MONTICELLO, Ark. – A wild, high-scoring football game that featured 1,180 yards of total offense and 99 combined points saw Southern Arkansas outlast Arkansas-Monticello by a score of 56-43 and in doing so; the Muleriders retained the Battle of the Timberlands trophy.
 
RECORDS
Southern Arkansas Muleriders (9-2, 9-2 GAC)
Arkansas-Monticello Boll Weevils (4-7, 4-7 GAC)
 
HOW IT HAPPENED – First Half

• UAM notched the game's first points and needed just two plays on their opening possession to do so as Cole Sears connected with his top widout Jalen Tolliver from 25 yards out
• SAU responded right back on the ensuing possession with 6-play, 75-yard drive that ended with Barrett Renner throwing a 34-yard touchdown pass to tight end Tanner Hudson.
• The Muleriders went on to score a touchdown on each of their next four offensive possessions of the game as well as adding a pick-six by Malik Preston as SAU put up a staggering 43 points in the first half
• Despite the incredible offensive success and defensive touchdown, the Muleriders couldn't get much separation from the Boll Weevils as UAM continued to find the endzone at a rapid rate as well in the first half and it was just a seven-point game at the break, 43-36

 
HOW IT HAPPENED – Second Half

• After 79 combined points, the explosive offensive fireworks in the first half gave way to defensive stops as neither team scored until late in their third quarter
• That first score of the second half was a 55-yard touchdown pass from Renner to Karonce Higgins and it gave a 14-point lead, 50-36. That TD was the first play of SAU's second possession of the half
• UAM wasted little time in trimming the game back to a one touchdown margin as Sears connected with Trevon Smith for a 97-yard pitch and catch on their first play of the drive
• Both teams traded punts afterward to send the game to the fourth quarter
• In that final period, SAU drained the clock about as much as a team can with over 11 minutes of possession. The biggest chunk of that total came on a single drive that encompassed 94 yards on 19 plays and ate up 10:03 of game clock.
• On that drive, the Muleriders ran the ball 18-straight times and on what was the final play, Renner, on 4^th-and-7, threw a 21-yard TD pass to Daven Reese to essentially seal the game as UAM was without a timeout and the game clock under a minute
• SAU's Stacy Lawrence delivered the nail in the coffin for UAM as he intercepted Sears, allowing the Muleriders to go into victory formation for the ninth time this year

 
 
TURNING POINT

• Back and forth scoring in the first half gave way to sounder defense in the second half, but it was SAU's ultra-methodical, 19-play, 94-yard drive in the fourth quarter that proved to be game's defining sequence.

 
OF NOTE

• SAU is now 5-0 all-time against UAM when the Battle of the Timberlands trophy is up for grabs. The long-standing rivalry between the two teams gained a traveling trophy prior to the 2012 season, but each year it has resided in Magnolia
• With the win, SAU ends its regular season 9-2. It is the seventh time in program history with at least nine wins in a season, and it is the first time since 2003
•  A pair of offensive milestones were hit on Saturday as Barrett Renner eclipsed the 3,000-yard passing mark for the second-straight year and junior running back Michael Nunnery became SAU's first 1,000-yard back since 2012 as he pushed his season total to 1,017

 
UP NEXT
The Muleriders are now assured some form of post-season play with the two possible destinations being the Live United Bowl in Texarkana, or the NCAA Division II Football Playoffs. Selection for the NCAA playoffs is Sunday at 4 p.m. CST. The top seven teams in a region make the field and SAU was ranked No. 8 last week. An announcement on the teams in the Live United Bowl will come shortly thereafter as the game is guaranteed a GAC-representative and the initial bid will go to the highest standing team from the GAC not in the NCAA playoffs.