GAME INFORMATION
ARKANSAS TECH WONDER BOYS 3-6 (3-6 GAC)	NORTHWESTERN OKLAHOMA RANGERS 1-8 (1-8 GAC)
Saturday, November 6 | 2 p.m. Thone Stadium at Buerkle Field | Russellville, Ark. LIVE STATS | LIVE VIDEO | LISTEN LIVE | ATU NOTES (PDF) | NWOSU NOTES

KICKING OFF

The road is now in the rear-view mirror for the Arkansas Tech football team as they played their final road game of the season last weekend at Southwestern Oklahoma. In that game, the Wonder Boys came-from-behind and upended the Bulldogs 15-14 thanks to a game-winning field goal by Jesus Zizumbo with just eight seconds left.

The thrilling win matches the Wonder Boys win total from head coach Kyle Shipp's inaugural season in 2019. The Wonder Boys will now have two more games in front of them to try and establish a new high water mark under Coach Shipp.

First up is a game against Northwestern Oklahoma this Saturday afternoon. It was the game against the Rangers in 2019 where Shipp secured his first win as head coach of the Wonder Boys. That game was a low-scoring and hard-fought battle that was won by Tech in the fourth quarter.

Tied at seven-all early in the fourth, Tech grabbed the lead on a 55-yard fumble return for a touchdown by Gio Williams. With just under a minute left to play, the Wonder Boys put the game away on a four-yard rush by Tanner Gaines.

That initial win for Shipp sparked what was a three-game winning streak that year

TECH TIDBITS

OFFENSE

» The Wonder Boys rank eighth in the GAC in total offense with an average of 351.7 ypg. On the ground the Wonder Boys average 144.2 ypg rushing to rank sixth in the GAC. Through the air, Tech ranks eighth in the GAC and averages 207.4 ypg.

» QB Jack Lindsey has been the Wonder Boys starter under center for all nine games. He has totaled 1,723 yards through the air and tossed 12 TDs. Lindsey has also added 179 yards rushing and two scores on the ground. Overall, Lindsey is averaging 211.3 yards of total offense.

» Senior tailback Caleb Batie is the team's leading rusher with 457 net yards. Batie has four rushing TDs. Freshman tight end Jordan Edington is also tied with Batie in rushing TDs with four. The second-leading rusher is Ron Thompson with 412 yards on 92 carries.

» Redshirt freshman Joyrion Chase has the most receiving yards with 498 on 41 receptions. He also leads the team with three TD receptions.

DEFENSE

» The Wonder Boys rank seventh in the GAC in scoring defense with an average of 31.2 ppg allowed. They also rank 10th in total defense allowing an average of 418.2 ypg. On the ground, Tech's opponents average 189.6 ypg rushing to rank ninth in the GAC. Through the air, Tech's defense ranks 10th in the GAC averaging 228.7 ypg.

» As as team, the Wonder Boys have come away with 10 turnovers with four INTs and six fumble recoveries. Four different players account for the four picks while Tyrus Fort has three of the six fumble recoveries.

SPECIAL TEAMS

» Senior kicker Jesus Zizumbo is a perfect 27-of-27 on extra-point attempts and is 10-of-14 in field goal tries. Zizumbo has now moved into fifth all-time at Tech in made field goals with 28. He is three away from pulling into a tie for fourth all-time.

ABOUT NORTHWESTERN OKLAHOMA
LAST GAME

The Northwestern Oklahoma Rangers come into Saturday's game with an overall record of 1-8. In their most-recent game, the Rangers ran into the run-heavy buzz-saw that is the Harding Bisons offense. In that game, the Bisons did not attempt a pass and rolled up 685 yards rushing on just 63 attempts. The Bisons also scored 10 rushing touchdowns and won 73- 14 over Northwestern Oklahoma.

THE COACH

The Rangers are coached by Matt Walter, who is in his seventh year as the head coach at Northwestern Oklahoma. In his time as head coach, Walter has amassed a 21-43 overall record. His most wins in a season came in 2017 when he guided the Rangers to a 5-6 record.

SCOUTING THE OFFENSE

Offensively, the Rangers feature a spread multiple offensive attack. Through nine games this year, NWOSU has the 10th-ranked scoring offense in the GAC at 21.1 ppg and the eighth-ranked total offense with an average of 348.1 ypg. Through the air, the Rangers are averaging 227.1 ypg to rank sixth in the GAC. On the ground, NWOSU is averaging 121.0 ypg to rank 11th in the GAC.

The leading rusher thus far has been Calion Baker with 375 yards gained. Tanner Clarkson is second in rushing yards with 241 and leads the team with four rushing TDs.

In the passing game, the Rangers are led by Tanner Clarkson. Thus far, Clarkson has thrown for 2,084 yards and 15 touchdowns. Averaging 231.6 yards per game, Clarkson has also thrown six interceptions.

The leading receiver for NWOSU is Gavin Garner with 783 yards on 46 receptions. He also leads the team in TD receptions with eight.

SCOUTING THE DEFENSE

Defensively, the Rangers base out of the 4-3 scheme and currently rank 12th in scoring defense, allowing 45.8 ppg. Their total defense ranks 12th in the GAC allowing 500.6 ypg of total offense by their opponents. Through the air, NWOSU ranks ninth in the GAC with 215.0 ypg. On the ground, the Rangers allow an average of 285.6 ypg and rank 12th in the GAC.

Individually, Northwestern Oklahoma has four players with 50 or more and are led in stops by James Ellis with 78. Brian Holiday leads the team in tackles for loss with 12.0 and is tied for the team-lead in sacks with 4.5. The Rangers defense has forced 13 turnovers with eight INTs and five fumble recoveries. Braxton Kearns and Terry Atta-Peters are tied for the team-lead in interceptions with two apiece.

THE SERIES

This will be the 18th meeting all-time between Arkansas Tech and Northwestern Oklahoma in a series that dates back to 1956. After that initial meeting in Russellville, the two NAIA schools didn't play until 1987, and then played eight-straight years until Tech moved to the NCAA. In 2012, NWOSU joined Tech in the GAC and became conference opponents. In that time span, Tech leads the series 7-1 Overall, Tech leads the series 13-4.