GAME INFORMATION
ARKANSAS TECH WONDER BOYS 4-1 (4-1 GAC)	EAST CENTRAL TIGERS 3-2 (3-2 GAC)
Saturday, October 11 | 2 p.m. Koi Ishto Stadium at Norris Field | Ada, Okla. LIVE STATS | LIVE VIDEO | LISTEN LIVE | ATU NOTES (PDF)

KICKING OFF
The Arkansas Tech football team is set to begin a pivotal two-game road swing this weekend as they are set to play at East Central on Saturday, October 11. Kick-off is scheduled for 2 p.m., marking the first mid-afternoon kickoff for the Wonder Boys this season.
 
THE SERIES      
This will be the 27th meeting all-time between Arkansas Tech and East Central in a series that dates back to 1926. The series has been played in earnest since 2011 as both ECU and Tech were charter members of the GAC. Since 2011, ECU leads 8-5. Overall, ECU holds a 15-11 advantage in the all-time series. This will also be the 11th game played between the two in Ada and ECU has a slim-lead in those games, 6-5.
 

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TECH(NICALLY) SPEAKING
LAST GAME
The Wonder Boys got back in the win column in come-from-behind fashion this past Saturday with a 14-10 win at home against Southeastern Oklahoma. In that game, Tech trailed 10-0 through three quarters of action, but an interception by Trey Howard early in the fourth quarter turned the momentum in favor of Tech. They would go on to score 14 points in the final quarter to earn the win.
 
SCOUTING THE OFFENSE
Through five games, the Wonder Boys are averaging 28.4 points per game and 340.6 yards of total offense. Their ppg average ranks fourth in the GAC, while their total offense is seventh. Through the air, Tech is averaging 178.8 yards per game to rank seventh in the GAC. On the ground, the Wonder Boys are rushing for 161.8 yards per game to rank seventh.
 
Jack Dawson, Carter Hensley and Dominic Feliciano have all taken snaps at QB for the Wonder Boys, but Dawson has been the starter and primary signal-caller. He is 62-for-107 with 850 yards and eight touchdowns. Hensley is 4-for-6 for 44 yards in limited appearances. Feliciano has primarily run the ball when in at QB and has carried it 15 times and has four touchdowns.
 
On the ground, the Wonder Boys have had nine different ball carriers. Freshman Bryson Roland currently leads the team in yards with 419. He has three of the team's nine rushing touchdowns. Quarterbacks Dawson and Feliciano account for the remaining five rushing scores for Tech with Feliciano having four and Dawson, two.
 
In terms of receiving, Tech has had 14 players with at least one reception. Jared Long leads the team in receptions so far with 13 and is the leader in receiving yards with 191. Long also has the most touchdown receptions with two. Carldell Sirmons, Tracy Daniels, Austin Marshall, Gavin Waits, Bryson Roland and Cam McFarlin have the other receiving touchdowns.
 
SCOUTING THE DEFENSE
Defensively the Wonder Boys are allowing 355.8 yards of total offense per game and 14.8 points against per game. Their total defense ranks sixth in the GAC, while their scoring defense is second.
 
Individually, the Wonder Boys have 14 players with double-digit tackles and three with at least 30 stops. Linebackers Sam Jackson and Julien Lopez lead the team in overall tackles with 34.0. Israel Whitmore leads the team in sacks with 2.5 and is tied with Tyriq Taiwo and Vershaud Richardson in tackles for loss at 4.5.
 
As a team, the Wonder Boys have come away with nine takeaways with seven being interceptions and three being fumble recoveries. Julien Lopez, Diego Sanchez and Tyrique Jones are tied for the team-lead in interceptions with two each. Jones also has one of the three fumble recoveries and is joined by Israel Whitmore and Gregor Jones for the other two.
 
SPECIAL TEAMS
In the kicking game, Logan Tymeson has handled all the field goal and point-after-touchdown opportunities thus far. He is 17-of-17 in PATs and 3-of-5 in field goals.
 
Technically, punting has been done by two players, but one of those has been quarterback Dawson, with five pooch punts. Regular punter Angus Greaves has had 17 punts and is averaging 37.8 yards per punt.
 
In the return game, the Wonder Boys have had a rotation of Carldell Sirmons, De'Rion Crooms and Tracy Daniels handle most of the opportunities on kickoffs and punts. Sirmons has had six kickoff returns and is averaging 24.7 yards per return while Daniels has had five and is averaging 18.2 yards per return. Crooms has had two kickoff returns and is averaging 24.0 yards per return. Sirmons has had five punt returns and is averaging 13.6 yards per return.
 
COACH THOMPSON
Roy Thompson enters his first season as head football coach at Arkansas Tech after spending the previous nine at GAC-rival Ouachita Baptist as the Tigers' defensive coordinator. On the coaching staff a total of 12 years at Ouachita, Thompson spent the 2016 and 2017 seasons as the co-Defensive Coordinator before taking over the reins fully starting with the 2018 season. 
 
Over that seven-year stretch (2020 was not played due to COVID-19), Ouachita has had three seasons in which its points allowed per game were under 20.0, ranking it in the top-10 nationally in DII. The other three seasons, the highest points allowed in a season was 20.7 points per game. Over that same stretch, Thompson's defensive unit allowed under 320.0 yards per game four times, ranking in the top-35 nationally.
 
Thompson's time at Ouachita also yielded a ton of championship hardware as well as NCAA postseason experience. Out of the eight seasons played with Thompson on staff, Ouachita won the GAC championship five times and reached the NCAA playoffs each of those seasons as well, with the most recent being in 2024. Of those five conference titles, three saw the Tigers go unbeaten in the regular season.
 

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KNOW YO FOE
LAST GAME     
East Central enters the game against Tech 3-2 on the season and are most-recently ran into the buzzsaw that is Harding football. ECU would lose to the No. 2-ranked team in the country 65-0. The Tigers would manage just 78 yards of total offense in the game.
 
THE COACH     
The Tigers are coached by John Litrenta, who is in his third year overall as the head coach. In his time at ECU, Litrenta is 11-16.
           
SCOUTING THE OFFENSE          
Offensively, the Tigers have the seventh-ranked scoring offense in the GAC at 23.2 ppg and the 10th-ranked total offense with an average of 314.4 ypg. Through the air, the Tigers are averaging 182.6 ypg to rank sixth in the GAC. On the ground, East Central is averaging 131.8 ypg to rank ninth in the GAC.
 
The leading rusher thus far is Cade Searcy with 346 yards gained on 54 carries. Searcy also leads the team in rushing scores with three. The second-leading rusher in attempts and yards is JaQuarion Turner. Turner has 206 yards on 34 carries and has a pair of touchdowns.
 
Sergio Kennedy has been the starter and primary signal-caller for the Tigers. He is 72-for-130 with 896 yards and four touchdowns. He also has three interceptions. Collin Willetts is 2-for-7 for 17 yards in limited opportunities.
 
East Central has four receivers up over 100 yards on the season and are led by Kaden Jones with 256 yards on 14 receptions. Jones is also tied for the most receiving touchdowns on the team with one. Three other Tigers have at least one touchdown catch to tie with Jones.
 
SCOUTING THE DEFENSE          
Defensively, the Tigers rank seventh in scoring defense at 23.2 ppg. Their total defense ranks 10th in the GAC allowing 314.4 ypg of total offense by their opponents. Through the air, ECU ranks 6th in the GAC at 182.6 average ypg allowed. On the ground, the Tigers allow an average of 131.8 ypg and rank ninth in the GAC.
 
Individually, East Central has had 14 players record double-digit tackles and three with at least 20 stops. They are led Caden Pickens with 41.0. A total of 20 players have accounted for at least 0.5 tackles for lost yardage with three being tied at 3.5. Michael Onwuzurike leads the team in sacks with 3.0.
 
The Tigers' defense has forced eight turnovers through five games with three of the takeaways being interceptions and five being fumble recoveries. Three different Tigers have an interception and five account for the team's fumble recoveries.