Setting the Scene
The SWOSU football team will set its site on a third-consecutive victory this Saturday when they visit Magnolia, Ark., to take on Southern Arkansas. SWOSU defeated Harding to open the year and followed it up with a 28-17 victory at Arkansas Tech last Saturday. Southern Arkansas is also 1-1 with a loss to Southeastern Oklahoma State and a win over East Central.
The Series
The all-time series between SWOSU and Southern Arkansas dates back just two years to the inaugural season of the Great American Conference. SWOSU hosted the Muleriders in 2011, falling 33-21, before making a visit to Magnolia last year, where they dropped a close 35-34 contest. SAU is the only program on the Bulldogs' 2013 schedule that SWOSU has never defeated.
The Coaches
Dan Cocannouer is in his fifth season as the head coach of the Southwestern Oklahoma State University football team in 2013. He returned home to lead his alma mater in 2009 and helped the team better its won-loss record in each of his first three seasons. Overall, Cocannouer is 14-31 overall at SWOSU and 0-2 against Southern Arkansas.
Bill Keopple enters into his fifth season at Southern Arkansas and is coming off his best season at the helm of the Mulerider football program as he guided his 2012 team to an 8-3 record and appearance in the Heart of Texas Bowl. Keopple has previous coaching experience at Arkansas, Boise State, Central Arkansas, and Tulsa and he Keopple spent the six seasons prior to coming to SAU as the head coach at Arkansas High in Texarkana.
Last Time Out
Big plays propelled the Southwestern Oklahoma State University football team to their second consecutive victory, a 28-17 win at Arkansas Tech on Saturday night in Russellville.
Dustin Stenta connected on touchdown passes with four different receivers, each one going for 35 yards or longer. Stenta's TD passes went to
Brad Smithey (57 yards),
M.J. Porter (40),
Ryan Corbin (50) and
Brian Robinson (35). The touchdown to Robinson put SWOSU in control and also pushed Stenta over the 7,000-yard mark for his career at SWOSU.
The Bulldogs defense limited Arkansas Tech to 343 yards of total offense and just 47 yards rushing. SWOSU got interceptions from
Terrance Franklin and
Abram Piggee and did not allow any points after halftime while forcing four punts and a missed field goal in the second half.
The Last Meeting
SWOSU was unable to make a late-game lead stand as Southern Arkansas rallied for a 35-34 football victory last season in Magnolia, Ark. SWOSU had two 14-point leads in the game. The last came when defensive back Terrence Franklin intercepted an SAU pass and returned it 49 yards for a touchdown putting SWOSU ahead 28-14 with 10:28 left in the third quarter.
The game's biggest play came deep in the fourth quarter as SWOSU was driving and holding to a six-point lead. The Bulldogs moved to the Muleriders' 21-yard line before quarterback
Dustin Stenta lost control of the football and SAU's Demario Thomas picked it up and raced 56 yards up field before he was dragged down at the SWOSU 9. On the next play, SAU quarterback Tyler Sykora completed a nine-yard touchdown pass to Carlos Brown to put the Muleriders ahead for the first time (35-34) with 5:10 to play.
Turnovers on two ensuing possessions cost SWOSU a chance to retake the lead. Overall, SWOSU turned the ball over four times with three fumbles and one interception.
Atop the Standings
The balance of the Great American Conference is apparent early in the season. SWOSU is one of only two teams (Henderson State) with a 2-0 record to start the year and one of just three teams (HSU, Ouachita Baptist) without a loss on their record. However, SWOSU is the only team to defeat a fellow GAC foe each week, leaving the Bulldogs atop the conference standings this week.
Two of Ten with 7,000 Yards
Senior quarterback
Dustin Stenta threw 271 yards and four touchdowns to four different receivers against Arkansas Tech. His final touchdown pass, a 35-yarder to
Brian Robinson, also pushed Stenta over the 7,000-yard milestone for his career at SWOSU.
Stenta is one of just 10 active quarterbacks in NCAA Division II who have thrown for more than 7,000 yards and this week's opponent also appears on that list. Tyler Sykora of SAU also recently joined the 7,000-yard club and he sits ninth on the active list with 7,026 yards while Stenta has 7,024 to rank 10th actively.
Stenta has now started 31 games under center for SWOSU, including every game since the Bulldogs have been a member of the Great American Conference. He has thrown for 511 yards in two games and his average of 255.5 yards per game is the sixth-best mark in the conference thus far. However, his six TD passes ranks third in the GAC.
Career marks of 7,024 yards and 43 touchdowns by Stenta rank second in SWOSU football history, trailing his quarterback coach
Steve Day in both categories. Day passed for 7.482 yards and 46 TDs from 2005-09.
No Field Goals Attempted
Two players have booted extra points and kickoffs and three have punted the ball at one time for SWOSU, but through two games the Bulldogs have not yet attempted a field goal.
Kevin Cantrell handled the kicking duties for SWOSU against Harding while
Lucas Barry did the punting, but neither was in action against Arkansas Tech.
Freshman
Michael Perez, the lone true freshman to play for SWOSU thus far in 2013, will continue to handle kicking and punting duties for the Bulldogs. He was 4-for-4 on extra points against Arkansas Tech and punted four times and averaged 37.2 yards per kick. Quarterback
Dustin Stenta has also attempted one punt in each game.
Taking Care of The Ball
Through two games, SWOSU has turned the ball over three times, losing a pair of fumbles and one interception. On the flip side, the Bulldogs' defense has recorded four takeaways on the year: three interceptions (two by
Abram Piggee & one by
Terrance Franklin) and one fumble recovery (by
Eric Rodriguez). SWOSU's turnover margin of +1 is tied for the second-best mark in the conference, trailing only Southern Arkansas at +4.
Receiving Votes
Following the victory over Arkansas Tech, the Bulldogs earned additional votes in the AFCA Top 25 Poll and they are now one of two GAC schools mentioned in the poll. Henderson State is ranked No. 9 in the poll, which can be seen in its entirety on the next page.
Dads a Dawg
Southern Arkansas sophomore wide receiver Chris Terry set a Great American Conference single-season record with 247 yards in the season opener and he currently leads the GAC in receiving yards per game with an average of 177.0. Terry's father, Norman Terry, was a tight end for SWOSU from 1987-90 and a teammate of current SWOSU Defensive Coordinator
Todd Helton for three seasons.
Scouting Southern Arkansas
Southern Arkansas was picked to finish second in the Great American Conference this season and they've started off the season 1-1. The Muleriders opened the season with a tough 56-50 loss at Southeastern Oklahoma State before rebounding to stomp East Central 50-16 last Saturday.
SAU ranks second in the GAC in scoring, averaging 50.0 points per game, and third in total offense with over 510 yards per game. Quarterback Tyler Sykora is the second-leading passer in the GAC, averaging 331 yards per game and running back Mark Johnson is ranked third with 112.5 yards per game on the ground. Wide receiver Chris Terry has caught 16 passes in two games and his 177.0 receiving yards per game is tops in the conference.
Defensively, SAU has allowed 36.0 points and 381.0 yards per game, ranking in the middle of the pack in the GAC. The Muleriders have given up averages of 152.5 yards on the ground and 228.5 through the air through two games. The defense has also been very opportunistic, intercepting a conference-leading four passes in two games.
A SWOSU Win Would..
- Be the Bulldogs first-ever win against Southern Arkansas
- Open the season 3-0 for the first time since 1992
- Give SWOSU consecutive road wins for the first time since 2011
- Have SWOSU riding a three-game winning streak for the first time since 2011
- Be the first three-game conference winning streak for SWOSU since 2006
- Give SWOSU five wins in their previous six games, dating back to last season
- Improve the Bulldogs record to 64-108 as a member of NCAA Division II
- Move SWOSU to 8-11 all-time in Great American Conference contests
A SWOSU Loss Would..
- Keep SWOSU winless against the Muleriders
- Halt a two-game winning streak
- Make SWOSU 7-12 all-time in Great American Conference contests
- Drop SWOSU to 63-109 as a member of NCAA Division II
Looking Ahead
The Bulldogs return home for the first time since the season opener next Saturday, Sept. 28, to host Arkansas-Monticello. That game will serve as Parents Day with kickoff slated for 6 pm at Fast Lane Field.
