Henderson State gets ready to take on Southern Arkansas, look for home win
ARKADELPHIA, Ark.— Henderson State will play its final home game of the season as the Reddies host Southern Arkansas on Saturday at Ruggles Field at Carpenter-Haygood Stadium with kickoff at 2 p.m.
The Reddies are looking for its first home win of the season, while the Muleriders are attempting to remain tied for first-place in the GAC.
Despite totaling 411 yards of offense on 89 plays, Henderson State’s second half rally fell short last week in a 24-16 loss to East Central. The Reddies enter the game with a 4-4 record and will be attempting to snap a five-game home losing streak dating back to last year.
Evan Lassiter had a careerhigh 322 passing yards while completing 41 of 60 passes in last week’s setback.
Andrew Black has been the do-it-all guy for the Reddies. Black started the season at quarterback for the Reddies and has completed 46 of 76 passes for 559 yards. Also a threat to run the football, Black has carried the ball 70 times for 282 yards.
Lassiter targeted 12 receivers last weekend, including Ben Johnson and Fernando Van Hook. Johnson leads the team with 385 yards on 29 receptions, while Van Hook has 293 yards on 30 grabs.
The Reddies will have to get plenty of pressure on SAU quarterback Barrett Renner as the Muleriders lead the GAC in passing offense averaging 273.5 yards per game.
Sam Johnson will be one of those players that will look to give the Muleriders fits as the senior from Sapulpa, Okla. has 11.5 tackles for lost yardage along with 5.5 sacks.
Cameron Sonnier will also be called upon to provide pressure. Sonnier has 46 tackles on the year including 3.0 tackles for loss.
Southern Arkansas enters the contest with a 6-2 record after a 49-19 beating of No. 25 Southeastern Oklahoma last week. With the win, the Muleriders are in a fourway tie for first-place in the GAC standings.
Offensively, SAU averages 34.6 points and 447.5 yards of total offense per game which ranks second in the GAC. The Muleriders points per game average ranks second in the GAC.
Barrett Renner leads the SAU offense averaging 272.4 passing yards per game, including a league best 24 touchdown tosses and a completion percentage of 67.0 (191-of-285).
Michael Nunnery leads the SAU ground attack averaging 79.1 yards per game which ranks third in the GAC. The senior from Bossier City, La. has totaled 633 yards on 119 carries with 8 touchdowns.
The Muleriders are loaded with talented receivers with four players having 300-plus yards. Tanner Hudson leads the team with 393 yards on 32 receptions and five touchdowns, while Karonce Higgins has 33 catches for 380 yards, also having five scores.
Defensively, SAU leads the league in tackles for loss (62) and quarterback sacks (20).
The Muleriders have an impressive defensive line duo in Antonio and Anthony Washington. Anthony Washington has 44 tackles on the year and leads the GAC in tackles for loss with 14.5. Antonio Washington is equally impressive with 44 stops and 8.0 tackles for lost yardage.
The Reddies have a 44-342 lead in the series including winning the last nine straight. Southern Arkansas won last year 50-24 in El Dorado at the Murphy USA Classic.
Tigers face off against Boll Weevils
ARKADELPHIA, Ark.—The Ouachita Tigers’ football team (6-2) will host the Arkansas-Monticello Boll Weevils (5-3) Saturday at 1 p.m. at Cliff Harris Stadium.
The Tigers’ 6-2 start to the season has them locked in a battle for the GAC championship. Ouachita is currently in a fourway tie for first place in the conference alongside Arkansas Tech, Southern Arkansas and Southeastern Oklahoma.
The Tigers put in a great performance last week to aid in their hunt for the conference crown. Ouachita defeated Oklahoma Baptist by a huge 52-14 margin in a game where the Tigers dominated in every facet of the game. Ouachita’s offense accrued 632 total yards, while the defense forced four turnovers and stopped Oklahoma Baptist without points in the red zone two times.
Knight has stressed the importance of winning the turnover battle all season, and the team has caught on. Ouachita has not turned the football over in their past four games and have a plus-six turnover margin in that time.
Quarterback Austin Warford continues to accumulate impressive stats this season. Warford passed for 199 yards and ran for 75 last week to bring his season total up to 1558 passing yards and 535 rushing yards.
Wide receiver Drew Harris also continues to put up big numbers this year. Harris is currently tied for second in Division II with 17 total touchdowns this season. Harris is tied for fourth in the entire NCAA and has more touchdowns than any Division I player.
The Boll Weevils have won their last three games, including an impressive 46-45 win over Arkansas Tech, after starting the season with a 2-3 record.
In last week’s 35-23 win over Southern Nazarene, UAM rushed for 290 yards and quarterback Cole Sears threw for three touchdowns. The Boll Weevils tend to have a balanced attack, both rushing and passing for over 1800 yards. Sears, a junior, has thrown for 1893 yards and 23 touchdowns this season.
Ouachita’s defense will be prepared to stop UAM, however. The Tigers have utilized a bend-but-not-break approach this season and have been able to keep opposing teams out of the end zone. Linebacker Elijah Jones is the team’s defensive leader with 64 total tackles, seven tackles-for-loss and two interceptions.