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TAHLEQUAH, Okla. – The Northeastern State RiverHawks (1-8, 1-7 MIAA) will be looking to build a win streak when they travel to face the Lincoln Blue Tigers (1-8, 0-8 MIAA) in the final meeting of the two programs as members of the MIAA. Kickoff is set for 2 p.m. (CT) Nov. 9 at Dwight T. Reed Stadium (6,000) in Jefferson City, Mo.
 
The game can be heard live on KTLQ 96.3 and 1350 AM in Tahlequah with Scott Pettus and Sean Rowley providing commentary. A free audio broadcast can be found at goriverhawksgo.com. The game will also be streamed live on America One (b2tv.com, subscription based).
 
GAME NOTES
THE MATCHUP  .  .  .  The first and only meeting between Northeastern State and Lincoln came in Tahlequah last season, when the green and white collected a 45-21 victory over the Blue Tigers . . . in that matchup, Chucky Bryant caught three touchdown passes from quarterback Johnny Deaton, and Terrance Dixon registered 103 rushing yards and two TDs.
 
Series History (NSU Leads 1-0)
Date    Winner    Score
2012    NSU    45-21
 
THE HEAD COACHES  .  .  .  NSU's KENNY EVANS (Northeastern State, '82) is in his sixth season as the RiverHawks head coach . . . he was named head coach in 2008 after 28 years as an assistant coach at six other universities . . . during that span, Evans coached in six bowl games, two national playoffs and was part of a coaching staff that won eight conference championships . . . his ninth conference championship was added in 2010 as the RiverHawks posted their first winning season in 10 years. He owns an 18-24 record in his last four seasons after starting 3-19 in his first two campaigns . . . in 2012, Evans guided Northeastern State through its first season as members of the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association . . . the RiverHawks started slow against the premier competition, but they finished strong by winning their last four games to end the year at 4-6 . . . the 2011 team was one of the most successful in school history, as the RiverHawks recorded 30 team and individual school records . . . Evans has coached or recruited nine All-Americans, 11 conference players of the year, more than a dozen who have made it into the National Football League, as well as numerous All-Conference players at seven different colleges.
            LU's MIKE JONES (Benedictine College) is in his third season with the Blue Tigers . . . he has compiled a 3-28 record during his tenure . . . Jones led the Blue Tigers as they rejoined the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletic Association in 2011 after a 21-year absence, and, last season, led LU to its first MIAA win since 1989 with a 34-27 Homecoming win over Nebraska-Kearney . . . over the past two seasons Jones has improved the quality of depth in the Blue Tigers' roster, allowing LU to go toe-to-toe on the field against some of the best Division II teams in the country . . . prior to being hired at Lincoln, Jones spent the 2010 season as the linebackers coach at Southern University, a Division I historically-black university in Louisiana . . . the Jaguars' defense recorded several solid numbers in 2010, including 26 sacks, eight interceptions and 92 tackles for loss . . . Jones joined the coaching staff at Southern after a tremendously successful six years at Hazelwood East High in St. Louis . . . in 2008, Jones was elevated to the position of head coach at Hazelwood East, and in his first season he led the team to a 12-2 record and the Missouri state championship . . . Jones finished with an 18-7 overall high school coaching record . . . Jones attended the University of Missouri, where he was one of the Tigers' starting running backs . . . during his four years at Mizzou he was the Tigers' second-leading rusher, and set a school record with 104 yards in a single quarter . . . during his junior and senior seasons, Jones was the team's leading scorer . . . he finished his illustrious collegiate career with Missouri records as having the most receptions by a running back in a season (41) and in a career (72), and he was a semi-finalist for the Doak Walker Award, given annually to the country's top running back . . . Jones was inducted into the Missouri Athletic Hall of Fame in 2001.
 
STEVEN HOPS TO RECORD DAY .  .  . Steven Hopper entered the Nov. 2 contest against Southwest Baptist with 406 career rushing yards and no touchdowns . . . the sophomore running back exploded for 228 yards on 25 carries and the first three rushing touchdowns of his career . . . the rushing yardage was the most by an MIAA running back this season and was the most by an NSU back since 1999 (Carlton Booe) . . . he was selected as the Oklahoma State College Player of the Week for his efforts.
 
THE LOSING STREAK .  .  . The RiverHawks began the season 0-8, and the eight-game losing streak was the longest since the end of the 2011 season (0-2)/beginning of 2012 (0-6) . . . NSU snapped the losing skid by defeating Southwest Baptist this past week and avoided the longest losing streak since the 2004 season (0-10)/beginning of 2005 (0-4).
 
THE WRONG RECORD FALLS .  .  . Northeastern State has allowed 2,425 yards rushing through the first nine games of the season (269.4 ypg) and has broken the all-time record for rushing yards allowed in a single season . . . . the previous all-time mark was set in 2011 when the team conceded 2,289 yards . . . Northeastern State's defense has allowed three teams to post at least 350 yards rushing in a game this season (Pittsburg State-354, Eastern New Mexico-368, Central Missouri-374) . . . in comparison, the rest of the teams in the MIAA have combined for just four such occurrences (Pittsburg State had 361 against Central Oklahoma, Nebraska-Kearney had 365 against Lindenwood, Missouri Southern had 427 against Central Missouri, Missouri Southern had 607 against Lincoln).
 
ROTATING QB'S .  .  . Northeastern State has utilized three starting quarterbacks in 2013 . . . senior Johnny Deaton made his 19th career start in the season opener against Pittsburg State, but he suffered a season-ending injury against the Gorillas and was relieved by sophomore Thor Long . . . Long went on to start the first three games of his career against Missouri Southern State, Washburn and Emporia State, but he went down against the Hornets and was replaced by redshirt freshman Cory Meaders . . . the transfer from Hardin-Simmons University earned his first-career start against Northwest Missouri State, and Long took back over the reins against Missouri Western State . . . others who were high on the depth chart at QB but have suffered injuries were Josh Cousins and Prince McJunkins . . . Cousins, a redshirt freshman, suffered a season-ending injury in the 2013 spring game, while McJunkins, a sophomore who has started at wide receiver at NSU and was a high school QB, was slotted as the backup quarterback following Deaton's injury but was injured against the Ichabods . . . the last time the RiverHawks started three quarterbacks in the same season was 2009 (Woody Wilson, Kenny Davis, Pat Cook) . . . so far this season, NSU's quarterbacks have combined for just five touchdown passes (Long has three and Meaders has two) . . . there have been six occurrences in 2013 when a quarterback in the MIAA has thrown for five touchdowns or more in a single game (ESU's Brent Wilson (2), WU's Mitch Buhler (2), UCM's Hayden Hawk, PSU's Anthony Abenoja).
 
YOU CAN'T HAVE THAT .  .  . The RiverHawks did not commit a turnover against either Emporia State or Northwest Missouri State . . . the last time Northeastern State posted back-to-back games without giving the ball away was Sept. 19/26, 1998 . . . NSU also recovered its first fumble of the season (collected by senior defensive lineman Bobby Pointer) against Northwest Missouri State and has now won the turnover battle for three straight games . . . the last time Northeastern State recorded fewer turnovers than its opponent in at least three consecutive games was a four-game stretch from Sept. 25-Oct. 15, 2010.
 
GO FOR IT .  .  . NSU opponents have been especially greedy in 2013, as seven of nine have tried a fourth-down conversion at least once . . . Central Missouri and Southwest Baptist were the boldest of the six, as the Mules tried four and were successful three times and the Bearcats posted an 0-for-4 mark . . . Missouri Southern was 1-for-1, but Washburn, Emporia State and Northwest Missouri State all went 0-for-2 . . . NSU opponents are 5-for-18 (28 percent) on fourth-down tries in 2013 . . . conversely, the RiverHawks have gone 7-for-15 on fourth downs this season . . . Northeastern State attempted a fourth down in all but one game last season and finished 8-for-19 (42 percent), while opponents also attempted at least one in all but one game and finished 6-for-20 (30 percent).
 
LEADING A NATION .  .  .  Langston Jones has compiled 118 tackles through nine games so far this season . . . the senior linebacker is third in the entire NCAA in both total tackles and tackles per game (13.1) . . . he started off the year with a bang, stopping 12 Gorillas in the season opener . . . he recorded a career-high 21 stops against Missouri Southern State and followed that with a 13-tackle effort against Washburn . . . he also had seven against Emporia State, 14 against Northwest Missouri State and 12 against Missouri Western State . . . Jones exploded for 110 tackles a year ago, and he led the MIAA with 11.0 tackles per game and was also tied for 10th in the nation . . . he was named to the All-MIAA Second Team and the Don Hansen All-Super Region Three Third Team for his efforts . . . Jones was also named a 2013 USA College Football Division II Preseason All-American prior to the start of this season . . . he has registered 17 career double-digit tackle performances . . . his 364 career stops are good for first in NSU's modern era and third amongst all active NCAA Division II players.
 
SECOND-HALF SHUTOUTS  .  .  .  The RiverHawk defense held three opponents scoreless in the final 30 minutes of action last season . . . the first occurrence was Sept. 15 against Washburn, when NSU dropped a narrow 24-20 decision in Topeka, Kan. . . . Northeastern State blanked Central Missouri in the second half Oct. 20 in a 24-23 NSU victory, and the defense also held Lincoln scoreless in the second half on Nov. 3 . . . the Blue Tigers were able to record a touchdown in the fourth quarter, but it was an interception return for TD . . . NSU blanked Missouri Southern State in the second half on Sept. 14 and Southwest Baptist on Nov. 2.
 
GO RIVERHAWKS GEAR .  .  . Northeastern State University Athletics has partnered with Advanced-Online and has launced its new, one-of-a-kind online shopping site, goriverhawksgear.com . . . NSU fans have another avenue for acquiring Northeastern State apparel and accessories . . . the store is loaded with options for fans of all ages, ranging from T-shirts, polos and sweatshirts, to home office supplies, drinkware and kitchen essentials . . . every item is branded with official Northeastern State athletics and university logos, and select RiverHawks gear and accessories are customizable . . . the new online store can be accessed by simply visiting www.goriverhawksgear.com . . . the shop can also be viewed by clicking on the shopping cart at the top right of www.goriverhawksgo.com, the static graphic underneath the main picture or the rotating horizontal carousel just above the video player.
 
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