Muleriders looking to keep perfect season intact
Southern Arkansas enters Week 6 of the 2018 season at 5-0 for the first time ever under 10th-year head coach Bill Keopple, who took the sidelines for the 100th time as Southern Arkansas’ head coach last weekend.
The Muleriders, who are ranked No. 17, welcome Southern Nazarene to Wilkins Stadium at Rip Powell Field for a Great American Conference matchup.
Game time is set for 2 p.m.
Highlighting the unbeaten start for Southern Arkansas is the GAC's second-best scoring offense (36.8 ppg), the league's fourth-best scoring defense (18.8 ppg) and Division II's fourth-best turnover margin (1.80).
Redshirt senior quarterback Barrett Renner holds top 15 marks nationally in passing yards (1,455), passing yards per game (291.0) and passing touchdowns (13) and ranks ninth in the country in completion percentage (66.9), while one of his favorite targets in redshirt senior wide receiver Karonce Higgins ranks sixth nationally in receiving yards (596) and eleventh in DII in receptions per game (7.2).
Southern Nazarene brings the nation's fourthbest passing defense to Magnolia, as the Crimson Storm are allowing only 123.2 yards through the air per game through the first five weeks of the season.
Southern Arkansas counters with a tough defense as well as the Muleriders own the GAC's second-best rushing defense (120.4 ypg) and the fifth-best total defense (340.4).
True freshman Brock Floyd ranks eighth in the country in interceptions per game (0.8), senior Anthony Washington is 13th in Division II in tackles for loss per game (2.0) and redshirt junior Malik Preston leads the country in forced fumbles per game (0.8).
SCHEDULE
Southern Nazarene enters with a 1-4 overall record and a 1-4 mark in the GAC.
The lone win so far for the Crimson Storm came in Week 2 when SNU topped East Central 45-20.
The Crimson Storm have lost three straight games, including backto-back 24-10 decisions entering Week 6.
THE COACH
The Crimson Storm are coached by Andy Lambert, who is in his third season as head coach of Southern Nazarene. In his first sea-
son, Lambert guided the Crimson Storm to a 2-9 record.
Last season, the Crimson Storm won four games, including a pair of signature road wins at Harding and at Henderson State.
SCOUTING THE OFFENSE
Offensively, the Crimson Storm are averaging league lows in points per game (13.0) and total offense per game (188.4) with 128.4 of those yards coming on the ground and just 60 yards coming through the air.
The Crimson Storm rank seventh in rushing offense and 11th in passing offense.
Commanding the offense for the
Crimson Storm is senior quarterback
Jacob Spady.
In five games this season, Spady has completed 21-of-61 passes for 218 yards and two touchdowns. Spady is also the team's leading rusher with 271 yards on 64 carries and one touchdown.
Gage Porter has scored a team-leading two rushing touchdowns this season.
The leading pass catcher for the Crimson Storm in terms of receptions, yards and touchdowns is Reid Roelofs, as he has 144 yards receiving and a touchdown.
SCOUTING THE DEFENSE
Defensively, the Crimson Storm are allowing 29.0 points per game and 347.2 yards of total offense per game with 224.0 of those yards coming on the ground and just 123.2 yards coming through the air.
The Crimson Storm's scoring defense ranks sixth in the GAC and their total defense also ranks sixth.
Their passing defense leads the league, while their rushing defense ranks 11th in the league.
On the year, SNU has forced eight turnovers with five being interceptions and the remaining three being fumble recoveries.
A total of 15 players have registered double-digit tackles on the season with Myles Roll leading the way with 42 tackles.
Six other players have recorded at least 20 stops this season. Roll has also recorded three tackles for loss, including one sack.
THE SERIES
This will be the seventh meeting all-time between the Muleriders and Crimson Storm in a series that began in 2012 when Southern Nazarene began its transition to the NCAA and became members of the Great American Conference.
In the six previous meetings, SAU has come out on top in lopsided fashion with the average margin of victory in the those games being 33.5 points.
This will also be the fourth meeting between the two in Magnolia.
The Muleriders took the first three meetings, 47-14 in 2012, 62-7 in 2014 and 37-20 in 2016.