SHAWNEE – Coming off a hard-fought, overtime loss, Oklahoma Baptist (2-5) returns home to face Southeastern Oklahoma State (3-4) on Oct. 25 at 6 p.m. inside Crain Family Stadium at the Hurt Complex.
It's Homecoming Weekend on Bison Hill and the team will be donning all gold uniforms in this matchup with the Savage Storm.
As usual, Todd Miller, Dave Myrick and John Brooks of the Bison Sports Radio Network will be on the call beginning at 5:30 p.m.
Plenty of Positives
The scoreboard didn't favor OBU against East Central but there were numerous positives that the Bison could build upon in the final month of the season. As a team, the Bison did not commit a turnover for the second straight game;
Chad Mascoe threw for a season-high 317 yards with two touchdowns;
Deuce Wise carried 20 times for 112 yards and a score while
Nick Harris led all receivers with seven catches for 86 yards and a score. Plus, sophomore
Carter Lowry made 3-of-4 field goals including a program-record 53 yarder.
Lowry's Record-Breaking Effort
With about a minute left in the first quarter,
Carter Lowry delivered an incredible 53-yard field goal to cut the Tigers' advantage to 7-3. The attempt split the uprights by a handful of feet and in the process broke OBU's 101-year-old record set previously by Prentiss Mooney in 1924 (51 yards). To date, that's tied for the longest field goal make in the Great American Conference this fall. Furthermore, Lowry has made 72.7 percent of his field-goal attempts this season, the 33rd-best mark in the nation and ranks 21st in field goals per game (1.14).
Harris' Outstanding Campaign Continues
As mentioned above,
Nick Harris put together the best game of any wideout on the field last Saturday in Ada. He pulled in seven catches for 86 yards and a score, marking the fifth-consecutive game that he pulled in at least 80 yards. Heading into this Saturday's matchup with Southeastern, Harris is the GAC leader with four receiving touchdowns, 568 receiving yards and per-game average of 81.1.
The Deuce is Loose
Deuce Wise notched his second-straight 100-yard rushing effort in last week's matchup at East Central. He posted a season-high 112 rushing yards with a long of 54 yards. Wise is the first Bison tailback to record consecutive 100-yard rushing totals since
EJ Moore did so in the 2023 campaign against Southeastern and East Central on Sept. 16 and 23, respectively. Of note, if Wise reaches the century mark against Southeastern, he'll be one only two players in OBU's D2 era to record three-straight 100-yard efforts. The other? OBU Hall of Fame inductee Isaiah Mallory who did so between Sept. 10, 2016 and Sept. 24 versus Arkansas Tech, Southeastern and East Central.
NCAA Stat Update
With a month left in the season, OBU has several top NCAA statistical marks. The team's 268.0 passing yards per game is 27th-best in the country while the team's 157 first downs on offense checks in at 31st. Plus, the Bison's 70 percent (14-of-20) conversion rate on fourth down is No. 16 in Division II while the team's three lost fumbles is a top-30 mark. Furthermore, OBU is committing 5.86 penalties per game. That's fourth in the GAC and 41st in America.
Individually, Harris is 25th in the nation with 568 receiving yards while defensive back
Robert Waters Jr. and linebacker
Brady Luff check in at 31st with two forced fumbles each.
Depth Problems
Arguably the top issue Oklahoma Baptist faced against East Central was the Tigers' second-half rushing performance. After the first two quarters, the Bison defense had only allowed 45 yards on the ground. The second half was a different matter. In fact, the hosts dialed up 182 yards. Included in that was ECU's game-tying touchdown drive. With 2:45 on the clock in the fourth, Quincy Thompson rushed three times for 74 yards and allowed the team from Ada to tie the game.
This and That
Southeastern's 2025 season has followed this pattern: A win and consecutive losses. Its season started on Sept. 4, defeating Arkansas-Monticello 44-13. The next two weeks were losses against Ouachita and Southwestern Oklahoma State. Then, on Sept. 27, SE won at Southern Nazarene before dropping contests at Arkansas Tech and Harding. Most recently, the Savage Storm won over Northwestern Oklahoma State, 56-14. Let's see if this pattern holds true Saturday night in Shawnee.
Coach's Thoughts
HC
Chris Jensen: "They have two quarterbacks that pose different problems to opposing defenses and their coaches are good at utilizing their strengths. Their defense is aggressive and quick to trigger. Making them miss and extending plays will be very important this week. This is another challenge to test our growth as a team and I'm excited to see how we respond."
OC
Daniel Eaton: "Defensive Coordinator Brandon Smith whooped my butt last year, and I have a huge amount of respect for him and Head Coach Bo Atterberry. We are going to have to put our guys in a position to execute and play fast and physical. This will be one of the toughest defenses we play."
DC
Tyler Roberts: "Southeastern has a very talented offense that has had success in many ways this year. They have a really good wide receiver corp. Their offensive line is very talented and physical. They are also very well coached."
About Southeastern Oklahoma State
The Savage Storm is coming off a 56-14 win against Northwestern Oklahoma State on Oct. 18.
SE's 56 points were a season-best.
Southeastern has lost three straight in Shawnee dating back to 2018. During that season, OBU won 34-28. The other scores including a 43-37 overtime win by the Bison in 2021 and 36-3 thumping in 2023. The last time Southeastern won on Bison Hill was on Sept. 17, 2016 by a 42-22 tally.
Defensively, SE has several top NCAA marks. They are fifth in first downs allowed (95) and 13th with 10 passes intercepted. Plus, the Savage Storm's defense gives up 292.1 yards per game, the 21st best mark in the country.
Sophomore cornerback Kamron Fields is the GAC leader with 0.43 interceptions per game. That total is also No. 16 in the country. Teammate Joseph Jones has also intercepted a pair of passes.\
Junior linebacker William Wallis ranks 17th in the GAC with 5.0 tackles-for-loss. He's also 20th with 41 tackles.
Also of significance, Dylan Sebock's two blocked kicks lead the GAC and are fourth in the nation.
Offensively, SE's 45.2 percent conversion rate on third down is No. 3 in the conference and 31st in Division II. They also have the same rank nationally in fewest penalties per game (5.57).
Southeastern's rushing attack has been productive this year too. It ranks 24th in the nation averaging 209.0 yards per game.
Levay Duncan leads the rushing charge with 499 yards, the seventh-best mark in the GAC. He's also seventh in total offensive yards per game (169.4).
Lastly, Kobe Jennings is the GAC leader and slotted 15th in D2 in yards per reception (21.8).
As for special teams, SE's Logan Dorsey has a 55.4 yards-per-kick average. That helps the team rank first in overall kickoff yardage this fall (54.5)
