The East Central University football team will battle with No. 16 Harding at Norris Field in the second-to-last game of the 2014 regular-season Saturday, Nov. 8 at 3 p.m.  The game is the annual Military Appreciation Day where all active, former and reserve members of the military get in free with valid ID.  It is also Dad's Day through the ECU Residence Hall Association, with a BBQ lunch beginning at noon in the stadium parking lot.  The whole family is invited to the lunch with a cost of $5 in advance at the Housing Office or $7 on game day.  Free t-shirts for the Tiger student and Dad will be available at the tailgate area prior to the start of the game (while supplies last).

Game Notes

Coaches Show: Every Monday night fans are encouraged to come to the University Center on ECU's campus for the weekly Coaches Show on 105.5 the X-Factor.  Each week coaches from all 13 sports will be on hand to talk about the latest news from their teams.  Fans will be able to tweet in questions to @ECUTigersCoach or email them to ecu_coaches_show@ecok.edu.
 
Koi Ishto Stadium: At the 2014 ECU Tiger Kickoff Dinner and Auction, ECU President John Hargrave announced that the stadium at Norris Field would be renamed Koi Ishto Stadium in honor of the relationship between ECU and the Chickasaw Nation.  Koi Ishto means big cat in the Chickasaw language.  A formal dedication will be held, Saturday, Nov. 15 on Chickasaw Appreciation Day when the Tigers battle with Southeastern Oklahoma State.

Scouting Harding: The No. 17 Bison are 7-1 overall and in the Great American Conference after defeating then-No. 4 Henderson State (28-24) on the road Oct. 25 and Southeastern Oklahoma State (51-6) last Saturday.

Harding is averaging 45.4 points per game and allowing just 12.8 to be scored against them.  The Bison have tallied 3,793 total yards of offense to 2,138 yards by the opposition.  Most of those yards have come on the ground, with 3,231 to 562 in the air.  However, it is opposite for their opponents with 637 yards rushing and 1,501 passing.  Harding's defense has been strong, recording 18 sacks and only allowing one while forcing the opposition to only get into the red zone 16 times, converting on 12 (75%).

The Bison have seven players with over 200 yards rushing for the season, with Romo Westbrook leading the charge with 902 yards on 128 attempts and seven TDs.  Alapeti Magalei adds 526 yards on 94 attempts and six touchdowns.  Keenan Kellett is Harding's quarterback with a 30-of-54 passing record for 556 yards and five TDs.  Donatella Luckett is his top receiver with 19 catches for 401 yards and three touchdowns.

The Bison defense is led by Daylan Skidmore with 42 (22-20) total tackles, one TFL and one forced fumble.  Trevon Biglow adds 25 (11-14) total tackles, 8.0 TFL (28 yards), 3.5 sacks (13 yards), one interception and two forced fumbles.

Against the Bison: Last season the Tigers suffered a 30-52 loss after falling behind 0-28 in the first quarter.  Junior Spencer Bond was 18-of-37 for 266 yards and three TDs, with sophomore David Moore leading the offensive returners with three catches for 33 yards.  Junior Jameel Whitney leads the defensive returners with eight (2-6) tackles and one pas breakup.  

Romo Westbrook is the key offensive returner for the Bison with 94 yards and a TD on the rush.  Keenan Kellett went 7-off-11 passing for 182 yards and two TDs.  Daylan Skidmore leads the defensive returners with four solo tackles and one forced fumble.

The Series: Harding holds a 3-9 advantage in the all-time series after winning the last two games (both on the road).  The Tigers do hold a 3-2 advantage when playing in Ada, with the last game at Norris Field resulting in a 23-16 overtime win Nov. 5, 2011.

Shutting Down the Competition: With the 15-0 shutout win over Arkansas Tech in Russellville, Ark., the Tigers recorded their first shutout since Sept. 25, 2010 when they defeated Southwestern Oklahoma State 23-0 at home.  It also marked the first time since Sept. 7, 1991 that they earned a road shutout when they defeated Tarleton State 16-0.

Defensive Challenge: ECU's defense has been a key to the last three victories, holding the opposition to under 275 yards in each outing and under 200 in two of those games.  The Tigers held Arkansas Tech to 161 yards of total offense, Southwestern to 269 yards and Northwestern to 120 yards.

Daniel Making a Name For Himself: The ECU defense has been known for taking down the opposing team's quarterback this season, with 27 sacks for 169 yards.  Leading the charge on that from is senior Daniel Holland, who has an ECU and GAC record for 12.0 sacks in a single season, with two games left to play.

Welcome Back Qumain: After missing three weeks, senior Qumain Black had a strong performance for the Tigers against Southwestern.  Black tallied seven (5-2) total tackles, 1.0 TFL (3 yards), one forced fumble and a pass breakup.

Jameel Stepping In: Junior Jameel Whitney added to his career highlight reel in the win over Southwestern at homecoming.  The Oklahoma City, Okla., native, who leads the team in total tackles, intercepted his first pass in 2014 and returned it 29 yards for a touchdown.  It was just his second career interception and his first pick-6.

Near Record Crowd: The crowd at the 2014 Homecoming game was close to a record for the Tigers at 3,808.  It marked the largest crowd for an ECU game since Nov. 9, 2009 when Norris Field hosted 4,000 for the battle with Southeastern.

Cole's Crazy Day: Junior Cole Weber had probably one of the best and craziest days of his football career against Northwestern Oklahoma State, as the linebacker scored twice for the Tigers.  Weber's first touchdown was the game-winner for ECU, which he scored on a blocked punt.  Lexus Jackson blocked the punt and Weber was there to scoop up the ball and run it back for the TD in the first quarter.  He then added the final TD of the game when he picked up a blocked field goal attempt by the Tigers and scrambled into the end zone.

Against the Best: While playing the No. 7 team in the nation (Henderson State), the Tigers spared no fight.  ECU ended the game on the losing end, but scored more points against the Reddies than any other team that had faced them in 2014.  The Tigers also sacked quarterback Kevin Rodgers four times, two from senior Daniel Holland alone.  Rodgers had been sacked just once in the previous three games played in 2014.

Trick Plays: In the Tigers game against No. 7 HSU, ECU came out with a lot of tricks up its sleeves.  The Tigers used a fake field-goal attempt to earn a rushing TD by junior Spencer Bond, blocked a punt that was taken in the end zone and recovered by senior Deon Criss at the six and recovered on-side kick attempt that bounced off an opponent's shoe and right into the hands of junior Nathan Pickett.

Dangerous David: Sophomore David Moore has stepped up and proven that he is someone that you need to keep covered defensively.  Moore connected with junior Spencer Bond for three receiving touchdowns against Ouachita Baptist, tripling his TD performance from his freshman season.

Holland's Defensive Highlights: Senior Daniel Holland is having a good year on defense for the Tigers.  The Miami, Fla., native is currently ranked No. 2 in the nation for sacks per game (1.5), No. 15 in TFL per game (1.9) and No. 48 in forced fumbles per game (0.25) .  Holland has recorded 30 (19-11) tackles, 12.0 sacks (79 yards), 15.0 TFL (82 yards), five quarterback hurries, forced two fumbles, and recovered one.

Bond Gaining Recognition: After a standout performance against Southern Arkansas, junior Spencer Bond was named the GAC Offensive Player of the Week for Sept. 15 and The Oklahoman State College Football Player of the Week.

Bond accounted for all six of the Tigers' touchdowns as he helped rally ECU back from a 0-20 deficit to defeat Southern Arkansas. The Madill, Okla., native threw for 339 yards with two scores and rushed for 134 yards and four touchdowns, including an 80-yard score. The 134 rush yards represented the fifth-highest total for a GAC quarterback. He placed two punts inside the 20-yard line.

Earning Attention: For the first time since 2004,  the Tigers earned a vote in the AFCA Division II Coaches Top-25 Poll for Sept. 15 and against Nov. 3.  ECU earned one vote in the poll for Week 2 and Week 9.  ECU was one of four teams from the GAC in the poll in Week 9 in some fashion, with Ouachita Baptist is No. 9, Henderson State is No. 14 and Harding is No. 16.

All-American Play: In the final minute of the game at Arkansas-Monticello, senior Qumain Black came up with an All-American play to secure the Tigers' 38-34 win.  Black reached up for a pass at the same time as Boll Weevil Ivory Washington in the end zone, with Black coming away with the ball for the touchback.

Go JoJo Go: Senior JoJo Snell came out of the gates running, recording a career-high 157 rushing yards and 224 all-purpose yards against UAM.  It was the first time Snell tallied over 200 yards in a game.  The Moss Point, Miss., native also garnered two touchdowns.

Holland GAC Defender of the Week: Senior Daniel Holland came out of the gates ready to battle in his final season in an orange and black uniform and has claimed Great American Conference Defensive Player of the Week honors for his efforts.

In the opening game of the season against Arkansas-Monticello, Holland helped the Tigers (1-0) earn a 38-34 come-from-behind victory.  The Miami, Fla., native tallied four (3-2) total tackles, a quarterback hurry, forced one fumble and added 3.5 tackles-for-loss and 3.0 sacks for 23 yards.   His TFL, sacks and sack yardage were all career highs and helped the defense hold UAM to just 22 yards rushing for the game.  The low yardage ranked ECU No. 4 in the nation for rushing defense after the opening weekend of NCAA DII action.  Holland was also ranked No. 6 in the nation in TFL (3.5) and No. 4 in Sacks (3.0)

Preseason Attention: Several members of the Tigers roster have been gaining attention during the preseason from different organizations.  Senior Qumain Black was a USA College Football Preseason All-America First Team Defense selection as well as a NewsOK.com Preseason All-Star selection.  

Senior JuJu Turituri also claimed USA College Football Preseason honors as a second team defensive pick and a NewsOK.com selection.

Junior Travis Hening (offense) and senior Kellan Taeatafa-De La Rosa (defense) were named to the USA College Football All-America Third Teams.  Hening was also selected to the NewsOK.com team, with junior Spencer Bond on offense.

From the Playing Field to Coaching: The majority of the ECU coaching staff consists of familiar names for Tiger football fans.  Eight of the current coaches were members of the ECU football program as collegiate athletes.  Rashad Jackson, Chad Roark, Austin Crisler, Fred Gaines, Dustin Lasell, Tyler McGrew, George Robbins and Reuben Tiller have all worn an orange and black uniform before moving to a leadership role.

Up Next: ECU will finish the 2014 regular-season at home, with the annual rivalry game with Southeastern Oklahoma State, Nov. 15 at Norris Field at 2 p.m.  The game is the annual Senior Day, Chickasaw Appreciation Day, Hall of Fame Day and will be when the stadium is named Koi Ishto Stadium.