The Fort Hays State football team plays its final home game of the season on Saturday (Nov. 6) at 2 pm. The Tigers host the Lions of Missouri Southern at Lewis Field Stadium on Senior Day. Both teams enter with records of 3-6 overall and 1-6 in the MIAA. There will be 19 seniors recognized before the start of the contest.
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The Tigers are looking to snap a six-game losing skid after beginning the season 3-0. The Tigers fell last week by a score of 45-27 at No. 4 ranked Northwest Missouri State. The Tigers will be looking for a winning record at home, as they currently stand 3-3 at Lewis Field this season.
Fort Hays State is 2-2 against Missouri Southern since joining the MIAA in 2006. The first three conference contests between the teams resulted in shutouts (two for MSSU and one for FHSU) before the Tigers won a 48-34 shootout in Joplin last year. Missouri Southern holds the edge in the all-time series 12-10-1.
Fort Hays State ranks 19th nationally in total offense, despite its sub .500 record, averaging 440.8 yards per game. Fort Hays State has produced over 400 yards of total offense in all but two games this year. The Tigers eclipsed 500 total yards in a game three times this year, those being in both non-conference games and a 504-yard performance against Northwest Missouri State last week. The Tigers rank 15th nationally in passing offense, averaging 295.9 yards per game through the air.
Senior quarterback Mike Garrison currently ranks second in the MIAA in passing yards per game (295.9), passing yards (2,663), completions (187) and total offense (343.3 yards per game). He ranks ninth in the nation in total offense and 16th in passing efficiency. He became the all-time leader in total offense at FHSU last week, now with 7,105 total yards in his career. He needs just four more touchdowns this season to become the all-time leader in touchdown passes, currently with 46 in his career.
Senior O.J. Murdock is one of the premier wide receivers in Division II. He currently ranks fifth nationally in total receiving yards (1,055) and sixth in receiving yards per game (117.2). He is tied for seventh in the nation in touchdown catches (11). He is just 215 yards shy of breaking the school record for receiving yards in a season. He also needs four more touchdown receptions to at least tie Lance Schwindt for the single-season school record. He has 1,752 receiving yards in his two-year career at FHSU (ninth most) and his 19 touchdowns is third most for a career at FHSU.
Senior James Walker continues to be a solid all-purpose running back, producing over 100 all-purpose yards in seven of nine contests this season. He leads the team in rushing with 675 yards and total receptions with 50.
Junior linebacker Alex Whitehill passed the 100 tackles mark for the season with 13 at Northwest Missouri State last week. He now has 101 on the season and is averaging 11.2 per game, second best in the MIAA and sixth best in the nation. He also ranks sixth in the nation in total tackles. He is just 16 tackles shy of moving into the single-season top 10 list at FHSU. With one more tackle, he will have the most tackles in a season since Keith Eck had 117 in 1996.
Senior defensive back Seth Blackwell should move up high on the career tackles list over the next two games. Blackwell has 243 tackles at FHSU, which is sixth most in the school's NCAA Division II history. He needs just seven more to move to third place alone.
