By: By: Jacob Pumphrey
|
|
|
#21/21 SOUTHERN ARKANSAS
MULERIDERS
7-1 (7-1 GAC) |
HENDERSON STATE
REDDIES
5-3 (5-3 GAC) |
|
GAME NOTES | SAU (PDF) | HSU | GAC Weekly FB Notebook (PDF)
KICKING OFF
#21 Southern Arkansas is set to make its annual trek east into Union County for the tenth-annual Murphy USA Classic from Memorial Stadium in El Dorado. It will be the eighth appearance for the Muleriders in the South Arkansas classic and Saturday afternoon's tilt with Henderson State will be the third meeting between the Reddies and Muleriders in the neutral site affair.
#14 Henderson State knocked off the Muleriders in a 55-41 shootout in 2014 and Southern Arkansas defeated the nationally-ranked #15 Reddies 50-24 in 2016.
SAU enters Week 9 at 7-1 and is coming off a decisive 48-9 Homecoming win over East Central after losing their first game of the season in Week 7 at Southeastern Oklahoma State. Ranked #6 in the season's first DII Super Region 3 rankings, the
Muleriders are looking to keep pace in the hunt for the Great American Conference Championship as well as the team's first playoff berth since 2003.
The Muleriders own the GAC's third-highest scoring offense at 31.6 points per game and are allowing the fourth-fewest points per game at 17.5. At 419.4 yards per game, Southern Arkansas owns the league's top total offense, which includes the second-best passing offense (268.0 ypg) and fifth-best rushing offense (151.4 ypg). SAU's rushing and passing game each rank in the Top 35 of Division II. SAU leads the GAC in third-down conversions at 49.6%, which ranks ninth in the country.
Redshirt senior quarterback
Barrett Renner is completing 65.5% of his pass attempts and ranks in the top 17 nationally in passing yards (2,014) and passing TDs (18).
Renner's favorite target in classmate
Karonce Higgins ranks second in the GAC in receptions per game with six and he is the lone league wideout averaging over 100 receiving yards per game; the 11
th best mark in DII at 103.3. His 111.4 all-purpose yards per game ranks second in the conference.
On the ground, senior
Lorenzo Alexander ranks fifth in the GAC averaging 72.4 yards per game.
Defensively, Southern Arkansas owns the fourth-lowest total defense surrendering 310.9 yards per game, which includes just 114.8 yards on the ground with 196.1 yards coming in the air.
Redshirt senior
DaVondrick Lison leads the team with 47 total tackles, while
Anthony Washington (44 tackles) and
Malik Preston (42 tackles) have each added 40-plus stops this season. Washington and Lison each rank in the league's top 5 in sacks and the duo ranks 1
st and 2
nd respectively in tackles for loss with Washington leading the league with 14.5 TFL.
True freshman
Brock Floyd is one of four players in the league with four interceptions, while Preston's four forced fumbles is tops in the GAC.
Southern Arkansas will honor its 15 senior football players and three senior cheerleaders prior to the start of Saturday's game.
SCHEDULE
The Henderson State football team enters play this weekend with a 5-3 overall record and a 5-3 mark in the Great American Conference. The Reddies' started the season off with a 1-3 overall record and 1-3 record in the GAC, but have won four straight games to get them to 5-3 on the season. The 4-0 record on the road this season extends their Division II record for consecutive road wins, now standing at an impressive 30 games. The Reddies lost their first true road game since 2011 in a 30-24
loss in Alva, OK to Northwest Oklahoma on September 15th. The last time these two teams met in the Murphy USA Classic in El Dorado was back in 2016, where SAU defeated the Reddies, 50-24.
THE COACH
The Reddies are coached by Scott Maxfield, who is in his 14th season at Henderson and his 18th overall as a collegiate head coach. In his time at Henderson, Maxfield has amassed an impressive 99-51 overall record with 33 wins coming since the start of the 2014 season. In that recent stretch, Maxfield has turned the Reddies in to a perennial contender, with a trio of GAC Championships as well as three trips to the NCAA Playoffs in 2012, 2013, and 2015. Overall, Maxfield is 128-63 in his career as a college head coach.
SCOUTING THE OFFENSE
Offensively, the Reddies are averaging 30.1 points per game and 403.8 yards of total offense per game as well with 241.4 of the yards coming through the air and the remaining 162.4 yards being gained on the ground. Their points per game average ranks fifth in the GAC and their total offense is fifth. Their passing offense ranks fourth in the league while their rushing offense is third.
The Reddies have turned to starting quarterback Richard Stametti this season. The Las Vegas native has thrown for 1,844 yards and 16 touchdowns against only five interceptions. The Reddies' leading pass catcher is Ben Johnson with 48 receptions for 524 yards and four touchdowns. On the ground, the Reddies are led by Logan Moragne. Moragne has carried the ball 98 times for 619 yards and five touchdowns.
SCOUTING THE DEFENSE
Defensively, the Reddies are allowing 24.4 points per game and 358.5 yards of total offense per game. Their points per game given up ranks fifth in the GAC while their total offense allowed ranks sixth. On the ground, the Reddies are allowing just 151.8 yards per game which ranks sixth in the GAC, while their 206.8 yards per game given up through the air ranks eighth. This season, the Reddies' defense has forced 10 interceptions, returning one for a touchdown.
THE SERIES
This will be the 80th meeting all-time between the Muleriders and the Reddies with Henderson holding a 44-33-1 lead in the overall series record. Since 2000, HSU is 11-6 against SAU. Last year, the Reddies defeated the Muleriders by a score of 36-30 in Arkadelphia.
