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Football Scott Goode (8/29/22)

No. 9 Harding Football vs. East Central -- GAME NOTES

#9 Harding Bisons (0-0, 0-0) vs. East Central Tigers (0-0, 0-0)
Sept. 1, 2022 • 6 p.m. • Ada, Okla. • Koi Ishto Stadium

Game Story
Harding Football opens its 71st season of intercollegiate competition Thursday at 6 p.m. against East Central at Koi Ishto Stadium in Ada, Oklahoma. The Bisons and Tigers will open the season against each other for the second straight season and for the first time in Ada since a 22-19 Harding victory in 2003.

Harding is seeking its sixth straight trip to the NCAA Division II Playoffs. Only two other Division II teams have qualified for the last five tournaments--Northwest Missouri State and Ferris State.

Harding has a 16-3 series lead over East Central and has won the last nine meetings. The Bisons have won the last three meetings in Ada, with East Central's last victory coming 23-16 in overtime on Nov. 5, 2011.

Harding is ranked No. 9 in the AFCA Preseason Top 25 Coaches Poll. It is the sixth time Harding has been ranked in the preseason poll and its second-highest preseason ranking. The others: 2015 (#21), 2017 (#15), 2018 (#7), 2019 (#18), and 2021 (#22). Harding is No. No. 9 in the D2Football.com poll.

Harding enters the game with a five-game road winning streak, dating to a 32-31 loss at Southeastern Oklahoma on Sept. 11, 2021. Harding also enters on a nine-game GAC winning streak, also dating back to the Southeastern game last season.

Harding is 44-23-3 (.650) in its previous 70 season openers. The Bisons have won 15 of their last 19 and 10 of their last 12 openers. Harding defeated East Central 28-0 in Searcy in last season's opener.

Harding was picked first in the Great American Conference Preseason Coaches' Poll. The coaches selected East Central sixth.

Harding selected six captains earlier this week in a vote of the players. The 2022 captains are WR Michael Cendrick, DL Patrick Healy, DB Oric Walker, Jr., DB Grant Fitzhugh, DB Cade Pugh and OL Dalton Allen.

Up Next
Harding will play its first of six home games, hosting Southeastern Oklahoma. The Bisons have won nine of the last 10 overall and nine straight in Searcy against the Savage Storm. Kickoff at First Security Stadium is at 7 p.m.

The Coaches
Paul Simmons begins his fifth season as head coach at Harding. He has a 41-11 overall record and led Harding to the NCAA II Playoffs in each of his first four seasons, including a spot in the national semifinals in 2017. He is in his 16th 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.

Kris McCullough (Henderson St.) will be coaching his first game at East Central.

Series History
Harding and East Central are meeting for the 20th time with the Bisons leading 16-3. Harding has won nine straight and 15 of the last 16 meetings with East Central's lone win coming 16-13 in overtime in 2011. Harding has won the last three meetings in Ada. Harding has averaged 44.2 points in the last nine games of the series. Paul Simmons led teams are 4-0 vs. East Central.

Home/Road Records
Harding was 5-1 on the road in 2021 and carries a five-game road winning streak into the game. East Central was 3-2 at home in 2021, losing its last two home games.

Last Meeting
On the night senior Cole Chancey became the Great American Conference's career rushing leader, Harding's defense also had a memorable game as the 22nd-ranked Bisons shut out East Central 28-0 before 3,500 fans on Sept. 4, 2021,  at First Security Stadium.

Chancey, a native of Commerce, Georgia, rushed 17 times for 102 yards and three touchdowns. He has 3,775 rushing yards, surpassing Ouachita Baptist's Kris Oliver, who had 3,763 yards from 2015-18.

Chancey scored on runs of 6 yards and 1 yard in the first quarter and broke the record on a 24-yard touchdown run with 4:06 left in the third. It was his 15th career 100-yard rushing game and fifth with three or more touchdowns.

Harding's defense recorded its seven opening-night shutout since the Bisons restarted their football program in 1959. The last shutout was 20-0 over Southern Arkansas in 2010. The 28-point margin was Harding's second-largest shutout behind only a 39-0 victory over Lane in 1992.

Streaks, Trends, Records
Harding has led NCAA Division II in rushing four times since 2011, including each of the last two seasons. In 2021, Harding averaged a nation's best and school record 390.1 rushing yards per game.

Harding has led NCAA Division II in scoring defense in two of the last three seasons and ranked fourth in 2021 at 12.8 points per game.

Harding has eight players on its current roster that have three seasons of experience and seven have received their undergraduate degrees -- Michael Cendrick, Jake Madding, Kage Citty, Cade Pugh, Grant Fitzhugh, Dalton Allen and James Townsdin. Ben Karikari has also received his undergraduate degree.

Cendrick, a wide receiver from Arlington, Texas, leads active Harding players with 37 games played and 24 starts. Patrick Healy, a defensive lineman from Bartlett, Tennessee, has also played in 37 games.

Over the last eight seasons, Harding has 424 rushing TD and allowed only 75. During that time, Harding has rushed for 35,936 yards and allowed only 8,193.

Harding has outscored its opponents 493-141 in the first quarter of games over the last four seasons.

In 13 games last season, Harding punted only 21 times. The Bisons' 1.6 punts per game set an NCAA Division II record.

A Quick Look at ECU
Last Season, East Central was fourth in the GAC in total defense (370.4) and seventh in total offense (372.0).

Quarterback Kenny Hrncir was seventh in the GAC with 197.7 passing yards per game and sixth with 18 passing TD in 2021. Running back Miles Davis rushed for 55.9 yards per game, good for ninth in the conference.

Returning Team Leaders
HARDING (2021 stats)
Rushing - Jhalen Spicer: 53 rushes, 524 yards, 6 TD
Passing - None
Receiving - Kage Citty: 5 receptions, 113 yards, 3 TD
Defense - Cade Pugh: 46 tackles; Nathaniel Wallace: 8 TFL, 4.5 sacks; Cooper Carroll, Oric Walker, Jr.: 2 INT

EAST CENTRAL (2021 stats)
Rushing - Miles Davis: 103 rushes, 559 yards, 6 TD
Passing - Kenny Hrncir: 153-290, 2,175 yards, 13 INT, 18 TD
Receiving - JayQuan Lincoln: 26 receptions, 468 yards, 4 TD
Defense - Cody Alexander: 65 tackles; Michael Onwuzurike: 8.5 TFL, 3.5 sacks; Jalen Baldwin: 5 INT
 
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Players Mentioned

Cole Chancey

#34 Cole Chancey

RB
5' 11"
Senior
Dalton Allen

#67 Dalton Allen

OL
6' 1"
Senior
Cooper Carroll

#33 Cooper Carroll

DB
6' 1"
Junior
Michael Cendrick

#13 Michael Cendrick

WR
6' 3"
Senior
Kage Citty

#17 Kage Citty

WR
6' 4"
Senior
Grant Fitzhugh

#22 Grant Fitzhugh

DB
6' 2"
Senior
Patrick Healy

#90 Patrick Healy

DL
6' 0"
Senior
Ben Karikari

#30 Ben Karikari

LB
6' 1"
Senior
Jake Madding

#15 Jake Madding

WR
6' 1"
Senior
Cade Pugh

#20 Cade Pugh

DB
6' 1"
Senior

Players Mentioned

Cole Chancey

#34 Cole Chancey

5' 11"
Senior
RB
Dalton Allen

#67 Dalton Allen

6' 1"
Senior
OL
Cooper Carroll

#33 Cooper Carroll

6' 1"
Junior
DB
Michael Cendrick

#13 Michael Cendrick

6' 3"
Senior
WR
Kage Citty

#17 Kage Citty

6' 4"
Senior
WR
Grant Fitzhugh

#22 Grant Fitzhugh

6' 2"
Senior
DB
Patrick Healy

#90 Patrick Healy

6' 0"
Senior
DL
Ben Karikari

#30 Ben Karikari

6' 1"
Senior
LB
Jake Madding

#15 Jake Madding

6' 1"
Senior
WR
Cade Pugh

#20 Cade Pugh

6' 1"
Senior
DB
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Phone: 501-279-4760