ARKADELPHIA, Ark. – The 2022 football season begins Thursday, Sept. 1 at 7 p.m. inside Carpenter-Haygood Stadium at GeoSurfaces Field when the Henderson State Reddies host the Southwestern Oklahoma State Bulldogs under the lights, kicking off what will be the 114th season of HSU football.
 
STORYLINES: SETTING THE SCENE
After going 9-2 last season, the Reddies have reached the nine-win mark in back-to-back seasons for the first time since the 2014 and 2015 seasons. In order to make it a third consecutive year, HSU will have to figure out how to replace All-GAC Second Team quarterback Adam Morse and All-American wide receiver L'liott Curry.
 
After going 0-11 last year, Southwestern Oklahoma State is beginning a new era in 2022 as head coach Josh Kirkland begins his first season at the helm of the Bulldog program. Kirkland comes from New Mexico Highlands where, in his lone season with the program, he led the Cowboys to a 5-6 record during the fall of 2021 after going 2-9 a year prior, culminating with a berth in the La Batalla Bowl.
 
Henderson State head coach Scott Maxfield has 117 wins in his career at the school. With a victory against SWOSU, Maxfield would be one win away from tying legendary head coach Sporty Carpenter for the most wins in program history with 119.
 
REDDIES REPORT: OFFENSE
The Reddies boasted the highest scoring offense in the Great American Conference last season, averaging 40.5 points per game across 11 contests. Quarterback Adam Morse and wide receiver L'liott Curry led the league in passing yards (3403) and receiving yards (1297). Morse and Curry's shoes will look to be filled by Landon Ledbetter and Xavier Malone.
 
For the second straight year, there will be a new face under center for Henderson going into the season. Ledbetter, a redshirt sophomore from Midlothian, Texas, will bring a dual threat aspect to the quarterback position for the Reddies. In just four games played in 2021 as the backup, Ledbetter ran for 92 rushing yards and three touchdowns on just 10 carries.
 
Malone was the perfect complement to Curry in 2021 in what was his first season with the Reddies after transferring in from Northeast Mississippi Community College. The junior transfer was HSU's second leading receiver, pulling down 68 receptions for 970 yards, which ranked sixth among all GAC receivers. Malone also ran for 73 yards on seven carries to compile 1043 all-purpose yards.
 
The deepest position this season for the Reddies will be running back as they have three backs who all saw at least 50 carries last season. The backfield will be led by sophomore Fredrick O'Donald, who, as a true freshman, led the team with 5.9 yards per carry on 57 total carries.
 
Henderson brings back four starters on the offensive line from last season's team in what will be one of the most experienced units in the entire conference. Last year, HSU's line paved the way for the Reddie rushing attack, which averaged 183.2 rushing yards per game.
 
REDDIES REPORT: DEFENSE – SPECIAL TEAMS
Last year, HSU finished as the No. 3 pass defense in the conference, allowing 192.1 passing yards per game, as well as leading the league with 16 interceptions. The Reddies did lose two starters in the secondary, but still have All-GAC Second Team defensive back Cameron Thomas to help shore up the back end as well as senior defensive back Deldric Shields. Thomas  logged 34 tackles and three interceptions as a redshirt freshman while Shields was fourth on last year's team with 45 tackles and was a two-time GAC Defensive Player of the Week selection.
 
Henderson returns leading tackler Jacob Greenfield, who racked up 67 tackles in 2021, which was tied for 15th most in the league. Alongside Greenfield is fellow linebacker Jayden Ford, who tallied nine tackles for loss and two forced fumbles last season.
 
Along the defensive line, the Reddies will look to veterans Shaq'ke Robinson and Peyton Usher-Pearson, who each played in all but one game for HSU in 2021. Both Robinson and Usher-Pearson were tied for third among returners with four and a half tackles for loss, while Robinson was second on last year's squad with three and half sacks.
 
Henderson returns long snapper Thomas Hathorn, who has held the starting position in every game since the opener in 2019 without missing a contest. Hathorn was named to the All-GAC Second Team in 2021 after going the entire season without a bad snap to a holder or punter.
 
Along with Hathorn, returning punter Tristan Heaton has punted for the Reddies in every game since his true freshman season in 2019. In 2021, Heaton averaged 37.3 yards per punt, with five of his 21 punts landing inside the opponent's 20-yard line.
 
After missing all of last season due to injury, wide receiver Braden Boykin is back returning kicks and punts for HSU in 2022. In 2019, Boykin led the GAC and finished sixth in all of NCAA DII in punt return average (16.3 yards per return) without muffing a kick that entire season. In 2021, Henderson was seventh in average punt return and tenth in average kickoff return in the league.
 
SCOUTING SOUTHWESTERN OKLAHOMA STATE
Southwestern is 2-8 against Henderson since 2011. Both of those wins, however, have come in Arkadelphia, where SWOSU is 2-2 in that same time span. The last time these two teams played in the Natural State was 2018, which was also the last time the Bulldogs defeated the Reddies. SWOSU scored in the final minute to hang on for a 35-31 victory.
 
Last year, SWOSU scored the second fewest points of any team league on a per-game basis with 20.5 points per game, and finished eighth in the conference in scoring defense at 33.1 points per game. Similarly, the Bulldogs were 11th in total offense (331.9 yards per game) and ninth in total defense (409.4).
 
Southwestern will begin the 2022 season with a new head coach and without its leading passing, rusher, receiver and tackler from 2021. Southwestern does bring back redshirt sophomore Logan Engle, who was the second leading tackler for SWOSU last season with 46 tackles, as well as running back Kenny Graham, who was second on the team with 245 rushing yards.
 
Down their top two receivers from last season, the Bulldogs will look to senior wideout Deshon Moreaux, who caught 21 passes for 380 yards and three touchdowns in 2021, one of which came agianst HSU. Opposite Moreaux will be Tailon Garrett, who caught 20 passes as a true freshman.
Southwestern brings experience into the trenches as junior transfers and upperclassmen make up the majority of the Bulldogs' offensive and defensive lines. That experience this year will be needed, as last season SWOSU was 12th and 11th in rushing offense and rushing defense in the GAC, respectively.
 
The youngest position on the field for Southwestern Thursday night will be the linebackers, who are made up solely of freshmen. SWOSU's secondary tells a similar story, as there is not an upperclassmen in that unit who was with the team last season. The only two upperclassmen on the back end are incoming junior transfers.
 
THE COACHING MATCHUP
Henderson State head coach Scott Maxfield is beginning his 17th season at the helm of the HSU program. In his 16 years, he has compiled a 117-59 record, which is the second most wins in school history, behind only legendary Reddie coach Sporty Carpenter with 119. Maxfield is one of eight coaches in the state of Arkansas' history to have eclipsed the 100-win mark and is currently the fifth winningest coach in the Natural State's history.
 
Josh Kirkland begins his first year as the head coach of the Southwestern Oklahoma State Bulldogs. Prior to coming to SWOSU, Kirkland was the head coach at New Mexico Highlands, where he went 5-6 in the fall of 2021 one year after the Cowboys finished 2-9. Similarly, when he was in his first year as the assistant head coach at Incarnate Word before his stint with New Mexico Highlands, the Cardinals went 6-4 one season removed from a 1-10 record.
 
THE LAST MEETING
The Reddie defense came up strong in Weatherford, Oklahoma last season as Henderson defeated SWOSU, 31-13, thanks to HSU shutting out the Bulldogs in the first half. Southwestern scored all of its 13 points in the third quarter to close the gap to 21-13 before the Reddies rattled off 10 points in the fourth to put the game away.
 
Senior wide receiver Chris Hatzis was the main story in last year's season opener and his first game as a Reddie, catching a pair of touchdowns in the first half to finish with 23 yards on three receptions. On the ground, redshirt sophomore Kris Morris, in what was his first game for Henderson, led the HSU backfield with 91 yards on 18 carries.
 
The defense picked off SWOSU's Tanner Griffin three times as Jacob Greenfield, Ketric Sledge and and Andrew Croker all claimed an interception to help hold off the Bulldog offense and secure the victory.
 
IMPORTANT GAMEDAY INFORMATION
Several different parking options are available for game day. CADC SCAT buses will be staged at the corner of 12th and Wilson streets two hours prior to kickoff, allowing fans to use the parking lots around Henderson's main campus. The free shuttles will travel down 12th street and drop fans off in two locations: the front of the Wells Center on M.H. Russell Drive, for those who wish to partake in pregame activities, and at the main gate to Carpenter-Haygood Stadium and GeoSurfaces Field. The shuttles will also run up to an hour after the game ends, allowing fans to board at the main gate as they exit and ride back to their cars on campus.

The two other available public parking lots are the Formby Center lot, located directly in front of the Formby Athletic Complex and next to the Reddie Villas, and the South Wells Center lot, located directly in front of the Duke Wells Center.

For Reddie Club members, Red and Gray reserved lots are located directly behind the main stands and above Clyde Berry Field. These lots require your Reddie Club parking passes. Handicapped parking is also available in the Red and Gray lot directly behind the main stands.

Ticket windows at the stadium open two hours before game time. Tickets can also be purchased digitally at hsusports.com/tickets. For more information on buying tickets online, CLICK HERE. Tickets are $7 for adults and $5 for children. Children five years of age or younger are allowed free admission. All students, faculty or staff with a valid Henderson State ID will be admitted for free, as will children five years old and younger.

WHERE TO LISTEN
The game will be broadcast and available by the Henderson State Sports Network on KDEL 100.9 FM and KVRC 1240 AM in Arkadelphia, KWPS 99.7 FM in Hot Springs, KYXK 106.7 FM in Gurdon, and KZYP 104.1 FM/1310 AM in Malvern. Coverage begins one hour prior to kickoff. The radio broadcast can also be heard on the web by going to the audio link for the game at hsusports.com.