Interview with Head Coach Ronnie Huckeba
Radio Clips:
Trendall Stevenson fumble recovery
Donatella Luckett's Touchdown Run
SEARCY – The shortest touchdown of Harding wide receiver Donatella Luckett's career may have been his most important.
Luckett, whose 19 previous touchdowns average more than 50 yards, scored on a 3-yard reverse with 17 seconds left, and the Harding defense held the vaunted Henderson State offense scoreless in the second half in a 28-24 upset victory Saturday at Carpenter-Haygood Stadium.
Harding, ranked No. 23 entering the game, improved to 6-1 overall and in the Great American Conference. It was the first road victory in eight games against a team ranked in the top five in the American Football Coaches Association Poll and only the fifth time in 26 games Harding has won on the road against Henderson State.
Henderson State fell to 7-1 overall and 6-1 in conference. The Bisons snapped the Reddies' 30-game winning streak in conference games.
The victory was Harding's eighth straight on the road, breaking the school record set by the Bisons' 1971-73 teams. It was Harding's 24th victory in the last three seasons, also breaking the record of the 1971-73 teams, who won 23 games over those three seasons.
Harding had a chance to take the lead earlier in the fourth quarter but came up 1 yard short on fourth-and-6. Henderson State took over at its own 25-yard line leading 24-21. After a Reddie penalty, senior quarterback Kevin Rodgers completed a 20-yard pass to Corey Chappell, who almost broke free for a touchdown. But Harding defensive back Dennis Buckner came from behind, knocked the ball out, and cornerback Trendall Stevenson recovered the fumble at the Henderson State 46 with 4:36 remaining.
Using nine straight rushing plays, Harding marched the ball to the Henderson State 3, where it was third-and-goal. After a timeout, Harding quarterback Keenan Kellett took the snap and pitched to Luckett who made two Henderson State defensive players miss and scored just inside the pylon.
Henderson State advanced to the Harding 39, but with five seconds left, Rodgers' long pass was intercepted by Vanard Placide to seal the victory and give Harding's NCAA playoff hopes new life.
Harding put up the only points in the third quarter. The Bisons used 12 rushing plays on a 13-play, 83-yard drive that took almost seven minutes. Redshirt freshman Zach Shelley scored his sixth touchdown of the season on an 11-yard sweep. Kellett connected with Alapeti Magalei on the two-point conversion that cut the Henderson State lead to 24-21.
Rodgers completed 16-of-24 passes for 241 yards and three touchdowns in the first half, and the Reddies led the Bisons 24-13 at halftime. Senior wide receiver Darius Davis had two receptions for 86 yards, including a 75-yard touchdown on the Reddies' second play of the game. Rogers finished with 290 passing yards, and Davis had 103 receiving yards.
Harding's three first-half scores came on two John Gay field goals and a school-record 97-yard kickoff return for a touchdown by senior Ahmad Scott. The return broke the 45-year-old school record of 96 yards set by Bill Watts against Arkansas Tech in 1969.
Harding had the ball for 43 minutes and 58 seconds in the game, including 23:51 in the second half. When Henderson State did have the ball in the second half, Harding's defense did not allow them to do much with it. The Bisons held the Reddies to five first downs, 42 rushing yards, and only 49 passing yards after halftime.
Harding, ranked No. 1 in Division II entering the game, rushed 78 times for 333 yards. Romo Westbrook carried 23 times for 93 yards, Scott rushed nine times for 49 yards, and Shelley had eight carries for 48 yards and a touchdown.
Aric Stock and Daylan Skidmore led Harding with eight tackles each.
The Bisons return to Searcy next Saturday for Homecoming 2014. Harding will host Southeastern Oklahoma at 2 p.m.
