Making Sense of Sam Houston's Wild Weekend as KC Keeler Leaves for Major College Football Job
The Bearkats need a breather before their bowl game.
The game itself was the simple part. Sam Houston needed a win against G5 darling, Liberty, to have any shot at appearing in the Conference USA Title Game. Behind a dominating showing by the defense and a surprise guest spot from the offense, the Bearkats were able to pull out a 20-18 victory over the Flames. Although their faint title game hopes were dashed courtesy of a WKU victory, the win was an incredible sendoff for the Sam Houston seniors as a crowd of over 8,000 enjoyed a crisp Black Friday to cheer on a group who not only brought a championship to Huntsville but flipped last year’s 3-9 record to a solid 9-3 in 2024.
As their title-winning head coach, KC Keeler, looked on, giving his interview to CBS Sports Network, Bearkat fans have to wonder if he already knew about the bombshell about to be dropped upon their head. No less than 36 hours after celebrating Sam’s turnaround, the coach who had delivered so much was gone from, accepting the vacant head coaching job at Temple. It’s a great fit for the northeastern native Keeler, and reports are that many of his former assistant coaches reside in the area, ready to awaken the Owls. It’s a kick in the teeth for the Sam Houston faithful as embattled offensive coordinator, Brad Cornelson, takes over the program in an interim role.
Among what are sure to be player transfers, the Bearkats also have the program’s first ever FBS bowl game to prepare for, with a location as yet to be decided. Oh, and Early National Signing Day is this Wednesday.
It all equals a busy time of transition and stress for Sam Houston as it endures the first coaching change in its FBS history.
POSITION GRADES
Quarterback B+
In what was his best game in ages, Hunter Watson finally had a decisive showing in the home finale, looking more confident on downfield throws and rushes. His interception stings but he was a steady ship overall for the offense and fans were happy to finally see a more open scoring attack.
Running Backs B+
While he had no touchdowns, 96 yards rushing for Jay Ducker is nothing to sneeze at. His 4.0 yards per carry were just enough for Sam Houston to win the time of possession and limit what Liberty could do as far as gameplan.
Wide Receivers A
It’s Christmas time so lets use an iconic quote from Die Hard (yes it’s a Christmas movie) “Welcome to the party pal!”. In their final game of the year at Bowers, the true potential for this group was unleashed, with Simeon Evans’ 2 touchdowns headlining the show. Don’t forget about Noah Smith either. He averaged nearly a first down per catch.
Offensive Line B
Not bad at all from the boys up front. While you would still like to see a bit more push, they allowed holes for the running backs and overall gave Watson enough time to scan the field and make throws.
Defensive Line B+
They played well overall despite giving up a few big runs and served as a catalyst for the benching of Liberty quarterback Kaiden Salter. Two deflected passes by Da'Veawn Armstead illustrated the type of afternoon the big guys had.
Linebackers A
Overall you have to hand it to a group that did a little of everything. You could look at Isaiah Nixon’s tackles for loss or Isaiah Cash’s interception to help seal the game I’m not sure the Flames were ready for just how aggressive the LBs were going to be.
Defensive Backs A+
The strongest position of the afternoon was easily the DBs, with Jaylon Jimmerson serving as the focal point. The former Liberty Flame made sure to send a message to his former team, as he had one of the wildest interceptions of the year to go along with a tackle for loss. Caleb Weaver was his usual dominant self as he put a stamp on what should be a CUSA Defensive Player of the Year award.
Special Teams C+
Another missed kick from Christian Pavon and a mind boggling handled punt from Sam Houston was enough to make Bearkat fans pull their hair out. But Pavon did make a couple of kicks when Sam had to have it and it’s the end of the semester. Eh, let’s pass ‘em.