Setting the Scene
- SWOSU Football hits the road for the first time in 2018 as they head to Arkadelphia, Ark., on Saturday to face Ouachita
- This will be the 15th all-time meeting between the Bulldogs and Tigers, with Ouachita holding a 10-4 advantage in the series
- Ouachita enters the contest ranked in both national polls, coming in at No. 19 in the AFCA Top 25 and No. 20 in the D2Football.com poll
- The series between SWOSU and Ouachita Baptist took on the name of the 'Paul Sharp Cup' in 2013 in remembrance of the former SWOSU Head Coach and Ouachita alum
- Sharp is the Bulldogs' all-time winningest coach with 92 victories from 1986-2004, including the 1996 NAIA National Championship
- Both teams enter Week 2 with a victory to their credit after SWOSU defeated Arkansas-Monticello 49-35 while Ouachita took down Northwestern Oklahoma State 29-21 to open the season
- SWOSU is 1-6 against Ouachita since the formation of the Great American Conference, including a winless mark of 0-3 in Arkadelphia
 
The Series
- SWOSU and Ouachita have met 14 times on the gridiron in a series that dates back to the 1988 season
- Ouachita has won the last two meetings in the series and they are 6-0 all-time against the Dawgs on their home field
- Ouachita is 4-1 against SWOSU in the Paul Sharp Cup series with victories in 2013, 2014, 2016 and 2017 while the Bulldogs held the trophy for one year following their 2015 victory over the Tigers
- Since the formation of the GAC, SWOSU is 0-3 against the Tigers in Arkadelphia, dropping the games by an average of 24.7 points per game
 
The Coaches
SWOSU: Chet Pobolish, 1-0 (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
 
Ouachita: Todd Knight, 101-94 (20th Season)
- Longest tenured college football coach in the state of Arkansas, Knight is a two-time GAC Coach of the Year (2011, 2014, 2017) and he was also named the AFCA Region 3 Coach of the Year in 2014
- Had led the Tigers to three Great American Conference Championships (2011, 2014, 2017) and two NCAA Division II playoff appearances (2014, 2017)
 
The Last Meeting (Sept. 9, 2017)
- SWOSU allowed 28 unanswered second-half points to wrap up Saturday's game against Ouachita, falling 38-10 to the Tigers in the 2017 home opener
- The Bulldogs took their only lead at 7-3 late in the first quarter on a seven-yard touchdown run by Sheldon Wilson, but Ouachita scored just before halftime and led 10-10 at the break
- After a 26-yard field goal from Trent Dennis tied the game at 10-10, Ouachita scored four rushing touchdowns in the final 24 minutes to run away with the 38-10 victory
- Casey Freeman completed 24-of-40 passes for 291 yards, with Dillon Bauer and Jared Rayburn each hauling in six receptions
- TJ Harris led the Bulldogs defensively with seven tackles
 
Last Time Out (Aug. 30, 2018)
- Quarterback Casey Freeman tied the Great American Conference record by throwing for seven touchdown passes as he led the Bulldogs to a 49-35 victory over Arkansas-Monticello in the ASAP Kickoff Classic
- All seven of the Bulldogs scoring plays came through the air and from outside the red zone, with SWOSU racking up 421 passing yards while averaging 22.2 yards per completion
- Freeman connected with eight different receivers, throwing touchdown passes to five different Bulldogs – with two apiece going to Jared Rayburn and Turner Jackson
- Freeman finished 18-for-26 for a career-best 416 yards and seven scores, surpassing the school record of four touchdown passes less than two minutes into the third quarter.
- His top target was Rayburn, who racked up 136 yards and two scores on just three receptions, while Bradley, Jackson and JR Omigie had three catches apiece
- Defensively, the Bulldogs were led by senior captain Clay Wilkerson, who stepped up from his inside linebacker position to make 11 tackles – three solo, eight assist – while Malcolm Davis chipped in with six stops.
 
Checking the Standings
- Among the teams to earn victories during the first week of Great American Conference games were Harding, Ouachita and Southern Arkansas - the top three teams in the preseason poll
- SWOSU joined Oklahoma Baptist and Southeastern Oklahoma State as the other teams to start the season 1-0
- The six teams defeated in Week 1 were Arkansas Tech, Arkansas-Monticello, East Central, Henderson State, Northwestern Oklahoma State and Southern Nazarene
 
SWOSU Offensive Notes
- After the first week of the season, SWOSU quarterback Casey Freeman leads all of NCAA Division II with seven touchdown passes
- Freeman set a new single-game school record and matched the Great American Conference with the seven scoring strikes, while he completed 18-of-26 passes for 416 yards in the win over Arkansas-Monticello
- Eight different receivers caught a pass against UAM, with Jared Rayburn hauling in four receptions for 136 yards and two touchdowns, a mark equaled by Turner Jackson, who had three receptions for 67 yards
- Kyshawn Richards was the Bulldogs leading rusher, gaining 57 yards on six attempts while Jaden Knowles got the start at halfback and ran for 30 yards on 13 carries
- SWOSU had two first-time starters on their offensive line against UAM in left tackle Robert Ricks and right tackle Calton Bakker
- The Bulldogs interior offensive linemen Brandon Roe (LG), Justin Bigelow (C) and Tristyn Close (RG) each returned after starting games on the line last season
- In his first action as a Bulldog, tight end Kameron Bradley hauled in three passes for 75 yards and his first touchdown in a SWOSU uniform
 
SWOSU Defensive Notes
- SWOSU surrendered 483 yards of total offense to Arkansas-Monticello, with UAM getting 298 passing yard along with 185 yards on the ground
- Leading the charge for the Bulldogs defense was linebacker Clay Wilkerson, who recorded 11 tackles (three solo, eight assist) against the Boll Weevils
- Malcolm Davis was second on the team with six stops while Quinton Gale and Johnson Miller had five tackles apiece in the season opener
- Dejai Johnson had four tackles, including one sack, while Reggie Mayes, Jr., and Tyriek Lusk combined for the Bulldogs second sack against UAM
- The Bulldogs used several players on defense, featuring a balanced unit with 28 different players recording a tackle in the season opener
- TJ Harris had three tackles and two quarterback hurries against the Weevils along with a blocked extra point in the first quarter
- Freshman Jalen Carr had two pass breakups in the first game, while fellow freshman Derrius Franklin also had one pass defended
 
SWOSU Special Teams Notes
- Jackson Wilhite made his collegiate debut against Arkansas-Monticello and went 7-for-7 on extra point attempts despite misfiring on his lone field goal attempt
- Jared Rayburn leads the GAC in All-Purpose Yards after adding 90 yards on four kickoff returns to his receiving yards total
- Ryan Buchanan handled kickoff duties, averaging 58.8 yards per kickoff with three touchbacks out of eight attempts
- Kane Bowen brought much-needed consistency to the punting game, averaging 49.5 yards per kick on his two punts - the second-best mark in the GAC after Week 1
 
Looking Ahead
- SWOSU returns home next weekend (Sept. 15) to host Southern Arkansas for Parents Day before closing out the month of September with back-to-back road contests
- The Bulldogs head back to Arkadelphia on Sept. 22 to face Henderson State prior to their first in-state road trip on Sept. 29 in Ada against East Central