Harding Game Notes

SEARCY - Harding will look to move back over .500 and even its Gulf South Conference record Saturday as it takes on Ouachita Baptist at A.U. Williams Field in Arkadelphia. The 7 p.m. kickoff will mark the first night game between the two teams in Arkadelphia since 1974.

Harding fans can follow the action two ways:

• Radio/Streaming - KVHU-95.3 FM in Searcy and on HardingSports.com
• Live Blog on HardingSports.com
• Live stats and live video are NOT available from OBU.
  

Under the Lights

Harding and Ouachita Baptist have played 17 times in Arkadelphia since the last night game. The reasoning behind the scheduling oddity is that the teams have traditionally played a “rivalry” game as the final game of the season, and Ouachita Baptist's home finale is always its Homecoming game and played during the day. The GSC did away with rivalry games as the final game of the season during the last scheduling cycle.

Coach Huck

Harding is in its fourth season under head coach Ronnie Huckeba. Now in his 25^th season as a coach at Harding, Huckeba has a 13-19 overall record as head coach. Under Coach Huck, the Bisons are 9-16 in conference games, 4-12 in road games and 2-1 against Ouachita Baptist.

Preseason GSC Poll

Harding was picked to finish 10^th of 11 teams in the GSC Preseason Coaches' Poll. North Alabama was the preseason favorite in the conference.

The Series with Ouachita Baptist

Harding leads the all-time series with Ouachita Baptist 28-19-4. The Bisons hold a 13-11-2 advantage in Arkadelphia and have won seven of the last 10 at A.U. Williams Field. Harding is 6-4 against Ouachita Baptist in GSC contests, and won 21-7 last season in Arkadelphia against the 20^th-ranked Tigers.

Harding vs. OBU – Last Meeting

Harding knocked 20^th-ranked Ouachita Baptist out of the national rankings for good with a 21-7 victory over the Tigers last season on Oct. 10 in Arkadelphia. Harding forced six OBU turnovers in the game, including five interceptions.

With the score tied at 7-7 following a Kale Gelles 13-yard TD reception for Harding and a Jeremy Young 44-yard TD catch for OBU, the Bisons used a 55-yard kickoff return by Kyle Young to set up a 1-yard TD run by Dominic Blood to five the Bisons a 14-7 halftime lead. Zac Ross' 16-yard TD run in the fourth ended the scoring.

Steve Hudson had 10 tackles for the HU defense, Josh Aldridge had 2.0 tackles for loss, and Josh Jones had two interceptions.

The win over OBU snapped Harding's seven-game losing streak against ranked opponents.

Last Week

Harding gave up 21 fourth quarter points and fell 28-21 to West Georgia last Thursday in Carrollton, Ga.  The loss dropped the Bisons to 1-1 on the season and 0-1 in GSC play.

Offensively, junior Kale Gelles starred again for the Bisons, rushing 29 times for 181 yards and a TD. Harding rushed for 288 yards as a team. Harding had the ball 39 minutes, 19 seconds, but fumbled seven times (lost two).

Defensively, Harding stopped the run well for the second straight game, allowing only 55 yards on 21 carries. West Georgia totaled only 280 total yards.

Senior Jason Thomasson had eight tackles, Marcus Jones made 2.0 tackles for loss, and Eddie Russ, Jr. had his second interception and broke up two passes.