Easter weekend turned into a weekend of survival for the top small college football teams in the state of Texas.

No. 4 Sam Houston survived a tough road trip to Turpin Stadium and departed with a 24-16 victory over Northwestern State. The win marked the third straight for the Bearkats at Turpin Stadium, the program’s most consecutive road wins in the series against NSU that began in 1929.

The Kats steadily built a solid lead through three quarters but had to hold off a furious 13-point fourth quarter rally by the Demons to escape with a win. 

ONCE AGAIN, the SHSU defense was a force holding the Demons to 43 rushing yards and a paltry 1.3 yards per attempt while recovering three of four forced fumbles in the contest.

No. 2 Kilgore visited Red Robertson Field in Miami, Okla., for a showdown with Northeastern Oklahoma A&M last Saturday. 

The Rangers scored the first two touchdowns of the game and needed every point in a narrow 14-13 win over the Norsemen.

NEO began its comeback attempt after Kilgore took a 14-0 lead in the second quarter. The Norsemen scored on a long touchdown pass in the third quarter but missed the extra point.

The Rangers defense held strong throughout the remainder of the game to secure their second win of the spring.

One team was unable to survive the dangers of playing on April Fools Day.

NCAA Division II East Central Oklahoma visited Stephenville, Texas, and left with a stunning 21-14 win over No. 21 Tarleton.

The Tigers controlled the line of scrimmage throughout the contest finishing the contest with 218 rushing yards.

The Texans rushing attack, which entered the game averaging nearly 200 yards per game, was held to 55 yards on 22 carries.

Turnovers once again caused the Texans trouble, with Tarleton committing three turnovers against the Tigers. East Central controlled the clock with the Tigers offense holding the ball for over 40 minutes.

The stinging loss will stick with the Texans throughout the offseason, with Tarleton’s next game scheduled against SFA in September.