2007 Gulf South Conference Standings

Team	Conference	Overall
Delta State	6-0	6-1
North Alabama	4-1	7-1
Valdosta State	4-1	6-1
Arkansas-Monticello	4-2	6-2
Arkansas Tech	3-2	4-3
Ouachita Baptist	3-3	4-4
Henderson State	2-3	3-4
West Alabama	1-4	3-5
Harding	1-4	2-6
Southern Arkansas	1-4	1-6
West Georgia	0-5	0-7

Week 8 Scores
Arkansas-Monticello 27, West Alabama 14
Arkansas Tech 49, West Georgia 24
Delta State 34, North Alabama 28
Ouachita Baptist 30, Southern Arkansas 14
Valdosta State 21, Harding 13

Week 7 Scores
Arkansas-Monticello 50, West Georgia 7
Delta State 21, West Alabama 14
North Alabama 52, North Greenville 7
Ouachita Baptist 30, Harding 27
Southern Arkansas 45, Arkansas Tech 42
Valdosta State 27, Henderson State 23

Week 6 Scores
Arkansas-Monticello 37, Ouachita Baptist 17
Delta State 27, Valdosta State 24 2OT
Harding 39, Southern Arkansas 33
Henderson State 49, West Georgia 10
North Alabama 45, Arkansas Tech 24
West Alabama 24 Concordia-Selma 7

Week 5 Scores
Arkansas Tech 38, Arkansas-Monticello 35
Delta State 35, Ouachita Baptist 17
Henderson State 42, Southern Arkansas 17
North Alabama 52, Harding 0
Valdosta State 33, West Alabama 14

Week 4 Scores
Arkansas-Monticello 51, Henderson State 48
Delta State 56, Harding 49 OT
North Alabama 53, West Georgia 0
Valdosta State 29, Ouachita Baptist 6
West Alabama 17, Southern Arkansas 14 2OT

Week 3 Scores
Arkansas Tech 26, West Alabama 24
Delta State 37, Arkansas-Monticello 31
North Alabama 45, Henderson State 20
Ouachita Baptist 41, West Georgia 17
Southwest Baptist 43, Harding 31

Week 2 Scores
Arkansas-Monticello 42, Missouri S&T 24
Central Missouri 49, Arkansas Tech 13
Clark Atlanta 28, West Georgia 3
Harding 37, West Alabama 27 (nc)
Henderson State 34, Arkansas-Pine Bluff 0
McNeese State 52, Delta State 27
North Alabama 20, Carson-Newman 13
Ouachita Baptist 58, Fort Lewis 7
Truman 34, Southern Arkansas 21

Week 1 Scores
Arkansas-Monticello 21, Arkansas-Pine Bluff 7
Arkansas Tech 22, Northeastern State 3
Central Arkansas 38, Henderson State 14
Missouri Southern 45, Harding 31
North Alabama 57, Southern Arkansas 14 (nc)
Samford 21, West Georgia 19
Valdosta State 14, Newberry 9
West Alabama 49, Bellhaven 12

Week 0 Scores
Valdosta State 56, Fort Valley State 3

2008 Stories

Tenth-ranked Valdosta State downs Harding 21-13 October 18, 2008 By Scott Goode Hariding SID VALDOSTA, GA – The Valdosta State defense came up with several key stops inside their own 20 yard line, and the 10th-ranked Blazers used three passing touchdowns to defeat Harding 21-13 Saturday in Gulf South Conference action Saturday at Bazemore-Hyder Stadium. Valdosta State's defense, ranked ninth nationally in scoring at 13.7 points per game, had an interception in the end zone, forced two field goals and stonewalled the Bisons on the goal line in Harding's first four trips inside the 20. With 2:08 left in the game, Harding (2-6, 1-4) finally broke through as quarterback David Knighton threw a nine-yard touchdown pass to Kurt Adams for the Bisons' first touchdown of the game, cutting the Valdosta State lead to 21-13. Blazer tight end Chris Fultcher recovered the ensuing on-side kick, and Valdosta State ran out the clock. Harding's defense had easily its best game of the season, limiting the high-powered Valdosta State offense to only 264 yards. The Bisons limited the Blazers to only 122 yards and six first downs in the second half. Harding's previous best defensive effort of the season was 444 yards allowed last week to Ouachita Baptist. Valdosta State (6-1, 4-1) scored first on a 19-yard touchdown pass from Chris Hart to Albert Dukes with 6:21 left in the first quarter. The Blazers made it 14-0 with 14:20 remaining in the first half as senior quarterback Tucker Pruitt found Michigan State transfer T.J. Williams on a 13-yard scoring pass. Harding's lone points of the first half came on a 37-yard Ryan Ferrell field goal with eight seconds remaining. Ferrell's school-record tying 15th field goal of the season came with 7:52 left in the third quarter and trimmed Valdosta State's advantage to 14-6. The Blazers eventual game-winning touchdown came on a six-yard pass from Pruitt to Evan Gilles with 3:55 left in the third.

Harding has chances in loss to OBU October 11, 2008 By Amanda Pruitt Harding Sports Information SEARCY — Although Harding senior quarterback David Knighton passed for more than 450 yards, the Bisons struggled to reach the end zone Saturday in a 30-27 loss to the Ouachita Baptist Tigers at First Security Stadium on Saturday night. The victory for Ouachita Baptist (3-3, 2-3 Gulf South) snaps a 10-game losing streak to the Bisons at First Security Stadium. The Tigers had not defeated Harding in Searcy since 1987. Harding (2-5, 1-3) had won its previous eight home games against Arkansas schools. While Harding had little trouble driving the ball, scoring proved much more difficult despite the fact that Harding had a season-high 561 offensive yards. The Bisons reached Ouachita Baptist’s side of the field in 12 of 13 drives but settled for just three touchdowns and five field goal attempts — two of which were blocked. Harding also committed two turnovers in the Tigers’ territory. Ouachita Baptist running back K.J. Johnson rushed for a 13-yard touchdown on the right side as the Tigers took a 30-17 lead with 8:22 remaining in the third quarter. Three minutes later, Harding junior Daniel Phipps blocked a punt by Mark Cain as the Bisons took possession on Ouachita Baptist’s 1-yard line. Harding could not drive across the goal line in three attempts, and place-kicker Ryan Ferrell kicked a 20-yard field goal to cut the lead to 30-20 with 4:17 remaining in the third quarter. Senior linebacker Sevohn Greer forced a fumble from the hands of Ouachita Baptist’s John Johnson and freshman Luke Tribble recovered the ball at Harding’s 43-yard line. Knighton completed a 39-yard pass to junior Kurt Adams and then rushed for nine more yards two plays later, but the drive ended when Ferrell’s 36-yard field goal attempt was blocked. Harding had a chance to tie the game midway through the fourth quarter when Knighton  marched the team down to the Tigers’ 25-yard line with three minutes left in the game. However, one of Knighton’s passes bounced off redshirt freshman Tyler O’Quin and Mikhail Lindsay intercepted the ricocheted pass. On Lindsay’s return, he fumbled, but the ball bounced out of bounds, and Ouachita Baptist maintained possession. Knighton completed 37 of 52 passes for 473 yards and three touchdowns and also rushed for a career-high 53 yards on 14 carries. It was Knighton's fifth career 400-yard passing game. Adams finished with six catches for 142 yards. Greer, Harding’s leader with 12 career forced fumbles, finished the game with 19 tackles and two tackles for loss. Senior Tracy Brown was second with 11 tackles, and Tribble had eight tackles, including 1.5 tackles for loss. The Bisons will travel to No. 10 Valdosta State in Valdosta, Ga., on Saturday at 2 p.m.

Ross' kickoff return lifts Bisons past SAU October 4, 2008 By Amanda Pruitt Harding Sports Information SEARCY – When Southern Arkansas finally took the lead against Harding in the fourth quarter Saturday, it certainly didn’t last long. In 22 seconds, the Harding Bisons turned a 1-point deficit into a 12-point lead on their way to a 39-33 victory at First Security Stadium. After losses to nationally-ranked Delta State and North Alabama to open the Gulf South Conference season, Harding (2-4, 1-2) earned its first league victory and has defeated the Muleriders in four of the last five meetings. Southern Arkansas (0-5, 0-3) has lost six consecutive games dating back to last year. Southern Arkansas trailed by as many as 17 points in the second half, but slowly cut into Harding’s lead by scoring touchdowns and limiting the Bisons to field goals. Clarence Wright intercepted a pass from quarterback David Knighton in the end zone and ran it back 59 yards, eventually leading to a 7-yard touchdown run by Johnson to give Southern Arkansas a 27-26 lead with 12 minutes left in the game. Then junior Zac Ross performed a feat no Harding player had accomplished since 1989. Ross caught the following kickoff at his 14-yard line and ran it back 86 yards for a touchdown to give Harding a 32-27 lead after the two-point conversion failed. Harding had gone 786 kick returns without a touchdown. Southern Arkansas began the next drive on its own 11-yard line, and Steve Hudson forced a fumble from quarterback Ryan McCombie. Morgan Toline recovered the loose ball in the end zone to give Harding a 39-27 lead with 11:38 left, just eight seconds after the Bisons’ previous touchdown. Johnson scored his fourth touchdown for the Muleriders and had a chance to take the lead in the last two minutes, but Toline intercepted a pass from McCombie at Harding’s own 27 as the Bisons held on for the victory. Turnovers were costly for the Muleriders as the Bisons scored 17 points from the mistakes. Harding forced a school-record six fumbles, recovering four of them. Linebacker Sevohn Greer tied a school record with two forced fumbles. Knighton completed 29 of 50 passes for 384 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions. Knighton’s first touchdown pass of the game, a 63-yard pass to receiver Kurt Adams, was the 70th of his career. He also exceeded career markers of 700 completions and 8,000 passing yards in Saturday’s game. Adams caught four passes for 114 yards to lead all receivers. Johnson provided almost all of Southern Arkansas’ offense, rushing 31 times for 231 yards and four touchdowns. The Muleriders finished with 469 yards of offense, the first time the Harding defense has allowed less than 500 yards in seven games. Harding place-kicker Ryan Ferrell made 4 of 5 field goals and all three of his PAT attempts to finish with 15 points scored. He was responsible for Harding’s first nine points, helping the Bisons to a 23-13 halftime lead. Ferrell has made 11 of 14 field goal attempts this season. Luke Tribble led Harding’s defense with a career-high 15 tackles, the second time this season the redshirt freshman has led the team in the category. Greer finished with 12 tackles, two forced fumbles and a recovery. Jason Thomasson had 10 tackles and a forced fumble. The Bisons will host Ouachita Baptist next week at First Security Stadium, beginning at 6 p.m.

#3 North Alabama Too Much for Harding September 25, 2008 By Scott Goode  Harding SID FLORENCE, AL – North Alabama, the third-ranked team in NCAA Division II football, amassed 706 yards and defeated Harding 52-0 Thursday in Gulf South Conference play at Braly Municipal Stadium. It was the first time the Bisons had been shutout since a 23-0 loss to Henderson State in 2005.   With the victory, North Alabama remained unbeaten at 5-0 overall and 3-0 in the GSC. Harding dropped its third straight and fell to 1-4 overall and 0-2 in conference.   North Alabama quarterback A.J. Milwee completed all eight of his passes in the first quarter for 206 yards, including a 90-yard touchdown pass to Ed Gant, and the Lions led 21-0 after the first period. It was the second-longest pass play in UNA history.   North Alabama surpassed the 300-yard mark in total offense on its second play of the second quarter and had 524 yards at halftime.   Harding's longest play of the first half, a 26-yard pass from David Knighton to Jordan Watson, resulted in a fumble after Watson made the first defender miss but was stripped of the ball by the second.   North Alabama led 49-0 at halftime, breaking the previous school record for points in a half of 46 set against Arkansas-Monticello in 2004. The Lions scored touchdowns on their first six possessions and have scored 112 unanswered points over their last three games.   Milwee completed his first 10 passes for 234 yards. He left in the midway through the second quarter after going 13-of-14 for 314 yards and two touchdowns. Lion backup quarterback Genario McNealy led UNA's seventh touchdown drive of the half. Four different players took snaps at quarterback for the Lions as UNA passed for a school-record 492 yards.   Harding's deepest first half penetration into North Alabama territory was the 29-yard line, but the Bisons failed to pick up a first down on fourth-and-10 and the Lions took over on downs.   In the third, Harding drove to the North Alabama 17 following a 42-yard pass from Knigton to Tyler O'Quin. But Knighton threw an interception to Lion middle linebacker Michael Johnson on the next play that ended the Bisons' scoring threat. UNA ended Harding's final drive of the game with an interception in the end zone.   North Alabama's only points in the second half came on a 46-yard field goal by kicker Tom Schneider, a transfer from the University of California. The points came with 2:59 left in the game.   Knighton completed 21-of-41 passes for 232 yards, and backup Zach Tribble connected on 8-of-12 for 43 yards. Senior running back Alan Webster had his best game of the season with 69 yards on 10 carries. Junior Zac Ross had seven receptions for 80 yards.   Harding returns to Searcy next Saturday for the first of two consecutive home games. The Bisons host Southern Arkansas on Oct. 4 at 6 p.m.

Harding rallies, falls in OT to No. 17 Delta State September 20, 2008 By Amanda Pruitt Harding Sports Information   SEARCY — Harding senior quarterback David Knighton passed for more than 500 and seven touchdowns Saturday, but No. 17 Delta State had a 500-yard passer of its own in Garrett DeWitt. Harding rallied to score 21 points in the fourth quarter to tie the game, but the Statesmen won 56-49 in overtime at First Security Stadium. Knighton tied a school and Gulf South Conference record with 42 completions, good for 523 yards, just three yards short of the school record he set last November in a 62-55 victory over Arkansas Tech. His seven touchdown passes also tied a Harding record. Harding (1-3, 0-1 GSC) began its late-game comeback when junior wide receiver Kurt Adams caught a 23-yard touchdown pass while on his back in the endzone to cut the Statesmen’s lead to 49-35 with 13:24 left in regulation. The Bisons defense, which had given up 487 yards through the first three quarters, held Delta State to a three-and-out and received possession at the Statesmen’s 45-yard-line. Harding scoed two plays later when Knighton completed a passed to freshman Jeremy Holt, who broke away for a 40-yard touchdown with 11:07 remaining. Delta State (2-1, 1-0) marched the ball to Harding’s 1-yard line on the following possession, but Dedrick Wilson fumbled and the ball was recovered by senior linebacker Sevohn Greer with 6:33 left in the third quarter. The Bisons later scored when Knighton found senior running back Alan Webster for a wide-open 16-yard touchdown to tie the game 49-49 with 2:14 left. The Statesmen quickly scored in overtime when Betterson caught a 9-yard pass for a touchdown, his fourth of the game. Harding got a first down when Delta State was called for a penalty, but could not score as Delta State won 56-49. It was Harding’s first overtime loss since 1999. Delta State improved to 9-0-1 all-time against the Bisons. Harding fell to 5-18 all-time against nationally ranked teams. Both offenses featured passing and lots of it. Harding and Delta combined for 1,051 passing yards and 13 passing touchdowns. The teams collected only 72 yards of combined rushing. Adams caught six passes for 75 yards and two touchdowns, breaking the school record with seven consecutive games with a receiving touchdown. He tied Santiago Collins (2000-2003) for fourth in career touchdowns with 16. Sophomore Jordan Watson set career bests with nine catches for 161 yards and two touchdowns. DeWitt threw three touchdown passes in the first quarter to give Delta State an early 21-0 lead. The Statesmen widened the scoring margin when Chad Schroeder ran back a 63-yard punt return for a touchdown as his team led by 28 points with 13:54 left in the first half. Harding finally got on the scoreboard when Adams caught a 5-yard touchdown pass from Knighton, but Garrett passed for his fourth touchdown four minutes later to make the score 35-7 with 5:56 remaining in the half. Knighton passed to Watson for an 11-yard touchdown to cut the lead to 35-14 with 4:54 left in the second quarter. On the following kickoff by Ryan Ferrell, the Bisons recovered. The next play, Knighton completed a 40-yard touchdown to Julian Firman to give Harding its second touchdown in nine seconds. Delta State led at halftime 35-21, and the Statesman led 42-28 after the third quarter. DeWitt completed 36-of-57 passes for 514 yards and six touchdowns. Schroeder  caught 13 passes for 165 yards, and Betters caught eight passes for 83 yards and four touchdown. Harding will be televised as the GSC Game of the Week next Thursday against North Alabama in Florence, AL, at 7 p.m.

Harding falls in final non-conference game September 13, 2008 By Scott Goode Harding SID BOLIVAR, MO – Southwest Baptist sophomore quarterback Steven Gachette scrambled for 127 yards and passed for 291 more to lead the Bearcats to a 43-31 victory over Harding on Saturday at Plaster Stadium. It was the Bearcats' first victory over the Bisons in the fifth meeting between the schools. Harding had many chances to punch it in, driving inside the Southwest Baptist 20-yard line eight times but came away with only four field goals. The Bearcats stopped the Bisons three times on downs and blocked a field goal attempt. Southwest Baptist had the ball inside the Harding 20 six times and scored each time. Gachette rushed for two first half touchdowns, both on broken plays and gave Southwest Baptist a 24-16 halftime lead. It could have been a larger deficit, but Harding quarterback David Knighton rolled to his left and found junior Kurt Adams in the end zone for a 24-yard touchdown. It was Knighton's only touchdown pass of the game, snapping a streak of 13 straight games with two or more. Gachette rushed for 111 yards and passed for 160 in the first half alone, as Southwest Baptist gained 329 yards before halftime. The two teams combined for over 1,000 yards of total offense, with Southwest Baptist gaining 534 and Harding compiling 545. The Bisons had a 300-yard passer (David Knighton, 365 yards), a 100-yard rusher (Jeremy Holt, 139 yards) and a 100-yard receiver (Kurt Adams, 113 yards) in a game for only the second time in school history. The other occasion was also against Southwest Baptist in 2006. Harding pulled within one score on six different occasions but trailed the entire game after Southwest Baptist scored on its first possession. The Bearcats converted 13-of-21 third downs. The Bisons had 23 third downs, the most in a game by Harding since joining the NCAA in 1997. The Bisons also smashed a school record with 103 offensive plays in the game. Ferrell, a senior, had five field goals, tying the school record, set by Steve Hunter against Southeastern Oklahoma in 1981. Southwest Baptist's victory snapped an 18-game losing streak, dating to the 2006 season. The Bearcats, in their first season as NCAA Division II independents, were 0-10 in 2007. Harding's Gulf South Conference opener is next Saturday at First Security Stadium against Delta State. Kickoff is at 6 p.m

Harding evens record with 37-27 victory September 6, 2008 By Amanda Pruitt Harding Sports Information SEARCY – The Harding Bisons rebounded off their season-opening loss by forcing six turnovers and earning 37-27 victory over the West Alabama Tigers in the Bisons’ first home game at First Security Stadium on Saturday night.   Senior linebacker Sevohn Greer led the way for Harding’s defense. Greer, back for his senior season after missing 2007 with a shoulder injury, forced two fumbles, collected career-high three sacks and had 10 tackles. He also posted a career-high 3.5 tackles for loss.   Harding (1-1) took the first lead midway through the first quarter when freshman running back Jeremy Holt broke away for a 35-yard touchdown run. Harding kicker Ryan Ferrell missed the extra point, and West Alabama took a 7-6 lead five minutes later on a 3-yard run by Dameon Baylor.   Senior quarterback David Knighton scrambled out of pressure to complete a 5-yard touchdown pass to senior Alan Webster to put Harding ahead 13-7, but the Tigers retook the lead 14-13 when quarterback Deon Williams connected with Terry Allen for an 85-yard touchdown pass with 6:58 remaining in the first quarter.   Harding took the lead for good when junior Kurt Adams caught a touchdown pass from Knighton for 19 yards to take a 20-14 lead. Ferrell gave the Bisons some breathing room when he scored a field goal from 38 yards out with 33 seconds left in the first half as the Bisons took a 23-14 lead into halftime.   Williams kept West Alabama in contention when he completed a 22-yard touchdown pass to Gerald Worsham to close Harding’s lead to 23-21, but Harding quickly extended its lead back to nine points when Zac Ross caught Knighton’s third touchdown pass of the evening.   Senior Tracy Brown intercepted a pass from Williams – one of three interceptions by Harding’s defense – and ran back 65 yards for a touchdown with eight seconds left in the third quarter. It was the ninth longest touchdown return in school history and the Bisons led 37-21. The Bisons scored 10 points directly off turnovers.   Knighton finished 31-for-46 passing with 300 yards, three touchdowns and two interceptions. Knighton has passed for at least two touchdowns in 13 consecutive games and has thrown for 300 or more in four consecutive. Adams, who had 179 receiving yards in last week’s 45-31 loss to Missouri Southern, has already caught three touchdown passes this season.   Although he was intercepted three times, Williams completed 18-of-33 passes for 317 yards and three touchdowns. Allen led West Alabama with 133 receiving yards on five passes. Baylor ran 18 times for 100 yards.   West Alabama (1-1) won its opener last week 49-12 over NAIA Belhaven but has not defeated a Division II school since 2006.

Harding catch-up effort foiled by MSSU August 30, 2008 By Scott Goode Harding SID JOPLIN, MO - Missouri Southern senior quarterback Adam Hinspeter completed 26-of-45 passes for a school-record 422 yards and five touchdowns, as the Lions defeated Harding 45-31 on Saturday at Fred G. Hughes Stadium. It was Missouri Southern's third consecutive victory over Harding and second straight in Joplin. Two of Hinspeter's strikes came in the second quarter when Missouri Southern extended its lead to 24-7 with less than a minute left in the half. Sophomore Kyle Young intercepted a Hinspeter pass that led to a 20-yard David Knighton touchdown pass to Kurt Adams that cut the advantage to 24-14. Harding battled offensively, cutting the Missouri Southern lead to seven points on two occasions. But every time the Bisons scored, Hinspeter and the Lions had an answer. Harding opened the third quarter with a 22-yard Ryan Ferrell field goal to cut the lead to 24-17, but Hinspeter followed that with a 21-yard touchdown pass to Daniel Thompson with 8:54 left in the third. Adams then made a great catch down the sidelines for a 70-yard touchdown that trimmed the lead to 31-24 at 8:33 in the third. Missouri Southern answered with a seven-play, 73-yard drive that ended on a Ronnell Newman three-yard run. The Lions led by at least two scores the rest of the way. Knighton had an outstanding game, as well. The senior Harlon Hill Award candidate from Seminole, OK, completed 31-of-61 for 365 yards and two touchdowns. It was his 12th consecutive game with two or more touchdown passes and his eighth game with 300 or more passing yards. Adams had a career-high 179 yards on six receptions with two touchdowns. His effort was topped only by Missouri Southern's Mark Henderson who had nine receptions for 228 yards and three touchdowns. Missouri Southern compiled 551 total yards, while Harding had 383. The passing game worked well for the Bisons considering that the team had only 18 rushing yards on 22 carries.