ARKADELPHIA, Ark. - Henderson State prepares to participate in college football's most intimate rivalry as they make the short trip across the street for the 98th Battle of the Ravine to face Ouachita Baptist. Kickoff is slated for 1:00 p.m. on Saturday, November 15.
STORYLINES: SETTING THE SCENES
Henderson State enters the final game of the 2025 season with a 7-3 record and looks to finish with eight wins or more for the sixth consecutive season. The Reddies have won each of their last two games and look to finish the season on a three-game winning streak for the first time since 2023, when they won their final four regular season games en route to an NCAA playoff appearance.
This Saturday marks the 98th time that Henderson State and Ouachita Baptist have squared off on the gridiron. The Reddies are 44-47-6 all time in matchups against the Tigers, but each of the last five games and eight of the last nine have been decided by one score or less, with one of those games needing an overtime period.
REDDIES REPORT: OFFENSE
Henderson State won Saturday's game despite being out-gained by over 100 yards. The 400-yard output by the Reddies was the fifth-highest of the season, and the 45 points is the fourth-best output by an HSU offense this season.
Reddie quarterback
Andrew Edwards earned his league-leading third GAC player of the week honor with his four-touchdown performance in Saturday's win over East Central. Edwards led the team in rushing for the fourth time this season and continues to lead the conference in passing yards and touchdowns thrown.
The Reddie passing attack continues to lead the conference in completion percentage, with HSU throwers completing 64.6 percent of their passes. The mark is good enough to rank 17th in the nation in Division 2.
The HSU ground game has slipped to sixth in the GAC with 179.4 yards per game gained via the rush. The committee of running backs has continued to remain balanced, with leaders
Jeremiah Davis and
Andrew Edwards both averaging just over 47 yards on the ground per game.
Conversely, the Reddie receiving corps is arguably the strongest in the league; currently, three of the top 11 receivers in the conference are from Henderson State:
Cayden Davis (4th best in terms of yardage),
Maddox Davis (6th), and
Micah Greene (11th). Those three players have accounted for 1377 yards and 10 touchdowns, over half of the team's production in both categories.
REDDIES REPORT: DEFENSE
While the Reddie defense gave up 35 points on Saturday (the most ceded by Henderson this season), it continues to be the occasional broken play that gives fits. Three of East Central's five touchdowns were over 40 yards plays.
Linebacker
Gerard Culotta continues to pace the Reddie defense. While the redshirt freshman broke his streak of double-digit tackles in Saturday's win, he eclipsed 80 total tackles on the season, best on the team by over 30 stops. Culotta is also tied for the team lead with 7.5 tackles for loss, and is tied with fellow linebacker
Jordan Owens for second on the team with 2.5 sacks.
Overall, 11 different Reddie defenders have compiled more than 20 tackles this season. Of those 11 players, six are underclassmen and have at least one year of eligibility remaining.
HSU continues a banner defensive season. The Reddies rank in the top four in the GAC in third down defense, defensive touchdowns, first downs surrendered, interceptions, fewest passing yards allowed, rush defense, scoring defense, and total defense.
REDDIES REPORT: SPECIAL TEAMS
On Saturday, Henderson State's
Taylin Paskel became the first Reddie in the GAC era to return both a kickoff and a punt for a touchdown in the same season. Paskel's 95-yard kickoff return touchdown was the first for the Reddies in 2025.
There was not much need for the HSU kicking game in Saturday's win; punter
Axel Robertson was only needed two times in the win, while
Ryan McDonnell attempted just one field goal. However, McDonnell was used quite a bit, with eight kickoffs and six successful extra-point attempts.
THE OPPONENT: OUACHITA BAPTIST
Ouachita Baptist comes into Saturday's game with a 7-3 record, the most losses by a Tiger team since 2017 and the most losses in a regular season since a 7-4 season in 2016. OBU's season got off to a rough start; the Tigers started 1-3, with losses at East Central, at home against Arkansas Tech, and at Harding.
OBU has battled the injury bug this season, particularly at the quarterback position. Team passing leader Nate TenBarge has been out just over a month with an injury, and true freshman Tre Nichols was sidelined at the end of last week's win at Southwestern Oklahoma; true freshman Jordan Walker was four-of-five passing for 85 yards on the game-winning drive, including the 51-yard touchdown strike to Carter McElhany.
Ouachita leads the Great American Conference in three key statistical categories: red zone offense, passing efficiency, and turnover margin. They score on 82.9 percent of their trips inside the opponent 20-yard line and have turned the ball over just 10 times while forcing 24 giveaways this season.
Wide receiver Carter McElhany is one of the top receivers and return men in the league. His seven receiving touchdowns pace the conferences, and he is second in total receiving yards with 674. The junior from Greenbrier has also been credited with five kick returns for 171 yards, including a 99-yard return in the season opener at East Central, for which he earned GAC Special Teams Player of the Week honors.
The Tigers are one of the best teams in the league in creating turnovers, despite being one of the lower-ranked teams in terms of backfield pressures. OBU has forced 24 turnovers this season, with 11 interceptions and 13 recovered fumbles. The Tiger defense has forced 18 fumbles; linebacker Justin Crutchmer leads the team with six forces and is tied for the team lead with two recoveries.
Ouachita boasts the second-best scoring offense in the conference despite ranking 11th in time of possession. The offense no doubt benefits from winning the field position battle, but the OBU defense has not scored a defensive touchdown or safety of any kind this season.
THE COACHING MATCHUP
In his second year as head football coach, Henderson State's
Greg Holsworth has quickly moved up the ladder, surpassing eight previous Reddie head coaches in career wins. His career .714 winning percentage ranks fifth in program history.
Ouachita's Todd Knight is the all-time winningest football coach in the state of Arkansas at any level. The OBU alum is in his 25th season as head coach at his alma mater, following a six-year stint as head coach at Delta State. Knight previously served as an assistant at Delta State and UTEP.
THE LAST MEETING
Henderson State dropped the 97th Battle of the Ravine to Ouachita Baptist by a score of 27-20 at Carpenter-Haygood Stadium. It was the fifth consecutive edition of the rivalry to be determined by one possession.
In the first quarter, the teams traded field goals to tie the game at three. With just under 12 minutes to go in the second, OBU quarterback Eli Livingston found receiver Bo Baker for a 60-yard touchdown.
Kolby King made a 29-yard field goal to cut the deficit to four heading into the halftime break.
After a scoreless third quarter, OBU added three points to the lead before
Andrew Edwards ran the ball 17 yards for an equalizing touchdown less than two minutes later. Following a go-ahead rushing score from Kendel Givens,
Cayden Davis knotted the game once again on a 35-yard touchdown pass from Edwards.On the first play out of the two-minute timeout, Givens took a direct snap one yard to the end zone to give the Tigers a 27-20 lead with 1:54 remaining. The Reddies managed to drive inside Ouachita's 40-yard line, but a stop on fourth down sealed the victory for the visitors.
BATTLE OF THE RAVINE
For ticketing, parking, and tailgating information for Saturday's game, please consult
the 98th Battle of the Ravine Information Guide.
LIVE STATS AND ADDITIONAL LIVE COVERAGE
Visit
hsusports.com/coverage to view live stats and video.
