October 23rd, 2023 5:00am
Another week down in the Great American Conference football season. No surprises in the results, but definitely some eyebrow-raising performances across the league this week. Let’s dig into the recaps.
Ouachita Baptist 31, Arkansas Tech 24
OUA- Man, the Tigers nearly saw any hopes they had for the playoffs go up in smoke. For whatever reason, the Tigers allowed Tech to move the ball effectively, especially through the air. The Wonder Boys had 290 yards through the air and the Tigers had just a single sack. Ouachita did put up 235 and 6.2 yards per carry on the ground, which was ultimately how they won the game. But there for a minute, the nerves were fraying a bit in Arkadelphia.
ATU- The Wonder Boys’ three-game win streak came to an end, but it was an encouraging performance on the road. Tech took a 24-17 lead with just under 14 minutes to play in the game and had a shot to tie the game at the end, driving all the way to the Ouachita 22-yard line on the final possession of the game. The Wonder Boys couldn’t run the ball Saturday, but quarterback Taye Gatewood did all he could to try to will Tech to a win.
Southeastern OSU 32, Southwestern OSU 13
SEOSU- Redshirt freshman Kane Donovan got the start against the Bulldogs and was really good, throwing for 259 yards, three touchdowns and one interception. Most impressive, though, was the Southeastern offensive line, which did not allow a sack against one of the best defensive lines in the league. The Savage Storm also gave up just 96 yards on the ground, 85 of which came on a single touchdown run. That’s now three wins in a row for Southeastern.
SWOSU- The Bulldogs continue to ride the winless train and it doesn’t appear they’ll be able to get off that train until the final week of the season. Quarterback Sean Shelby seems to be improving slightly each week, but it’s just a really tough year in Weatherford.
Harding 54, Southern Arkansas 20
HU- Holy smokes. Did not see that one coming. 631 yards on the ground against a defense giving up 117 yards and 3.8 yards per carry on the ground this year (against the best run offenses in the league, might I add). The Bisons went through the Muleriders like a hot knife through butter, with Braden Jay and Blake Delacruz both crossing the 200-yard mark. Frankly, I’m not really sure why the Bisons threw eight passes on Saturday.
SAU- The Muleriders came crashing back to earth one week after the big win over Henderson State. Thanks to the timing of the possessions, SAU had just a single possession in the second quarter, a long drive that ended in a turnover on downs at the Harding 3-yard line. Kadyn Roach tied the score at seven apiece with 4:08 left in the first quarter after back-to-back three-and-outs forced by the SAU defense. Harding then proceeded to score on seven straight possessions, six of them touchdowns. The route was on.
Henderson State 42, Arkansas-Monticello 14
HSU- The Reddies jumped on the Weevils early, racing out to a 28-0 lead at halftime. The HSU defense was really good on Saturday, as they allowed just a single drive longer than 24 yards before the fourth quarter. That lone drive ended in a turnover on downs for the Weevils at the Reddies’ 2-yard line. Henderson also sacked UAM quarterback Buddy Taylor NINE times on Saturday (insert Ed Rooney .gif here). Reddies quarterback Andrew Edwards had a tremendous day, throwing for 295 yards and four touchdowns while running for 34 yards and another score.
UAM- Simply put, the Weevils were just smothered all day by the Reddies. The sacks added up to a net total of 17 rushing yards, and UAM wasn’t able to get on the board until the fourth quarter. The Weevils managed just a single offensive touchdown, as the second one was a 99-yard fumble return. The Weevils have now lost six straight games.
Southern Nazarene 27, East Central 13
SNU- The Crimson Storm snapped a three-game losing streak with a vintage SNU performance: 399 yards rushing, 264 of those from Gage Porter, and 36 minutes time of possession. SNU seized momentum with a 20-point third quarter, 13 of of which came in about 15 seconds. SNU faked a put that saw defensive lineman Nick Blanchard run 47 yards for a score and then on the ensuing kickoff, Smith Nave recovered an ECU fumble for a score. ECU did tie the score, but the SNU defense locked in and kept the Tigers off the board the rest of the day.
ECU- The Tigers have struggled on offense this season, and this game was not exception. The Tigers managed just 228 yards and 4.3 yards per play against the SNU defense. ECU was hurt in large part by eight negative plays, which resulted in 30 yards lost. The Tigers squandered a perfect opportunity to tie in the fourth quarter when a long punt return set ECU up at the SNU 10-yard line. Four plays later, the Tigers had gone backwards three yards and given the ball back to SNU.
Oklahoma Baptist 28, Northwestern OSU 7
OBU- Overall, a win is a win for the Bison, but it wasn’t the prettiest of W’s. The Bison did welcome back Aidan Thompson at quarterback, and he threw for 279 yards with three touchdowns and a single interception. The run came was completely nonexistent as the Bison continue to be without running back EJ Moore. Defensively, the Bison came up with four sacks while holding the Rangers to just a single touchdown and just 217 total yards.
NWOSU- A solid performance from the Rangers’ defense, but unfortunately, the offense couldn’t do anything to take advantage of the opportunity. The Rangers held the Bison to just 27 yards rushing (which unfortunately was more than the Rangers’ 17 yards) and just five yards per play. Like Southwestern, I don’t see an opportunity to wipe away that goose egg in the win column before the week’s final game.