Southern Arkansas University

2000 ‘Rider Football

Southern Arkansas University vs.

Ouachita Baptist University

When: September 23, 2000 Where: Magnolia, Ark. @ Wilkins Stadium Kickoff Time: 7:00 p.m.

The Series (OBU 28-26-2)

SAU and OBU have met 56 times with the Tigers owning a slim two-game advantage. The former Arkansas Intercollegiate rivals have not played, however, since 1996 when the Muleriders drubbed the Tigers 30-14. SAU played their first season in the Gulf South Conference in 1995, nipping OBU 21-20 while the Tigers competed in the Lone Star Conference. GSC and LSC schedules forced a break in the ancient series in 1997. From that point, SAU has enjoyed the most success in their storied football history while OBU has struggled.

The Coaches

SAU’s first-year coach, John Bland (Arkansas (1989), is 1-1 with the Muleriders, winning the opener on the road over Southeastern Oklahoma and losing a heartbreaker to Valdosta State in the first home game last week 30-29. OBU’s second-year coach, Todd Knight (OBU, 1986) is 4-8 with the Tigers. He is 1-1 this season, losing to Henderson State 16-9 in overtime in a heart-stopper but trimming Central Arkansas 20-16 last week by turning away the Bears at the one-yard line.

Last Season

SAU and OBU did not play because of schedule conflicts with SAU a member of the GSC and OBU in the LSC.

The Rankings

The ‘Riders were ranked ninth in the American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) last week but dropped to 18th after losing to VSU 30-29. SAU was 29th in USA Football after their 28-15 opening win over Southeastern Oklahoma. SAU is now 18th in USA Football. This week, Don Hansen’s Football Gazette kept SAU 23rd (VSU moved up to 11th) this week.The Tigers are unranked.

Media Coverage

KVMA 107.9 FM in Magnolia, AR with Dan Gregory and Jay Adcox; KDEL 100.9 FM in Arkadelphia, AR with Rex Nelson, Danny Brackett and Dr. Jeff Root.

GSC This Week

The University of North Alabama @ Delta State University, 6 p.m.; the University of West Alabama @ the University of Arkansas-Monticello, 6 p.m.; Arkansas Tech University @ State University of West Georgia, 6 p.m.; the University of Central Arkansas @ Valdosta State University, 6 p.m.; Henderson State University @ Harding University, 7 p.m.; Ouachita Baptist University @ SOUTHERN ARKANSAS UNIVERSITY, 7 p.m.

GSC Last Week

Valdosta State 30-SOUTHERN ARKANSAS 29

West Georgia 38-Henderson State 14

Arkansas Tech 42-Harding 24

Ouachita Baptist 20-Central Arkansas 16

Delta State 33-West Alabama 8

UA-Monticello 80-Oklahoma Panhandle State 0

GSC Next Week

West Georgia @ Arkansas-Monticello, 3 p.m.

Central Arkansas @ Henderson State, 6 p.m. Delta State @ SOUTHERN ARKANSAS, 2 p.m.

Valdosta State @ Harding University, 7 p.m.

Ouachita Baptist @ North Alabama, 1:30 p.m.

West Georgia @ West Alabama, 2 p.m.

Of Interest

Two season’s ago, Cary Wheaton was a third-team freshman quarterback for SAU behind veterans Adam Pendergrass and Tim Barrington. His father, Ken Wheaton, was lured to OBU from a head coaching position at Nacogdoches, Texas, by Tiger head coach Todd Knight, who had just returned to his alma mater after a successful head coaching job at Delta State. Cary Wheaton was released by then SAU head coach Steve Roberts so he could play for his father (Roberts was a close friend to both Knight, a former teammate at OBU, and Ken Wheaton, who eagerly returned to Arkadelphia where he was a former head coach at Arkadelphia High School). However, just prior to OBU’s upset of Central Arkansas, Ken Wheaton and son Cary, who was starting for OBU for the second year, abruptly left the OBU program because of an apparent disagreement in offensive philosophy, although the parting was with mutual respect and without animosity.

One Tiger player is assigned former OBU player Antwoyne Edward’s jersey-number he used last season in his memory. He drowned in DeGray Lake last spring.

Team Leaders

SAU Leaders:

QB Tim Barrington rushed for 83 yards on 18 carries and a touchdown and 2-point conversion and passed for 215 yards on 13 completions in 22 attempts for two touchdowns and one interception (a desperation heave at the end of the game). SE Michael Beck caught nine passes for 144 yards and a touchdown. Offensive linemen Tate Smith, Trey LaValle and Michael Boster graded high against an aggressive and speedy VSU defense. Defensively, DB Brian Davis had 15 tackles (6 solos); DB Tony Jennings 12 tackles (11 solos), 2 for losses; LB Eddie Key had 11 tackles (7 solos), 1 sack and 3 passes broken up and LB Marco Board 13 tackles (6 solos), 1 tackle for a loss and 1 pass broken up.

OBU Leaders:

RB Montoya Brown rushed for 134 yards on 18 carries vs. Central Arkansas. WR Rickey Rogers returned four kickoffs for 89 yards and K Steve Jennings connected on his only field goal attempts from short range (18 and 26 yards). LB Marcus Reese had 10 tackles (4 solos) and LB Kennis Mumphrey and DB’s Derrick Flowers and Jeremaine Wilson had 8 each with Mumphrey getting a sack and a tackle for a loss. DE’s T.J. Bingham and Michael Dawodu impressed SAU coach John Bland with their play vs. UCA.

Injuries

SAU sustained only bumps and bruises from their very physical match-up vs. VSU and should be in relatively good condition for their match-up vs. the Tigers except for those with season-ending injuries. OBU reported only backup offensive guard Jacob Lanehart as injured.

Coach John Bland says...

“We (the SAU football staff) felt like our players played extremely hard and for the most part executed well. You have to give credit to Valdosta State and their effort. VSU matched our big plays on offense and stops on defense and came through at the end of the game. Dusty Bonner is a solid quarterback and will be recognized for his effort, but we have a great one in Tim Barrington, who has shown that he can be the total package. He ran the ball and executed the option extremely well and was accurate and effective in his passing attack. (Split end) Michael Beck was Tim’s number-one target and hauled in nine catches for 144 yards. Beck showed me what he could do after the catches by making people miss. (Halfbacks) Santario Morris and Forrest Curry ran the ball well behind a solid performance from the offensive line. (Tackles) Tate Smith and Michael Boster also made their presence known.”

“On the defensive side of the ball, (DB) Brian Davis had 12 total tackles and two tackles for losses in a solid performance. (Linebackers) Marco Board and Eddie Key had 12 and 11 tackles, respectively, and Key also recorded a quarterback sack.”

Our special team made improvement since the season opener. (Kicker Jason) Williams was 100 percent on extra points and did a good job kicking off. (Punter Garron) Spickard punted well and finished strong with a high spiralling 42-yard punt that caused a fair catch toward the end of the game. (Deep snapper) Ernest Pressley battled an injury to stay in the game and did not miss a beat on his snaps.”

“It was a great game to watch and I only wish we could have won it. The thing that I tried to stress to our players after the game is to correct our mistakes and bounce back in a hurry.”

“OBU has shown what they can do. They have some weapons on offense that can pound you but with enough speed and quickness can go the distance. Defensively, they are solid with a pair of defensive ends that are extremely talented and the corners are standouts as well. We will have to play with great enthusiasm and emotion and execute flawlessly to have a chance to win.”

Facts on SAU

Location Magnolia, Arkansas

Conference Gulf South

Affiliation NCAA Division II

President Dr. Stevens G. Gamble

Athletics Director Jay Adcox

Head Coach John Bland

Asst. Coaches Tommy Laurendine, Carey Baker, Clay Jennings and Jason Sanders

Sports Information Dir. Landon Stevens

Nickname Muleriders

Colors Royal Blue & Old Gold

Enrollment 2,870

Founded 1909 (SAU ‘76)

Stadium Wilkins (6,000)

Pressbox Phone (870) 235-4117

Facts on OBU

Location Arkadelphia, Arkansas

Conference Gulf South

Affiliation NCAA Division II

President Dr. Andrew Westmoreland

Athletics Director David Sharp

Head Coach Todd Knight

Asst. Coaches Deron Huerkamp, Jay Derby, Kenny Wheaton, Rustin Gortmaker, Kent Laster, Greg Rudolph

Sports Information Dir. Mac Sisson

Nickname Tigers

Colors Purple & Gold

Enrollment 1,700

Founded 1886

Stadium A. U. Williams Field (5,600)

SID Phone (870) 245-5208

Ouachita Baptist Univ.

Depth Chart

Offense

Pos. No. Name Cl. Ht. Wt.

QB 7 Richard Allen SO 5-9 186

QB 5 Jett Furneaux FR 5-8 170

FB 33 Greg Gibson JR 6-1 247

FB 40 Matt Klopfer JR 5-11 223

RHB 23 Donte Waldon FR 5-10 190

RHB 2 Jimmy Johnson FR 6-0 190

LHB 22 Montoya Brown RSFR 5-9 215

LHB 24 B.J. Rider FR 5-10 190

TE 89 John Telford JR 6-5 230

TE 85 Martin Bryant RSFR 6-1 220

SE 1 Rickey Rogers JR 5-8 175

SE 21 Seth Stowell SR 5-11 173

C 64 Nathan Syer SO 6-1 253

C 60 Russ Pickett JR 6-1 250

RG 77 John Hart SR 6-3 275

RG 50 Jacob Lanehart RSFR 6-2 274

LG 75 Roger Boyer SR 6-1 239

LG 72 Michael Whitten SO 6-2 279

RT 61 Tom Nail JR 6-4 280

RT 73 Daniel Andrews SO 6-3 268

LT 74 Broderick Holmes FR 6-4 255

LT 68 Daniel McFarland RSFR 6-5 321

Defense

Pos. No. Name Cl. Ht. Wt.

DE 90 Michael Dawodu JR 6-2 235

DE 44 Justin Myrick RSFR 6-1 229

DT 97 Lee Ruiz JR 6-2 254

DT 92 DeMarquise East SO 6-1 240

DT 79 Greg Robinson JR 5-9 272

DT 98 Billy Francis SO 6-4 290

DE 86 T.J. Bingham JR 6-4 236

DE 91 Jonah Williams FR 6-2 220

LB 9 Marcus Reese JR 5-11 220

LB 56 Josh Burch FR 6-1 215

LB 58 J.R. Eldridge SR 5-10 225

LB 51 Chase Ellis JR 5-10 231

LB 18 Kennis Mumphrey SR 6-1 214

LB 59 John Bachman FR 6-1 210

CB 12 Marcus Freeman JR 5-10 180

CB 10 Jason Lee RSFR 5-10 170

FS 17 Travis Johnson SO 5-8 201

FS 26 Nathan Wagnon JR 6-1 189

SS 3 Jeremaine Wilson SR 6-1 211

SS 11 Eric Allen SO 6-0 204

CB 13 Derrick Flowers JR 5-9 175

CB 31 Jared Stowell SR 5-10 176

Special Teams

K 28 Stephen Jenning

P 33 Greg Gibson

PR 1 Rickey Rogers

KOR 1 Rickey Rogers

Southern Arkansas University

2000 Depth Chart

(as of 8/23/2000)

Offense

Pos. No. Name Cl. Ht. Wt.

TE 85 Adam Creek SR 6-2 240

TE 42 Ryan Baker RSFR 6-1 200

LT 69 Michael Boster SR 6-4 300

LT 74 Tim Hopkins JR 5-11 247

LG 75 Shane Clancy JR 5-11 267

LG 60 Cody Harrison FR 5-5 240

C 50 Trey LaValle JR 6-1 260

C 66 Ty Ford SR 6-1 250

RG 76 Rory Green JR 6-0 290

RG 72 Bill Parker SO 6-2 264

RT 73 Tate Smith JR 6-1 240

RT 70 Jonathan Cox SR 6-2 270

SE 15 Michael Beck SR 5-11 166

SE 21 Jason Bennett SO 5-10 170

QB 5 Tim Barrington SR 6-0 205

QB 12 Derrick Berry RSFR 5-7 150

LHB 2 Kevin Wilcott SR 5-7 177

LHB 22 Santario Morris JR 5-10 210

RHB 9 Forrest Curry JR 5-10 180

RHB 8 Randy Givens RSFR 5-9 185

FB 33 Scott Schroeder SOTR 5-11 225

FB 39 Larnelle Sinegal FR 5-9 210

Defense

Pos. No. Name Cl. Ht. Wt.

DE 99 Matt Turner SR 6-3 240

DE 98 D.C. Chandler RSFR 6-1 230

DT 84 Joey Robinson JR 6-3 251

DT 65 Mario Olvera FR 6-0 268

NG 97 Kevin Dotson SR 6-1 280

NG 52 Michael Christian RSFR 6-0 253

DE 43 Michael Webb JR 6-1 230

DE 77 Kenny Pettway FR 6-3 204

MLB 1 Marcoles Board SR 6-2 220

MLB 41 Charles Simmons RSFR 6-0 205

SLB 14 DeVares Campbell SO 5-11 200

SLB 11 Tim Rose RSFR 5-11 192

WLB 7 Eddie Key JR 6-2 206

WLB 44 Andrekus Dixon FR 6-2 187

LCB 4 Tony Jennings SR 5-9 170

LCB 29 John Bradley FR 5-9 170

or 27 Justin Lemon FR 5-7 164

RCB 6 Carl Bucknor SO 5-10 185

RCB 38 Juan Bedolla FR 5-10 160

SS 26 Brian Davis RSFR 6-0 160

SS 24 D.J. Keithley RSFR 5-7 167

FS 20 Eric Woods SO 5-10 185

Special Teams

K/P 10 Jason Williams

P/K 13 Garron Spickard

DS 59 Ernest Pressley

KR 2 Kevin Wilcott

* Note:

Injured #90 Chad James, #95 Cedric Brooks,

Out for Season: # 3 Charles Rollins, #92 Aaron Goodman