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Football by Scott Goode (11/7/19)

No. 16 Harding vs. Southeastern Okla. -- GAME NOTES

#16 Harding Bisons (8-1, 8-1) vs. Southeastern Okla. (1-8, 1-8)
Nov. 8, 2019 • 2 p.m. • Durant, Okla. • Paul Laird Field

Game Story
No. 16 Harding seeks its ninth straight win Saturday against Southeastern Oklahoma. It would be Harding's fourth streak of nine wins or more in program history. The game features the top rushing offense in College Football (Harding's 384.4 per game) against the No. 3 passing offense in the GAC (SE's 258.8 per game).

Harding is tied with Henderson State for second place in the GAC, one game back of leader Ouachita Baptist. Southeastern (1-8) has lost seven straight overall and each of its four home games. The Storm won 24-15 at Northwestern Okla. on Sept. 5.

Harding is ranked No. 16 in the AFCA Top 25 Coaches Poll. Southeastern is unranked. 

Harding is ranked No. 4 in the second NCAA Division II Super Region 3 Rankings, released Monday. The top seven teams qualify for the Division II Playoffs.

Up Next
Harding plays its final game of the regular season at Arkansas Tech. The Wonder Boys lead the all-time series 31-25, but the Bisons have won the last three. Kickoff is at 2 p.m.

The Coaches
Paul Simmons is in his third season as head coach at Harding. He has a 28-8 overall record and led Harding to the NCAA II Playoffs both seasons, including a spot in the national semifinals in 2017. He is in his 14th season at Harding and had been Harding's defensive coordinator for the previous seven seasons. Simmons was a three-time All-American defensive end and linebacker at Harding from 1992-94.

Tyler Fenwick is in his first season at Southeastern Oklahoma and has a 1-8 record. He graduated from New Mexico in 1999.

Series History
Harding and Southeastern Oklahoma are meeting for the 31st time. Harding leads 10-6 in Durant. The Bisons have won the eight straight and four straight in Durant.

Harding Series Records
Team
Points - 63, 2015 & 2016
Rushing - 528, 2015
Passing - 266, 1992
Total - 595, 2015
Individual
Rushing - 157, Zach Shelley, 2015
Passing - 266, Paul Mann, 1992
Receiving - 143, Barry Bowens, 1989
Tackles - 12, Aaron Gillaspie, 2011

Home/Road Records
Harding is 3-1 on the road this season, 16-4 on the road under Simmons and 22-5 on the road in the last three-plus seasons. The Bisons have won 13 of their last 14 GAC road games. Southeastern has lost five straight at home.

Last Meeting
Harding's defense made four interceptions, three of which led to Cole Chancey TD runs, and the Bisons defeated Southeastern Oklahoma 24-10 last season in Searcy.

Harding's defense also limited Southeastern to -3 rushing yards on 25 attempts and had five sacks.

Rollin Kinsaul passed for 271 yards for Southeastern but had four interceptions, two by current Harding senior V'Onte Williams.

Streaks, Trends and Records
Cole Chancey has 1,097 rushing yards. With 103 more yards, he would become the first HU player with 1,200 or more rushing yards twice in a career. He has 2 TD in each of the last four games, becoming the first Harding player with multiple TD run in four consecutive games.

With 47 interception return yards against East Central, Jacory Nichols has 107 interception return yards this season. He and Cory Batie (152 INT return yards) are the first HU duo with 100+ INT return yards in a season since Jon Newby (122) and Lorne Latiker (117) in 1991.

Harding has scored 45 or more points in its last four games. The Bisons have never scored 45 or more points in five straight games.

Junior fullback Cole Chancey has 3,395 career rushing yards, ranking second all-time at Harding, fourth in GAC history (needs 59 yards to pass Devlon Wortham, SE, 2013-16, 3,453). He is seventh among active NCAA II players in rushing yards.

Harding leads D2 with 384.4 rushing yards per game and has rushed for more than 400 yards and four or more TD in the last four games. The Bisons have never had 400+ yards and 4+ TD in five straight games.

Harding has outscored its opponents 93-9 in the first quarter in 2019. The Bisons have not allowed a first-quarter TD. Harding opponents have scored only once on their opening drive in the last 20 games.

Harding has converted 80% of its fourth downs (16 of 20), the highest percentage in D2 for teams with 10 or more fourth-down attempts. Only Harding and Minnesota St. have not allowed a fourth-down conversion.

A Quick Look at Southeastern Oklahoma
After five consecutive winning seasons, Southeastern will have its first losing season since going 2-9 in 2013.

SE has passed for more than 200 yards in three straight games, including a season-high 370 last week at Arkansas Tech. The Storm has a D2-high 29 turnovers.

Team Leaders
HARDING
Rushing - Cole Chancey: 180 rushes, 1,097 yards (1st GAC/6th D2), 10 TD (3rd GAC); Tristan Tucker: 64 rushes, 624 yards (8th GAC), 9 TD (6th GAC)
Passing - Preston Paden: 9-20, 278 yards, 3 TD
Receiving - Taylor Bissell: 3 receptions, 82 yards, 1 TD
Defense - Chris Wein: 39 tackles; Dylan Hendricks: 6.0 TFL; Jay Marshall: 4.0 sacks; Jacory Nichols, V'Onte Williams: 3 INT (4th GAC)

SOUTHEASTERN OKLA.
Rushing - Rashod Polk: 88 rushes, 462 yards, 3 TD; Ryan Taylor: 44 rushes, 283 yards, 1 TD
Passing - Daulton Hatley: 95-189, 1,203 yards (8th GAC), 8 TD; Rollin Kinsaul: 104-180, 1,109 yards (9th GAC), 7 TD
Receiving - Felton Hatcher: 46 receptions (4th GAC), 590 yards, 3 TD; Katrell Blakely: 43 receptions, 462 yards, 3 TD; Braxton Kincade: 40 receptions, 587 yards, 4 TD
Defense - Conner Swope: 74 tackles (2nd GAC/13th D2), 8.5 TFL (1st GAC); Andrew McBeth: 3.5 sacks
 
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Players Mentioned

Zach Shelley

#28 Zach Shelley

RB
5' 7"
Senior
Cory Batie

#12 Cory Batie

DB
5' 11"
Sophomore
Cole Chancey

#34 Cole Chancey

RB
5' 10"
Sophomore
Dylan Hendricks

#43 Dylan Hendricks

LB
6' 2"
Sophomore
Jacory Nichols

#7 Jacory Nichols

DB
5' 6"
Junior
Preston Paden

#11 Preston Paden

QB
5' 11"
Sophomore
Taylor Bissell

#26 Taylor Bissell

RB
5' 8"
Sophomore
Tristan Tucker

#19 Tristan Tucker

RB
5' 9"
Sophomore
V

#5 V'Onte Williams

DB
6' 1"
Junior
Chris Wein

#25 Chris Wein

LB
6' 1"
Junior

Players Mentioned

Zach Shelley

#28 Zach Shelley

5' 7"
Senior
RB
Cory Batie

#12 Cory Batie

5' 11"
Sophomore
DB
Cole Chancey

#34 Cole Chancey

5' 10"
Sophomore
RB
Dylan Hendricks

#43 Dylan Hendricks

6' 2"
Sophomore
LB
Jacory Nichols

#7 Jacory Nichols

5' 6"
Junior
DB
Preston Paden

#11 Preston Paden

5' 11"
Sophomore
QB
Taylor Bissell

#26 Taylor Bissell

5' 8"
Sophomore
RB
Tristan Tucker

#19 Tristan Tucker

5' 9"
Sophomore
RB
V

#5 V'Onte Williams

6' 1"
Junior
DB
Chris Wein

#25 Chris Wein

6' 1"
Junior
LB
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Phone: 501-279-4760