NORTHEASTERN STATE (2-5, 2-5 MIAA)
vs. (10/7) NORTHWEST MISSOURI (5-1, 5-1 MIAA)
Saturday, October 23 -- 1 p.m.
Gable Field at Doc Wadley Stadium (Tahlequah, Okla.)
All-Time Series: Northeastern State trails 10-0

TAHLEQUAH -- Northeastern State will host #10/7-ranked Northwest Missouri Saturday afternoon with walk-up tickets for the game costing $5.

TOP STORYLINES

1 | Saturday's game will be the first time this season the RiverHawks will face a team ranked inside the top-25 nationally.  Northwest Missouri checks in at ten in the Coaches' Poll and seventh in the D2Football.com Poll.

2 | It's the Hall of Fame Game, with NSU Athletics honoring two student-athletes Danielle (Miron) Henry (women's golf; 2000-04), Stephanie (Bird) Reisdorf (women's golf; 2005-09), and the 1999 Football team.  A formal ceremony takes place inside the NSU Event Center at 7 p.m.   To date, 177 individuals and three teams have been included in the Northeastern State University Athletics Hall of Fame .

3 | Mark Wheeland leads the MIAA with seven touchdown catches this season and had caught for 100-yards in three games.  The junior is ranked 22nd nationally in touchdowns, which is also tops in the MIAA.


4 | Marques Williams is tenth in the nation averaging 6.3 solo tackles per game, and is second in the MIAA.  In total tackles, he is fourth in the MIAA, averaging 9.1 per game, which is 30th best nationally. 

5 | Pregame tailgating at The Landing will be comfortable with temperatures in the mid to upper 70s and a kickoff temperature at 81 degrees. 


NSU QUICK HITS
>> Northeastern State is second in the nation with just one lost fumble, committed in week-seven at Missouri Western.  The RiverHawks are tied with Central Okla. and Pittsburg State.

>> Madison Wrather has started 29 consecutive games on the RiverHawks' offensive line, the longest streak among student-athletes on the NSU roster.  

>> Through seven games, Isaiah Davis has two 100-yard rushing games this season and is the first running back since 2012 (Joel Rockmore) to have at least two 100-yard days in the backfield.  He had a second three-touchdown game against Missouri Western, catching two and running against the Griffons. 

>> Keon Moore had his first 100-yard rushing day against Lincoln with 103 on the ground.  Moore had an 84 yard run for a touchdown which was the longest this season in the MIAA.  In the NSU record book, it is eighth-longest. 

>> NSU's tight end Matt Amos has his longest career pass reception against Lincoln for 62 yards.  His catch was the third-biggest play this season for NSU

>> Dashawn Williams has two of the top-four biggest plays of the season for NSU on one-handed grabs.  He had a 65-yard catch at Missouri Western, the second-longest play of the year for NSU.

>> Redshirt freshman Grant Elerick holds a completion average of 59.4 percent, which is 54th in the nation, and will enter Saturday's game with 1,077 passing yards.

>> Jacob Frazier has appeared three this season and is 14-for-36 in pass attempts, for 339 yards of offense, and has two touchdown passes.
>> Northeastern State's seven touchdowns against Lincoln are the most since Oct. 2011 vs. Harding and tied for seventh-most in the modern scoring era (1945-).  The five rushing touchdowns were tied for the fifth-most and highest total since Nov. 2003 at Central Oklahoma. 

>> Northeastern State's defense is tied for fifth in the MIAA with 13 sacks this season.  Through the entirety of the 2019 season, they had five.  COVID-freshman Blake Corn leads the RiverHawks this season with 2.5 sacks. 

>> The Northeastern State defense had limited Missouri Western to field goals in five trips to the red zone and 173 passing yards, the lowest this season for the RiverHawks.

>> Triumphant Olatunji was named MIAA Football Special Teams Athlete of the Week on Sept 27.  The sophomore had the longest kick return this season in the MIAA at Lincoln with a 70 yard run back.  Olatunji is the second NSU football player to earn MIAA Football Special Teams Athlete of the Week honors (Garrett Powell, 2015).

>> Taoheed Karim is third n the MIAA with six pass breakups. 

>> Tim Davis is a sixth-year member for the RiverHawks and averaged 39.1 yards per punt through seven weeks, which is third-best in the MIAA and 47th in the nation.  The graduate student has two 57 yard punts this season, which are tied for ninth-longest this season in the MIAA. 

>> Tyler Crawford, NSU's starting kicker, was a late addition to the team after transferring from Nebraska at the start of camp.  A Broken Arrow native has a field goal in the last three games for NSU. 

THE SERIES WITH THE BEARCATS
>> Northeastern State and Northwest Missouri opened the series with a home-and-home during the 1939 and 1940 seasons.
>> Northwest Missouri has won in five visits to Tahlequah.

ABOUT THE BEARCATS
>> After a road loss to Washburn Saturday, Northwest will look to avoid back-to-back setbacks for the first time since 2017.  The end of the 2001 season is the last time Northwest Missouri lost consecutive road contests.  

>> The last two games by Northwest Missouri have been decided by one point. 

>> The Bearcats had their week-two home game canceled with Lincoln due to COVID-19 protocols with the Blue Tigers. 

>> Northwest Missouri is second in the nation allowing just 45 rushing yards per game.  In points allowed per game, they are fourth nationally, with foes scoring 9.5 a game.  The defense allowed just 93 first downs, the fewest in the MIAA and eighth lowest in NCAA Division II football.

>> Al McKeller leads the MIAA, is fifth nationally with 134.2 rushing yards per game, and has scored five touchdowns.  He is also second in the MIAA with 156.7 all-purpose yards per game and 13th nationally. 

>> Mike Hohensee has 12 touchdown passes this year and is third nationally in passing efficiency (182.2) and second in yards per pass attempt (10.1). 

>> The Bearcats have the top success rate in the MIAA in third-down conversions at 52.6-percent, which is also the seventh-highest nationally. 

>> The Oklahoma count is one on the Northwest Missouri roster.