Central Arkansas at Houston Baptist
WHEN 2:30 p.m. Central
WHERE Husky Stadium, Houston
RECORDS Central Arkansas 2-2, 2-0 Southland Conference; Houston Baptist 2-3, 0-2 SERIES UCA leads 1-0
COACHES Steve Campbell (8-8 in second season at UCA, 134-46 in 15 seasons overall); Vic Shealy (4-12 in second season at Houston Baptist, 31-26-1 in sixth season overall)
RADIO KUCA-FM, 91.3, in Conway; KKPTFM, 94.1, in Little Rock
TV American Sports Network (KATV 7.2 in Little Rock)
WHEN CENTRAL ARKANSAS HAS THE BALL Senior quarterback Taylor Reed is still officially listed as day-to-day, but sophomore Hayden Hildebrand will likely get his second career start. Hildebrand completed 9 of 15 passes for 210 yards and 2 touchdowns in last week’s 42-14 victory over Abilene Christian. UCA’s running game didn’t require him to do much more, which is how Coach Steve Campbell would prefer it. Dominique Thomas rushed for 126 yards and the Bears had 259 yards rushing and 3 touchdowns as a team. In two games against Southland teams, the Bears have averaged 263.0 yards and have scored 5 rushing touchdowns. Houston Baptist has held teams to seven total points in its two victories, but neither of those came against teams in any NCAA division. In three games against FCS competition, the Huskies are allowing 48.7 points and 480.0 yards per game. UCA won last year’s meeting 70-0 while gaining 545 yards.
WHEN HOUSTON BAPTIST HAS THE BALL
The Southland Conference’s newest member boasts a quarterback who started his career at Florida and one of the league’s top rushers, but has lacked consistency against FCS foes. The Huskies trailed Abilene Christian 21-14 at halftime of a 49-21 loss and was tied 14-14 in the second quarter of a 63-14 loss to Sam Houston State. Quarterback Max Staver, who started his career at Florida, has passed for 442 yards with 3 touchdowns and thrown 4 interceptions in 3 games. Running back Terrance Peters is averaging 7.2 yards per carry. The Bears are still struggling against the pass (310.5 yards allowed per game and 11 touchdowns), but has improved since the start of Southland play. UCA held Northwestern State to 254 yards passing two weeks ago and Abilene Christian to 181 yards passing last week.
THE STAKES A victory keeps UCA among the teams unbeaten in Southland play and would equal its best start in Southland play since joining the conference in 2006. The Bears also started 3-0 in 2014 and in 2008. A victory could also set up an Oct. 15 game for first place in the conference standings when McNeese State visits Conway.
QUOTING COACH CAMPBELL “It’s a four-quarter deal. They’re outscoring people in the first quarter. We’ve just got to keep hanging in there, keep battling and don’t expect it to be easy. If it gets hairy, we’ve got to keep grinding away.”