Football 10/1/2015 11:08:00 AM by Scott Goode (10/1/15)

No. 12 Harding Takes on No. 24 Ouachita on American Sports Network

No. 12 Harding Bisons (4-0, 4-0) vs. Ouachita Tigers (3-1, 3-1)
Saturday, Oct. 3 • Cliff Harris Stadium • 11 a.m.

Today's Game
•   Harding will play the third of its six road games Saturday. The Bisons will take on the Ouachita Tigers in Great American Conference action at Cliff Harris Stadium in Arkadelphia, Arkansas. Kickoff is at 11 a.m., and the game will air on the American Sports Network and will stream live on NCAA.com. It is Harding's second game this season with an 11 a.m. kickoff. The Bisons defeated Oklahoma Baptist 20-19 in overtime in their first morning game this season.
•   Harding enters the game 4-0 overall and 4-0 in the GAC following a 47-21 victory over Arkansas-Monticello on Saturday in Searcy. The Bisons scored 28 points in the third quarter after taking a 12-0 lead into halftime. Harding had 519 total yards and held possession for 40 minutes, 36 seconds.
•   Harding enters the game tied with Arkansas Tech for the top spot in the GAC. Both teams are 4-0. Harding is one of 26 NCAA Division II teams that remain undefeated after four weeks.
•   Harding and Ouachita are two of the top 10 teams in NCAA Division II in rushing offense. The Bisons are second with 366.3 rushing yards per game, and the Tigers are ninth with 287.0 rushing yards per game.
•   Harding junior quarterback Park Parish enters the game with 11 rushing touchdowns, the most of any player at any level in the NCAA. Parish has rushed for three or more touchdowns in each of the last three games.
•   Harding is ranked No. 12 in the American Football Coaches Association Preseason Poll and is ranked No. 13 in the D2Football.com Poll. The Bisons have been ranked in the last 16 AFCA polls. Harding's No. 12 ranking is tied for the highest in the Bisons' NCAA era (last, Nov. 12, 2012).
•   The Ouachita game is the fifth of 11 games in the 2015 season, all of which are Great American Conference games. The Bisons will play six road games and five home games during the regular season.
•   Harding is 31-7 in its four-plus seasons in the GAC and is 14-5 against teams from Arkansas. The Bisons have won eight straight GAC games, tied for the fourth-longest conference winning in Division II, and 16 of their last 17 GAC games. Harding's only loss in that stretch came to Ouachita last season in overtime.
•   Harding has a 19-7 (.731) record as a nationally-ranked team and has won 15 of its last 18 games as a ranked team. The Bisons are 11-2 in their last 13 games as a ranked team.
•   Harding has won 31 games over the last three-plus seasons and has reached the postseason each of the last three years. Last season, Harding went 9-2 and played in the NCAA II Playoffs for the second time.
•   Saturday's game is the third of six regular season road games in 2015. The last time Harding had six regular season road games was 2008. The Bisons are 16-1 in their last 17 regular season road games.
•   Harding enters the game ranked second in NCAA Division II in team passing efficiency (201.42) and leads Division II with 30.53 yards per passing completion.

Last Week
•   Harding moved to 4-0 for the third time in the last four seasons and the sixth time in program history with a 47-21 victory over Arkansas-Monticello on Saturday. Harding rushed for 333 yards and five touchdowns and added 186 passing yards. The Bisons held the Weevils to only 28 rushing yards on 19 carries.
•   Junior quarterback Park Parish became only the fourth Harding player ever to rush for four touchdowns in a game. He also threw a 47-yard touchdown pass to Eric Kelly. Junior Michael Latu (95 yards) and sophomore Zach Shelley (90 yards) both set career highs for rushing yards. Shelley had 202 all-purpose yards that included a 72-yard kickoff return to open the second half.
•   Harding ran 83 plays to only 50 for Arkansas-Monticello. The last time a Harding opponent ran fewer than 50 plays was in a 56-0 victory over Southern Nazarene last season when the Crimson Storm ran 38 plays.
•   Harding had a +4 turnover margin. The Bisons recovered two fumbles and made two interceptions.

Next Week
•   Harding will return to Searcy to host Henderson State on Oct. 10. Kickoff will be at 6 p.m. Henderson State leads the series 31-18-1 overall, but Harding leads the series 13-10-1 in Searcy.

Offensive Notes
•   Harding has outscored its opponents 38-14 in the first quarter this season and 158-44 over the last two seasons. Over the last six seasons, the Bisons hold a 565-195 advantage over opponents in the first period.
•   Harding has ranked in the top five in NCAA Division II in rushing in each of the last five seasons. This season, Harding ranks second in Division II with 366.3 rushing yards per game. Harding leads Division II with 21 rushing touchdowns and ranks sixth with 6.13 yards per rush.
•   Since moving to the flexbone in 2010, Harding has rushed for 18,259 yards or a little under 10.4 miles.
•   Harding led NCAA Division II last season in passing efficiency (188.1). The Bisons scored a passing touchdown every 7.2 pass attempts (86 passes, 12 touchdowns). Through the first four games, Harding ranks second in passing efficiency, averaging an NCAA Division II-best 14.8 yards per pass attempt.
•   In the last three seasons, Harding has 108 more rushing touchdowns than its opponents. The Bisons have rushed for 125 touchdowns and allowed only 17.
•   Harding had eight plays of 20 yards or longer against Arkansas-Monticello, including Zach Shelley's 72-yard kickoff return. It was Harding's longest kickoff return of the season. This season, Harding has 37 plays of 20 yards or more, including 17 rushing plays and 14 passing plays. Of Harding's 17 pass completions this season, 14 have gone for 20 yards or more.

Defensive Notes
•   Harding enters the fifth game of the season ranked fourth in the GAC in scoring defense (20.5) and second in rushing defense (91.5). The Bisons are eighth in passing yards allowed (239.3).
•   Harding has 33 tackles for loss in the first four games. The Bisons lead the GAC in both sacks per game (2.5) and tackles for loss per game (8.3).
•   Harding has had at least one interception in each game this season and in 13 of its last 15 games dating to the beginning of last season.
•   Harding's defense has a total of 110 yards on turnovers (45 on interceptions and 65 on fumbles). Opponents do not have any turnover return yards.

Opponent/Series Notes
•   Harding has won two of the last three meetings and leads the series with Ouachita 30-22-4. A victory for the Bisons would their third straight in Arkadelphia.
•   Ouachita won last season's meeting 31-28 in Searcy in overtime. Matthew Ehasz had his potential game-winning field goal blocked but got a second chance when one of his teammates was called for offsides. After moving back five yards, Ehasz made the game-winning 38-yard field goal. Harding rushed for 380 yards in the game. Romo Westbrook had 190 of them on only 16 carries and had a 92-yard touchdown run. Ke'Vontae Pope had five catches for 120 yards for the Tigers.
•   Ouachita is 3-1 to start the season. The Tigers are 2-0 at home and 1-1 on the road. Ouachita has outscored its opponents 97-53 at home.
•   Ouachita ranks sixth in the GAC in total offense (460.0) and eighth in total defense (441.5). The Tigers defense ranks fourth against the run (99.8) and 12th against the pass (341.8).
•   The Tigers enter the game as the least penalized team in the GAC. Ouachita has only 26 penalties, an average of only 6.5 penalties per game.
•   Ouachita leads Division II with 32.3 yards per kickoff return. Ke'Vontae Pope averages 35.8 yards on 10 returns including a 90-yard touchdown. Harding has the top kickoff return defense in the GAC, allowing only 14.13 yards per return.
•   Ouachita's Kris Oliver leads the GAC in rushing (106.3) and Austin Warford is third (91.8).

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Players Mentioned

#8 Romo Westbrook: RB; 5' 10"; Senior

#20 Eric Kelly: RB; 5' 7"; Junior

#15 Park Parish: QB; 5' 10"; Junior

#28 Zach Shelley: RB; 5' 7"; Sophomore

#9 Michael Latu: RB; 5' 11"; Junior

Players Mentioned

#8 Romo Westbrook
: 5' 10"; Senior
: RB

#20 Eric Kelly
: 5' 7"; Junior
: RB

#15 Park Parish
: 5' 10"; Junior
: QB

#28 Zach Shelley
: 5' 7"; Sophomore
: RB

#9 Michael Latu
: 5' 11"; Junior
: RB