The Houston Roughnecks and the Arlington Renegades played their last game of the regular season in this South Division matchup. Houston won the last game against Arlington 23-14 in Week 2 of the 2023 season on Feb. 26 at TDECU Stadium.
Houston has confirmed their spot in the South Division Championship game which will be held on April 29. With the San Antonio Brahmas loss on Saturday, Arlington has already punch their postseason ticket to the match, making this game nothing more that a warmup for the playoff game where they will meet to decide which team gets to play for the XFL Championship.
The Houston Roughnecks took the kickoff and backup quarterback Cole McDonald started for the Roughnecks with starting quarterback Brandon Silvers watching from the sidelines. McDonald started with the ball on the ground handing to Jeremy Cox for a 5-yard rush, and then passed to Cedric Byrd for 6-yards and a first down. A handoff to Cox turned into a 17-yard gain, and then McDonald went back to Byrd for a short 2-yard pickup followed by a big 18-yard pass to the Arlington 19. On 3rd and 3 a pitch to Cox was good for 4-yards and to move the chains. McDonald kept the ball and ran left for 10-yards and a Houston touchdown. The 2-point conversion was picked off. The score was now 6-0 for Houston.
After the kickoff was returned, Arlington Renegades quarterback Luis Perez started on his own 29. Perez evaded pressure and passed to Tyler Vaughns on the sideline for a 17-yard pickup. The Roughnecks defense was keeping the Renegades to short pickups but a Houston penalty helped move the chains. On 3rd and 4 a pass to Vaughns was knocked away by Houston’s Raleigh Texada. The Renegades settled for a 56-yard Taylor Russolino field goal, making the score 6-3 for Houston.
McDonald started on the Houston 34 and handed to Cox for a 22-yard rush up the middle, and then he passed to a wide open Justin Smith for a 30-yard pickup to the Arlington 14. After McDonald ran for 9-yards he handed to Cox for a 5-yard touchdown rush. The 1-point conversion failed, making the score 12-3 for Houston.
The kickoff was returned to the Arlington 17. Perez handed to Leddie Brown for a 1-yard pickup, and then again for an 8-yard run. Brown rushed for 3-yards to move the chains. A 7-yard pass to Vaughns and then a 7-yard pass to Rannell Hall moved the markers again. A 10-yard pass to Sal Cannella moved the sticks to the Houston 47.
At the end of the 1st quarter Houston led 12-2.
Perez passed to Brian Herrien for 2-yards and then went to Hall for 4-yards more. A 5-yard pass to Vaughns gave the Renegades a first down on the Houston 36. Leddie Brown rushed for 8-yards. On 2nd down Brown was dropped for a 1-yard loss, and then a Houston penalty gave Arlington a first down. Luis Perez’s 15-play drive stalled and Taylor Russolino was called in to kick a 36-yard field goal, which was good. The score was now 12-6 for Houston.
Kaleb Eleby came in at quarterback for Houston. Eleby rushed for 6-yards and then passed to Travell Harris for 6 more and a first down. Eleby connected to Justin Smith for a13-yard over the shoulder catch, and then handed to Cox for a 4-yard rush. Eleby was sacked for a 3-yard loss and then passed to Smith just short of the first down marker. On 4th down, Cole McDonald came in to rush the ball for the first down and the Roughnecks were short. Houston turned the ball over on downs.
Roughnecks penalties moved the ball to the Houston 49 where Luis Perez passed 8-yards to Leddie Brown, which was good for a first down. At the two-minute warning Perez’s drive was in trouble at 3rd and 11 on the Houston 40.
A Houston penalty gave the Renegades 5-yards, and then Perez passed downfield and was very nearly picked off. On 4th down, Perez recognized the blitz and quickly hit Leddie Brown over the middle for a 14-yard pickup. On the next down, Perez was in trouble but he connected to Herrien for a 14-yard catch up to the Houston 9. A pass into the end zone drew a defensive pass interference penalty, putting the ball on the Houston 1-yard line. A Leddie Brown rush failed to punch it into the end zone, and then a pass to Winningham fell incomplete. With 0:15 remaining, a pass to Winningham in the end zone was dropped. Arlington settled for a 19-yard Russolino field goal.
At half time Houston led 12-9.
Arlington took the kickoff and Luis Perez started on this own 38. The Renegades could not get anything going and went three and out. Marquette King punted the ball to the Roughnecks.
Cole McDonald was back in as the Roughneck’s pivot. He passed to Salter for 6-yards and then to Harris at the first down marker to move the chains. McDonald handed to Jeremy Cox who rambled 45-yards for a Houston touchdown. Arlington’s head coach Bob Stoops challenge the play for a hold during the run. The challenge was successful and the touchdown was negated.
With the ball on the Arlington 32, McDonald passed to Harris for 12-yards. On 3rd and 7 Cox was only able to rush for 5 yards. The Roughnecks settled for a 35-yard Austin Jones field goal making the score 15-9 for Houston.
Perez started on his own 23 and handed to Brown for a 5-yard rush, and then an 8-yard pass to Hall was good for a first down. On 3rd and 3, a pass to Winningham was tipped and intercepted by Tavante Beckett who ran it all the way into the end zone. The 1-point conversion run by Cole McDonald was good to make the score 22-9 for Houston.
After the kickoff return put the ball on the Arlington 22, Perez passed to Caleb Vander Esch on the sideline and Vander Esch did not stop moving until he had made 18 yards. On 3rd and 4, Perez passed to Brandon Arconado for 11-yards up to the Houston 43. On 3rd and 7, a down field pass to JaVonta Payton on the sideline was dropped. On 4th and 7, a pass to Vander Esch fell incomplete and Arlington turned the ball over on downs.
From his own 40, Cole McDonald passed to Tavonn Salter for a 6-yard pickup, and then Cox ran for 2-yards to the Houston 48.
At the end of the 3rd quarter Houston led 22-9.
Cole McDonald kept the ball and rushed 39-yards when he was pushed out of bounds at the Arlington 13. McDonald handed to Cox, but there was no gain. Then McDonald ran for 3-yards himself. McDonald passed into the end zone for Salter but was picked off by Jordan Miller, who returned the ball to the Arlington 25-yard line.
Luis Perez passed to Sal Cannella for 9-yards. The Renegades could not convert for the first down and King was called in to punt. The punt return was fumbled, but recovered by Houston.
With Kaleb Elebey back in at quarterback, he handed to Cox for a 3-yard run, and went back to Cox for two more runs of 4-yards each to move the chains. Elebey handed to Garrett Owens for a 4-yard rush and then passed incomplete both to Salter and then to Smith. The Roughnecks were forced to punt.
From his own 32, Perez passed to Cannella for a 22-yard pickup. Perez was sacked for a 5-yard loss and fumbled. The ball was recovered by Arlington’s Hunt. Then, Perez threw to Herrien for 6-yards, and then ran for 6-yards himself. On 4th and 3, a pass to Herrien fell incomplete and the ball was turned over on downs.
From his own 39, McDonald was content to handoff to Cox. On 3rd and 7, a pass to Salter was good for 33-yards to the Arlington 25. Before the two-minute warning, Cole McDonald rushed 2-yards to the Arlington 24.
On 3rd and 9 McDonald rushed for 4-yards. Houston burned off as much clock as they could and then called a timeout. Then, with just over a minute remaining, a 38-yard Austin Jones field goal made the score 25-9 for Houston.
From his own 20-yard line, and with the clock running down, Perez passed complete to Herrien for 14-yards, and then ran it himself for 10 more yards. Another pass to Herrien was good for 11-yards more, and then Perez was pressured and sacked by Trent Harris for a 10-yard loss with the clock running out of time.
The final score was Houston Roughnecks 25, Arlington Renegades 9.
Box scores – Statistics Summary
Scoring
1 2 3 4 F
HOU 12 0 10 3 25
ARL 3 6 0 0 9
------ HOUSTON ROUGHNECKS ------
Passing
PLAYER C/ATT YDS AVG TD INT LONG SCK-YDS
Cole McDonald 10/11 120 10.9 0 1 33 0 - 0
Kaleb Eleby 4/7 28 4.0 0 0 18 1 - 3
TEAM TOTAL 14/18 148 0.0 0 1 33 1 - 3
Rushing
PLAYER CAR YDS AVG TD LONG
Jeremy Cox 21 120 5.7 1 22
Cole McDonald 8 66 8.3 1 39
Kaleb Eleby 1 6 6.0 0 6
Garrett Owens 1 4 4.0 0 4
TEAM TOTAL 31 196 0.0 2 39
Receiving
PLAYER REC YDS AVG TD LONG TGTS
Justin Smith 3 51 17.0 0 30 5
Tavonn Salter 4 47 11.8 0 33 6
Travell Harris 4 25 6.3 0 12 4
Cedric Byrd 2 24 12.0 0 18 2
Ben Putman 1 1 1.0 0 1 1
TEAM TOTAL 14 148 0.0 0 33 18
Fumbles
FUM LOST REC
0 0 0
Defensive
PLAYER SOLO AST TOT SACKS-YDS TFL INT FF FR
Jordan Mosley 3 3 6.0 0.0 - 0.0 0.0 0 0 0
Caliph Brice 1 5 6.0 0.0 - 0.0 0.0 0 1 0
Drew Lewis 2 4 6.0 0.0 - 0.0 0.0 0 0 0
Tavante Beckett 3 3 6.0 0.0 - 0.0 2.0 1 0 0
David Tolentino 2 3 5.0 0.0 - 0.0 0.0 0 0 0
Jack Heflin 0 4 4.0 0.0 - 0.0 1.0 0 0 0
William Likely 3 1 4.0 0.0 - 0.0 0.0 0 0 0
Trevon Mason 3 1 4.0 1.0 - 5.0 2.0 0 1 0
Trent Harris 2 1 3.0 1.0 - 10.0 1.0 0 0 0
Tim Ward 2 1 3.0 0.0 - 0.0 1.0 0 0 0
Stephen Denmark 2 0 2.0 0.0 - 0.0 0.0 0 0 0
Glen Logan 0 2 2.0 0.0 - 0.0 0.0 0 0 0
John Brannon 1 1 2.0 0.0 - 0.0 0.0 0 0 0
Deandre Johnson 1 1 2.0 0.0 - 0.0 0.0 0 0 0
John Daka 1 1 2.0 0.0 - 0.0 0.0 0 0 0
A.J. Hendy 2 0 2.0 0.0 - 0.0 0.0 0 0 0
Ajene Harris 1 0 1.0 0.0 - 0.0 0.0 0 0 0
Chauncey Rivers 1 0 1.0 0.0 - 0.0 0.0 0 0 0
C. J. Brewer` 1 0 1.0 0.0 - 0.0 0.0 0 0 0
Scean Mustin 0 1 1.0 0.0 - 0.0 0.0 0 0 0
Raleigh Texada 1 0 1.0 0.0 - 0.0 0.0 0 0 0
TEAM TOTAL 32 32 64.0 2.0 - 15.0 7.0 1 2 0
Interceptions
PLAYER INT YDS TD
Tavante Beckett 1 45 1
Punt Returns
PLAYER NO YDS AVG LONG TD
William Likely 1 24 24.0 24 0
Travell Harris 1 13 13.0 13 0
TEAM TOTAL 2 37 0.0 24 0
Kick Returns
PLAYER NO YDS AVG LONG TD
Brycen Alleyne 3 71 23.7 28 0
Kicking
PLAYER FGM FGA FG% LNG
Austin Jones 2 2 100.0% 38
Punting
PLAYER NO YDS AVG TB IN-20 LONG
Race Porter 1 35 35.0 0 0 35
------ ARLINGTON RENEGADES ------
Passing
PLAYER C/ATT YDS AVG TD INT LONG SCK-YDS
Luis Perez 22/36 205 5.7 0 1 22 2 - 15
Rushing
PLAYER CAR YDS AVG TD LONG
Leddie Brown 14 29 2.1 0 8
Luis Perez 3 20 6.7 0 10
Brian Herrien 4 6 1.5 0 3
TEAM TOTAL 21 55 0.0 0 10
Receiving
PLAYER REC YDS AVG TD LONG TGTS
Brian Herrien 5 47 9.4 0 14 7
Sal Cannella 3 41 13.7 0 22 5
Tyler Vaughns 4 33 8.3 0 17 7
Caleb Vander Esch 2 24 12.0 0 18 3
Leddie Brown 2 22 11.0 0 14 2
Rannell Hall 3 19 6.3 0 8 3
Brandon Arconado 3 19 6.3 0 11 3
LuJuan Winningham 0 0 0.0 0 0 3
JaVonta Payton 0 0 0.0 0 0 2
TEAM TOTAL 22 205 0.0 0 22 35
Fumbles
PLAYER FUM LOST REC
Davonte Lambert 1 0 1
Luis Perez 1 0 1
TEAM TOTAL 2 0 2
Defensive
PLAYER SOLO AST TOT SACKS-YDS TFL INT FF FR
Darnell Sankey 1 7 8.0 0.0 - 0.0 0.0 0 0 0
Joe Powell 3 4 7.0 0.0 - 0.0 0.0 0 0 0
Jamal Carter 1 6 7.0 0.0 - 0.0 1.0 0 0 0
Will Hill 6 0 6.0 0.0 - 0.0 0.0 0 0 0
Shakur Brown 2 2 4.0 0.0 - 0.0 0.0 0 0 0
Colin Schooler 2 2 4.0 1.0 - 3.0 2.0 0 0 0
T.J. Barnes 1 2 3.0 0.0 - 0.0 0.0 0 0 0
Bunmi Rotimi 0 3 3.0 0.0 - 0.0 0.0 0 0 0
Bruce Hector 1 2 3.0 0.0 - 0.0 0.0 0 0 0
Brandon Rusnak 1 2 3.0 0.0 - 0.0 0.0 0 0 0
Aaron Donkor 2 1 3.0 0.0 - 0.0 0.0 0 0 0
Josiah Coatney 1 2 3.0 0.0 - 0.0 0.0 0 0 0
De Vante Bausby 2 0 2.0 0.0 - 0.0 0.0 0 0 0
Ryan Mueller 0 2 2.0 0.0 - 0.0 0.0 0 0 0
Jordan Miller 2 0 2.0 0.0 - 0.0 0.0 1 0 0
Tomasi Laulile 0 1 1.0 0.0 - 0.0 0.0 0 0 0
TEAM TOTAL 25 36 61.0 1.0 - 3.0 3.0 1 0 0
Interceptions
PLAYER INT YDS TD
Jordan Miller 1 27 0
Punt Returns
PLAYER NO YDS AVG LONG TD
Rannell Hall 1 6 6.0 6 0
Kick Returns
PLAYER NO YDS AVG LONG TD
Rannell Hall 6 92 15.3 22 0
Kicking
PLAYER FGM FGA FG% LNG
Taylor Russolino 3 3 100.0% 56
Punting
PLAYER NO YDS AVG TB IN-20 LONG
Marquette King 2 101 50.5 0 0 51
------ TEAM STATS ------
TEAM STATS HOU ARL
TOTAL PLAYS 50 59
TOTAL YARDS 341 245
YARDS PER PLAY 6.8 4.2
FIRST DOWNS 16 18
FIRST DOWNS PASSING 8 13
FIRST DOWNS RUSHING 8 2
FIRST DOWNS PENALTY 0 3
THIRD DOWN EFFICIENCY 50.0% 25.0%
FOURTH DOWN EFFICIENCY 0.0% 33.3%
TOTAL PASSING YARDS 145 190
PASS COMPLETIONS 14 22
PASS ATTEMPTS 18 36
INTERCEPTIONS THROWN 1 1
YARDS PER PASS 8.1 5.3
PASSING TOUCHDOWNS 0 0
SACKS ALLOWED 1 2
SACK YARDS LOST 3 15
TOTAL RUSHING YARDS 196 55
RUSH ATTEMPTS 31 21
YARDS PER RUSH 6.3 2.6
RUSHING TOUCHDOWNS 2 0
PENALTIES 10 2
TURNOVERS 1 1
FUMBLES 0 0
DEFENSIVE TOUCHDOWNS 1 0
SPECIAL TEAMS TDS 0 0
POSSESSION 27:50 32:10
