Setting the Scene: Seniors Last Ride at Wilkins Stadium
Today marks the last regular season game at Wilkins Stadium at Rip Powell Field for this year's SAU Football senior class, which is made up of nine players. Among those seniors are: Jared Brown (Texarkana, Ark.), Marquon Edmond (Texarkana, Texas), Trebor Gainwell (Yazoo City, Miss.), Mark Jenkins (Jacksonville, Texas), Calvin Lyons (Texarkana, Texas), Chris Paul (Texarkana, Texas), AJ Ray (Aledo, Texas), Daven Reese (Tatum, Texas), and Q'Niko Thomas (Euless, Texas).

During the course of their time at SAU, these seniors have helped revive the SAU Football program and over the past four years. Entering today's game, SAU is 24-15 (.667) overall, but more impressively, the Muleriders are 15-2 at home.
 

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About Southeastern Oklahoma

SCHEDULE
The Southeastern Oklahoma football team enters play this weekend with a 5-3 overall record and a 5-3 mark in the Great American Conference. The Savage Storm enter play having gone 2-2 over their last four games. Prior to that, Southeastern was 3-1 to begin the year. The Savage Storm are also coming off of a win in their last game as they came from behind in the fourth quarter to beat Arkansas Tech at home by a score of 36-31.

THE COACH
The Savage Storm are coached by Bo Atterberry, who is in his third season as the head coach of Southeastern Oklahoma. Coming into this week's game, Atterberry has amassed an 18-13 overall record. In his first season back at his alma mater, Atterberry led the Savage Storm to a 7-5 record which was capped with an appearance in the Live United Bowl. Last year, Atterberry's Savage Storm went 6-5 and ended their year on a three-game winning streak. Prior to his appointment at Southeastern, Atterberry was the head coach at Texas A&M-Kingsville for six years. In his time at A&M-Kingsville, Atterberry registered a 41-28 record and led the Javelinas to the NCAA Playoffs in consecutive years in 2009 and 2010.

SCOUTING THE OFFENSE
Offensively, the Savage Strom are averaging 35.5 points per game and 450.2 yards of total offense per game as well with 237.2 of the yards coming on the ground and the remaining 213.0 yards being gained through the air. Their points per game average , rushing offense, and total offense ranks third in the GAC while their passing offense ranks seventh in the league.

Under center for the Savage Storm is junior QB CB Cantwell. On the year, Cantwell has completed 148-of-226 passes for 1,704 yards and 14 touchdowns.

The Savage Storm's leading pass catcher is Kaymon Farmer with 34 receptions for 438 yards. Farmer has also caught five TDs, which is tied for the team lead with Bryce Steele.

On the ground, the Savage Storm feature perhaps the best 1-2 combo in the league in Devlon Wortham and Ronnie Green. Both Wortham and Green are ranked in the top-3 in the GAC in rushing yards per game with both averaging over 110 yards a game. Combined, the dynamic duo have rushed for 1,810 yards and 20 TDs.

SCOUTING THE DEFENSE
Defensively, the Savage Storm are allowing 31.5 points per game and 428.5 yards of total offense per game. Through the air Southeastern is holding opponents to 186.0 yards passing per game to ranks third in the GAC, but their rushing defense ranks 10th in the league with 242.5 yards rushing per game. On the year, the Savage Storm have forced 20 turnovers with 12 being fumble recoveries and eight coming as interceptions. Four of those INTs have come from Raheem Wilson.

THE SERIES
This will be the 41st meeting all-time between the Muleriders and Savage Storm with SAU holding a 20-17-3 lead in the series. The all-time series dates back to 1952 and was just about a yearly matchup from 1970-2000 before the series re-booted in 2011 with the two schools being charter members of the Great American Conference. Since becoming conference opponents, the series is 3-2 in favor of Southeastern, but the average margin of victory being 7.8
 

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SAU News and Notes

Quick Hits From Last Week
» SAU's win over #15 Henderson State was the Muleriders' first overt the Reddies since 2005. Henderson had won the previous nine meetings

» The win was also SAU's second in the Murphy USA Classic and the Muleriders are now 2-4 all-time in the game

» The Muleriders did not turn the ball over for the first time this season. On the flip side, SAU was able to come away with four takeaways to tie a seasonhigh

» Junior running back Michael Nunnery saw his string of over 100-yard rushing games end at three, but he did score a single-game career-high three touchdowns.

» Jaylon Dews and Darrion Ardoin each caught their first TD passes of the year. SAU now has nine different receivers who have caught a TD pass

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 (31) and is third in yards (404), 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 passes for 658 yards and three TDs.

Through eight games this year, Weisheit has been the top target with a team-best 38 receptions for an average of 4.8 receptions per game ranks in a tie for fifth in the GAC.

Penny For Your Thoughts, Nickel For Your Defense
Redshirt sophomore Stacy Lawrence has started all eight games at the Nickle position of the Mulerider Defense and the Irving, Texas native has played well beyond his experience. To date, Lawrence has the fourth-most tackles on the team with 38 and he also currently leads the team in Interceptions (4) and Passes Defended (11). 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. Against Henderson, he returned a blocked punt 25 yards for a TD.

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 15.1 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 eight 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 21 turnovers with 13 INTs and eight fumble recoveries. Their 21 takeaways are second 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 35 touchdowns. Of those TD drives, 17 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. The Muleriders matched that single-game output against Henderson with four touchdown drives of at least 70 yards.

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.