Bison Set For First Bowl Game in School History on Saturday

SHAWNEE – The Oklahoma Baptist football team looks to make history as they will compete in their first post-season contest since joining Division II on Saturday at 12 p.m. The Bison will travel to Corsicana, Texas after accepting an invite to the 2021 Fun Town RV Heritage Bowl for a matchup with the University of Texas-Permian Basin. This will be the first meeting between the two in school history.

Live video of Saturday's contest will be available various networks found below and OBU fans can listen to the broadcast on the Bison Radio Network with the trio of Todd Miller, John Brooks, and Scott Wanish.

Game Notes

• The Bison are coming off a massive 42-14 win over Southern Nazarene to end the regular season and tally their 16th consecutive win over an in-state opponent. The OBU offense racked up nearly 600 yards while the defense held the Crimson Storm to 258 yards of total offense.

• For the first time in program history, the Bison are bowling. Oklahoma Baptist earned an invitation to the Fun Town RV Heritage after posting a 7-4 overall record, good for fifth-place in the final GAC standings. The Bowl, established in 2017, features two teams chosen from the Lone Star Conference, Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletic Association and/or the Great American Conference. Oklahoma Baptist will be the third team from the GAC and the first Oklahoma school to participate in the game since the Bowl's birth. Arkansas-Monticello (2018) and Southern Arkansas (2019) competed in the last two contests, losing 30-22 and 20-13, respectively. OBU will have the opportunity to bring the GAC their first Heritage Bowl victory this Saturday.

• It's recognition season, and OBU is just getting started as ten different Bison were named to the All-GAC team, a program record. Quarterback Preston Haire became the second player in GAC history to win back-to-back Offensive Player of the Year awards, joining Henderson State's Kevin Rogers, who garnered the recognition three consecutive times from 2012 to 2014. This season, five offensive players took first-team honors: Preston Haire, Keilahn Harris, Jake Foshee, Josh Cornell, and Tyler Stuever. OBU totaled four first-team selections since joining the league in 2015. Linebackers Josh Arnold and Nick Boone were named to the second-team, while three others tallied honorable mention honors (JT Vongor, Matthew Norman, Robert Lolofie).

• The best offensive trio in the nation, Preston Haire, Keilahn Harris, and Josh Cornell, reside in Pottawatomie County. The three have combined for 2,085 yards and 31 touchdowns this season. That is the most receiving touchdowns by a pair of wideouts in Division II, by far. They were unstoppable in the regular season, breaking school and conference records week after week.
• Haire is coming off an outstanding regular season where he threw for 3,175 yards and was responsible for 42 touchdowns (40 passing, 2 rushing). He ties Kevin Rogers' GAC record for most total touchdowns (42) in a season and is two touchdowns away from succeeding Rogers for most passing touchdowns (41) in a single season. The signal-caller is 33 completions away from breaking the GAC single-season record (322) and 15 away from eclipsing Barrett Renner's (SAU, '14-18') all-time conference passing completion record (1,048). He has thrown for six touchdowns three times this season, which is tied for the second-most in a single game in GAC history. Nationally, Haire is fourth for passing touchdowns (40), fifth in completions (290) and sixth for completion percentage (66.7%).
• Harris and Cornell are the first pair of receivers in Bison history to record 1,000 yards in the same season. Harris joins the company of his teammate, Cornell, as the only players in OBU history to eclipse the millennium mark in a single season. They were the only pair of wideouts in the conference to reach 1,000 yards and score at least 15 touchdowns each this season. The next closest duo totaled 2,267 and 19 touchdowns. Sophomore receiver Keilahn Harris appeared out of thin air this year, racking up single-season school records for yards (1,067), touchdowns (16), and receptions (87). Harris now has 1,443 receiving yards, 111 receptions, and 20 total touchdowns (19 rec/1 KR) in his Bison career. He ranked second in the GAC for receptions and touchdowns. Nationally, he was fourth in total receptions and tied for third in touchdowns. On the other side, Josh Cornell recorded 1,018 yards, 15 touchdowns, and 76 receptions. He surpassed his school records for most receptions (74), touchdowns (10), and yards (1,054) in a single season. The Allen, TX native is the all-time OBU leader for receptions (168), yards (2,250), and touchdowns (27). He also ranks fifth in the conference record books for career receiving touchdowns.

• Despite leading the GAC in total tackles (99) and tackles for loss (17.0), linebacker Josh Arnold was selected to the All-GAC second team this season. Arnold set the conference and school record for most TFLs in a single game (7.0) earlier this season. That season-best ranks number one in the nation and is 2.0 TFLs less than the all-time NCAA Division II record of 9.0 in a single game. Arnolds owns the OBU career assisted (173) and total tackles record (387) while ranking second in sacks (12.0). In GAC history, he is third for both career total and assisted tackles. Sophomore linebacker Nick Boone was the second leading tackler on the Bison, totaling 87 tackles, 12.5 TFLs, and 4.5 sacks. 2021 was Boone's breakout year as he came in with 34 total tackles and 0.5 TFLs.
• Up front, Robert Lolofie wreaked havoc for offensive lines throughout the GAC. Lolofie, who is listed as an interior lineman, recorded a conference-best 9.0 sacks. He displayed his best work the last two games, garnering 5.5 sacks for a total of 36 yards lost. In his career, Lolofie has 15.5 sacks, which is second all-time in program history, while his 19.0 career TFLs rank fifth in the Bison record books. In his inaugural campaign, freshman defensive end Malik Allen has also been a menace, picking up 3.5 sacks, 6.0 TFLs, and 26 tackles. These four have helped the Bison defense post a historic year as they were the second-ranked rushing defense in the GAC, allowing 144.7 yards per game. OBU totaled 30 sacks,  which was the most in the conference and 16th in Division II.

• Oklahoma Baptist finished the regular season with a 42-14 crushing of Southern Nazarene on November 13 in Bethany. The Bison offense went for a season-high 599 yards, two yards less than the program record of 601 set back in 2019. OBU reached the endzone six times, all through the air, and converted 24 first downs en route to 426 passing yards. Oklahoma Baptist carried the ball 40 times for 172 yards, averaging 4.3 yards per carry. The six passing touchdowns are the most in a single game in school history.
• OBU jumped out in front quickly, scoring twice in the first quarter. Each of these scores were thrown by Preston Haire and received by Josh Cornell, as the first was an 89-yard bomb down the sideline. It was the longest play from scrimmage in school history. The two would connect for their third touchdown of the half, late in the second quarter, as Cornell waltzed into the endzone from 28 yards out. Right before the break, Haire found Keilahn Harris in front of the endzone to complete a hail-mary prayer that put the Bison up 28-0. Harris tallied another score before Jake Foshee sent the crowd into a frenzy as the offensive lineman caught the first touchdown of his career to tally OBU's final score.
• Preston Haire turned in his most efficient performance of the season, completing 24-of-30 attempts for 367 yards, six scores, and no turnovers. Tailback Tyler Stuever rumbled to 70 yards while Haire followed up with 58 rushing yards of his own. Cornell set the school record for total receiving yards (215) in a single game. Harris totaled 102 yards on seven receptions for two scores, while Julian Clarke went for a season-best 67 yards.
• Robert Lolofie recorded a career-high 3.0 sacks for 25 yards to go along with a forced fumble. Josh Arnold tallied 10 tackles while Brandon Spencer put together six. Nick Boone and Trajan Lands garnered six and four tackles, respectively.

• University of Texas-Permian Basin and the Bison will meet for the first time in program history on Saturday afternoon. This will also be the first appearance for the Texas Permian-Basin in a bowl game. The Falcons started their football program in 2016, turning in a 20-39 record over the past few seasons. UTPB comes into the weekend with a 5-5 record, including a 3-4 tally in the Lone Star Conference. The Falcons finished sixth in the LSC after being picked fourth with 125 overall votes in the 2021 Lone Star preseason poll. UTPB earned conference wins over West Texas A&M, Eastern New Mexico, and Texas A&M-Kingsville this season.
• UTPB ended their regular season with a 36-30 loss to Midwestern State. The Falcons went up 14-3 halfway through the first quarter but allowed MWSU to crawl back into the game with a score as time expired in the quarter. The two combined for 40 points in the first half, as the Falcons led 21-19 going into the break. The Mustangs scored 17 unanswered points in the third quarter before UTPB attempted to close the deficit with nine points, but the contest was already sealed up.
• The Falcons boast the third-ranked passing offense in the LSC, totaling 2,134 yards and 20 touchdowns this season. Junior quarterback Clayton Roberts led the UTPB air attack for most of the year, throwing for 1,500 yards and 15 touchdowns. As the season progressed, quarterback Suddin Sapien began to take snaps, recording 615 passing yards and four touchdowns this season. Junior Receiver MJ Link has been the most receptive of both signal-callers as he totals 42 catches for 628 yards and eight scores. Additionally, wideouts Kobe Robinson and Jordan Smart have 485 and 449 yards, respectively. Smart has caught seven touchdowns, the second-most on the team. In the backfield, Nathan Tilford and Jayvon Davis total 534 and 461 yards, respectively. Davis has recorded five scores, while Tilford has two.
• Defensively, linebacker Miquon Mayes leads the team with 65 tackles, 11.5 TFLs, and 1.0 sack. Derrian Forge is second with 57 tackles, 11.0 TFLs, and 1.0 sack. Forge has two interceptions, while Mayes has one. Defensive back Jacques Tyler leads the Falcon flock with four picks, while Trent Ward has three. The defense is tied for second in the LSC and seventh in the nation with 15 total interceptions.

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