The East Central University football team will open the 2016 season on the road against Ouachita Baptist, Thursday, Sept. 1 at 7 p.m. at Cliff Harris Stadium.  The game is the first of two-straight weeks with an opponent that is nationally ranked or receiving votes in the American Football Coaches Association Poll.

Game Notes

The Broadcast: ECU's radio home for Tiger football is Ada's KXFC, 105.5, FM 'The X-Factor'. Mike Manos returns to broadcast the games for his 20th consecutive season. Manos has worked 200 Tiger games since taking over the play-by-play duties in 1997.

The Coverage: Fans who can't be at the game can find links to live stats, live video and the KXFC radio broadcast on ECUTigers.com.  Go to the football schedule page.  You can also download the KXFC radio app for your smartphone by searching '105.5 the X Factor.'

The Voice of the Tigers: Mike Manos has been the Voice of the Tigers on 105.5 The X-Factor radio broadcast for the past 20 seasons.  Last year Manos marked his 200th Tiger game since taking over the play-by-play duties in 1997, what is thought to be a record for broadcasters of ECU Football.

The Series: Thursday's game will be the 22nd in the all-time series, with Ouachita holding a 5-14-2 advantages, including wins in the last three outings.  The last ECU victory was Oct. 27, 2012 when East Central earned a 37-27 win at home.

Scouting Ouachita Baptist: The other Tigers from the Great American Conference have been picked to finish third in the annual preseason poll after finishing 7-4 in 2015.  Ouachita will return 38 players, 17 starters and seven All-GAC selections to this year's roster.

Some of the top returners on offense include quarterback Austin Warford, who tallied 2,388 yards of total offense and accounted for 54 percent of the total offense in 2015.  Kris Oliver, an all-American and the Don Hansen Freshman of the Year, tallied 19 rushing TDs and averaged 106.91 yards per game.  Ke'Vontae Pope adds 109 all-purpose yards per game, with three receiving touchdowns for 487 yards.

On defense Kendrick Henderson and Shaquille Hunter are key returners.  Henderson tallied 46 (34-11) tackles, while Hunter added 20 (13-7).

GAC Poll: ECU was picked to finish seventh in the annual GAC Preseason Poll, as voted on by the league's head coached.

The Tigers finished with 65 points and earned one first-place vote.  

The Tigers return 61 players, including four offensive and three defensive starters.  The list of starters includes senior David Moore, who already holds the records for receiving touchdowns in a single season and career and was the first ECU player to record over 1,000 reception yards in a single season.

Moore Returning: Senior wide receiver David Moore returns to the team after setting several records in 2015 and earning several post-season honors.

Moore has already started to receive honors for the 2016 season, as he was named to Football Gameplan's 2016 Preseason DII All-America Third Team Offense list.  The 2015 All-GAC First Team and all-America selection is one of six players to earn a spot on the three teams.

Biggest Question for 2016: After losing the 2015 starting quarterback (Rocky Moore) to graduation, the biggest question facing the offense for 2016 is who will fill the role.

This year there are six quarterbacks all fighting for the position, with senior Brooks Holder and sophomore Jackson Lamb leading a group that includes four freshmen.  While Lamb and Holder are the current front runners, don't expect that the battle will not continue all season.

Defensive Depth: One of the areas that the Tigers will have great depth and experience is on the defensive side of the ball.  Last year was a growing season for the defense, who saw big changes including a new defensive coordinator just weeks before the start of the year.

The Tigers will be bolstered by the return of Vernon Johnson and Lexus Jackson.  Johnson will come back to the field after a very promising start in 2015 before an injury sidelined him.  Jackson took up the slack and earned All-Great American Conference honors as a defensive back.

The defensive line as a whole is expected to produce, as in 2015 the Tigers had so many options it allowed them to role the players through every three or four plays, yet each player still got valuable experience in each game.  That depth will continue this season, giving ECU several options to keep their legs fresh throughout the game.

Up Next: The Tigers will continue the strong test to open the season, as they will face No. 9 Henderson State, Saturday, Sept. 10 at 6 p.m. at Koi Ishto Stadium at Norris Field.  The game will be nationally televised on the American Sports Network.