TAHLEQUAH, Okla. – The Northeastern State RiverHawks (2-6, 2-6 MIAA) will return home this weekend for their annual Homecoming game. They will be competing against their long-time rival, the Central Oklahoma Bronchos (3-5, 3-5 MIAA). Kickoff is set for 1 p.m. Oct. 31 at Doc Wadley Stadium (8,300) in Tahlequah, Oklahoma. UCO has won three of their last four games after starting the season 0-4.

The game can be heard live on KEOK 102.1 FM in Tahlequah with Bill Huddleston (play-by-play) and Sean Rowley (color) providing commentary. A free audio broadcast can be found at goriverhawksgo.com. The game will 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 Central Oklahoma own one of the longest-standing rivalries in Division II college football, with the two teams locking up 75 times since 1912 . . . UCO leads the all-time series 46-27-2, but the two teams are tied 9-9 since NSU joined the NCAA in 1997 . . . the Bronchos won the first 10 matchups and shutout the then-Redmen nine-straight times, but NSU picked up its first victory over Central Oklahoma in 1933 (14-0) . . . UCO then embarked on another nine-game win streak before NSU was able to start gaining some traction in 1951 . . . Northeastern State has brought home the President's Cup four of the last five years.
 
Series History (UCO Leads 46-27-2)
Complete game-by-game results can be found in the game notes (PDF).

THE HEAD COACHES  .  .  .  NSU's ROB ROBINSON (William Jewell, '00) is in his second season as the RiverHawks head coach . . . he was named the 19th head football coach in school history on Dec. 19, 2013 . . . he owns a 2-17 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.
            UCO'S NICK BOBECK (Central Oklahoma, '02) is in his fourth season with the Bronchos . . . he has compiled a 15-25 record during his tenure . . . he led the Bronchos to an 8-4 record in 2014 with a third-place finish in the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association after the team was predicted to come in 10th in the 12-team league by conference coaches . . . it was UCO's first winning season since 2008 and the first eight-win campaign since 2004 . . . the Bronchos also made their first postseason appearance since 2003, losing in the Mineral Water Bowl game 42-10 to Sioux Falls . . . Bobeck became UCO's 13th head coach on Jan. 4, 2012 following a sparkling four-year head coaching stint at junior college powerhouse Navarro (Texas) College . . . he played at UCO and then was a graduate assistant coach for the Bronchos . . . the Bulldogs won the 2010 national championship along with three regular season Southwest Junior College Football Conference (SWJCFC) titles during his tenure there . . . Bobeck was a four-year letterman and two-year starter at fullback for UCO from 1999-02, earning first-team All-Lone Star Conference North Division honors as a senior . . . Bobeck went to Texas A&M as an offensive line coach in 2006 when the Aggies finished 9-4 and earned a berth in the Holiday Bowl.
 
HAVE A DAY, DARIAN .  .  . NSU picked up a second-straight win by defeating Missouri Southern State 31-21 on Oct. 17 . . . the RiverHawks were led by a monster defensive effort from Darian Morris . . . the junior linebacker finished with nine tackles, four pass breakups, two fumble recoveries, one interception, one forced fumble, one tackle for loss, one half sack, and one school-record 97-yard fumble recovery return for touchdown . . .the last time an NSU player had a fumble recovery for a touchdown was on Oct. 20, 2012 . . . the last time an NSU player had two fumble recoveries in the same game was on Sept. 13, 2008 . . . the last time an NSU player had at least one fumble recovery and one interception in the same game was on Oct. 21, 2006.
 
STREAKING NO MORE .  .  . Northeastern State defeated Nebraska-Kearney 31-14 on Oct. 10 to snap what was the nation's fourth-longest active losing streak . . . the RiverHawks had failed to win a game since the end of the 2013 season, but they picked up a decisive triumph over the Lopers to break into the win column for the first time in the Rob Robinson era . . . NSU scored first, last and plenty of times in between to secure the 17-point victory . . . senior running back Joel Rockmore rushed the ball 18 times for a career-high 210 yards, while also scoring touchdowns on runs of 76 and 85 yards . . . junior wideout Matthew Butler also recorded a 74-yard TD reception in the third quarter . . . those were the three longest plays of the season . . . Northeastern State held the Lopers scoreless over the final two quarters and kept them below 200 yards of total offense (199) . . . the last time Northeastern State held an opponent to fewer than 200 yards of total offense was August 27, 2011.
 
YEA, HE'S STILL GOT IT .  .  . Joel Rockmore was an all-region performer in 2012 and a preseason All-American in 2013 . . . the senior tailback exploded out of the gates in 2013 but suffered a season-ending injury in the second game of the year . . . he returned in 2014 but struggled to regain his elite form, finishing with just 272 yards rushing on 86 carries (3.2 yards per carry) in nine games (30.2 yards per game) . . . he started off well this season - 252 yards through the first three games - but he then erupted for a career-high 210 yards and two touchdowns on just 18 carries in a win over Nebraska-Kearney on Oct. 10 . . . he busted runs of 85 and 76 yards, which were the two longest rushes of his career . . . he also tallied 101 yards rushing on 25 carries in a win over Missouri Southern State on Oct. 17 . . . the 25 carries were the most for him in a single game since he had 33 against Central Oklahoma on Nov. 10, 2012.
 
SACK PARTY .  .  . Northeastern State has already recorded 22 quarterback sacks through seven games this season, which is the most in a single season since the 2010 squad also finished with 22 . . . the RiverHawks had four sacks each against Pittsburg State, Missouri Western State and Nebraska-Kearney, while registering three against Central Missouri and two each against Fort Hays State, Northwest Missouri State and Missouri Southern State. . . the last time NSU posted multiple four-sack games in a single season was in 2010 . . . enjoying the party the most is senior linebacker Irving Steele, who currently leads the team with 4.0 sacks . . . if Steele registers at least one more half sack this season, it will be the most in a single campaign since Boswell finished with 7.0 in 2011 . . . Steffon Herd, T'Nheous Smith and Quincy Dotson are all tied for second on the team with 3.0 sacks each.
 
THE TALE OF TWO SCHEDULES .  .  . Northeastern State competed against the seventh most difficult schedule in all of Division II during the first five weeks of the season in terms of opponent win percentage . . . all five opponents the RiverHawks faced have been nationally-ranked or received votes in the AFCA poll at some point this season . . . the record of those five teams through the first five weeks of the season stood at 21-4 (.840), and the only losses suffered were against each other . . . the back half of the schedule for NSU is considerably less treacherous, as the final six opponents were a combined 9-21 (.300) through five games . . . the RiverHawks have already taken advantage of the softer schedule, as they defeated Nebraska-Kearney 31-14 on Oct. 10 and Missouri Southern State 31-21 on Oct. 17.
 
2015 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 three 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.
 
GO RIVERHAWKS GEAR .  .  . Northeastern State University Athletics partners with Advanced-Online to bring fans 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.