Henderson State will play its final home game of the season as the Reddies host Southern Arkansas on Saturday at Carpenter-Haygood Stadium/Ruggles Field with kickoff slated for 2 p.m. The game will be featured on ESPN3 and will also be Family Day. In addition, 17 Reddie seniors will be honored prior to kickoff.
FAMILY DAY
Prior to the game, the HSU Office of Student Affairs has partnered with Country Club Entertainment to provide a variety of Family Day tailgating activities prior to kickoff.
Activities will include a zip-line located near the entrance of the Duke Wells Center, along with a tropical slide, photo booth, arcade games, carnival rides and much more.
Families are encouraged to arrive between 10 a.m. - 1 p.m. to participate in all of the pre-game activities scheduled prior to 2 p.m.
Each week, the football team participates in the "Reddie Walk" where the players/coaching staff walk from the Formby Athletic Center into the stadium. Saturday's Reddie Walk will take place at approximately 12:30, and fans are encouraged to cheer on the team as they make their way through the line of band/cheerleaders behind the Duke Wells Center and into the stadium.
Sodexo will also be providing food under the red tent in front of Wells Gym for a pre-game meal.
Menu includes: Crispy Chicken Sandwich, BBQ Pulled Pork on Bun, Curly Fries, Cole Slaw, Loaded Pasta Salad, Brownies, Chocolate Chip Bar, Bottled Water, Sweet Tea, and Lemonade.
Cost for each meal is $10 for adults and $5 for kids 12 years of age and younger.
THE GAME
The Reddies are looking for its first home win of the season, while the Muleriders are attempting to remain tied for first-place in the GAC.
Despite totaling 411 yards of offense on 89 plays, Henderson State's second half rally fell short last week in a 24-16 loss to East Central. The Reddies enter the game with a 4-4 record and will be attempting to snap a five-game home losing streak dating back to last year.
Evan Lassiter had a career-high 322 passing yards while completing 41-of-60 passes in last week's setback. The senior from Coral Springs, Fla. ranks eighth all-time in career passing yards with 2,738 including 1,474 yards this season. In five starts, Lassiter has thrown for 300-plus yards three times.
Andrew Black has been the "Do-It-All" guy for the Reddies. Black started the season at quarterback for the Reddies and has completed 46-of-76 passes for 559 yards. Also a threat to run the football, Black has carried the ball 70 times for 282 yards and a team-best eight touchdowns. Last week, he was utilized as part of the Reddie receiving unit, catching seven passes for a game-best 66 yards.
Lassiter targeted 12 receivers last weekend, including
Ben Johnson and
Fernando Van Hook. Johnson leads the team with 385 yards on 29 receptions, while Van Hook has 293 yards on 30 grabs.
The Reddies will have to get plenty of pressure on SAU quarterback Barrett Renner as the Muleriders lead the GAC in passing offense averaging 273.5 yards per game.
Sam Johnson will be one of those players that will look to give the Muleriders fits as the senior from Sapulpa, Okla. has 11.5 tackles for lost yardage along with 5.5 sacks.
Cameron Sonnier will also be called upon to provide pressure. Sonnier has 46 tackles on the year including 3.0 tackles for loss.
Southern Arkansas enters the contest with a 6-2 record after a 49-19 beating of No. 25 Southeastern Oklahoma last week. With the win, the Muleriders are in a four-way tie for first-place in the GAC standings.
Offensively, SAU averages 34.6 points and 447.5 yards of total offense per game which ranks second in the GAC. The Muleriders points per game average ranks second in the GAC.
Barrett Renner leads the SAU offense averaging 272.4 passing yards per game, including a league best 24 touchdown tosses and a completion percentage of 67.0 (191-of-285).
The junior from Rowlett, Texas has thrown for 8,880 career passing yards including 84 touchdowns. Last year against the Reddies, Renner completed 21-of-33 passes for 318 yards.
Michael Nunnery leads the SAU ground attack averaging 79.1 yards per game which ranks third in the GAC. The senior from Bossier City, La. has totaled 633 yards on 119 carries with 8 touchdowns. Nunnery has eclipsed the 100-yard mark four times this season including a season-high 112 yards last week against Southeastern Oklahoma.
The Muleriders are loaded with talented receivers with four players having 300-plus yards. Tanner Hudson leads the team with 393 yards on 32 receptions and five touchdowns, while Karonce Higgins has 33 catches for 380 yards, also having five scores. Henderson will also have to contend with Jonathan Weisheit and Jared Lancaster. Weisheit has collected 337 yards on 31 receptions with Lancaster having 24 grabs for 325 yards.
Defensively, SAU leads the league in tackles for loss (62) and quarterback sacks (20).
The Muleriders have an impressive defensive line duo in Antonio and Anthony Washington. Anthony Washington has 44 tackles on the year and leads the GAC in tackles for loss with 14.5. Antonio Washington is equally impressive with 44 stops and 8.0 tackles for lost yardage.
Southern Arkansas and Henderson State meet for the 81st time in a series which dates back to 1919. The Reddies have a 44-34-2 lead in the series including winning the last nine straight. Southern Arkansas won last year 50-24 in El Dorado at the Murphy USA Classic.
SENIOR DAY
Prior to kickoff, Henderson State will honor its 17 seniors playing their final game at Carpenter-Haygood Stadium/Ruggles Field.
Those 17 seniors include;
Andrew Black,
Justin Carpenter,
Henry Davis,
Adam Greenfield,
Sam Johnson,
Evan Lassiter,
John Laubacher,
Cody Mikell,
Byron Miller,
Brandon Quinterro,
Dmitri Scott, AJ Smith,
Cory Stitle,
Adrian Tucker,
Logan Warlick,
Paul Whitmill, and Crissean Williams-Caver.
ESPN3
Henderson State will play its first ever game on the ESPN family. With ESPN3 coming to town, there will be some changes in the live streaming for the match-up. Henderson will not live stream the game via Reddie Athletics on YouTube. Instead, the ESPN3 link will be what all Reddies fans who cannot make it to the game use to see Henderson face off with the Muleriders.
There are two ways to access ESPN3's coverage of the Reddies on Saturday:
1.
WatchESPN.com: Fans who don't have the ESPN app on a phone or tablet can still visit WatchESPN.com to see the ESPN3 coverage of Henderson State vs. Southern Arkansas. The WatchESPN.com link will replace the normal YouTube link on the Football schedule page of hsusports.com next to the SAU game.
2.
ESPN App via tablet computer or iPhone: Fans can download the ESPN App on their phone or tablet and will be able to live stream the game directly from ESPN's app onto their device while they are on the go.
If you haven't accessed WatchESPN or the ESPN app previously, you need to verify (authenticate) your account. This is done by selecting your cable and/or internet provider and entering your account information (username and password) for your personal account set up through your provider. Users with a WatchESPN affiliated TV or internet provider must authenticate to gain access to live ESPN networks, events and replays, including this game.
Users accessing WatchESPN or the ESPN app via an on-campus or U.S. military network receive complimentary access to the content.
For any issues you may have, or questions about the process of viewing the game on ESPN3/WatchESPN, go to
ESPN's streaming support page.
HENDERSON STATE SPORTS NETWORK
Fans unable to attend Saturday can follow the game courtesy of the Henderson State Sports Network with 106.9 FM KYXK in Arkadelphia being the flagship station.
In addition, affiliates 99.7 FM KWPS which covers Hot Springs, as well as 100.9 KDEL in Arkadelphia and KZYP 1310 AM and 104.1 FM in Malvern. The game can also be heard on 920 AM, The Sports Animal in Little Rock.
The Henderson State Sports Network will also be available on-line at hsusports.com.
The broadcast team of Phil Elson, RJ Hawk and Cyrus Wittig will call all the action of Reddies football with the Domino's Pregame Show set for 1 p.m.
GAME DAY LINKS
GAME NOTES
LIVE STATS
LIVE AUDIO
ESPN3
