A furious fourth quarter comeback by Middle Tennessee fell short as the McNeese State Cowboys escaped Floyd Stadium with a 27-21 victory Thursday evening. The Blue Raiders outscored the Cowboys 15-to-3 in the final quarter. In the fourth quarter, Middle Tennessee completed a 97-yard drive to make it a 24-14 contest. With less than five minutes remaining, MT used an 85-yard kick return by Reggie Whatley to put the Blue Raider offense in prime scoring position. Just one play later, Logan Kilgore connected to Kyle Griswould for 15 yards to put the Raiders within six. On the next offensive possession, McNeese State used the clock to its advantage before punting back to MT. An attempted lateral play did not work for the Blue Raiders, as Middle Tennessee fell short in the season opener. Just over 18-thousand watched they Raiders, who look to regroup when they open Sun Belt Conference play against Florida Atlantic at Floyd Stadium next Saturday. Kickoff is at 6pm and you can hear it on Rutherford County's home of the Blue Raider, WGNS.