Injuries are unfortunately a part of almost every football game. That is why coaches are always preaching the “Next man up” mentality.

Howard Payne took that mentality to a new level last Saturday after the Yellow Jackets’ top two quarterbacks were injured during their game.

Freshman Kolbi Tate had never taken a snap in a collegiate game until the third quarter against Southwestern. Tate led HPU to 10 fourth-quarter points and a 24-16 win over the Pirates, earning the Yellow Jackets the Dave Campbell’s Small College Team of the Week honors.

After starting quarterback McGwire Martin was injured in the first quarter, backup quarterback Caleb Estes took control of the offense. Estes was injured in the third quarter leaving the Yellow Jackets to turn to Tate.

Tate answered the call by completing 5-of-10 passes for 110 yards and a touchdown. Fortunately for Tate and HPU, senior wide receiver DunTayviun Gross is a reliable target and had another outstanding game with eight catches for 105 yards and caught a nine-yard pass from Tate for the game-winning score in the fourth quarter.

The Yellow Jackets’ defense also came up big as they forced five turnovers, including four fumbles.

Defensive lineman Brady Wade led the way with 10 tackles, seven solo, three tackles for loss, one-half sack and forced two fumbles. Fellow defensive lineman James Jakubowski also forced two fumbles for HPU.

Senior linebacker Austin Kilgore has been the leader of the defense all season and leads the team with 73 tackles. Kilgore produced another eight tackles, five solo, and a sack in the win.

The win over Southwestern was another huge step forward for HPU head coach Braxton Harris in his third year at the helm.

Followers of Division III football may recognize Harris as he was the quarterback for Mary Hardin-Baylor from 2003-2005 and appeared in the 2004 national title game. Prior to coming to HPU, Harris was the defensive coordinator at Texas Lutheran.

Harris inherited an HPU team that needed a complete overhaul of the football program. Building the Yellow Jackets has not been easy as HPU entered the 2019 season with a total of three wins in the last four seasons.

Saturday’s victory was the fourth win of the year for HPU and is the most victories since 2014. The Yellow Jackets can earn an impressive fifth win against Belhaven at home on Saturday afternoon.

A win over the Blazers would be the most wins for the Yellow Jackets since 2006. A victory in the season finale would also give HPU its most conference wins in a season since 2005.

Harris has focused on building HPU with young players as evidenced by the Yellow Jackets having only eight seniors on their roster.

This season has been a turning point for the Yellow Jackets and all signs point to continued improvement as Harris continues to build HPU into a team that could eventually challenge for the American Southwest Conference title.

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