Fifth in a series previewing Arkansas teams in the Great American Conference.
ARKADELPHIA -- In a town where its universities are separated by a single highway, Arkadelphia native Kris Oliver always has favored Ouachita Baptist University.
The connection began when an exhausted Oliver would be carried home after little league football practice by his best friend's dad, who just happened to be Ouachita Baptist head football Coach Todd Knight.
At a glance
OUACHITA BAPTIST
MASCOT Tigers
COACH Todd Knight (119-123-2 in 25th season overall, 91-91 in 19th season at OBU)
LAST SEASON 7-4 Great American Conference
OFFENSIVE PLAYER TO WATCH RB Kris Oliver
DEFENSIVE PLAYER TO WATCH LB Elijah Jones
NOTEWORTHY The Tigers were picked in the coaches poll to finish fourth in the Great American Conference. … Harding’s 2016 GAC championship was the first won by a school outside of Arkadelphia.. … The walk from OBU’s Benson-Williams Field to Henderson State’s Carpenter-Haygood Stadium takes 17 minutes, according to Google Maps. … Ranked fifth in NCAA Division II in punt return average with 19.73 yards per punt return and ninth in kick return average with 24.86 yards per kickoff return. … Scoring offense was second in the GAC and No. 32 in the nation with 35.9 points per game. … Junior place-kicker Cole Antley was an AFCA All-American first-team pick after making 19 of 24 field goals.
Schedule
DATE OPPONENT TIME
Aug. 30 NW Okla. State 5 p.m.
Sept. 9 at SW Okla. State 6 p.m.
Sept. 16 SE Okla. State 6 p.m.
Sept. 23 at East Central 6 p.m.
Sept. 30 at Arkansas Tech 6 p.m.
Oct. 7 Harding 12 p.m.
Oct. 12 at Southern Nazarene 6 p.m.
Oct. 21 Oklahoma Baptist 1 p.m.
Oct. 28 Arkansas-Monticello 1 p.m.
Nov. 4 Southern Arkansas* 2 p.m.
Nov. 11 Henderson State 1 p.m.
*Murphy USA Classic at Memorial Stadium in El Dorado
Oliver and Jake Knight, who is now a junior pitcher on OBU's baseball team, would come out to the Tigers' practices and games. When they both made the little league all-star football team, they were coached by Todd Knight.
"This is home for me, really," said Oliver, who led OBU with 761 rushing yards and 10 touchdowns last season. "[Knight] always had room for me if I needed a place to stay. Never made it a big deal. His wife was the same way. Always made me feel like I was at home every time I came over. Treated me like family."
Oliver didn't play running back until his sophomore year at Arkadelphia High School, where his head coach, J.R. Eldridge, was a former OBU defensive coordinator, and his offensive coordinator, Brant Matros, was a former OBU quarterback. Oliver visited OBU his junior season, accepted a scholarship and was on his way to a 1,000-yard season in 2016 when he broke the fifth metatarsal in his right foot in a 49-17 loss to Arkansas Tech.
"I was on a good road, and we were headed to a great season, and everything just started breaking down slowly," Oliver said. "You never want to stop doing something you started.
"I'd never had a serious injury, never been out for the season. So, I took it pretty tough, and the linebacker coach [Roy Thompson Jr.] just told me to stay focused and remember what's important."
What's important to Oliver is to reach the NCAA Division II playoffs, which the Tigers have not reached since their 48-45 loss to Minnesota-Duluth in the 2014 first round. That was also the last time that OBU won the Great American Conference championship, which left Arkadelphia for the first time when Harding won the title in 2016.
"We've had nine consecutive winning seasons," Knight said. "Once you get to that winning season, you want to make it to the playoffs or a bowl game. You want to take that next step."
Knight said a major reason for OBU's setbacks last season were the losses of 11 starters to injury, including starting quarterback Austin Warford, who through five games had 1,031 yards passing, 488 yards rushing and 12 total touchdowns.
"Just a freakish year," Knight said. "You just never know what's going to happen in a season, and it's the ones that don't push their lip out that are successful."
Warford, now a 5-10, 200-pound senior, is back after leading NCAA Division II in total yards before he, like Oliver, broke his foot against Arkansas Tech.
"We call him the white Lamar Jackson because he got some moves," said Oliver, referencing Louisville's Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback in 2016. "He's pretty strong and hard to tackle. He's a great leader, and we love him as a teammate and brother."
Warford and Oliver will lead a rushing offense that ranked ninth in Division II football with 263 yards per game.
The OBU defense ranked sixth in the GAC in total defense (424 yards given up per game) and seventh in scoring defense (31.6 point per game).
Senior linebacker and honorable mention All-GAC pick Elijah Jones, who led the team with 105 tackles, returns along with junior Parker Witt (24 tackles), who moves from defensive end to linebacker.
Knight praised 6-6, 285-pound junior defensive tackle Ernest Reed, who was a powerlifting champion at El Dorado High School.
"There's no reason we shouldn't be solid up front," Knight said.
OBU will open the season at home today against Northwestern Oklahoma State, which the Tigers have a 6-3 overall record against. The game was originally scheduled for Thursday, but the threat of inclement weather persuaded the Tigers to move the game up a day.
OBU has won its season opener every since the GAC formed in 2011.
"Good things can happen," Knight said. "And if they stay focused, it can be a good year for them."
Sports on 08/30/2017