Preview: MSSU football team to play Northeastern State

(From MSSU Lions Athletic News)

The Missouri Southern football team will look to stop a two-game skid by playing host to Northeastern State this weekend. Kickoff from Fred G. Hughes Stadium is slated for 2:07 pm and the game will be televised as the MIAA TV Game of the Week. 

Game Information

Date: Saturday, October 18, 2014
Kick-Off: 2:07 p.m., CT
Location: Joplin, Mo.
Site: Fred G. Stadium (7,000)
Series Record:  Northeastern State leads series 10-8
Coaches: Daryl Daye (15-12 at MSSU, 30-40 overall) | Rob Robinson (0-6 overall and at NSU)

Media Coverage

MSSU Radio: FM 99.7 Real American Country - Mike McClure, Play-by-Play, Aaron Lewis, Color
Video Webcast: http://www.mssulions.com/links/hlqdgb
Live Stats: http://www.mssulions.com/sports/fball/2014-15/boxscores/20141018_jpz1.xml
Lions on Facebook:  Facebook.com/missourisouthernlions
Lions on Twitter: @mososports; @mosofootball

The Coaches: Daryl Daye is in his third season as the head coach at Missouri Southern. In his second season at the helm of the Lions, Daye lifted the program to a level unseen in the past 20 years. The Lions finished the season 7-3 overall and were 5-3 in the MIAA. Southern also broke a 20-year drought with a 35-21 win at No. 9 Pittsburg State in the season-finale. The Lions won for the first time in Pittsburg since 1983 and for the first time against the Gorillas since 1993. Nine Lions were named All-MIAA, and 11 players were named to the MIAA Academic Honor Roll. The Lions' Chris Barnwell and Gatlin Ridgway were named All-Region with Barnwell earning All-American honors. Giresse Forchu was an Academic All-District selection and the Lions ended the 2013 campaign as Division II's leader in time of possession, holding onto the ball for an average of 35:14 each game. Southern also ranked second nationally in both rushing yardage and fewest passes intercepted. In all, the Lions ranked in the top ten nationally in nine different categories, while ranking 14th in turnovers lost. 

The 2014 campaign will be the first at NSU for Rob Robinson. He was named the 19th head football coach in school history on Dec. 19, 2013 and is 0-6 in his first year.Robinson spent the previous 12 years under Craig Schurig as a member of the Washburn 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. Washburn competed in the NCAA Division II Football Playoffs three times in a nine-year span (2005, '07, '11) and captured the first MIAA Championship in school history in 2005. The Ichabods also won the 2004 Mineral Water Bowl and the 2010 Kanza Bowl.

The Series: This will be the 19th meeting in the series between the two schools. Northeastern State leads the series 10-8, but the Lions have won seven of the last ten games between the two teams. Northeastern State was the Lions' first-ever opponent as a four-year school as NSU downed Southern 45-0 in 1968. The Riverhawks dominated the series early on, winning the first seven games in a row, but it has been mostly Southern over the last nine outings. The Lions are 4-5 in Tahlequah, while holding an 4-5 mark in Joplin. 

A Victory vs. Northeastern Would:  be the third in a row over the RiverHawks and be the ninth in the last 12 meetings between the two schools.  

NFL Representation: The Lions will be one of just two MIAA teams (Washburn) to have two different starters on NFL rosters to start the season. Brandon Williams is a starter on the defensive line for the Baltimore Ravens, while Allen Barbre started on the offensive line for the Philadelphia Eagles, but suffered an ankle injury in game one and will be out for the 2014 season. 

2013 NCAA Stats Leaders:  The Missouri Southern football team led Division II in 2013 in time of possession, averaging 35:14 of possession each game. The team also ranked second nationally in both rushing yardage and fewest passes intercepted. In all, the Lions ranked in the top ten nationally in nine different categories, while ranking 14th in turnovers lost.

2014 NCAA Stat Leaders:  After six games, the Lions currently lead Division II in blocked punts allowed and red zone offense. The Lions rank second in passing yards per completion, while ranking eighth in both rushing offense and time of possession. They rank 12th in sacks allowed (fewest), 17th in third down conversion percentage, 26th in kickoff return defense, 31st in blocked kicks allowed, 34th in fourth-down conversion percentage and 37th in punting. 

MIAA Stats Leaders: The Lions currently lead the MIAA in third down conversion percentage, blocked kicks and punts allowed, passing yards per completion, red zone offense, rushing offense and sacks allowed. The Lions rank second in time of possession, while ranking third in fewest passes intercepted and fourth in both punting and fewest turnovers.  

National Rankings: Giresse Forchu ranks ninth in Division II in rushing touchdowns, while ranking 20th nationally in scoring. Kyle Jaski ranks 19th in punting. 

MIAA Individual Rankings: Forchu leads the MIAA in rushing touchdowns, while ranking second in scoring. Jaski ranks second in the MIAA in punting, while Ty'Quan Hayes ranks third in kick returns.   

Rushing It: The Lions are ranked 8th nationally in rushing and lead the MIAA after six games. The Lions are averaging 291.5 yards rushing and have 24 rushing touchdowns going into week six. 

Multiple Touchdown Games: Giresse Forchu had three rushing touchdowns against Central Missouri. He has four multiple touchdown games this year and has ten rushing scores through six games.   

Spread the Wealth: The Lions have seven different players with rushing touchdowns this year, led by Forchu's ten. Michael Nelson has five, while Shannon Sanunders has three and Chris Barnwell and Scott Lathrop have two. Will Gregory and Chris Jeffries have one each. 

Welcome Back Chris: 2013 All-American Chris Barnwell had been inactive the previous two weeks, but he came back against Central Oklahoma and had two rushing touchdowns against the Bronchos.  

Defensive steppin up: The Lions' defense had four interceptions, six tackles for a loss, 11 pass break ups and six quarterback hurries in the game against Washburn. 

Sack Em Up: Senior defensive lineman Ryon Phillips had two sacks against No. 1 ranked Northwest Missouri. The two gave him 14 on his career, ranking him fifth all-time in MSSU history.    

Team Captains: The Missouri Southern coaching staff and team have voted in four captains for the 2014 season. Seniors Austin Wolfe, Ryon Phillips and Dalvin Taylor, along with junior Jay McDowell will serve as team captains this year.  

Tough League/Region:  The MIAA has two teams in the coaches top 25 this week. Northwest Missouri is No. 1, followed by Pittsburg State at No. 17. The Super Region Three, which the Lions are a part of, has nine teams in the top 25. There are 13 teams total that are either ranked or receiving votes in the poll from the region. 

Climbing the Charts: With his team's 42-21 win over Washburn on September 27, head coach Daryl Daye moved into a tie for fourth-place overall in all-time wins at MSSU. He is currently second in overall win percentage. 

Pass It Long:  The Lions don't throw the ball often, but when they do it tends to be effective. Southern has five pass plays of 50 or more yards this year with a long of 80.  

Weather Report:  The weather report for the Joplin area on Saturday calls for a high of 70 degrees with mostly sunny conditions. There is a zero percent chance of rain. 

Next Up:  Missouri Southern will travel to Lindenwood University on Oct. 25 to take on the Lions. Kickoff from Hunter Stadium is slated for 1:30 pm.