SHAWNEE – The red-hot Bison (6-3, 6-3 GAC) will take a three-game winning streak across state lines to face No. 12 Ouachita Baptist (8-1, 8-1 GAC) at 1:00 p.m. on Saturday inside Cliff Harris Stadium.
This will be the 13th all-time matchup between the two programs, with the Tigers holding a 9-2-1 advantage over OBU. Oklahoma Baptist has not beaten the Ouachita since joining the Great American Conference.
The game will be called on the Bison Radio Network with the play-by-play commentary of Todd Miller and Scott Wanish. Fans can also watch the game live on the Ouachita Digital Sports Network.
GAME NOTES
WINNING AT CRAIN FAMILY STADIUM
OBU sent its home crowd out with a win in its final game of the season in Shawnee. The 28-7 triumph over Monticello was the Bison's fourth in five tries at its home venue. The team's 4-1 record this season on Bison Hill was its best-ever in the DII era. Prior to this season, OBU's best home record since joining the NCAA was 3-2. The Bison set those marks in back-to-back years (2019, 2021).
THREE IN A ROW
Chalk up another touchdown catch for Nick Harris. The junior receiver caught a 37-yarder in last week's 28-7 win against Arkansas-Monticello. That marked the third straight game the Dallas, Texas, native hauled in a scoring catch. It is only the ninth occurrence in OBU's D2 history that a player had a streak of three consecutive games with a touchdown grab. Prior to Harris, program great Keilahn Harris had a stretch of four contests in 2022. The most consecutive games with a touchdown catch belongs to Josh Cornell in 2021 with seven.
Harris hadn't logged any playing time coming to the 2023 season, as he's dealt with injuries the past two years. He has certainly arrived as his 22 catches and 383 receiving yards rank second on the team. Harris' five touchdown grabs lead the Bison and sit tied for third-most in the Great American Conference. Additionally, Harris is the eighth OBU player to record five receiving touchdowns in a season in the DII era. The others include: Keilahn Harris (2x), Josh Cornell (2x), Josh Pettijohn (2x), Noah McGraw, Jacques Henderson, Cagney Robeson and Stephan Turner.
PUNTING PROWESS
Freshman kicker Ian Villareal was tasked with punting duties this past week against UAM. He punted seven times for 245 yards, an average of 35 yards. Plus, five of his punts landed inside the 20-yard line during the rainy game. It's just the second time in OBU's D2 history that a player landed five punts in the red zone in a single game. Previously, Hayden Ashley placed five inside the 20 during a matchup against East Central on August 30, 2018.
Villareal and Luke Watkins, OBU's freshman kicking unit, have landed 21 punts inside the 20-yard line. They average 39.1 yards per boot and total over 2000 yards.
RECORDS BROKEN
Scooter Baker vaulted to the Great American Conference lead in tackles (96) after an outstanding performance against Monticello. His 19 total tackles were a single-game school record, besting a total of 18 previously set by Josh Arnold against UAM on Oct. 20, 2018. Plus, Baker's 17 assisted tackles topped Arnold's 15 against the Boll Weevils from five years ago. Furthermore, Baker now has 59 assisted stops in 2023. That surpassed Elijah Tomlin's mark of 57 set a season ago.
Nationally, Baker has the fourth-most tackles in the country, averaging 10.3 stops per contest. He is 11 tackles short of the OBU season record of 107, set by Arnold in 2021. Baker has five games with 10 or more stops, including 32 tackles in the last two weeks. Furthermore, he adds 10.5 tackles-for-loss and 4.0 sacks. Those marks are sixth and 11th in the GAC, respectively.
SACK ARTISTS
The Bison added three more sacks to their season total after last week's game against Monticello. OBU now has 29 which ranks tied for 13th in the country and second in the GAC. Leading the way is sophomore Brett Karhu with 10. That's the most in the conference and fourth-most in the nation. With two games remaining, the team needs just five more to tie the program's most in a single season. In 2021, that unit registered 34.
Karhu broke the Bison season sack record, held by Robert Lolofie, against the Boll Weevils. It was his sixth-straight game with a sack. Additionally, his feat bumped him to a tie of the fourth-most sacks in program history, trailing Josh Arnold (14.0), Lolofie (15.5), and Kimes Gilbert (23.0) for the lead.
Readers should also note the turnaround defensive line coach Cedric Leonard has put together. The OBU defense produced just 13.0 sacks a season ago, including 6.5 from the defense line. In 2023, his unit has 21.0. Five of those sacks come from first-year players such as Ameer Johnson (3.0). Johnson couples the figure with the most forced fumbles (2) on the team. It the most sacks by a freshman since Malik Allen racked up 4.5 in 2021.
IN RARIFIED AIR
The 2023 performance by transfer corner Tainique Taylor continued to reach new, outstanding heights after last week's game against the Boll Weevils. His 54-yard punt return for touchdown was just the second in program history and first of the Division II era. The last time there was a scoring return was 2014 when Eugene Estes took one back 70 yards versus Oklahoma Panhandle State. To boot, Taylor is now one of only two Bison players, Estes being the other in 2014, to ever have a pick-six and punt return TD in the same season. Taylor also added one pass breakup to his stat sheet, boosting his season total to a league-best 14. That figure is tied for third in the country.
For his efforts against Arkansas-Monticello, Taylor was named the GAC Co-Special Teams Player of the Week on Monday. It was Taylor's first GAC weekly honor in his career. Additionally, he is the fifth different OBU player to pick up a Player of the Week nod this season and the second to claim the award for special teams. The others include: Scooter Baker (2x), Luke Watkins (2x), Chase Whitebear, and Brett Karhu.
This season, he has 17 tackles, 1.5 tackles-for-loss, and two interceptions. One of those picks he returned for a program-record 78 yards for a score against Southern Arkansas (10/7).
STOPPING THE OPPONENT
Over the last two victories, the Bison defense has done something that's only been accomplished once before: holding back-to-back opponents under 10 points. OBU allowed seven points each to Northwestern Oklahoma State and Arkansas-Monticello. Previously, the Bison defense gave up six, zero and seven points, respectively, to Haskell, Texas College and Bacone between Oct. 18 and Nov. 8 of the 2014 season.
SCOUTING THE TIGERS
The No. 12-ranked (AFCA) Tigers are 8-1 this season following a 49-28 win at Southern Nazarene on Oct. 26. As they are just about every year, Ouachita is a formidable force to compete against.
They rank in the top-10 in 11 different statistical categories in Division II. Quarterback Riley Harms has been tough to contain, ranking fifth in passing efficiency (170.7). He has thrown just two interceptions with 21 touchdown passes for 1,827 yards. Harms' touchdown mark ranks 14th in the country as well.
Leading on the receiving front is Connor Flannigan. He is atop the GAC in receiving touchdowns (6) and ranks top-12 nationally in yards (856), yards per game (95.1) and receptions per game (6.9). In the rushing game, Kendel Givens is the key figure for Ouachita. He is the national leader in scoring at 13.3 points per game, second with 17 touchdowns and tenth in yardage (966).
Defensively, Josiah Johnson headlines Ouachita's efforts. He is fourth in the GAC and 49th in D2 with 70 tackles. He is also 21st in solo stops (45). Braylon Johnson is one of seven conference players with at least two fumble recoveries while Mario Ganter Jr., ranks tied for third in the GAC with a trio of interceptions. As a unit, Ouachita is 39th nationally and second in the conference in points allowed per game (19.7).
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