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Fresh off a 27-17 win over rival Emporia State in the season opener last Thursday in Hays, the Tigers head on the road for the first time this year, facing Truman on Saturday (Sept. 10) in Kirksville, Mo. Game time is 1 pm. Fort Hays State has won two straight in the series with Truman, including a 10-point win in Kirksville two years ago and a 25-point win last year in Hays.

Fort Hays State looks for its first road victory since the final game of the 2009 season. The Tigers went 0-4 on the road in 2010. This is the first of five road games this season for FHSU.

Chris Brown became the first head coach at FHSU to win in their coaching debut since Bob Cortese in 1990. The game against Emporia State marked the first time the Tigers started the season with a conference game since 1933.

Truman is coming off a 65-3 loss to Northwest Missouri State in Kirksville last week, so the Bulldogs will be hungry for a win after suffering a blowout loss at the hands of the five-time defending conference champion.

Korey Allison was the difference maker for the Tigers in the win last week, forcing and recovering a fumble near midfield that led to the 49-yard field goal by Tyler Kimbrough in the fourth quarter to put FHSU up 20-17. He then helped seal the game with a 55-yard interception return all the way down to the ESU 2-yardline which set up a short touchdown run by Edward Smith with just under two minutes to go.

Alex Whitehill had a big start to the season as well recording a career-high 15 tackles, a forced fumble, and a fumble recovery. He leads the MIAA in tackles after the first week, a category he finished second in last year with 118.

The tandem of Edward Smith and Andre Smith churned out 97 and 92 yards on the ground respectively last week. The Tigers ran for 197 yards in the season opener as a team and threw for 215 with a balanced attack. The Smith tandem ranks second and third in the MIAA in rushing yards after the first week of play.

Blake McAhren had an efficient game in his first start at quarterback for FHSU. He completed 19-of-30 passes for 215 yards and two touchdowns, connecting with Anthony Smith and Keaton Callins on the touchdown completions.

Ethan Kosjer enters the week ranked second in NCAA Division II, averaging 50.1 yards per punt. He had a 77-yard effort against ESU, the third-longest punt in FHSU history. Kosjer led the MIAA in punting average last year.