Penalties, Injuries Sink Titans Down South : Fullerton: Quarterback Paul Schulte hurt, sits out second half of 27-13 loss to Mississippi State.

There was no talk of moral victories in the Cal State Fullerton locker room Saturday night after the Titans’ 27-13 loss to Mississippi State.

Unlike last week’s 38-17 loss to Southeastern Conference power Auburn, a feel-good game for the Titans because they played well in the second half and weren’t completely embarrassed by the nation’s third-ranked team, Fullerton found little solace in its second loss to an SEC school in eight days.

What made this defeat less palatable than last week’s was that, although it wasn’t a game they should have won, it was a game they certainly could have won.

A crowd of 22,240 in Scott Field was stunned to see Fullerton take a 13-6 halftime lead, but the Titans collapsed in the third quarter, succumbing to several mistakes, penalties and one costly turnover.

The Bulldogs scored 21 points in an 8 1/2-minute span of the second half, saving face for their school and the mighty SEC, considered one of the nation’s strongest football conferences.

Two pass interference penalties on consecutive plays accounted for 30 of Mississippi State’s 80 yards on a scoring drive that cut Fullerton’s lead to 13-12 midway through the third quarter.

Tony James returned a punt 51 yards for a touchdown to give the Bulldogs a 20-13 lead with 5:32 left in the third. It was the first time the Titans had allowed a punt to be returned for a touchdown since 1982.

And Fullerton receiver Richard Harrison’s fumble after a 34-yard catch was the impetus for Mississippi State’s last scoring drive, which culminated with Tony Shell’s 14-yard touchdown pass to Jerry Bouldin.

Fullerton freshman quarterback Terry Payne, in relief of injured starter Paul Schulte, led the Titans on two long drives in the second half but couldn’t reach the end zone, as the Titans fell to 1-2. Two Fullerton possessions ended with fourth-down incomplete passes, one from the Bulldog nine-yard line and one from the 25.

“We should have won, no doubt about it,” said Payne, who completed 11 of 22 passes for 139 yards. “Last week, we were supposed to be outscored, 55-0, and we did pretty well. This week, we had the game plan to win and we didn’t. That’s disappointing.”

The Titans could have pointed to several factors that might have contributed to the loss. They played the second half without Schulte, who completed 6 of 10 passes for 136 yards in the first half before re-injuring his collarbone late in the second quarter.

They also played without starting cornerback Nuygen Pendleton, who has a sprained ankle, and two starting linemen, John Cotti and Tim Drevno, who were slowed by injuries.

What’s more, on the way to Starkville, the Titans were stranded for six hours in the Nashville airport because of thunderstorms. What was supposed to have been an 11-hour journey from their Fullerton campus to Mississippi turned into a 17-hour trek. The Titans missed a scheduled practice Friday and didn’t arrive at their Columbus, Miss., hotel until 11:45 p.m. (CDT).

“But fatigue is just an excuse, not the reason we lost,” Fullerton Coach Gene Murphy said. “We were outslept, though.”

Mississippi State seemed to doze through the first half and the Titans took advantage, using a trick here and a few kicks there to take a 13-6 lead.

Mississippi State scored first on Joel Logan’s 22-yard field goal in the first quarter, but J.J. Celestine returned the ensuing kickoff 45 yards to give Fullerton good field position.

Schulte hit a wide-open Harrison on a post-pattern for a 43-yard gain to the Bulldog 14 and, four plays later, Nevin lined up for an apparent 22-yard field-goal attempt.

But holder Bob Baiz took the snap, rolled to his right and pitched a shovel pass to Teddy McMillan, normally an inside linebacker, for a three-yard gain and a first down at the Mississippi State two. Yarbrough scored on the next play for a 7-3 Fullerton lead.

In the second quarter, Nevin kicked a 27-yard field goal after a 71-yard drive to give the Titans a 10-3 lead.

Logan’s 33-yard field goal made it 10-6, but the Titans drove from their 25 to the Bulldog 30 in seven plays, the last an 18-yard pass from Payne to Celestine with three seconds left.

Fullerton was out of timeouts, but while the clock stopped for officials to advance the chains, the Titans got their field-goal unit in position, and Nevin kicked a 47-yarder just before the halftime gun.

“Everyone was a little stunned at halftime--we didn’t plan on being behind,” Mississippi State Coach Rockey Felker said. “But we showed a lot of character coming back in the second. Maybe it helped us to fall behind like that because it made us fight and scratch to come back and win.”

The only thing that seemed to hold the Bulldogs back in the first half was the inaccuracy of Shell, the senior quarterback who missed several open receivers. But he found the mark in the second half and finished with 220 yards passing on 14 of 28 attempts.

Tailback Tay Galloway added 90 yards rushing for the Bulldogs, while Titan running back Reggie Yarbrough had 101 yards in 29 carries.

However, Yarbrough’s fumble on Fullerton’s first possession ended a scoring threat. Schulte had teamed with Celestine on a 58-yard pass play to the Mississippi State 13, but Yarbrough lost control of a handoff and Albert Williams recovered for the Bulldogs.

“It was a matter of depth,” Murphy said about the loss. “Reggie (Yarbrough) was tired, the offensive line was hurt and tired, and our defense was on the field too long in the first half. We turned the ball over, and critical penalties kept their drives alive. But we played hard.”

Titan Notes

Starting quarterback Paul Schulte’s injury is not considered serious, and Fullerton Coach Gene Murphy said Schulte would be back in the lineup for next week’s game at Akron. The senior tried throwing on the sidelines in the third quarter but was unable to return. “I couldn’t throw the ball much more than 10 yards,” Schulte said. “I couldn’t put any zip on it. I couldn’t play.” . . . Fullerton receiver J.J. Celestine caught five passes for 121 yards, and Richard Harrison caught four passes for 87 yards. . . . More travel travails: Fullerton’s return trip today was pushed up several hours, meaning the Titans had to leave their hotel at 3:15 a.m. (CDT) for a bus ride to the airport at Jackson, Miss.