SHAWNEE – After a nail-biting win in Weatherford, the Oklahoma Baptist football team returns home for a premiere Great American Conference matchup with No. 23 Harding on Saturday at 2 p.m. HU comes to Shawnee for their sixth meeting all-time with OBU, and fourth at Crain Family Stadium at the Hurt Complex.
The game will be featured on OBUBison.com and called on the Bison Radio Network with the trio of Todd Miller, John Brooks, and Scott Wanish.
Game Notes
WE OWN THIS STATE
- Last week's triumph over SWOSU marked another OBU milestone as the Bison collected their 13th straight win over an Oklahoma School. Oklahoma Baptist has not fallen to an Oklahoma opponent since the 2017 season. In this span, the Bison have beaten SWOSU four times, NWOSU three times, and ECU and SEOSU twice.
HEY ARNOLD
- Last week, linebacker Josh Arnold had arguably the best game of his career, as he compiled 16 tackles, 3.0 sacks, and 7.0 tackles for loss. His tackles for loss total broke the all-time single-game school record of 6.5, set in 2013 by Kimes Gilbert (2013-15), and the GAC record, which was 5.5. Eleven of Arnold's tackles were unassisted, marking him one shy of the school record for most solo tackles in a single game. The record is held by Gilbert at 12, and was set in the 2013 season. This season, Arnold totals 38 tackles, 11.5 tackles for loss, and 5.0 sacks. His tackles for loss total ranks second in the nation, while his sacks total ties him for 13th in Division II. Arnold's performance last week garnered Great American Conference Defensive Player of the Week honors, as this is the second time he's received the recognition in his career. He was named Defensive Player of the Week in 2019 after totaling 17 tackles against Arkansas Tech.
RUMBLE YOUNG MAN RUMBLE
- Junior running back Tyler Stuever put together his second-best performance of the season as he terrorized SWOSU with 178 yards on the ground and one score. Stuever averaged over 7.1 yards per carry, as he has done for the second consecutive game. He led an offense that racked up 265 rushing yards against the Bulldogs and sealed the OBU win on a 13-yard rush. Stuever was named GAC co-Offensive Player of the Week after running all over Southwestern. Stuever has run for 529 yards and three scores this season, averaging 132.25 rushing yards per game. Nationally, he ranks sixth in total rushing yards and is second in the conference. The Washington native is creeping up on no. two on the all-time school career rushing list, as he is 183 yards away from eclipsing Jordan Barnes (2013-15). Barnes set the no. two mark at 1,960 rushing yards.
SLINGING IT
- Despite having a down game, compared to his standards, quarterback Preston Haire remains at the top of the conference with 1,200 passing yards and 14 passing touchdowns this season. Haire ranks second in total offense and passing efficiency in the GAC as well. Nationally, his passing touchdown total ranks fourth, passing yards total is eighth, and is tied for seventh in points responsible for. Last Saturday was the only game Haire hasn't thrown at least three touchdowns or eclipsed 300 yards passing. He has also completed over 67% percent of his passing attempts, leading the league and ranking eighth in the country.
OPTIONS GALORE
- Receivers Keilahn Harris and Josh Cornell have made life easier for their quarterback by boasting a combined 10 touchdown receptions. Harris has shot of a cannon, totaling 470 receiving yards, 41 catches, and seven touchdowns. He sits second in the country in receptions and touchdowns. Harris averages 117.50 receiving yards per game, as he ranks eighth in the nation for total reception yards. Cornell totals 308 receiving yards and three scores through four games. The wideout has reeled in 26 balls and is averaging 77.0 yards per game. Cornell ranks third and sixth in the GAC for receptions per game and yards per game, respectively.
HOLDING IT DOWN
- The Oklahoma Baptist defense has been solid through the first part of this season, allowing only 126.8 yards per game, ranking them second in the league. That recognition is credited to the work that the front seven have put up this fall. The linebacking core, Josh Arnold, Nick Boone, and Noah Velicer, have been a three-person wrecking crew. Arnold and Boone lead the conference in tackles at 38 and 36, respectively, while Velicer has eight on the year. Arnold's total tackles rank 31st in Division II. Up front, Robert Lolofie, Malik Allen, and Peter Popoola have clogged up every hole. Lolofie leads the trio with 13 tackles, 4.0 tackles for loss, and two sacks. True freshman Allen has recorded a sack in two out of the four games this season. Sophomore Popoola played the best game of his young Bison career against SWOSU as he sacked the quarterback, forced a fumble, and had a tackle for a loss.
LAST TIME OUT
- Oklahoma Baptist went toe-to-toe with the Southwestern Bulldogs last Saturday in Weatherford. The Bison prevailed 31-27, but not before SWOSU compiled 388 yards of offense, 251 threw the air. OBU managed to outgain the Bulldogs 431-388 on the promise of their running game. Behind Tyler Stuever and Rueben Thompson, OBU ran the ball 49 times for 265 yards and three scores. Thompson recorded a career-best two touchdowns and rushed for 35 yards. Stuever handled most of the grunt work as the running back rumbled for 178 yards and a score. The Bison hopped out to a 14-7 lead in the first quarter as Stuever and Keilahn Harris found the endzone. The fireworks continued in the second quarter as Southwestern mounted a comeback, scoring 14 to a Bison six for the score to read 21-20 at the half.
- After the break, the two exchanged scores before locking at zero in the fourth, resulting in a Bison 31-27 win. Defensively, Josh Arnold practically lived in the backfield, totaling career-best 7.0 tackles for loss, 3.0 sacks, and 16 tackles. Arnold would also make the game-saving play, as he sacked the Bulldogs for a nine-yard loss and forced them to punt late in the fourth. The defense held the league-leading Bulldog passing offense to its lowest mark of the season as they only allowed 251 yards.
SCOUTING THE BISONS
- The mighty Bisons of Harding have been a staple year after year in the Great American Conference. This year is no different as HU ranks no. 24 in the nation with a 3-1 record. Harding has rushed for more than 300 yards and three touchdowns in each of its first four games. Dating to 2019, the Bisons have now rushed for more than 300 yards and three or more touchdowns in 12 consecutive GAC games. HU boasts the nation's leading rushing offense and possesses the ball more than any team in the country. The Bisons are also the least penalized team as they've recorded just 2.50 penalties per game.
- Harding is coming off a 38-21 victory over then-no. eight Ouachita Baptist in Searcy. The Bisons rushed for 409 yards and five touchdowns and possessed the ball for more than 40 minutes. Senior running back Cole Chancey ranks eighth in the country and fourth for total rushing yards. Chancey has scored seven times and compiled 406 yards on the year. Omar Sinclair is the Bisons' second-leading rusher, having rushed for 399 yards and four touchdowns. Linebacker Dylan Hendricks leads a HU charge that is the top-ranked defense in the GAC. Hendricks has recorded 16 tackles and a tackle for loss this season, while five different HU players have picked off a pass.
- In 2019, Oklahoma Baptist fell 50-33 to Harding in Shawnee after putting forth an effort hardly displayed on the scoreboard. At halftime of the game, HU had a touchdown lead but came out of the break to score 30 in the second half. Harding rushed for nearly 500 yards as they held OBU to 75 yards on the ground. Quarterback Preston Haire lit up the Harding defense as he completed 23 passes for 282 yards and four touchdowns. Haire also led the Bison rushing attack with 10 carries for 41 yards and a score. Josh Cornell couldn't be contained as he reeled in eight balls for 150 yards and two touchdowns. His receiving yards total was the second-most in school history at the time in a single game. Defensively, Felipe Alvear led all Bison with 14 tackles, including two tackles for loss.
