August 31st, 2025 8:00pm
With Week Zero now behind us, it's time for kick off in the Great American Conference. This season, the more things change, the more they stay the same. While some programs are on the rise, do not expect any major changes in the standings in 2025. In reality, the GAC is a tale of three “conferences” with Harding and Ouachita Baptist in one conference, Henderson State and Southern Arkansas in the second tier and the remaining eight schools in this conference fighting to get out of the proverbial GAC cellar. As a retired high school football coach in northeastern Oklahoma, I’ve had the privilege to work with some of the GAC football programs directly including player recruitment and know that the GAC is a great football conference. Here are a few thoughts on each team as we prepare for kickoff of week one...
Harding Bison
2024 Record: 10-1 Conference; 12-2 overall. Third round of the DII National Playoffs
Head Coach:Paul Simmons
It’s a safe bet to assume that Harding will be in the thick of the DII Top Ten again this season. With their daunting triple option offense and scoring 48.14 points per game, opponents will be hard pressed to stop this offensive juggernaut. Losing in the third round of the playoffs last season to eventual national champion Ferris State, Harding should find themselves playing well into November and December this year as well.
Ouachita Baptist Tigers
2024 Record: 10-1 Conference; 10-2 overall. Lost in first round of DII playoffs.
Head Coach: Todd Knight (GAC Head Coach of the Year for 2024)
If any team has something to prove this season, it’s Ouachita Baptist. After losing at home in a shocker 18-17 to Southern Nazarene, the Tigers finished out the season on a roll into Edmond, OK where they lost in the first round of the DII playoffs in overtime. With 36 players signing on to play for the Tigers this season including many local Arkansas players, Ouachita Baptist looks like a team on a mission to go deep in the playoffs and challenge Harding for GAC supremacy this season.
Southern Arkansas Muleriders
2024 Record: 9-2 Conference; 9-2 overall.
Head Coach: Brad Smiley
The Muleriders have been close to punching through to the playoffs but if this year's team can take the next step, they'll have to do it without all-everything quarterback Judd Barton. He is moved on college football but the team still looks like a threat to challenge for a playoff spot in the newly expanded field. Southern Arkansas garnered 38 new recruits including 15 transfers and 23 high school seniors.
Henderson State Reddies
2024 Record: 8-3 Conference; 8-3 overall.
Head Coach: Greg Holsworth
With 37 new signings for the upcoming season, the Henderson State Reddies seem to be “ready” for the 2025 GAC campaign. With TE Cayden Davis breaking into the D2 Football Elite 100 Squad, the Reddies look to compete with Southern Arkansas to move up in the GAC and earn a playoff bid this season. Head coach Greg Holsworth is on an upward trajectory after being selected as an AFCA 35 under 35 coach and hopefully this accolade will translate into continued success in Arkadelphia.
Arkansas Tech Wonderboys
2024 Record: 5-6 Conference; 5-6 overall
Head Coach: Roy Thompson
While the Wonderboys certainly didn’t occupy the GAC cellar last season, the biggest news coming out of Russellville is the hiring of new head coach Roy Thompson. Thompson comes over from Ouachita Baptist and was the AFCA DII Assistant Coach of the Year last season. Coach Thompson can bring a bit of magic to Arkansas Tech this season and I wouldn’t be surprised if they move slightly over .500 this year. Stay tuned to the Wonderboys - they may surprise a lot of folks in the GAC this season.
East Central Tigers
2024 Season: 5-6 Conference; 5-6 overall
Head Coach: John Litrenta
The excitement down in Ada surrounds their kicker Brandon Perez who was the AFCA DII 2nd Team All-American last season. That sums it up for the Tigers as the continue their middle-of-the-pack approach in the GAC. ECU was able to sign 49 new recruits this spring including 32 high school seniors. With the high school talent pool available within 100 miles of Ada, this program should find a way to build around the existing football base in Oklahoma and north Texas.
Southeastern Oklahoma State Savage Storm
2024 Record: 5-6 Conference; 5-6 overall
Head Coach: Bo Atterberry
The big excitement down in Durant, OK is the current construction on the new Spend Life Wisely Stadium. That about sums it up. With Durant being both in southern Oklahoma and not that far from the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex, there shouldn’t be any reason for SOSU for not finding solid recruits to build a base and move up in the GAC rankings. I expect that the Savage Storm are a season or two away from having a breakout year and moving up the standings.
Arkansas Monticello Boll Weevils
2024 Record: 4-7 Conference; 4-7 overall
Head Coach: Hud Jackson
The only really good Weevil news coming out of the off-season is the 29 recruits heading into the program by this summer. With a 4-7 overall record, don’t expect many changes to occur for the 2025 campaign.
Southern Nazarene Crimson Storm
2024 Record: 3-8 Conference; 3-8 overall
Head Coach: Dustin Hada
The 2024 season may have been an anomaly for the Crimson Storm with a 3-8 overall record but the classic 18-17 win over Ouachita Baptist on the road at the end of the season was and will continue to be a football highlight in Bethany. Southern Nazarene had great 2022 and 2023 seasons under Coach Hada and I expect that the Crimson Storm may bounce back this season as well. Coach Hada’s football roots run deep in Oklahoma and there’s an expectation that the Crimson Storm will return to their former glory-quickly.
Southwestern Oklahoma State Bulldogs
2024 Record: 3-8 Conference; 3-8 overall
Head Coach: Andrew Rice
With 44 recruit signings including 23 transfers, the SWOSU Bulldogs look to build on their 3-8 record from last season. Coach Rice has deep connections to high school football in northeastern Oklahoma having been a high school coach before jumping into the collegiate ranks and formerly coaching at JUCO powerhouse Northeastern Oklahoma A & M. There’s an old unwritten rule in football coaching that it takes three years to turn around a program and Coach Rice approaches his third year. While I’m not predicting a playoff shot here, I see the Bulldogs improving with possibly two more wins this season. (Writer’s note: I personally know one of the high school recruits coming into the Bulldog program and coached with his father. If this young man is indicative of the quality of their incoming recruits, then SWOSU football could be on an upward trajectory.)
Northwestern Oklahoma State Rangers
2024 Record: 2-9 Conference; 2-9 overall
Head Coach: Ronnie Jones
The biggest offseason headlines coming out of Alva, OK is the fact that the NWOSU Rangers were able to garner 53 football signings including 38 high school seniors. Folks, that’s a lot of young players who want to go play college football up in the plains of northwestern Oklahoma. Could the Rangers surprise everybody and move up the GAC standings this season? Anything’s possible and with a large recruiting class, maybe NWOSU is a season or two away from a breakout year.
Oklahoma Baptist Bison
2024 Record: 2-9 Conference; 2-9 overall
Head Coach: Chris Jensen
Coach Jensen has been with the OBU Bison since they reinstated football back in 2014. The former Southmoore, OK high school coach has seen the Bison have their ups and downs each season but the 2024 campaign was one to be buried deep in the record books and forgotten. There’s little to say about OBU football other than maybe the hiring of multiple new position coaches will help better prepare the Bison for gameday in the GAC. Winning at least one more game and staying competitive in losses will be a huge step forward for OBU this season and quite possible in their collective reach.
2025 GAC Predictions
Here are my projections for each team this fall
Harding Bison 12-2 , third round of Division II playoffs (GAC champions)
Ouachita Baptist Tigers 11-2, second round of Division II playoffs
SAU Muleriders 9-4
Henderson St Reddies 8-3
ATU Wonderboys 6-5
SOSU Savage Storm 5-6
SWOSU Buldogs 5-6
SNU Crimson Storm 5-6
UAM Boll Weevils 4-7
ECU Tigers 3-8
NWOSU Rangers 2-9
OBU Bison 1-10