Story by MAYAN PAZ Photo by RORY MOORE
Tiger Media Network
After bouncing back from their first loss of the season with a 37-0 triumph over Northeastern State University on Saturday, the FHSU Football team (3-1, 1-1) heads south to Edmond, Okla., to play No. 23 University of Central Oklahoma (3-0, 2-0) on Saturday.
Central Oklahoma has been one of the best offensive teams in the nation so far this season, averaging 53.7 points per game with 260 yards on the ground and 322 passing yards each game. Most impressively, they had a crucial 57-40 win against No.11 Central Missouri in their week two game. UCO has proven to be one of the most dangerous teams in the conference so far.
FHSU Head Coach Chris Brown addressed his knowledge with the UCO team ahead of the game.
“They are a very well-rounded team that plays really well right now. Their offense is outstanding, but their defensive and special teams units have also played very well so far,” Brown said. “They are playing at a very fast pace with many plays per game (80), and we will have to adjust to that. We have been trying to play quicker in practice, but their pace is extremely hard to get to.”
Playing at that high pace would have the FHSU defense face challenges different from their usual style of play, including having no time between plays to make substitutions and to huddle up. Brown said the team tried to work on fitness as an extra focus this past week and is preparing the players for long stretches of consecutive minutes on the field.
FHSU starting linebacker Jack Hileman talked about the preparations for such a difficult match from a player’s perspective.
“We need to prepare ourselves mentally as well as physically,” Hileman said. “We know that they are trying to make the game chaotic, but we are prepared for that. We have been practicing staying focused for a long period of time and playing at a high tempo, and we are ready for the challenge.”
Offensively, the Tigers have a chance to present their abilities, as the predicted high pace could result in a high-scoring game for both teams. However, offensive lineman Josh Shaw identified this game as a challenge for the offense to slow down the game and prevent Central Oklahoma from running their intense tempo on the offensive side.
“They are a highly energetic team, even on the defensive side,” Shaw said. “That is why our best defense would be to keep the ball at our possession for as long as we can. The fewer chances they have with the ball in hand, the better it is for us.”
In their only away game in the season until this upcoming weekend, the Tigers lost at Northwest Missouri State 32-20, but Shaw and Hileman are both confident the team will thrive in the hostile environment that is expected at Edmond and that being an away team won’t affect them.
Brown graded FHSU’s first three games as a “solid B,” but a win on the road would put the Tigers back in contention for a spot in the NCAA D2 Top 25 polls and would raise the hopes for the Tigers to be a championship-level team.
“We haven’t been playing at that A championship level yet,” Brown said. “But we are definitely capable of that, and our goal is to get there.”
The Tigers take the field at 7 p.m. Saturday in Edmond during UCO’s first responders night.