Setting the Scene
- SWOSU Football will face their third ranked team of the 2018 season on Saturday as they welcome No. 24/23-ranked Harding to ASAP Energy Field
- The Bulldogs enter the game following back-to-back defeats against East Central and Southeastern, while Harding had a three-game winning streak snapped last Saturday by Ouachita
- SWOSU is 1-2 at ASAP Energy Field this season while the Bisons are 3-0 away from home with road wins at Henderson State, Southern Nazarene and Arkansas-Monticello to their credit
- The home team has won all seven previous meetings between the schools as GAC foes, with SWOSU only hosting the Bisons twice (2013, 2015)
- SWOSU will play the 2018 season with a heavy heart as they mourn the loss of Jake Simmons, a freshman member of the Bulldog Football team who passed away on Saturday, September 8th due to injuries sustained in a vehicle accident on August 26th
 
The Series
- SWOSU and Harding have met 13 times on the gridiron in a series that dates back to the 1994 season
- The teams met each season from 1994-99 before taking a hiatus until the formation of the Great American Conference in 2011
- Only four of the 13 previous meetings have been played in Weatherford, with SWOSU winning three of those - including both prior contests at ASAP Energy Field during the GAC era
- Harding leads the all-time series 8-5, including a mark of 5-2 against the Bulldogs as members of the GAC
 
The Coaches
SWOSU: Chet Pobolish, 2-4 (1st Season)
- First-year head coach guiding the Bulldogs into the 2018 season with 17 years of collegiate coaching experience
- He most recently served as the Offensive Coordinator and Quarterbacks Coach at Missouri Western during the 2017 season
- Also has experience at the FCS level, having coached at Southeastern Louisiana four seasons following stints at Emporia State and Delta State
- Played at Emporia State, where he was a four-time All-MIAA selection and a three-time team captain for the Hornets
 
Harding: Paul Simmons, 15-6 (2nd Season)
- Led the Bisons to a historic first season as head coach, going 11-4 with a berth in the national semifinals after three consecutive road playoff wins over Top-10 ranked teams
- Named the 13th head football coach in program history prior to the 2017 season after spending the previous 11 seasons as an assistant coach at Harding
- Simmons became Harding's assistant head coach in 2008 and defensive coordinator in 2010 and he's coached the Bison in 10 postseason games
 
The Last Meeting (Oct. 21, 2017)
- SWOSU turned the ball over six times on Saturday at Harding, including a pair of costly turnovers near the end zone that led to a 42-0 setback against the Bisons
- The Bulldogs trailed 4-0 in the early going after two safeties on the first two offensive drives before a fumble returned 96 yards for a score put Harding up 11-0 at the end of the first quarter
- SWOSU lost three fumbles in the game and threw three interceptions - including a 99- yard pick six in the fourth quarter for the final score of the game
- Defensively, the Bulldogs held the nation's top rushing offense to 272 yards, which is better than 60 yards beneath their yearly average
- Kedron Banks was the bright spot offensively, rushing for 106 yards on 11 carries, averaging 9.6 yards per attempt
- Dominic Blue led the Bulldogs defense with nine tackles
 
Last Time Out (Oct. 6, 2018)
- SWOSU dropped their second straight game on Saturday, falling to Southeastern Oklahoma State by a score of 31-20 at ASAP Energy Field
- The Bulldogs were guilty of 16 penalties for better than 150 yards while totaling 201 yards of total offense
- Jalen Carr found the end zone for the second straight week, picking up a fumbled snap on a Southeastern field goal attempt and returning it 46 yards for the score
- SWOSU added two scores in the second half, getting a 27-yard touchdown run from Kedron Banks and a 27-yard touchdown pass from Casey Freeman to JR Omigie in the third quarter
- The Bulldog defense faced 81 plays from the Savage Storm offense, with 22 different players recording a tackle in the contest
- Diondre Scott led the Bulldogs with 11 tackles, while Jacob Rodman added 10 and Clay Wilkerson had nine
 
Checking the Standings
- Ouachita and Southern Arkansas have opened up a two-game lead on the field as both teams remain unbeaten (6-0) on the year
- Harding and Southeastern Oklahoma State remain above .500 at 4-2 while Henderson State is in fifth place in the standings with an even mark of 3-3
- SWOSU is one of six teams in the league with a record of 2-4, joined by Arkansas Tech, Arkansas-Monticello, East Central, Northwestern Oklahoma State and Oklahoma Baptist
- Southern Nazarene occupies the league cellar right now at 1-5
 
SWOSU Offensive Notes
- SWOSU has been limited to less than 225 yards in each of the last two games, falling to ninth in the GAC in total offense with 346.5 yards per game for the year
- The Bulldogs rushing offense has seen the most significant drop off with less than 100 yards on the ground against both East Central and Southeastern Oklahoma State
- JR Omigie leads the Bulldogs with 23 receptions for 461 yards and four touchdowns, including his 13th career receiving touchdown against Southeastern on Saturday
- Omigie currently ranks third at SWOSU for the NCAA Division II era in touchdowns (13) and sixth in both receptions (126) and receiving yards (1,797)
- Casey Freeman is the fifth-leading passer in the GAC, completing 55.8% (101-181) of his passes for 1,361 yards (226.8 per game) and 12 touchdowns
- Jaden Knowles has led the Bulldogs in rushing the past two games, and he's carried the ball 61 times for 197 yards in his true freshman campaign
- Kedron Banks made the most of his playing time against Southeastern, taking his first handoff of the year and carrying it 27 yards for the fifth rushing touchdown of his career
- In his return from injury, Jared Rayburn hauled in four passes for 20 yards, giving him eight receptions on the year - a mark that ranks third among active players
 
SWOSU Defensive Notes
- Jalen Carr scored a defensive touchdown for the second consecutive week, returning a 46-yard fumble recovery for a score against Southeastern
- Prior to Saturday, SWOSU had not had a fumble returned for a touchdown since 2007, when Brandon Wicks and Greg Franklin each had touchdown returns against Panhandle State
- SWOSU currently ranks 11th in the GAC in total defense (420.5 yards per game) and 10th in scoring defense (32.0 points per game)
- Diondre Scott finished with a career-high 11 tackles (nine solo, two assist), one forced fumble and one pass breakup in his first career start against Southeastern
- Clay Wilkerson made eight stops against Southeastern, giving him a team-leading 33 tackles along with 1.5 tackles for loss for the year
- TJ Harris ranks third on the team with 27 tackles and he's ranked third in the conference with 8.5 tackles for loss, which have resulted in 23 yards lost by opponents
- Braden Sweet matches his season-high with six tackles against the Savage Storm, moving him to fourth on the team in tackles (26) and second in tackles for loss (5.5)
 
SWOSU Special Teams Notes
- Kane Bowen was one yard off of his career long with a 65-yard punt against Southeastern and he averaged 38.4 yards per on five punts for the game
- Jackson Wilhite improved to 10-for-10 on extra point attempts after knocking through a pair of them on Saturday against Southeastern
- CJ Jennings leads the GAC in kick return average with a 26.5 yard per return mark on 12 returns to date
- The one weakness of SWOSU's special teams this season has been field goals, where Wilhite and Ryan Buchanan are a combined 2-for-7
 
Looking Ahead
- SWOSU heads on the road next weekend to face Arkansas Tech before concluding the 2018 season with two of the final three games at home
- The Bulldogs will be back at home in two weeks to host Oklahoma Baptist (Oct. 27) prior to a trip to Bethany to face Southern Nazarene (Nov. 3)