GAME NOTES: Delta State (4-3, 3-2 GSC) @ Shorter (0-8, 0-6 GSC)
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CLEVELAND, Miss. - The Statesmen (4-3, 3-2 GSC) of Delta State University travel to Rome, Ga., on Saturday, Nov. 2, to take on the Hawks (0-8, 0-6 GSC) of Shorter University. Kickoff is set for 12 PM EST at Barron Stadium. It's DSU's lone trip to the "Peach" state this year. Matt Jones, Philip Tang and Lane Quinton will have the call on the Statesmen Sports Network (WMJW 107.5 FM) and online at GoStatesmen.com.

Delta State and Shorter are meeting for the 9th time on the gridiron this Saturday, Nov. 2 at Barron Stadium in Rome. The Statesmen hold a 7-1 edge in the series standings, including seven-straight wins over the Hawks. Delta State claimed a 46-20 victory in last year's game at Parker Field-McCool Stadium while edging the Hawks, 54-20, in their last trip to Rome. Shorter won the inaugural matchup between the schools, defeating DSU, 32-21, on Nov. 10, 2012 at Barron Stadium in former head coach Jamey Chadwell's lone season.    

The Hawks (0-8, 0-6 GSC) dropped their 47th straight contest, 41-20, at Mississippi College (4-3, 3-2 GSC) last week in Clinton. The Choctaws rushed for 395 yards in the win while holding Shorter to 158 yards passing and 142 rushing. The Hawks have not won a game since a 42-23 victory over MC on Oct. 3, 2015 in Clinton. Their 47-game losing streak began the next week with a, 38-17, loss to Delta State at Barron Stadium.

A pair of late fourth down defensive stops highlighted a 14-7 victory for the Delta State Statesmen football team over West Alabama on Saturday, OCT. 19 at home in the Gulf South Conference-TV Game of the Week. The Statesmen (4-3, 3-2 GSC) had a total of three goal line stops in the win, two coming in the final three minutes of the game to preserve the one-score victory over the Tigers (4-3, 1-3 GSC). Running back Rico Owens II finished the game with 14 carries for 107 yards and one touchdown. It was his first 100-yard game of the season. The Statesmen out-gained the Tigers 329 to 266, including 200-67 in rushing yards.


SERIES NOTEBOOK: SHORTER
• Delta State and Shorter are meeting for the 9th time on the gridiron this Saturday, Nov. 2 at Barron Stadium in Rome. The Statesmen hold a 7-1 edge in the series standings, including seven-straight wins over the Hawks. Delta State claimed a 46-20 victory in last year's game at Parker Field-McCool Stadium while edging the Hawks, 54-20, in their last trip to Rome. Shorter won the inaugural matchup between the schools, defeating DSU, 32-21, on Nov. 10, 2012 at Barron Stadium in former Statesmen head coach Jamey Chadwell's lone season.    

• The Hawks (0-8, 0-6 GSC) dropped their 47th straight contest, 41-20, at Mississippi College (4-3, 3-2 GSC) last week in Clinton. The Choctaws rushed for 395 yards in the win while holding Shorter to 158 yards passing and 142 rushing. The Hawks have not won a game since a 42-23 victory over MC on Oct. 3, 2015 in Clinton. Their 47-game losing streak began the next week with a, 38-17, loss to Delta State at Barron Stadium.

• Under second-year head coach Zach Morrison's leadership, Shorter is vastly improved offensively in 2019, averagin g 267.4 yards and 13.5 points per game. Junior quarterback Tyler Pullum has completed 128-of-210 passes for 1,200 yards with four touchdowns and five interceptions.
• Shorter enters Saturday's contest with Delta State allowing a league-high 483.5 yards and 37.1 points per game.

• Tupac Lanier leads the Hawks' ground game, rushing 72 times for 299 yards and a TD. He is averaging 37.4 yards per game.

• Linebacker Xavier Robinson is leading the way on defense, ranking 6th in the GSC in tackles (54) while Terrence Snelli is 7th in TFLs with 7.0 per game.



GEORGIA ON MY MIND: Delta State makes its lone trip into the "Peach" state on Saturday, Nov. 2, as the Statesmen (4-3. 3-2 GSC) take on the Hawks (0-8, 0-6 GSC) of Shorter University at Barron Stadium in Rome. The Statesmen lead the all-time series 7-1, including seven-straight wins over the Hawks. For more on the series, see Page 4 of the notes.

GOAL LINE STANDS LIFT DELTA STATE TO 14-7 WIN OVER UWA: A pair of late fourth down defensive stops highlighted a 14-7 victory for the Delta State Statesmen football team over West Alabama on Saturday, OCT. 19 at home in the Gulf South Conference-TV Game of the Week. The Statesmen (4-3, 3-2 GSC) had a total of three goal line stops in the win, two coming in the final three minutes of the game to preserve the one-score victory over the Tigers (4-3, 1-3 GSC). Running back Rico Owens II finished the game with 14 carries for 107 yards and one touchdown. It was his first 100-yard game of the season. The Statesmen out-gained the Tigers 329 to 266, including a 200-67 margin in rushing yards.

KING ON HIS THRONE: Senior linebacker Vada King continues to lead the Statesmen defense, ranking No. 1 in the GSC in tackles (64/9.1 pg) entering week eight of the campaign. He totaled 13 tackles and 2.0 TFLs in DSU's 14-7 win over West Alabama. King posted back-to-back 13 tackle performances against Tusculum and No. 9 Grand Valley State earlier this year. The Smiths Station, Ala., native, also eclipsed the 100-career tackles plateau at West Florida and is currently 1st in the GSC in tackles (64) and 3rd in tackles-for-loss (8.5). In 17 career games, the two-year starter has tallied 121 tackles with 19.5 TFLs and 2.0 sacks.

FEROCIOUS DEFENSIVE FRONT: The Statesman defensive front has been filthy through the first seven games, racking up a conference-leading 21 sacks (119 yards) and 59 tackles-for-loss (260 yards).  Vada King (3rd/10.5), Zane Samuel (4th/10.0), Marvin Terry  (6th/7.0) and Eric Sadler (6th/7.0) all rank in the top 10 in the GSC in TFLs. Sadler Terry, & Samuel are all tied for 5th in sacks in the Gulf South Conference as well.

FAULK ISLAND: Junior Faulk has had a phenomenal start to the season, intercepting four passes and defending 17 in DSU's first seven games. The Jayess, Miss., native, leads the GSC in interceptions and passes defended while totaling 29 tackles for the Statesmen in seven starts at corner.

RUN AND TELL THAT: The Statesmen enter this week's game versus Shorter averaging 190.3 yards rushing per game, which ranks 3rd in the GSC. Delta State has topped 200 yards rushing in 4-of-7 games this season, including a season-high 255 yards versus Florida Tech. The Statesmen rushed for 230 yards at Grand Valley State, 224 yards at North Greenville and 200 yards versus West Alabama in their last game.

RUDDICK TOPS 3,000 YARDS: Senior Breck Ruddick has been solid since taking over the quarterbacking duties. The Marion, Ark., native, topped 2,000 career passing yards at West Florida and eclipsed 1,000 career rushing yards versus No. 1 Valdosta State. In 21 games, Ruddick has completed 275-of-470 passes for 2,346 yards while rushing 232 times for 1,091 yards. He joined an exclusive club of former DSU quarterback's with at least 2,000 yards passing and 1,000 yards rushing with his 170 yards passing and 123 yards rushing versus the Blazers. Josh Bright (1998-2001) totaled 4,027 yards passing and 2.336 yards rushing during his career.

STINGY AGAINST THE RUN: Delta State is allowing just 128.7 yards rushing a game to rank 1st the GSC. The Statesmen have held 5-of-7 opponents under 150 yards, with Florida Tech's 42 yards rushing a season-low. Grand Valley State entered the game on Sept. 14 averaging 319.0 yards rushing but was held to a mere 76 yards on 30 carries. North Greenville tallied 100 yards on 37 carries, a 2.7 yards per carry average. Valdosta State rushed for 358 yards in last week's matchup. DSU held the vaunted rushing offense of West Alabama to a mere 67 yards in its 14-7 victory over the Tigers.

THUNDER & LIGHTNING: Deion Dampier, a junior from Pinola, Miss., and Rico Owens, II, a junior from Greenwood, have combined to give the Statesmen a dramatic 1-2 punch at running back. Dampier enters the week ranked 6th in the GSC at 63.3 yards rushing per game while Owens is 7th (57.4).

CRABTREE HAVING SPECIAL SENIOR CAMPAIGN: Taylor Crabtree has made a league-best 12-of-15 field goals and 13-of-13 PATs this season for the Statesmen. His 1.7 FGs per game average ranks 5th in NCAA DII while he ranks 3rd in the GSC in scoring at 7.1 points per game. The Pascagoula, Miss., native was named GSC Special Teams Player of the Week after outstanding performances versus Florida Tech, where he tied the GSC record for FGs in a game (5-of-5), and North Greenville (2-of-2 FG).

SHELTON PICKING UP PRODUCTION: Cameron Shelton, a freshman tight end from Milton, Fla., turned in a career-high eight receptions for 70 yards versus No. 1 Valdosta State and followed that up with three receptions for 11 yards, including a TD in DSU's 14-7 win over West Alabama.  

NEGATIVE PLAYS: Under new defensive coordinator Kelvin Green, the Statesmen have been relentless in their pursuit of the opposing quarterback, racking up a league-leading 21.0 sacks for 116 yards through seven games. DSU has also recorded 59 tackles-for-loss, accounting for 260 negative yards.

HAWKINS EMERGING AS TOP TARGET: Junior wide receiver L.J. Hawkins has caught 27 passes for 234 yards and a TD in his last five games, including a career-high eight passes for 76 yards and a 9-yard touchdown in DSU's 34-9 win at North Greenville. The Water Valley, Miss., native, hauled in a team-high seven passes for 56 yards at West Florida. His 27 grabs are tied for 5th most in the GSC.  

CRADLE OF COACHES: Delta State has more than 300 alumni coaching football at every level of the game. In fact, Cleveland has become a "Cradle of Coaches" as several high-profile jobs have been filled recently by Statesman alums or former assistants. A list of head coaches, coordinators and key coaches is below. This past summer, former All-GSC safety Pete Golding, who also served DSU as DC under Ron Roberts, was named defensive coordinator at the University of Alabama for Nick Saban.  
 

COACH	SCHOOL	POSITION
Steve Campbell	South Alabama	Head Coach
Mark Hudspeth	Austin Peay	Head Coach
Mike Bloomgren	Rice	Head Coach
Jay Hopson	Southern Miss	Head Coach
Ron Roberts	Louisiana	Defensive Coordinator
Pete Golding	Alabama	Defensive Coordinator
Dave Aranda	Louisiana State	Defensive Coordinator
Brian Brown	Louisville	Defensive Coordinator
Jerry Mack	Rice	Offensive Coordinator
Greg Stewart	South Alabama	Defensive Coordinator
Tim Edwards	Memphis	Defensive Line
Reed Stringer	Southern Miss	Tight Ends
Mike Kershaw	Rice	Wide Receivers
Karl Scott	Alabama	Cornerbacks
Chad Huff	South Alabama	Tight Ends

COOLEY COLLECTS 40TH CAREER VICTORY: Delta State head coach Todd Cooley became the fourth coach in the program's 90-year history to record 40 victories when he led the Statesmen to a 34-9 win at North Greenville on Saturday, Sept. 28 at Younts Stadium in Tigerville, S.C. The Nashville, Ark., native has led the Statesmen to two NCAA postseason appearances and a share of the 2014 Gulf South Conference championship during his seven seasons as head coach. He trails Horace McCool (76), Gene Chadwick, and Ron Roberts (47) in career wins while only Roberts (2007, 2008, 2010, & 2011) and Cooley (2014) have led the Statesmen to a league title.
 

COACH (Minimum 15 Wins)	YEARS	RECORD
Horace McCool	14	76-48-3
Gene Chadwick	13	67-46-1
Ron Roberts	5	47-16
Todd Cooley	7	40-31
Rick Rhoades	4	38-20
Jim "Red" Parker	6	34-26-4
Todd Knight	6	28-32-2
Steve Campbell	3	27-8-0
Herman Zimonski	7	27-30-5
Robert McGraw	4	22-19-1
Don Skelton	5	21-27-3
A.D. Dickson	6	16-38-3

ON THE BIG SCREEN: Delta State appeared for the final time this season on ESPN3 or ESPN+ in the GSC-TV Game of the Week, defeating West Alabama, 14-7, on Saturday, Oct.  DSU's previously televised contests included Florida Tech on Saturday, Sept. 21 and a non-conference match-up at Grand Valley State on Sept. 14.  DSU is 26-15 all-time on TV, including a 15-7 record under coach Cooley.

AGAINST RANKED OPPONENTS: The Statesmen faced their third ranked opponent of the year in top-ranked Valdosta State on Saturday, Oct. 12 at Parker-McCool, falling 34-13. Delta State is 11-15 against ranked opponents under coach Todd Cooley.