FHSU SPORTS INFORMATION DEPARTMENT
Fort Hays State travels to Tahlequah, Oklahoma on Saturday (Sept. 24) to take on Northeastern State. Game time is set for 1 pm at Doc Wadley Stadium. The Tigers enter at 2-1, while the RiverHawks are 1-2.
Fort Hays State looks for its first road win of the season. The only previous road contest was a 34-17 loss at then No. 16 ranked Central Missouri, which has since moved up to No. 13 in the country. The Tigers are in a five-way tie for third in the MIAA standings through three weeks of play. Top-ranked Northwest Missouri State and Central Missouri are the only remaining unbeatens in the MIAA.
The Tigers have won the last two meetings with Northeastern State, both occurring since NSU joined the MIAA. Northeastern State won the first two meetings in the all-time series, back when FHSU was still a member of the NAIA. The all-time series is tied 2-2 going into Saturday. FHSU defeated NSU 27-13 last year in Hays. The teams last met in Tahlequah in 2014 with FHSU winning 48-13. The RiverHawks are 1-0 at home so far after a 35-31 win over Lindenwood in Week 2 and are coming off a tough 38-37 overtime loss at Pittsburg State this past week.
The Tigers rushed for a season-high 225 yards last week against Central Oklahoma, while quarterback Jacob Mezera threw for a season-high 250 yards. The Tigers are now 18-1 since the start of 2013 when rushing for over 200 yards in a game. Shaquille Cooper continues to lead the rushing attack at 85.3 rushing yards per game, which ranks third in the MIAA. Tyler Bacon has been the top receiving target with 14 receptions for 138 yards.
Brandon Brown has been giving the Tigers an edge in the kicking game so far this year. He is a perfect 6-of-6 on field goal attempts and is averaging a booming 64.5 yards per kickoff (just 0.5 shy of the maximum). He has produced 11 touchbacks out of 17 kickoff attempts. When called upon to punt, he is averaging a solid 40.8 yards per attempt. Brown ranks fifth in the MIAA in scoring at 8.3 points per game.
On defense, Alex Schmidtberger and Jose Delgado are two of the top tacklers in the MIAA. Schmidtberger ranks second with 41, while Delgado ranks fourth with 36. Sie Doe, Jr. leads the MIAA in sacks with four and ranks second in tackles for loss with 5.5. Doe earned MIAA Co-Defensive Athlete of the Week honors on Monday for his efforts against Central Oklahoma, producing a career-high 13 tackles and a sack. The Tigers are allowing just 21.3 points per game, which ranks second in the MIAA.