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Southeastern Oklahoma State (3-3, 2-3 GAC) at SWOSU (2-4, 2-4 GAC) Saturday, October 18, 2:00 pm Weatherford, Okla. (Fast Lane Field) SWOSU Game Notes (pdf) Live Stats  |  Watch Live  |  Listen Live

Setting the Scene
- SWOSU Football is back at home and looking to break a three-game slide when they host Southeastern Oklahoma State on Saturday at Fast Lane Field
- This will be the first meeting between the teams in Weatherford since 2009 after four consecutive matchups in Durant
- The 2:00 pm kickoff on Saturday will be the second day game of the season for SWOSU and the first at home
- SWOSU and Southeastern have alternated wins and losses the past four years, with SWOSU coming out on top last season 37-27
 
The Series
- SWOSU and Southeastern have faced off 82 times in a series that dates back to 1923
- This is the third-most played rivalry in SWOSU Football history, behind East Central (91 meetings) and Central Oklahoma (88)
- The Bulldogs have played the Savage Storm in every season since the end of World War II in 1946 (no games played from 1942-45)
- The last time that SWOSU and Southeastern did not meet during a season when games were played was 1933
- Southeastern leads the all-time series 44-35-3, including a 12-5 edge since the teams transitioned to NCAA Division II in 1997
- SWOSU has only defeated the Savage Storm in Weatherford once in the Division II era, a 22-15 victory in 2001
- Southeastern has won 10 of the last 12 meetings between the programs
 
The Coaches
SWOSU: Dan Cocannouer, 20-40 (Sixth Season)
- Returned home to lead his alma mater in 2009 following a long, successful high school coaching career
- Led SWOSU to their first winning season since 2007 with a 6-5 record last season
- Earned his 20th win as the Bulldogs head man against Southern Arkansas (Sept. 20), ranking him 8th in all-time wins at SWOSU
- Has a record of 2-3 against Southeastern Oklahoma State
 
Southeastern Oklahoma State: Bo Atterberry, 3-3 (First Season)
- Named the 19th head football coach at Southeastern last December after serving as the assistant head coach and defensive coordinator last season
- Previously spent six seasons as the head coach at Texas A&M-Kingsville, leading the Javelinas to a conference championship and two NCAA Division II Playoff appearances
- Has earned conference and regional Coach of the Year honors and was a finalist for the Liberty Mutual National Coach of the Year award in 2009
 
The Last Meeting (Oct. 18, 2013)
- SWOSU outscored Southeastern 17-0 in the fourth quarter to defeat the Savage Storm 37-27 in a Friday night game in Durant last season
- All-American tight end Ryan Corbin caught 10 passes for a career-best 164 yards and three touchdowns, including the game-tying and go-ahead scores in the fourth quarter
- Dustin Stenta tied the SWOSU single-game record with four touchdown passes and tossed for 352 yards, the fifth-most in school history
- Linebacker Ryan Feller led the SWOSU defense with 13 tackles and a half tackle for loss
- A 97-yard kickoff return touchdown by SWOSU's Terrance Franklin tied the game at 20-20 at halftime and earned Franklin GAC Special Teams Player of the Week honors
 
Last Time Out (Oct. 4, 2014)
- No. 7 Henderson State defeated SWOSU 28-14 on Homecoming in Weatherford
- SWOSU forced four Reddie turnovers, including three interceptions, and scored both of their touchdowns after takeaways
- Kevin Joseph recorded two interceptions and a school-record 109 return yards, setting a new single-game school record and earning the GAC Defensive Player of the Week award
- Klark Ashmore was 14-of-34 passing for 125 yards and an interception in his first home start
- Karl Hodge and Matt Farris scored SWOSU's touchdowns on the ground
- Devin Benton continued his dominance with four tackles, 1.0 sack and 1.5 tackles for loss
- Kapena Olsen led the Bulldogs in tackles for the second straight week with 10
 
Checking the Standings
- A trio of defeats has sent SWOSU down near the bottom of the GAC standings, where they are currently alone in eighth place at 2-4
- Southeastern is one-half game ahead of the Bulldogs with one less conference game played
- Harding, Henderson State and Ouachita Baptist remain unbeaten and atop the conference standings at 5-0
 
Bulldog Offensive Notes
- SWOSU was held to 275 yards of total offense against Henderson State with almost mirroring totals of 129 pass yards and 136 rushing yards
- Klark Ashmore became the third quarterback to start for SWOSU this season against Ouachita Baptist and first true freshman to start under center for the Bulldogs since current SWOSU Pass Game Coordinator Steve Day in 2005
- Karl Hodge leads SWOSU and ranks fourth in the GAC with an average of 84.8 yards per game. Hodge has one rushing touchdown in each game this season and he's scored a rushing TD in a SWOSU-record eight consecutive games
- Hodge now has 1,229 career rushing yards, the fourth-most at SWOSU in the NCAA Division II era and his six touchdowns is tied for fourth in a single season at SWOSU
- The Bulldogs have lost 22 turnovers this season, a mark tied for the most in the GAC and third in all of NCAA Division II
- SWOSU is 5-of-25 (20.0%) on fourth-down attempts this season and they've attempted more fourth-down conversions than any other team in NCAA Division II
- Brad Smithey leads the Bulldogs with 27 receptions for 218 yards and a touchdown. He now has 132 career receptions, needing six to overtake Chase Pratt (137, 2001-05) for fourth place
 
Bulldog Defensive Notes
- SWOSU held the GAC's top-ranked offense, Henderson State, 374 yards, more than 150 below their average and 28 points, their lowest output against a Division II foe the past two seasons
- Kevin Joseph has been named GAC Defensive Player of the Week after recording two interceptions and a single-game school record 109 return yards against the Reddies
- Joseph now leads the GAC in passes defended and interception return yards while also ranking third in interceptions
- Kapena Olsen has led the Bulldogs in tackles the last two games and he is now the team-leader with 52 (25 solo, 27 assist), a number that ranks him sixth in the GAC
- SWOSU has six players (Olsen, Steven Townsley, Tanner Thompson, Kale Sawatzky, Austin Loomis, Devin Benton) ranked in the top 22 of the GAC in tackles
- Benton leads NCAA Division II in tackles for loss with 15.5 (2.58 per game) and he's at third in the conference with 4.5 sacks
- Earlier this season, Benton became the NCAA Division II leader in sacks at SWOSU and his record currently stands at 17.0. He also has 42.5 career tackles for loss, needing three more to move past Ruzell McCoy (44.5, 2005-08) and Russell Radford (45, 1997-00) and atop that list also
- Kale Sawatzky now has 222 career tackles, needing four more to move past Charles Thomas (225, 2003-04) for fifth place in the NCAA Division II era at SWOSU
- The Bulldogs rank second in the GAC in sacks with 15 behind the power of Benton and a trio of players - Sawatzky, Collier Ward & Jake Doyle - who each have 3.0 for the year
- Redshirt freshman linebacker Austin Loomis ranks fifth on the team in tackles with 37, the most among freshman in the GAC
 
Bulldog Special Team Notes
- True freshmen Dalton Jackson and Justin Tharp continue to split kicking duties for the Bulldogs
- Jackson is averaging 48.8 yards per kickoff, 34.6 yards per punt and has connected on 11-of-13 extra point attempts
- Tharp has assumed the kickoff role of late, averaging 60.0 yards on eight attempts
- SWOSU has only attempted one field goal this season, a 29-yarder by Jackson against SAU that missed its mark
 
Scouting Southeastern Oklahoma State
- Rank fourth in the GAC in scoring offense (37.5 points per game) and total offense (460.8 yards per game)
- On a two-game winning streak with wins over Bacone and Southern Nazarene by a combined score of 98-7
- Most of their offensive damage is done on the ground, where they average 217.3 yards per game behind RBs Devlon Wortham and Ronnie Green, two of the top six rushers in the GAC
- Quarterback Ryan Polite is throwing for an average of 227.8 yards per game to rank fifth in the conference
- Opponents are averaging 30.2 points and 452.5 yards per game against the Savage Storm
- Defense is led by LB Thomas Curry and DB Chad Tucker, the top tackles for Southeastern
 
Looking Ahead
- SWOSU heads to Ada next weekend to take on East Central, the first meeting between the teams in Ada since 2010