Tigers Return Home for Important Matchup
ADA, Okla. – The East Central University football team is back home for the third time this season, where on Saturday they will play Henderson State. Kickoff is set for 2 pm at Koi Ishto Stadium.
ECU (3-2) has won three straight and has shown improvement each time, beating Southern Nazarene, Northwestern Oklahoma, and Southern Arkansas. Henderson State (4-1) owns victories over Arkansas Monticello, Southwestern Oklahoma State, Southeastern Oklahoma State and NWOSU.
ECU Head Coach Kris McCullough coached previously at Henderson State during the 2015 season and has his team ready for the matchup.
"We are continuing the focus on us working on correcting the little things we are messing up on and fixing details rather than missing assignments," McCullough said. "Our guys on all sides are playing well, but we can play even better."
East Central has been equally effective both running the ball and passing. The Tigers are averaging 153 yards per game on the ground while throwing for more than 235 yards per game.
Nemier Herod has moved into sixth place in the conference in rushing, averaging 92 yards per game. He has scored four touchdowns and has run for more than 100 yards in each of the last four games.
Kenny Hrncir continues to post impressive numbers. He ranks fourth in the league in passing, averaging 223 yards per game. He has completed 63% of his passes and thrown nine touchdowns against only three interceptions.
ECU's defense has been a strength of the team. The Tigers have forced 13 turnovers while committing just five themselves. ECU has limited its opponents to an average of 22 points per game, ranking them third in the conference.
Cody Alexander and Devon Roush have topped the tackle charts all season long. Alexander leads by a slim margin with 37 next to Roush's 36. Michael Onwuzurike, who leads the team with five tackles for loss totaling 21 yards and three sacks, is another standout. Jalen Baldwin is having a great year as well. He has 14 tackles, 4.5 tackles for losses, one interception and two fumble recoveries.
In their study of Henderson's tendencies, McCullough and his staff have been able to detect some important factors.
"Henderson is very well-coached. They are a fast and physical football team," McCullough said. "Offensively, they want to pound the rock and take some vertical shots to their speedster wide receiver. Defensively, they get after the quarterback with a great defensive line. On special teams, they have athletes everywhere. The matchups across the board are evenly matched. It's going to be a great game."
