Game 5: Central Missouri (0-4, 0-4 MIAA) at Northeastern State (2-2, 2-2 MIAA)
Saturday, Oct. 2, 2021 | 2 p.m. | Tahlequah, Okla. (Gable Field at Doc Wadley Stadium)
Radio: 1450 AM, 107.9 FM, 98.5 FM /
Video: MIAA Network
UCM Game Notes (PDF)
THIS WEEK
• University of Central Missouri Mules football (0-4, 0-4 MIAA) is slated to travel to Tahlequah, Okla., to take on the Northeastern State RiverHawks (2-2, 2-2 MIAA) in an MIAA contest Saturday, Oct. 2, at 2 p.m. at Gable Field at Doc Wadley Stadium.
• The Mules are coming off a 31-28 loss to No. 16 Nebraska Kearney in Warrensburg Sept. 25.
• Northeastern State slipped by Lincoln, 49-48, in overtime in its last contest Sept. 25 in Jefferson City, Mo.
• Mules football finished the 2019 season with an overall record of 11-2 and won a share of the MIAA Championship -- the 13th in program history. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, UCM did not play an official schedule in 2020.
• The RiverHawks went 0-11 in their last official season of play in 2019. In the COVID-19 pandemic-shortened 2020 season, Northeastern State played one game against Tarleton State, falling 38-0 in Stephenville, Texas.
• Central Missouri tied for second with Fort Hays State and received one first-place vote in the 2021 MIAA Preseason Coaches' Poll. The Mules were also tabbed second in the MIAA Preseason Media Poll and received a first-place vote.
• Northeastern State was picked to finish tied for 10th in the MIAA preseason coaches' poll and 11th in the preseason media poll.
ON THE AIR
• The game will be broadcast on 1450 KOKO, 98.5 The Bar, the new 107.9 FM and warrensburgradio.com with Greg Hassler and Brinkley Beever calling the action. The Pregame Show will begin at 1:10 p.m. on the UCM Sports Network.
• The game will also be webcast online through Central Missouri's Blue Frame Internet portal at http://www.themiaanetwork.com/ucmmules/. It is a pay-to-view webcast. MIAA Network content is available live via DVR and is immediately archived for on-demand viewing after each event.
• All MIAA football games are also available for viewing on The MIAA Network Apps for Amazon Fire TV, Android TV, Apple TV and Roku.
SERIES HISTORY
• The Mules and RiverHawks have met only 15 times in the all-time series that dates back to 1962. Northeastern State holds a narrow 8-7 advantage in the series.
• UCM is 3-3 against Northeastern State in Tahlequah since 1966.
• Mules' head coach
Jim Svoboda is 7-1 against the RiverHawks, including a 3-1 mark in Tahlequah.
PREVIOUSLY AGAINST NORTHEASTERN STATE
• The Mules dominated on both sides of the ball enroute to a 70-7 blowout of Northeastern State Sept. 12, 2019 in Tahlequah, Okla. With the win, UCM moved to 2-0 on the season.
• Quick strike offense was the name of the game for Central Missouri. They scored 10 touchdowns, six of them in less than two minutes.
• The Mules recorded more than 500 yards for the second straight week, coming close to 600 with 592 yards of offense. The RiverHawks were only able to gain 166 yards.
• Central Missouri was brilliant on third downs converting 7-of-11 and going 2-of-3 on fourth downs. NSU was just 4-for-17 on their third down attempts.
MULES IN THE POLLS
• The Mules were picked to finish second in the MIAA preseason media poll and tied for second by the MIAA coaches.
ABOUT THE RIVERHAWKS
• Northeastern State enters the weekend at 2-2 overall and in the MIAA after a narrow 49-48 overtime win over the Lincoln Blue Tigers Saturday, Sept. 25, in Jefferson City, Mo.
• The game was a tale of two halves offensively, with the intermission score sitting at 13-7 with NSU trailing. Both teams blew up with 50 combined points scored in just the third quarter.
• Northeastern State had an opportunity to win the game on the final play of regulation, but the Blue Tigers blocked a 25-yard field goal attempt as time expired.
• Northeastern State had 515 yards of offense, with 275 of those coming on the ground.
• The RiverHawks enter the week ranked 11th in scoring defense in the MIAA, allowing 37.8 points per game.
LAST TIME OUT FOR THE MULES
• TJ Davis scored on a one-yard run with 22 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter to give the No. 16 Nebraska Kearney Lopers a 31-28 comeback win over the University of Central Missouri Mules football team Saturday, Sept. 25, at Walton Stadium/Kennedy Field.
• The Mules trailed the Lopers, 24-21, with just under eight minutes to go in the fourth before quarterback
Logan Twehous engineered a five-play, 68-yard drive capped off by a 26-yard touchdown pass to Cam Saunders with 6:01 on the clock, putting UCM in front, 28-24.
• Nebraska Kearney responded, however, and manufactured what turned out to be the game-winning drive – 10 plays, 70 yards in 2:42 – punctuated by Davis' one-yard scamper into the endzone with 22 ticks left in the game, giving UNK the 31-28 victory.
• In his first start of 2021, Twehous went 25-for-44 with 312 yards passing and threw for three touchdowns while also rushing for 39 yards on seven carries.
• Saunders paced the Mules receiving efforts, scoring a pair of TDs on eight receptions with 138 yards.
Arkell Smith caught his first-career touchdown pass and added 58 yards through the air, while
Trevor Twehous found the endzone and had 26 yards.
•
Koby Wilkerson rushed for 84 yards on 15 carries, leading Central Missouri on the ground, respectively.
• Defensively,
Codie Bell tallied eight total tackles, while
Tyron Taylor added seven tackles, and
Chima Dunga and
Travis DeGrate both ad six tackles, leading the Mules.
• The Mules out-gained the Lopers for the game, 490 to 456, but UNK was able to post a 33:42 to 26:18 advantage in time of possession and went 4-for-4 in the red zone.
THE MULES IN MIAA PLAY
• The Mules are 0-4 in MIAA play after their 31-28 setback against No. 16 Nebraska Kearney Sept. 25.
• UCM now stands at 73-36 in conference games under
Jim Svoboda.
• Cam Saunders ranks fourth in receiving in the latest MIAA statistics with an average of 93.3 yards per game.
Logan Twehous is eighth in passing with 123.4 yards per game.
THE MULES AT HOME
• The Mules went a perfect 6-0 at home at Walton Stadium/Kennedy Field in 2019 and are 43-12 at home under
Jim Svoboda.
• UCM outscored its adversaries at home in 2019, 46.5 points to 24 points. The Mules also outgained their opponents in total yards, 3,243 to 2,268.
• The Mules are 250-187-13 overall and 2021 will be their 89th season playing home games at Walton Stadium/Kennedy Field.
THE MULES ON THE ROAD
• Central Missouri is 31-22 in road games during the
Jim Svoboda era following their 29-10 setback at Washburn Sept. 9.
• The Mules finished 2019 with a 5-2 record away from Warrensburg.
WHEN LEADING AT THE HALF
• The Mules are 63-11 during the
Jim Svoboda era when leading at halftime.
• The Mules are 14-28 all-time under Coach Svoboda when trailing at halftime after falling to No. 3 Northwest Missouri Sept. 18.
21 AND UP
• UCM is 79-20 under
Jim Svoboda when scoring at least 21 points.
• When scoring 30 or more points, UCM is 77-7 during the Svoboda era and 46-1 when scoring 40 or more points.
SCORING STREAK CONTINUES
• Central Missouri has scored in 317 straight games.
• The streak dates to week three of the 1991 season.
MULES FOOTBALL HISTORY
• In the 121 seasons of UCM Football the Mules have compiled a 576-523-51 (.521) record in 1,150 total games.
• The Mules have won 10 or more games four times in the history of the program and have posted 13 seasons of eight or more wins.
• UCM tied the program-record for wins in a season with 11 in 2019. The Mules also won 11 games in 2010 --
Jim Svoboda's first season at the helm.
• UCM has won or shared 13 MIAA championships in school history with the last coming in 2019.
• The Mules have qualified for the postseason 10 times in their history, including three trips to the NCAA-II Playoffs, the last coming in 2019.
SVOBODA AT THE HELM
• Central Missouri head coach
Jim Svoboda has a record of 81-40 (.669) during his eight-plus seasons leading the Mules. He has led the Mules to five postseason appearances.
• He is second on UCM's career wins list.
• Svoboda's .669 winning percentage is the fourth highest for a UCM coach.
• UCM posted the second most wins in a two-year span in school history in Svoboda's first two seasons.
• The Mules appeared in the postseason in each of Svoboda's first two seasons. UCM made the NCAA-II Playoffs in year one under Svoboda and earned a bid to the Kanza Bowl in his second season. It is just the second time in school history that Mules Football made back-to-back postseason appearances. UCM pulled the same feat in 2016-17 with a berth in the NCAA Playoffs in 2016 and a victory in the 2017 Mineral Water Bowl.
• UCM hosted the first ever playoff game in school history and won the school's first two playoff games in Svoboda's first season in 2010. In 2019, the Mules hosted their second playoff game in program history, downing Indianapolis, 37-27.
• The Mules have set or tied 108 school offensive records and 21 MIAA offensive records during Svoboda's tenure.
• Under Coach Svoboda, UCM players have earned 28 All-American awards and 146 All-MIAA awards.
• Since entering the league, the Mules are the No. 1 team in total offense with 470.4 yards per game, and No. 2 in scoring offense with 37.1 points per game. UCM's six postseason appearances are also the second most in the league, and the 81 wins is the third most in the MIAA.
• The Mules became the first team in NCAA-II history to have a 5,000-yard passer (Eric Czerniewski) and a 1,000-yard rusher (Anthony Stewart) in the same season when they accomplished that feat in 2010.
A TRADITION OF EXCELLENCE IN ATHLETICS
• Central Missouri has won a combined 228 MIAA conference championships in 14 league sports to lead all schools.
• Last season, UCM captured two regional championships in men's golf and baseball, and five MIAA Championships - women's indoor track and field, men's golf, softball and baseball (regular season and postseason tournament)
• Since 1983, the tenure of Vice President for Intercollegiate Athletics
Jerry Hughes, UCM has won or shared 170 MIAA championships, more than any other league school.
• Central Missouri has won 10 national championships during Hughes' tenure (men's and women's basketball in 1984, baseball in 1994 and 2003, women's bowling in 2003, men's basketball in 2014, women's indoor and outdoor track & field in 2015, and women's soccer and women's basketball in 2017 and 2018) and 12 national championships overall.
• Central Missouri has won the MIAA Commissioner's Cup, presented by McCownGordon Construction, four times in the last five years, including 2020-21. The cup is presented at the end of each academic year to the conference's top performing school in league play.
A TRADITION OF EXCELLENCE IN THE CLASSROOM
• Central Missouri had 189 student-athletes named to the 2020-21 MIAA Academic Honor Roll with grade point averages of 3.0 or higher.
• Thirty UCM student-athletes were named MIAA Scholar Athletes with at least a 3.5 GPA and having earned all-MIAA honors in their respective sport.
• Seventeen UCM student-athletes were named MIAA Academic Excellence Award winners with a 4.0 GPA.
• UCM had six student-athletes earn CoSIDA Academic All-America honors in their respective sports and 18 Academic All-District.
• All-time UCM is third in NCAA-II with 122 Academic All-Americans.
• Jennies basketball's Gigi McAtee and Mules golf's Ian Barnes earned the prestigious NCAA Elite 90 Award for having the highest GPA at their respective NCAA Championships.
• Jennies track and field junior Ashlan Burton took home the 2021 MIAA Spring Student-Athlete of the Year award and was selected as a conference nominee for the NCAA Woman of the Year award.
MULES IN THE PROS
• Former Mules' All-American tight end
Zach Davidson (2016-2020) was selected in the fifth round of the 2021 NFL Draft by the Minnesota Vikings.
• He marked the 12th Mules football player to be drafted in program history and the first since former UCM standout tight end Delanie Walker in 2006.
• In program history, 78 Central Missouri football players have either been drafted or signed professional free-agent contracts.
UP NEXT
• UCM returns home to Walton Stadium/Kennedy Field for a 1 p.m. MIAA game vs. Emporia State Saturday, Oct. 9.
