Home Field Playoff History: This marks the third time Harding and Pittsburg State have met in the NCAA Division II Playoffs, with Harding hosting the contest at First Security Stadium for the first time.

DII's Longest Home Streak Threat: Harding enters the game with the second-longest active home winning streak in Division II at 22 games.

The Great American Conference Standard: Harding owns a massive share of GAC playoff history, accounting for 13 of the 15 total NCAA Playoff wins ever recorded by a Great American Conference team.

National Statistical Dominance: The Harding Bisons lead all of NCAA Division II in six major team statistical categories, including rushing offense, total defense, scoring defense, and pass efficiency defense.

Unstoppable on Third Down: Harding's third-down conversion rate of 55.3% is 2nd in all of DII, highlighting their offensive efficiency, while their defense limits opponents to only a 30.4% conversion rate.

Record Rushing Watch: Harding is within striking distance of breaking two program records: they need 671 more rush yards to top their all-time record of 6,160 yards (set in 2023) and 9 more rushing touchdowns to break the record of 79.

The Iron Man QB: Harding QB Cole Keylon is set to make his 53rd career start, having already won an astounding 48 games as a starter. He is also the Bisons' career leader in pass efficiency (197.7).

Harlon Hill Hopeful's Efficiency: Fullback Andrew Miller, Harding's Harlon Hill Award nominee, is a statistical outlier, ranking 2nd in DII with 8.33 yards per carry and 4th in total rushing yards (1,558).

GAC Player of the Year Marksman: Slotback Braden Jay, the GAC Offensive Player of the Year, holds the HU and DII career record at 12.3 yards per rush and is one of only two Harding players with three 1,000-yard rushing seasons.

Tackles Leader and Playoff Veteran: Linebacker Clark Griffin, the GAC Defensive Player of the Year, is the NCAA DII active leader with 399 career tackles and has been a dominant force in the playoffs, logging 51 tackles, 11.5 TFL, and 4.0 sacks in 7 career playoff games.

AFCA Poll Consistency: Harding has a remarkably consistent national profile, having appeared in the AFCA Top 25 Coaches Poll for 89 consecutive weeks.