missed a field goal on first possession, it reached the end zone on the next seven trips, only one of which lasted more than 90 seconds.
Ward’s first touchdown, a 7-yard pass for Robert Ferrel, brought the result to 7 by the end of the first quarter. UIW first took the lead around the middle of the second quarter when Ward found Tre Wolf for a 59-yard gain and then struck a quarterback keeper from the 1-yard line.
After Southeastern Louisiana scored a field goal to take the 16-14 lead, UIW scored three touchdowns in the final three minutes of half to end the game.
Brown took a tie 75 yards for a touchdown, and Moses Reynolds caught an interception on a deflected pass to set up UIW at the SLU 34-yard line. About a minute later, Ward found Ferrel for a 3 yard score in the right apartment to increase the lead to 28-16.
The Cardinals defense forced a turnover on Downs near midfield and gave the offensive another chance, 24 seconds to go.
Brown fumbled in a tie after 14 yards, but the Lions’ inability to seize an undisputed loose ball chance kept UIW’s drive alive. The next game, with the clock ticking for less than 10 seconds, Ward Wolf tossed a hit in the end zone to get a 26-yard score and a commanding 35-16-half-half.
UIW got the kick-off in the second half and extended their lead about 90 seconds later when Ward linked up with Ameer King for a 25-yard touchdown.
Ward also threw a 41-yard touchdown on Jaelin Campbell and threw a 42-yard scoring pass to Darion Chafin on the right sideline in the third quarter.
It took Ward just three-quarters to set a new program record for passing touchdowns by six, beating the five mark set by predecessor Jon Copeland against Texas Southern on September 7, 2019. Ward also set a new career high with 38 rushing meters.
In three games he has collected 1,054 passes, 14 touchdowns and two interceptions and executed 62.7 percent of his throws.
Already in the middle of the six-game season, UIW will face Nicholls No. 17 next week, before the year ends with home games against Northwestern State on April 10 and Sam Houston on April 17.
The Southland champion will be one of 11 automatic qualifiers for the 16-team FCS playoffs starting April 24th.
greg.luca@express-news.net
