Setting the Scene: Murphy USA Classic
For the second time in the last three years, Southern Arkansas and Henderson State are squaring off in the Murphy USA Classic. The first time these two met
in the classic was back in 2014 and Henderson State came away with a 55-41 win over SAU.
For Henderson, this will be their third time playing in the classic where they are 2-0 entering play. Meanwhile, it will be the Muleriders sixth appearance, the most of any team, and SAU is 1-4, picking up their first win last year against Ouachita. This year's game carries a lot of importance for both teams as each still have
postseason aspirations and a victory would go a long way to seeing that through. Entering play, the Reddies are alone in second-place in the GAC standings at 6-1, while the Muleriders are a game back in third-place at 5-2 in league play.
About Henderson State
SCHEDULE
The Henderson State football team enters play this weekend with a 6-1 overall record and a 6-1 mark in the Great American Conference which puts the Reddies currently second in the league behind unbeaten Harding. Since the inception of the GAC in 2011, the Reddies have had a stranglehold on the league going 46-5 to-date within league play and have won three conference titles (2012, 2013, 2015) .
THE COACH
The Reddies are coached by Scott Maxfield, who is in his 12th season at Henderson and his 16th overall as a collegiate head coach. In his time at Henderson, Maxfield has amassed an impressive 86-41 overall record with over half of those wins coming over the last five years. In that recent stretch, Maxfield has turned the Reddies in to a perennial national power going 47-7 with a trio of GAC Championships as well as three trips to the NCAA Playoffs in 2012, 2013, and 2015. Overall, Maxfield is 115-53 in his career as a college head coach.
SCOUTING THE OFFENSE
Offensively, the Reddies are averaging 32.7 points per game and 414.6 yards of total offense per game. Unlike in year's past, the Reddies have a fairly balanced offensive attack with 236.9 of their yards coming through the air and 177.7 yards coming on the ground. In the GAC rankings, the Reddies have the fifth-best rushing attack, the sixth-best passing offense/scoring offense, and the seventh-best total offense.
Under center, the Reddies have featured a pair of QBs in Andrew Black and Evan Lassiter. On the year, Black has thrown for 940 yards on 78-of-126 passing with three TDs and seven INTs. Lassister has thrown for 691 yards on 57-of-86 passing with five TDs and zero INTs.
In terms rushing, the Reddies have relied on three ball-carriers including Black who has run for 316 yards and three TDs on 52 attempts. Reigning GAC Offensive Player of the Year, Jaquan Cole, is second with 346 yards and four TDs on 62 carries while Jeremy Wilson is leading the team with 494 yards and eight TDs on 81 carries.
SCOUTING THE DEFENSE
Defensively, the Reddies are allowing 18.6 points per game and 335.0 yards of total offense per game. Their points per game given up ranks second in the GAC while their total offense allowed ranks fourth. On the ground, the Reddies are allowing just 124.0 yards per game which ranks third in the GAC, while their 211.0 yards per game given up through the air ranks seventh.
This season, the Reddies' defense has forced 18 turnovers with nine of those being interceptions and nine being fumble recoveries.
THE SERIES
This will be the 78th meeting all-time between the Muleriders and the Reddies with Henderson holding a 44-32-1 lead in the overall series record. Since 2000, HSU is 10-5 against SAU including nine consecutive wins dating back to 2006. Prior to that loss to Henderson in '06, the Muleriders were 9-1 against the Reddies from 1996-2005.
SAU NEWS AND NOTES
Quick Hits From Last Week
» The game against Ouachita was the first overtime game for the Muleriders since the 2010 season when SAU beat West Georgia
» The Muleriders had over 500 yards of total offense and over 200 yards gained on the ground for the third-straight game
» SAU ran over 100 plays Ouachita, which is a season-high
» Junior running back
Michael Nunnery ran for 121 yards on 22 carries. It was the third-straight game in which he has ran for over 100 yards. Nunnery now ranks in the top-10 in the GAC in rushing/game at 82.7 yards per game.
» Sophomore wideout
Kile Pletcher caught his first career TD pass on a 22-yard play near the end of the first half.
Holding Down Hudson
Tanner Hudson has played numerous positions in his time at SAU from quarterback upon his transfer into the program, to rugby punter this past year, and with time spent at the wide receiver and tight end positions along the way. Of all of those positions, however, the versatile Hudson flourished as a pass-catching tight end.
An All-GAC Second-Team selection at the position, Hudson proved to be a match-up nightmare in the passing game as he hauled in 44 passes for a teambest
697 yards. Hudson was also on the receiving end of eight TD passes to lead the Muleriders.
This year, Hudson remains a threat in the passing game as he is second on the team in receptions (29) and is third in yards (360), while also being tied for
the team lead in receiving touchdowns (4).
Wise to Throw to Weisheit
Junior wide receiver
Jonathan Weisheit has been one of SAU's most consistent and reliable targets in the passing game since his redshirt freshman campaign. In each of his first two full seasons, Weisheit caught 30+ passess and averaged over 10 yards per reception. Last year, Weisheit earned All-GAC honors as he ranked sixth in the league in receptions per game while also ranking seventh in receiving yards per game. All told, Weisheit hauled in 49 passed for 658 yards and three TDs.
Through seven games this year, Weisheit has been the top target with a team-best 37 receptions for an average of 5.3 receptions per game ranks fourth in the GAC.
Penny For Your Thoughts, Nickel For Your Defense
Redshirt freshman
Stacy Lawrence has started all seven games at the Nickle position of the Mulerider Defense and the Irving, Texas native has played well beyond his experience. To date, Lawrence is tied for the fourth-most tackles on the team with 35 and he also currently leads the team in Interceptions (4) and Passes Defended (10). His four INTs is tied for the most in the GAC. Against Arkansas Tech, Lawrence sealed the game for the Muleriders as he intercepted a pass in the endzone with under two minutes left in the game.
It's a Track Meet Out There
Last year, sophomore wide receiver
Karonce Higgins began to show flashes of what he could become as a wideout at SAU as he caught 22 passes for 499
yards (22.7 ypr) and five scores. Regarded as one of the fastest players in the GAC, Higgins also showed out last year on the track as he finished second in
the 200-meter dash at the inaugural GAC Track Championships and later qualified for the NCAA Championships in the event.
This year, Higgins is proving to be a big-play threat once more as he is currently averaging 14.6 yards per reception and against NWOSU, Higgins took a short shovel pass behind the line of scrimmage, caught the edge and sprinted down the sideline for an 87-yard touchdown.
Getting Defensive
Through the first seven games of the season, the SAU defense has played exceptionally well and one of the fruits of their improved play has been their
ability to force turnovers. Currently, the Mulerider defense has forced 17 turnovers with 11 INTs and six fumble recoveries. Their 17 takeaways are fourth
in the GAC.
Methodical Marchers
The Southern Arkansas offense has shown through the first five games of the season that field position, or lack there of, won't stop them from scoring
touchdowns.
On the year, SAU has scored 28 touchdowns. Of those TD drives, 13 have covered 70 or more yards. Against Arkansas Tech, all four of their TD drives
were at least 75 yards with an average drive length being 75.3 yards. Their longest TD drive to this point was a two-play 91-yard drive that was highlighted
by an 87-yard receiving TD by
Karonce Higgins.
Picked 5th in Wide-Open GAC
The Southern Arkansas football team enters the 2016 season picked to finish fifth in the Great American Conference according to the league's head coaches in the annual preseason poll. Last year, the Muleriders were picked to finish sixth, but a 7-4 record tied SAU for fourth with Harding and Ouachita.
Ahead of the Muleriders in the 2016 preseason poll are Henderson State, Harding, Ouachita, and Southwestern Oklahoma. SAU went 2-2 against those for team picked higher with wins coming against Ouachita and Southwestern Oklahoma.
Familiar Faces All Around
Familiarity will be a strength of the 2016 Mulerider football team as a total of 41 lettermen and 16 starters are back with eight starters apiece coming on each side of the ball. Highlighted among the starters are All-GAC honorees
Davondrick Lison, Calvin Lyons,
Elgin Moore,
Chris Paul,
Barrett Renner, and Jonathan Weisheit.
Relying on Renner
For the first time since the start of the 2013 season, the Muleriders will have the return services of their starting quarterback from the previous year as
Barrett Renner is back for his sophomore season. Last year, Renner continued a line of high-level quarterback play at SAU as he set five new school records
and was named as the GAC's Freshman of the Year as well as being the league's first-team QB on the all-conference squad.
This season, Renner will be the focal point of the Muleriders' offense once again while also being the man to stop for opposing defenses. Last year, Renner was an all-region selection and he led the league and ranked ninth in NCAA DII in Total Offense with over 3,700 yards gained.
Welcome to the O-Show
Mulerider Football and offensive production/explosion have been synonymous with one another for the past five years since
Landon Keopple became the offensive coordinator. In his first year in 2011, Keopple put together an offense that averaged 26.2 points per game and 376.4 yards of total offense per game. Those numbers were markedly better than the previous year where SAU averaged 16.3 ppg and 268.4 yards of total offense.
In the four years since his first as OC, Keopple has developed one of the top offenses not only in the GAC, but in all of NCAA DII. Beginning in the 2012 season, the Muleriders average 36.8 points per game and 477.4 yards of total offense per game. In three of the last four years, SAU has gained over 5,000 yards and in those same years they have scored more than 385 points.
All told under Keopple as the OC, the Muleriders score nearly 35 points per game and average over 450 yards of total offense as well.
