The Houston Roughnecks have relied on their defense all season and Sunday might have been their best performance yet. The Roughnecks defense had four takeaways and held the San Antonio Brahmas to under 250 yards of total offense but the offense has let the team down again. Houston's offense only generated 185 yards of offense and scored just 12 points.
Game Summary
The very first drive of the game saw the Brahmas march down to the Roughneck's 3-yard line where Brahmas running back John Lovett fumbled on a hit by Roughnecks star linebacker Reuben Foster and was recovered by Houston. However, Houston could not take advantage and had to punt on their ensuing drive. The very next Brahmas drive suffered a similar fate with another fumble in the Roughnecks red zone. Houston was unable to score again and had to punt.
The first points of the game came on a 26-yard FG by Ryan Santoso to give the Brahmas a 3-0 lead. Both teams traded punts until the final 1:06 of the second quarter when Houston was able to kick a last-second 48-yard FG by JJ Molson—ending the first half with the score tied 3-3.
Houston struck first in the second half with a 31-yard FG by Molson and he followed it up with a very impressive 62-yard FG giving the Roughnecks a 9-3 lead at the end of the third quarter. To start the fourth quarter Houston added another 21-yard FG by Molson giving them a 12-3 lead, but Houston would not score again in the game.
Lovett scored a 1-yard TD and WR Cody Larimer caught the 3-point conversion tying the game with 2:24 left but on the ensuing kickoff, return man Reggie Roberson Jr. fumbled and it was recovered by the Brahmas Teez Tabor setting San Antonio up at Houston’s 43-yard line.
Houston was unable to stop San Antonio and Santoso was able to kick the game-winning 51-yard FG as time expired.
Turning Point
The turning point of the game came with San Antonio scoring a TD and 3-point conversion with only 2:24 left in the game. Up to that point the Brahmas had done next to nothing the entire game and it felt as if Houston’s defense was going to single-handedly win this game for them. But the 3-point conversion gave San Antonio the momentum for good.
The play of the game was the fumble on the ensuing kickoff, preventing Houston from having a chance to win the game and giving the Brahmas a great chance to kick the game-winning FG and drain the clock.
Game MVPs
The offensive MVP for San Antonio was Latimer though he only officially had 1 catch for 20 yards, but he did haul in the 3-point conversion, killing all momentum for the Roughnecks
Defensive MVP for San Antonio was linebacker Tavante Beckett who was everywhere for the Brahmas, finishing with 9 tackles, 1.5 sacks and 2 tackles for loss, causing havoc all day for the Houston offense.
Offensive MVP for Houston was WR Justin Hall who caught all 5 targets for 69 yards and was the only consistent threat for the anemic Houston offense.
The defensive MVP for Houston was DE Chris Odom would finished with 1.5 sacks and a tackle for loss. The whole defense was excellent all game long and it’s disappointing that their effort was wasted.
What the Outcome Means
The Brahmas move to 6-2 and are second in the XFL Division and their next matchup is a divisional game in Arlington against the Renegades at 4 p.m., May 19.
It’s been a rough season for the Roughnecks and that continued on Sunday with another loss, dropping their record to 1-6 and last place in the USFL Division. The Roughnecks' next game will be in Birmingham against another formidable opponent in the Stallions at 8 p.m. on May 18.
Full game stats here.
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