Editor's Note: In honor of the 20^th Anniversary of the 1997 Mulerider Football Team capturing the Gulf South Conference Championship, the Southern Arkansas Sports Information Department will, on a weekly basis, recreate the 1997 season through brief game recaps and box scores.

MAGNOLIA, Ark. (Oct. 18, 1997) – The final seventy seconds of the first half in Southern Arkansas' 20-14 homecoming win over Northwestern Oklahoma State on Saturday evening at Wilkins Stadium proved beneficial for the home team as the Muleriders scored on the ground with 1:09 remaining in the second quarter to break a 7-7 tie, before capitalizing on a Ranger turnover on the ensuing possession by adding six points through the air to take a 20-7 lead and the momentum into the halftime break.
 
Redshirt freshman halfback Kevin Little's (Shreveport, La.) one-yard touchdown plunge served as the aforementioned tie-breaking score and capped an eight play, 63-yard drive that covered 3:47 of play. Moments later, junior defensive lineman Edward Henderson (Monroe, La.) pounced on a loose football at the Northwestern Oklahoma 20-yard line setting Southern Arkansas up with a chance to push its lead to two scores before the intermission.
 
The turnover proved costly for the Rangers as sophomore signal caller Adam Pendergrass (Van Buren, Ark.) found classmate split end Drew Cone (Van Buren, Ark.) for an 18-yard scoring toss with 37 seconds left in the half. It was Pendergrass' second touchdown of the night as he opened scoring and closed out the first quarter with a 13-yard run that put SAU out front 7-0.
 
Similarities abounded among the two programs in the non-conference tilt as they engaged in a defensive stalemate for much of the second half.
 
In all, both teams rushed 45 times with the Muleriders posting 179 yards compared to just 105 yards on the ground for Northwestern Oklahoma. Each defense recorded a pair of turnovers (a fumble and an interception), but it was the vaunted defensive unit of Southern Arkansas that made the biggest impact as the Muleriders recorded seven sacks resulting in losses totaling 44 yards.
 
Leading the charge was Henderson, who added to his momentum shifting fumble recovery in the first half, by racking up a school-record four sacks with three in the second half and the fourth coming on the final play of the game that preserved the Mulerider victory after Northwestern Oklahoma worked their way to the SAU 21.
 
Henderson's final sack ended a late Ranger threat as the NWOSU offense had scored with three minutes remaining in the game, before blocking a Southern Arkansas field goal attempt in the final minute and a half to set up what could have been the game-winning drive.
 
Henderson led SAU with ten tackles to cap his stellar day defensively. Senior linebacker Anthony Hullaby (Ringgold, La.) recorded eight tackles, while sophomore linebacker Josh Rankin (Mauriceville, Texas) contributed with eight stops and a sack. Seven other Muleriders recorded five or more tackles.
 
Junior defensive back Lucas Melott (Irving, Texas) picked off a Ranger pass in the first quarter to keep the Northwestern Oklahoma offense off of the board.
 
Offensively, Southern Arkansas totaled 244 yards on 53 plays at an average of 4.6 yards per play and managed to convert just three of 11 third-down attempts.
 
Pendergrass finished with 84 yards on 4-of-7 passing and a touchdown and added 39 yards and a score on the ground. Freshman backup quarterback Tim Barrington carried nine times for a team-leading 51 yards, while Little added 24 yards and a score and junior fullback Jason Smelser (Monroe, La.) contributed with 20 yards. Cone caught three of the four completed passes for 75 yards and a score, while senior tight end Marcus Winn (Texarkana, Texas) added a reception for nine yards.
 
Southern Arkansas remained home at Wilkins Stadium for a Week 8 showdown against perennial power Valdosta State.