BETHANY, Okla. – (RV) Southern Arkansas opened the 2019 NCAA Division II season on Thursday night against Southern Nazarene by making a statement at the line scrimmage. The Muleriders, under 11^th-year head coach Bill Keopple, won the battle of the trenches on both sides of the football as the 102^nd team in program history picked up a 34-14 season-opening win over the Crimson Storm in Great American Conference action. SAU rushed for 323 yards on 50 attempts, and held the SNU ground game to just 18 yards on 24 attempts.
 
In the win, the Muleriders (1-0, 1-0 GAC) totaled 416 yards on 69 plays at 6.03 yards per play and held the football for almost 38 minutes. Defensively, SAU was just as dominant as the Crimson Storm managed just 130 total yards of offense on 42 plays, while recording just five first downs.
 
Behind the stout run game was a trio of backs that helped carry the load. Redshirt freshman Kor'Davion Washington, in his first collegiate action, carried a team-high 16 times for 109 yards with a long rush of 32 yards. Redshirt senior SirCharles Perkins found the end zone twice in the victory behind 103 rushing yards on 15 attempts. Redshirt sophomore Dennis Daniels finished a yard shy of the hitting the century mark on 13 rushes with an explosive 36-yard touchdown run that put SAU up 14-0 with 3:20 to play in the opening quarter. Daniels did catch a pass for 17 yards as he went over 115 all-purpose yards in the win.
 
The first 15 minutes of action set the tone for the Muleriders as SAU posted a pair of scoring drives that combined for 141 yards on 18 plays, while taking 9:59 to do so. Southern Arkansas opened their season with a methodical 12-play, 74-yard drive that took 6:57 and included 11 rushing attempts.
 
In his first career start, junior quarterback Hayden Mallory was an efficient 9-of-15 passing for 86 yards and a touchdown; an impressive 39-yard strike to redshirt senior Jared Lancaster late in the first half that put the Muleriders in control up 31-7.
 
Not to be lost in the scoring on Thursday night was sophomore place kicker Austin Wilkerson's pair of field goals which included a 29-yard make early in the second quarter that made it a two-possession game following the Crimson Storm's first touchdown of the game. Midway through the third quarter, Wilkerson connected on a 35-yard attempt to push the SAU lead to 27 points.
 
Defensively, senior Lorenzo Watkins recorded six tackles, including two for loss that totaled 16 yards. Five other Muleriders posted at least three stops. After gaining 18 rushing yards in the first quarter, Southern Nazarene would not gain another yard rushing against the Mulerider front seven over the next three quarters.
 
Southern Arkansas improves to 8-0 all-time against Southern Nazarene and to 6-5 in season openers under Keopple.
 
The Muleriders prepare for Oklahoma Baptist on Saturday, September 14, from Wilkins Stadium at Rip Powell Field. Southern Arkansas will carry a 16-game home winning streak, Division II Football's longest such active streak, into the '19 home opener. The last home loss for SAU came in a Week 3 defeat to Harding in 2015. Last season, the Muleriders and Oklahoma Baptist Bison combined for 100 points and 1,165 total yards in a thriller that ended with SAU surviving 55-45 in Shawnee. Kickoff from Magnolia is scheduled for 6 p.m. and live coverage links will be made available at www.MuleriderAthletics.com.