MARSHALL – After falling behind on a pick six early in the fourth period, the Howard Payne Yellow Jackets reeled off three consecutive touchdowns to upend the East Texas Baptist Tigers, 49-38, and match the program’s best start to a season in almost two decades.

Howard Payne (4-0, 3-0) remained tied with Mary Hardin-Baylor (4-0, 3-0) – a 34-28 winner over Hardin-Simmons Saturday night – atop the American Southwest Conference standings with its fourth straight win to open the 2021 campaign, a feat that last occurred during the 2002 season.

The Yellow Jackets finished with 541 yards of total offense – 405 through the air and 136 on the ground – and overcame a pair of turnovers. Meanwhile, East Texas Baptist (2-2, 1-2) produced 455 yards – 358 passing and 97 rushing – but committed three turnovers.

HPU quarterback Landon McKinney completed 23 of 38 passes for 405 yards with three scoring tosses and one interception, while ASC Offensive Player of the Week Jake Parker caught seven passes for 184 yards with two scores and Otis Lanier pulled down six catches for 123 yards with a trip to the end zone.

On the ground, Tauren Bradley led the way with 61 yards for the Jackets while Derrick Berry contributed 37 yards and a score, and McKinney chipped in 14 yards and a touchdown.

Defensive standouts for Howard Payne included Dai’Shawn Fisher with eight tackles including two for loss, Peyton Lowe with seven tackles and two interceptions, Dylan Zeno with six tackles, Jarrett Brown with five, and Carson Padilla and Kyle Bell – who also picked off a pass – with four tackles each.

ETBU was sparked by Troy Yowman’s 358 yards passing and a pair of touchdowns, to go along with 31 rushing yards and two more scores. Tariq Gray caught 12 passes for 180 yards and two touchdowns and Josh Lister rushed for a game-high 65 yards.

Clinging to a four-point lead after ETBU missed a short field goal try, McKinney was picked off by Tiger Robert Williams, who returned the interception 50 yards for a touchdown that put East Texas Baptist in front, 31-28, with 12:29 remaining.

Howard Payne immediately responded with a six-play, 61-yard trek that culminated with a 17-yard scoring toss from McKinney to Parker, which put the Yellow Jackets in front for good, 35-31, with 10:16 left.

ETBU’s next drive ended when Bell picked off a pass near midfield, but the Yellow Jackets could not capitalize. The Tigers on their next possession were forced into a three-and-out and punted from their own 19 with 7:11 remaining.

The Yellow Jackets then journeyed 50 yards in seven plays, eating 3:03 off the clock before Berry scored on a 1-yard carry to boost the advantage to 42-31 at the 4:08 mark of the fourth quarter.

Howard Payne’s defense then secured the win on ETBU’s next possession as Lowe picked off a Yowman pass and returned the ball 32 yards to the end zone to pad the cushion to 49-31 with 3:44 remaining.

ETBU tacked on a late touchdown on a 7-yard run by Yowman for the final 11-point margin.

The Yellow Jackets yielded the first points of the game on a 14-yard touchdown carry by Yowman, but drew even at 7 on a 47-yard scoring toss from McKinney to Lanier at the 2:29 mark of the first period.

The Tigers then established a 17-7 edge on a 27-yard field goal by Alberto Garcia and a 47-yard pass from Yowman to Gray before Howard Payne closed the gap to 17-14 at halftime after a 46-yard connection from McKinney to Parker.

Howard Payne’s defense recorded a safety as Lister was tackled in the end zone on the second play of the second half after ETBU started on its own 2, bringing the Yellow Jackets within a point at 17-16. Selah Smith returned the ensuing kickoff 81 yards for a touchdown, which staked HPU to it first lead, 22-17, just 26 seconds into the second half.

East Texas Baptist regained a 24-22 lead at 9:58 of the third quarter on a 9-yard pass from Yowman to Gray. The Yellow Jackets claimed a 28-24 lead on a 4-yard run by McKinney at the 4:36 mark of the third, which capped a 14-play 81-yard drive.

Next week, Howard Payne returns home for just its second game at Gordon Wood Stadium as Sul Ross (1-2, 1-2) – which is coming off a 12-10 win over Texas Lutheran – visits at 3:30 p.m. Saturday for homecoming.

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AMERICAN SOUTHWEST CONFERENCE

Conference Overall

Howard Payne 3 0 4 0

Mary Hardin-Baylor 3 0 4 0

Hardin-Simmons 2 1 3 1

Belhaven 1 2 2 2

East Texas Baptist 1 2 2 2

Austin College 1 2 1 2

McMurry 1 2 1 2

Sul Ross 1 2 1 2

Southwestern 1 2 1 3

Texas Lutheran 1 3 1 3

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Week 4 Games

Howard Payne 49, East Texas Baptist 38

Sul Ross 12, Texas Lutheran 10

McMurry 41, Southwestern 31

Mary Hardin-Baylor 34, Hardin-Simmons 28

Belhaven 41, Austin College 14

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Week 5 Games

Sul Ross at Howard Payne

McMurry at Hardin-Simmons

Mary Hardin-Baylor at Austin College

East Texas Baptist at Southwestern

Belhaven at Texas Lutheran