By: By: Jacob Pumphrey
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(RV) SOUTHERN ARKANSAS
MULERIDERS
1-0 (1-0 GAC) |
#7 HARDING
BISONS
1-0 (1-0 GAC) |
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GAME NOTES | SAU | HU | GAC Weekly FB Notebook
Early season showdown in Searcy: (RV) Muleriders, #7 Bisons clash on ESPN3
(RV) Southern Arkansas and #7 Harding meet for the 55th time on Saturday night in Searcy with the stakes arguably higher than they have ever been. Both teams enter with momentum after each handled their season-opening opponent last Thursday night. The Muleriders shutout Arkansas Tech 38-0 in Magnolia; the SAU defense's first shutout since 2012, while Harding topped Henderson State 41-17 on the road in Arkadelphia. A win for either team on Saturday night in front of an ESPN3 audience will put that program in a position to take over the driver's seat of the Great American Conference. The Bisons have won 12 of their past 13 games dating back to last season's run to the national semifinals, while Southern Arkansas enters the weekend clash hoping to snap a five-game road losing streak in Searcy. The Muleriders are confident that better fortune awaits on Saturday as the program is just 4-10 on the road against in-state opponents dating back to 2012, while owning a 8-3 record at home against in-state opponents in that same time, including a 35-24 Week 2 win over Harding last season.
LAST WEEK
Harding enters Week 2 of the season after a convincing 41-17 road win over Henderson State. The Bisons rushed for 307 yards and scored 21 points off of turnovers in the season-opening victory, which also stood as the sixth-straight meeting between the teams that was won by the visitors.
THE COACH
The Bisons are coached by Paul Simmons, who enters into his 2nd season as head coach at Harding. Last season, after an 0-3 start including a 35-24 road loss to Southern Arkansas in Week 2, Simmons led the Bisons to the National Semifinals as the team rattled off 11 consecutive victories before being beat by eventual National Champion Texas A&M-Commerce. Prior to his first season as head coach in 2017, Simmons spent the previous 11 seasons as an assistant coach, joining the Bisons coaching staff in 2006.
In 2008, Simmons became the assistant head coach and in 2010, he took over as defensive coordinator. In Harding's six seasons in the GAC, Simmons' defenses led the conference in total defense five times and scoring defense, rushing defense and sacks four times. In 2016, Harding finished the regular season ranked first in Division II total defense, rushing defense and scoring defense.
SCOUTING THE OFFENSE
Offensively, the Bisons run the throwback Flexbone style that prominently features the running game and the deceptive triple option. Under that system, the Bisons have established one of the nation's most-prolific rushing attacks ranking among the top-5 in Division II at season's end each year since 2010. Last year, the Bisons were second in DII in rushing as they averaged 341.9 yards per game.
After one game this season, Harding is averaging 385.0 yards of total offense per game with 307.0 of that being gained on the ground and 78.0 through the air. The leading rusher for Harding is a pair of runners in Cole Chancey and Tristan Tucker who each rushed for 103 yards in the opener with Tucker scoring a touchdown.
Romar Reades carried 10 times for 34 yards and a score, while Preston Paden completed all three of his pass attempts for 78 yards and a touchdown.
SCOUTING THE DEFENSE
Defensively, the Bisons held top-30 marks nationally last season in Total Defense (306.8 ypg) and Scoring Defense (20.3 ppg). In the first game, Harding allowed 324 yards of total offense and just 17 points with touchdowns coming in the second and fourth quarters as well as a third-quarter field goal. The leading tackler for the Bisons was Dra Smith as he registered 7 stops, while ten players recorded at least 2.5 tackles. As a defense, Harding has forced and recovered three fumbles. They also totaled 6.0 tackles for lost yardage last week, including 4.0 sacks for 30 yards.
THE SERIES
This will be the 55th meeting all-time between Southern Arkansas and Harding with the series slightly in favor of Harding at 27-26-1. In recent history, however, the series has been dominated by Harding as they have won 11 of the past 12 meetings dating back to 2006. The last time SAU beat Harding in Searcy was in 2003, but since the Bisons have won five straight at home against Southern Arkansas.
