September 28th, 2026 2:41pm
This week had everything you could hope for if you are a fan of the Great American Conference. Two winless teams broke through and earned their all-important opening win of the season, while all three undefeated squads kept their perfect records intact, closing the week with what might have been the game of the year in Arkadelphia on Saturday night.
Southeastern Oklahoma State 35 – Southern Nazarene 0
The Savage Storm have quietly gone 3-1 through four weeks, sitting in sole possession of fourth place in the league, and they controlled this one from start to finish. The defense set the tone early when De’Teaurean Johnson intercepted a pass and returned it 85 yards for a touchdown, giving Southeastern a 7-0 lead. After the opening 15 minutes, the game had firmly swung into the control of the Blue and Yellow Storm. A one-yard touchdown run extended the lead before a massive 78-yard touchdown pass pushed the advantage to 21-0 before halftime.
Southeastern added another long touchdown early in the third quarter, this one covering 64 yards, before adding one more late to complete the domination of the Crimson Storm.
The Savage Storm defense was just as impressive, holding SNU to 4-of-15 on third down while stopping the Crimson Storm on both of their trips into the red zone.
Southwestern Oklahoma State 28 – Oklahoma Baptist 7
The first of two teams to pick up their first win of the year, SWOSU did it on the road against the Bison of Oklahoma Baptist, with a new quarterback taking the snaps for the Bulldogs. Braxton Etheridge made an immediate impact, opening the game with a 58-yard pass to the Bulldogs' leading receiver, DeAndre Beasley. The drive ended just one play later with a 17-yard rush, putting SWOSU out in front early.
Oklahoma Baptist's only points came late in the opening frame, when a strip sack was returned for a touchdown, but the Bison offense had nothing going for it throughout the game. Oklahoma Baptist managed just 126 total yards, its fewest in a game since 2016.
After surrendering that defensive touchdown, the Bulldogs methodically continued to extend their lead. SWOSU connected with 2025 All-GAC selection Baylor Nash for two touchdowns, steadily pulling away before cruising to a three-touchdown victory and securing its first win of the season.
Arkansas-Monticello 30 – Arkansas Tech 27
What a way to get your first win as the Arkansas-Monticello head coach, Gary Goff. Arkansas Tech came out firing, jumping out to a 17-0 lead in the second quarter and taking a 10-point advantage into the break. From there, the Boll Weevils flipped the game, scoring 20 unanswered points before shutting down any attempt by Tech to mount a comeback.
The difference in this one came down to turnovers. Arkansas Tech threw two interceptions, while UAM played turnover-free football. That is what you have to do to snap a nine-game losing streak.
UAM has been very close to breaking through this season, and one constant they have brought to the table has been their offense. After putting up 457 yards against Arkansas Tech, the Boll Weevils are now averaging 381 yards per game through four week
East Central 42 – Northwestern Oklahoma State 24
The Orange Tigers are now 4-0 on the year and man Sergio Kennedy continues to put up massive numbers. Kennedy accounted for 419 total yards and four touchdowns, throwing for 255 yards and two scores while adding another 164 yards and two touchdowns on the ground. He opened the scoring for ECU with a 90-yard touchdown run, then found Jonathan Brown for a 72-yard touchdown on the first play of the second half to immediately push the lead to double digits.
Although Northwestern was able to put up some offense, something the Rangers have done outside of Week 1, the Tigers' offense was simply too much to overcome. East Central totaled 564 yards of offense and pulled away in the second half to remain undefeated through four weeks.
ECU will now face its toughest test of the season next week when it travels to face No. 2 Harding, with its undefeated record on the line.
Henderson State 20 – Southern Arkansas 7
The fighting Reddies live undefeated for another day. This one was a battle of defenses early, with the game remaining scoreless through the opening 15 minutes, but once the Reddies got going, they took control of the game with their ability to run the ball and dominate the clock.
Henderson scored twice in the second quarter to take a 14-0 lead into halftime, then added a pair of Ryan McDonnell field goals in the second half to extend the advantage to 20-0. The Reddies finished with 459 yards of offense, including 260 on the ground, while holding Southern Arkansas to just 271 total yards and 72 rushing yards.
The biggest difference, however, was possession. Henderson held the ball for 41:27, more than twice as long as the Muleriders. Southern Arkansas finally broke through with a fourth-quarter touchdown, but the Reddies shut down the final comeback attempt when Gabe Lopez intercepted a pass at the Henderson 11-yard line with just over four minutes remaining.
Harding 28 – Ouachita Baptist 27
Possible game of the year happened in Arkadelphia, Arkansas on Saturday Night. No. 2 Harding survived a wild trip, escaping Ouachita Baptist 28-27 in a game that came down to the final seconds.
The Bisons led 14-7 at halftime, but Ouachita completely flipped the momentum in the third quarter, scoring twice to take a 21-14 lead into the final frame. Harding answered with two fourth-quarter touchdowns, including Andrew Miller's fourth touchdown of the night, to retake the lead 28-21 with just 1:22 remaining.
Then came the chaos. Tre Nichols escaped major traffic in the backfield, somehow avoiding nearly three sacks on fourth-and-2 before launching the ball downfield to a somehow open Carter McElhany for the miracle touchdown. Ouachita then decided to go for two, a decision I think was the correct one given the circumstances. However, a tipped pass would result in a failed try, allowing Harding to escape with the victory and earn its first win at Ouachita Baptist in its last four tries.
Shoutout to the legendary Rex Nelson on the call for Ouachita, and a special notice to their stream. I believe it is one of, if not the, top broadcasts in the league, and maybe in all of Division II, especially considering it is available for free.
For Ouachita, it was a heartbreaking finish to a game in which the Tigers showed they could go toe-to-toe with the No. 2 team in the country. Harding moves to 4-0 and keeps pace with East Central and Henderson State atop the GAC, while Ouachita falls to 2-2.