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TAHLEQUAH, Okla. – The Northeastern State RiverHawks (0-3, 0-3 MIAA) will look to pick up their first win of the season when the Emporia State Hornets (1-2, 1-2 MIAA) come to town. Kickoff is set for 6 p.m. (CT) Sept. 27 at Doc Wadley Stadium (8,300) in Tahlequah, Oklahoma.
 
The game can be heard live on KEOK 102.1 FM in Tahlequah with Bill Huddleston and Sean Rowley providing commentary. A free audio broadcast can be found at goriverhawksgo.com. The game will also be streamed live on Stretch Internet (http://portal.stretchinternet.com/nsu/, subscription based). A football-only season pass is available for $69.95, and a day pass can be purchased for $9.95.
 
GAME NOTES
THE MATCHUP .  .  . Northeastern State and Emporia State have met 11 times in the history of the two programs . . . the RiverHawks own a 7-3-1 all-time record against the Hornets . . . the two programs tied 0-0 in the first meeting in 1938, but the Redmen picked up a 25-0 win in 1939 and would go on to own ESU until the Hornets would finally clip NSU 15-6 in 1989 . . . Northeastern State exacted revenge in 1990 with a 34-22 victory . . . ESU has taken the first pair of meetings since the two became members of the same conference in 2012.
 
Series History (NSU Leads 7-3-1)
Date          Winner                       Score
2013          ESU                            45-24
2012          ESU                            30-20
1990          NSU                            34-22
1989          ESU                            15-6
1957          NSU                            25-6
1956          NSU                            27-12
1955          NSU                            30-12
1954          NSU                            6-0
1952          NSU                            14-7
1939          NSU                            25-0
1938          Tie                               0-0
 
THE HEAD COACHES  .  .  .  NSU's ROB ROBINSON (William Jewell, '00) is in his first season as the RiverHawks head coach . . . he was named the 19th head football coach in school history on Dec. 19, 2013 . . . he owns a 0-3 all-time record . . . Robinson spent the previous 12 years under Craig Schurig as a member of the Washburn Ichabod coaching staff, serving as the offensive coordinator for the last four seasons . . . he also directed the running backs from 2007-13 and coached the wide receivers from 2002-06 . . . he served as the recruiting coordinator from 2002-10 and was the academic coordinator from 2010-13 . . . Robinson was an integral member of a Washburn staff that completely turned around the Ichabod program . . . Washburn averaged 3.3 wins from 1989-03 and had just one winning season, but the Ichabods averaged 7.9 wins from 2004-13 and posted 10 straight winning campaigns . . . Robinson is the second former coordinator under Schurig's tutelage to become the head coach of another program, joining Fort Hays State's Chris Brown . . . Robinson spent the 2001 season at Pittsburg State as a graduate assistant, coaching the defensive backs with Ichabod head coach Craig Schurig . . . the Gorillas won the MIAA Championship that year.
            ESU's GARIN HIGGINS (Emporia State, '92) is in his eighth season with the Hornets . . . he has compiled a 39-42 record during his tenure . . . he led ESU to a 9-2 record and the school's first NCAA playoff appearance since 2003 a year ago . . . he was named the 21st head football coach at Emporia State on December 15, 2006 . . . he has orchestrated one of the great turnarounds in Emporia State history as he has led the Hornets to a 20-6 record over the last two+ seasons after going 19-36 in his first five years . . . the 19 wins from 2012-13 were the most since 1988-89, while Higgins was a quarterback for Emporia State . . . Higgins compiled a 51-9 record (.857) as the head coach at Northwestern Oklahoma State University before becoming the co-offensive coordinator at NCAA Division II member Minnesota State in 2005 . . . prior to returning to ESU he was the offensive coordinator at Northeastern State.
 
THE EMERGENCE OF DERRICK MOORE .  .  . Due to an injury to Joel Rockmore, an opportunity arose for redshirt freshman Derrick Moore to make his presence felt . . . he played just the fourth quarter against Fort Hays State and led NSU in rushing . . . he was then awarded his first-career start against Missouri Western State and went on to post a career-best 50 yards on the ground . . . he is currently listed at No. 1 on the depth chart and will look to earn more carries as the season progresses.
 
FROM RECEIVER TO LEADING THE D .  .  . Sophomore Steffon Herd came to NSU as a wide receiver . . . he played in 10 games and made four starts as a redshirt freshman in 2013, and he finished the campaign with 14 receptions for 217 yards . . . due to a depth issue in the secondary, new coach Rob Robinson made the decision to convert Herd to safety . . . that decision is paying off in spades, as Herd leads the RiverHawks in both total tackles (21) and solo tackles (17) through three weeks this season . . . his solo tackle total ranks 51st in the country this season.
 
RECONSTRUCTING THE O-LINE .  .  . From left to right, Northeastern State entered the 2014 season with a projected starting offensive line of Ethan James (LT), Jonathan Brown (LG), Ross Dvorak (C), Trevon Lawson (RG), and Tyler Easter (RT) . . . due to a plethora of injuries, the front five looks much different heading into Week 4 of the season . . . the projected starting lineup this week is Brown (LT), Devin Crisp (LG), Anthony Frazier (C), Chance Douthit (RG), and Easter (RT) . . . James was hurt in the preseason and will miss the entire year . . . redshirt freshman Dakota Ritchie started the first game of the year at the left tackle position, but he suffered a season-ending injury in that contest . . . Dvorak and Lawson both missed the Missouri Western State game due to injuries and likely will not play this week . . . against the Griffons, Northeastern State started an offensive line with five linemen playing positions for the first times in their careers . . . outside of Brown, who was starting in his 16th-career game, the other four linemen entered the game with three starts combined.
 
ROBINSON ON THE RADIO .  .  . Northeastern State football coach Rob Robinson, in conjunction with Lakes Country 102.1 FM, has announced the debut of the new Rob Robinson Coaches Show . . . the weekly show is held at Mazzio's Pizza in Tahlequah on Thursday nights at 6 p.m. . . . it began Sept. 4 and will run through the end of the football season . . . the host of the coaches show is Matt Reynolds . . . Robinson will be live each week highlighting last week's contest and previewing NSU's upcoming MIAA matchup . . . various assistant coaches and players will join the show throughout the season . . . NSU encourages students, faculty and fans to come out and support the RiverHawks football program every Thursday night at Mazzio's . . . Mazzio's is located at 1712 S. Muskogee Avenue . . . all 11 Northeastern State football games will also be broadcast live on 102.1 FM this season.
 
MIAA, NSU PARTNER WITH STRETCH INTERNET FOR 2014 .  .  . The Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association has announced a partnership with Stretch Internet® to provide streaming of conference events, beginning in 2014 . . . Stretch partners with the league and members institutions to broadcast all conference football and men's and women's basketball games, as well as selected other conference events . . . fans will be able to view all conference football and basketball games live through almost any internet connected device, including Smart TV's, Apple TV and Google Chromecast . . . the new GameCentral 2.0 platform will also allow fans to access live stats in the video stream . . . the new platform also features archived games and other video content.
 
2014 NSU TAILGATING GUIDELINES .  .  . Entrance will open three hours prior to kickoff and will close to incoming vehicles two hours prior kickoff . . . extreme caution must be taken when driving through the area . . . tailgating assignments consist of the equivalent of thre parking spots . . . each group will get one assigned area . . . each assigned tailgate area will be allowed a maximum of one vehicle . . . areas will be assigned in sequence based on order of arrival . . . it is important to fill the tailgate areas in sequence in order to maximize space in an orderly, safe fashion . . . all participants are expected to respect fellow tailgaters . . . all participants are expected to follow local, state, and federal laws . . . participants who are currently enrolled NSU students are expected to abide by NSU Student Rules and Regulations . . . no tent stakes may be used on parking lot asphalt . . . vehicles will not be allowed to leave the tailgate area until kickoff.
 
COACH TO CURE MD SET FOR SEPT. 25-27 .  .  . For the sixth year in a row, college football coaches nationwide will join together in support of the Coach To Cure MD program, which will be held during games of Saturday, September 27, 2014 . . . the rapidly growing annual effort has raised more than a million dollars to battle Duchenne muscular dystrophy . . . on Sept. 27, American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) members will wear a Coach To Cure MD logo patch on the sidelines and college football fans will be asked to donate to research projects supported by Parent Project Muscular Dystrophy (PPMD), the largest nonprofit organization in the U.S. focused entirely on Duchenne muscular dystrophy . . . more than 60 of those games will recognize a local Duchenne family on the field before or during the game . . . football fans can donate to Duchenne muscular dystrophy research by either going online to www.CoachtoCureMD.org or by texting the word CURE to 90999 (a $5 donation will automatically be added to your next phone bill) . . . last year, more than 10,000 college coaches at more than 600 different institutions participated in Coach To Cure MD events . . . both those figures are higher than in any of the program's first six years (2008-13) . . . the five-year fundraising total is just over $1 million . . . Duchenne muscular dystrophy is the most common fatal genetic disorder diagnosed during childhood and primarily affects boys across all races and cultures . . . boys and young men with Duchenne muscular dystrophy develop progressive muscle weakness that eventually causes loss of mobility, wheelchair dependency and a decline in respiratory and cardiac function . . . currently, there is no cure for Duchenne muscular dystrophy and limited therapeutic options exist.
 
SEASON TICKETS ON SALE  .  .  . Season ticket packages are now on sale for the five-game home portion of the football schedule . . . prices begin as low as $40 per person for an adult general admission ticket . . . season chair back seats begin at $100 each, and additional seats after purchasing four are $90 each . . . season ticket holders receive the benefit of sitting in comfortable chair back seat . . . they also receive first option to purchase playoff tickets, premier seating for NSU's five home MIAA contests, excellent view of the playing surface and an optimal view of the halftime show featuring the NSU Band . . . the 2014 campaign will mark the second year of the $25 single-game Family 4-Pack, which includes two general admission adult tickets and two general admission student tickets (ages 4 through high school) . . . the Family 4-Pack may be purchased at any time and used at any regular season home game . . . all Northeastern State home football games are contested at Doc Wadley Stadium . . . also for convenience, the Athletics Department will continue utilizing online ticketing for football and basketball . . . online ticketing will allow for advanced ticket sales . . . for questions regarding ticket options, please contact Brynn Hamner at 918.444.3901.
 
TICKETS REQUIRED FOR ENTRY IN 2014-15 .  .  . All fans wishing to attend an NSU home football or basketball contest this season will be required to show a ticket prior to entering the facilities . . . this is the second-straight year ID's have been required at those events . . . NSU students and faculty/staff are allowed free admittance, but NSU ID's are not accepted as a form of entry . . . tickets can be purchased at NSU's ticketing website, goriverhawkstickets.com . . . NSU students and faculty/staff can access goriverhawkstickets.com and secure their free tickets (either printable or downloaded to your smart phone) through their goNSU accounts . . . for questions regarding ticket options, please contact Brynn Hamner at 918.444.3901.
 
GO RIVERHAWKS GEAR .  .  . Northeastern State University Athletics has partnered with Advanced-Online and launched a 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 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.
 
-GoRiverHawksGo.com-