WONDER BOYS COLLECT HOME WIN OVER INCARNATE WORD; MULLINS BECOMES TECH'S ALL-TIME WINNINGEST COACH IN THE PROCESS

        RUSSELLVILLE, Arkansas – Arkansas Tech Football opened the home portion of its 2009 schedule here Saturday evening by posting a 40-10 victory over Incarnate Word in front of 5,325 fans inside Thone Stadium at Buerkle Field.

The win was historic for Tech Head Coach and Athletic Director Steve Mullins as he became the school’s all-time winningest coach passing E.O. Brown (1920-32) and John Tucker (1933-41, 1945-47). Mullins, who is the fourth all-time winningest coach in Gulf South Conference history, has now won 78 games in his 13 seasons at the helm of the Wonder Boys. In addition to being the school’s all-time winningest coach, Mullins also holds the school record for most games coached in (129).

“It is a wonderful accomplishment and I’m very happy to have the record,” Mullins said following the game. “It is a tribute though to the great assistant coaches I’ve had, the wonderful players that have played here and also to the administration of the university. None of it would be possible without all of their support over the years.”

As far as the game, Tech used a dominating first quarter that saw the Wonder Boys put 24 points on the scoreboard and amass 199 of its 533 yards of offense to put away the Cardinals (1-1 on the season), who were playing just its second-ever football game and its first-ever road game. UIW opened the season with a 42-39 win last Saturday at home over Monterrey Tech.

Tech opened the scoring just a little under three minutes into the contest as redshirt freshman receiver Lance Williams (Vinita, Okla.) caught a 15-yard pass from senior quarterback Nick Graziano (Moraga, Calif.). The touchdown completed a 10-play, 65-yard drive by the Wonder Boys.

UIW, though, would respond on its first possession of the game as the Cardinals drove 57 yards in five plays and pull within 7-3 thanks to a 43-yard field goal by Thomas Rebold. The big play on the drive was a 73-yard pass from Thomas Specia to Todd Walker on the first play of the possession. From that point, Tech’s defense held and the Cardinals were driven backwards thanks to an offensive pass interference penalty on third-and-goal from Tech’s 11-yard line.

“I thought our defense did a great job being able to hold them (UIW) to a field goal after that big play,” the Tech coach said.

Following Rebold’s field goal, Tech pushed in front 14-3 thanks to an 88-yard kickoff return for a touchdown by senior receiver Frantz Simeon (Belle Glade, Fla.). Simeon’s return was Tech’s first kickoff return for a touchdown since former Wonder Boy Bryan Fisher returned a kickoff 46 yards for a score against Henderson State on Oct. 3, 1998.

On its third possession of the game, Tech drove 51 yards in five plays and completed the drive with a 34-yard field goal by senior kicker Travis Cockerham (Bryant, Ark.). Cockerham’s kick gave the Wonder Boys a 17-3 lead with 5:16 left in the quarter.

After limiting UIW to just three yards on its next possession, the Wonder Boys needed just four plays to extend its lead to 24-3 thanks to a 45-yard touchdown run by junior running back Cody Burns (Pine Bluff, Ark.). The run capped a 57-yard for Tech.

Burns got a majority of the carries in Saturday’s game as Tech’s top two running backs, senior Tim Childress (Batesville, Ark.) and sophomore Joby Hills (Carencro, La.) sat out to recover from nagging injuries. Burns finished the night 17 carries for a career-high 162 yards. The 162 rushing yards was the most by a Wonder Boy since Ed Duncan rushed for 168 yards against Arkansas-Monticello in 1999.

Burns’ effort on the ground led the Wonder Boys to gain 207 yards rushing for the game. In addition to Burns, Graziano, the reigning GSC Offensive Player of the Week, gained 41 yards on four carries, including scoring a 2-yard run just 1:18 into the second quarter. Graziano’s scoring run gave the Wonder Boys a 31-3 lead.

“Cody did a wonderful job tonight,” Mullins said. “I was pleased with the way we ran the ball. I thought our tight ends and fullbacks did a nice job, as well.”

Cockerham added an 18-yard field goal with 5:39 left in the first half to give Tech a 34-3 lead. The field goal came four plays after Graziano hit senior receiver Landon Turner (Destrehan, La.) with a 38-yard pass reception.

Graziano, who played just the first half, finished 11-for-19 for 203 yards with one touchdown and no interceptions. Turner caught three passes for 66 yards and is now 19 yards shy of becoming the 17th Wonder Boy to amass 1,000 career receiving yards, while Simeon finished the game 172 all-purpose yards thanks to 108 yards on two kickoff returns and 52 yards on four punt returns.

In the second half, Tech was able to give some of its players some rest and give more playing time and experience to its back-ups.

“We were able to play a lot of people tonight,” Mullins added.

          Tech pushed its lead to 40-3 midway through the third quarter as junior Robert Sagerian (San Diego, Calif.), who is listed as Tech’s No. 2 quarterback on the depth chart, hit junior tight end T.J. Langley (Hugo, Okla.) with an 11-yard touchdown pass. The ensuing extra-point attempt by redshirt freshman kicker Matt Johnston (Russellville, Ark.) was missed.

          “Our other two quarterbacks, Robert (Sagerian) and Kevin Puckett both got a lot of game experience tonight,” the Tech coach said.

          UIW closed out the game’s scoring with 45 seconds left in the third quarter on a 14-yard touchdown pass Specia to Walker. The scoring play completed a 10-play, 77-yard drive by the Cardinals.

          Specia finished the night 10-for-23 passing for 176 yards and had one interception and one touchdown, while Walker, a transfer from Texas Tech University, caught two passes for 87 yards in the loss.

          On the night, Tech’s offense gained 533 yards and held UIW to 225 yards on 52 plays, including limiting the Cardinals to 26 rushing yards on 22 carries. Tech has now gained 450 or more yards of offense in its last three games dating to last season.

          Tech returns to action on Thursday, Sept. 10, when they travel to Livingston, Ala., to face West Alabama in a 7 p.m. game. The game will be broadcast as part of the “GSC-TV Live” Game of the Week package. UWA enters the game with a 2-0 record after picking up a 33-19 win on Thursday at home against Harding. The game will mark the GSC opener for both teams.

          Incarnate Word Box Score 

-- Tech Athletics --