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ASAP KICKOFF CLASSIC Southern Arkansas (0-0, 0-0 GAC) at SWOSU (0-0, 0-0 GAC) Thursday, September 1, 6:00 pm Weatherford, Okla. (ASAP Energy Field) Live Stats  |  Watch Live  |  Live Audio SWOSU Game Notes (pdf)

Setting the Scene
- SWOSU opens the university's 108th football season on Thursday, September 1st against Southern Arkansas in the ASAP Kickoff Classic
- The Bulldogs are 2-5 in season openers under head coach Dan Cocannouer and SWOSU has won their home opener in four consecutive seasons
- The last time Southern Arkansas visited ASAP Energy Field, the Bulldogs defeated the Muleriders 27-24 for their only victory over SAU since the teams joined the Great American Conference
- SWOSU and SAU are back-to-back in the GAC Preseason Poll, with the Bulldogs picked fourth and the Muleriders picked fifth
 
The Series
- SWOSU and Southern Arkansas have faced off five times as members of the Great American Conference and SAU holds a 4-1 advantage in the series
- Only twice have the teams faced off in Weatherford, with one win apiece, but the Bulldogs did defeat SAU 27-24 in their meeting two seasons ago
- The meetings between SWOSU and SAU have always been close, with an average margin of victory of 4 points and the last four games have been decided by a combined 11 points
 
The Coaches
SWOSU: Dan Cocannouer, 29-47 (Eighth Season)
- Has been the head coach at his alma mater since 2009, leading the Bulldogs to two winning seasons in the past three years
- Earned four Coach of the Year Awards following the 2015 season, including: Great American Conference, AFCA Region 4, HERO Sports Region 3 and OklahomaSports.Net Small College
- Ranked 7th in career wins at SWOSU with 29, needing one more to move into a share of sixth place on the list with Jake Spann (30, 1939-48)
- Has a record of 1-4 against Southern Arkansas, including a 1-1 record against the Muleriders in Weatherford
 
Southern Arkansas: Bill Keopple, 33-39 (Eighth Season)
- Has totaled 33 wins as the head coach at SAU with 26 of them coming in the past four seasons and he has guided the Muleriders to a winning record each of those year
- In his time at SAU, he has coached 39 all-conference players, 15 all-academic honorees, 12 all-region selections and four All-Americans
- Spent the six seasons prior to coming to SAU as the head coach at Arkansas High in Texarkana and he has previous NCAA Division I coaching stops at Arkansas, Boise State and Central Arkansas
 
The Last Meeting (Sept. 5, 2015)
- SWOSU took a 24-22 lead in the fourth quarter before Southern Arkansas scored a late touchdown to defeat the Bulldogs 28-24 in the 2015 season opener
- Marc Evans was 14-for-32 passing for 179 yards and three touchdowns, directing the SWOSU offense to 331 yards of total offense on 67 plays
- Top targets for Evans included Carlos Smith and Derrick Styles, who each had three receptions while Styles hauled in a pair of touchdown passes
- The SWOSU Defense forced two turnovers with Tyler George and Gentry Rogers each recovering fumbles that the Bulldogs would convert into 15 points
- Tanner Thompson led the Bulldogs with 13 tackles and he blocked a punt through the end zone for a safety, giving SWOSU a 24-22 lead with 8:55 to play
- SAU scored the go-ahead 75-yard touchdown with 6:24 to play, but SWOSU held on the two-point conversion to keep the deficit at 28-24
 
Last Time Out (Dec. 5, 2015)
- After a high-scoring first half, the SWOSU Football team was held scoreless by Central Oklahoma after halftime and fell to the Bronchos in the Live United Texarkana Bowl
- SWOSU scored on back-to-back drives to take a 14-7 lead early in the second quarter but went to halftime trailing UCO 28-21
- Two turnovers in the red zone cost the Bulldogs their past scoring opportunities in the second half and UCO converted for 10 points to provide the final margin
- Marc Evans finished 30-of-46 through the air for 301 yards and three touchdowns passing, finding Carlos Smith nine times, including one touchdown
- Conner Bays led the SWOSU defense with 10 tackles, giving him 115 for his junior season
 
SWOSU Offensive Notes
- The Bulldogs return nine starters on offense, including their top-three leading rushers, five of their top six pass-catchers and four starting offensive linemen
- SWOSU also welcomes back their top two quarterbacks from last season, including Marc Evans, who started nine games and threw for 2,681 yards and 25 touchdowns last season
- In the backfield, the Bulldogs will boast a balanced attack led by Honorable Mention All-Great American Conference selections Karltrell Henderson and Kenneth Martey
- Henderson was SWOSU's leading rusher last season, rushing for 829 yards and setting a new single-season school scoring record with 84 points (14 touchdowns)
- Martey shared time in the backfield, rushing for 565 yards on 121 carries, including a school-record 93-yard touchdown run at Northwestern Oklahoma State
- SWOSU welcomes back seven players who had 12 or more receptions last season, a group led by returning All-American D.J. Jones
- Jones set a new single-season school and Great American Conference record with 1,797 all-purpose yards, with 903 of those coming through the air
- JR Omigie and Derrick Styles both started multiple games at wideout and return with a combined 52 receptions and 10 touchdowns to their credit from last season
- The top three tight ends return for the Bulldogs, including Collin Bricker, who had 21 receptions a year ago, and Dylan Power, who hauled in 12 receptions in 2015
- Four starters return along the SWOSU offensive line, a position that has zero seniors this season
- Garrett Luke was an Honorable Mention All-GAC pick last season, and he returns on the left side of the line along with Brandon Roe, who started the final six games of 2015 at left guard
- Sophomore Justin Bigelow has emerged atop the SWOSU depth chart at center after making three starts at the position a year ago
- On the right side, Kevin Blessing returns at guard after starting each game last season while Elijah Britton is slated to start at tackle as a redshirt freshman
 
SWOSU Defensive Notes
- Defensively, the Bulldogs must replace seven starters from last year's team but they do return three of their top six tacklers from last season
- Conner Bays led SWOSU with 115 tackles last season, earning Second Team All-GAC and Second Team All-Super Region III honors
- Bays' tackle total is the second-most at SWOSU in the NCAA Division II era, trailing only Charles Thomas, who had 122 stops in 2004
- Joining Bays in the secondary will be Michael Adefolarin at the 'Dawg' position and Jamorion Rose at the other safety spot
- At the cornerback positions, 2014 All-GAC selection Kevin Joseph returns after redshirting in 2015 and he is slated to start next to Deric Robertson, a senior transfer from Oklahoma State
- Austin Loomis has started 21-of-22 games at linebacker the past two seasons and he was the Bulldogs fifth-leading tackler with 66 stops (23 solo, 43 assist) last season
- Gentry Rogers is the most experienced player on the roster, entering his senior season with 32 collegiate games under his belt and he is atop the depth chart at the other linebacker position
- SWOSU has depth at the interior defensive line position, where senior Clinton Horn and junior Tyler Follis are scheduled to start against SAU
- Joining the duo in the middle is George Woods, who started all 12 games and made 34 tackles and 5.5 tackles for loss last season
- Returners Bailey McKay and Dustin Johnson have been with the Bulldogs for multiple seasons and both appear poised to make their first career starts at defensive end against SAU
 
SWOSU Special Teams Notes
- All American D.J. Jones was SWOSU's leading kick and punt return man last season, averaging 24.2 yards per kick and 19.6 yards per punt return with two touchdowns
- The returning duo of Tyler Peterson (kicker) and Dalton Jackson (punting) will handle the kicking duties for SWOSU this season
 
Looking Ahead
- SWOSU crosses the border into Arkansas each of the next two weeks to face Arkansas-Monticello (Sept. 10) and Ouachita (Sept. 17)
- The Bulldogs return home on September 24 to host Henderson State, the reigning GAC Champions and preseason favorite to again claim the conference crown