The Teams: Tarleton Texans (2-2, 0-1 WAC) vs. Eastern Kentucky Colonels (2-2, 0-1 ASUN)
Where: Richmond, Kentucky
Stadium: Roy Kidd Stadium
Time: 2 p.m. CT
Streaming Platform: ESPN+ (Greg Stotelmyer, Jim Tirey, Wes Chandler)
Radio: Tarleton Sports Network on 90.5 FM (Byron Anderson, Kyle Masters, Kyle Crews, Keltin Wiens)
 
TEXAN FOOTBALL GAME DAY
For the first time in team history, the Texans will hit the field in Kentucky for a battle against the Eastern Kentucky Colonels of the RMAC at Roy Kidd Stadium in Richmond on Saturday, Oct. 2, at 2 p.m. CT.
 
The game will be broadcast on ESPN+, with Greg Stotelmyer and Jim Tirey on the call, plus Wes Chandler working the sideline. The game can be heard on Tarleton Sports Network at 90.5 FM in Stephenville and surrounding areas, with Byron Anderson, Kyle Masters, Kyle Crews and Keltin Wiens leading the broadcast.
 
ABOUT THE MATCHUP

• This is the first ever meeting between the Texans and Colonels. This is the first of two games against an opponent from the ASUN Conference for the Texans, with a home game against Central Arkansas slated for Nov. 20.
• This is the first of two straight road games for Tarleton and third of four straight home games for EKU, dubbed its homecoming game.
• This is the first time TSU will ever play in the state of Kentucky. KY will mark Tarleton's 17th state to play a game in (AL, AR, CA, CO, GA, KS, LA, MS, OH, OK, MN, MO, NE, NM, TX, UT, WA -- also Mexico).

 
QUICK HITS

• This marks an even matchup with both teams sitting at 2-2 on the season. Tarleton has won both of their games by a combined 66 points, losing by a combined 15. EKU has played in three one-possession games, sporting a 2-1 record in such games.
• Tarleton has scored 129 points over its last three games, good for 43.0 points per game. The last time the Texans had 100+ points across three games was 2019, a year they started 11-0.
• Ronnell Wilson keeps climbing the Tarleton tackles leaderboard, surpassing Larry Fowler (314, 1979-82) for fourth on the career tackles list. Wilson (322 tackles) is just six tackles short of third place (Marquis Wadley, 328, 2011-13) and 17 tackles short of second place (Robert Ivey, 339, 1985-88). Tally Neal (1975-78) is first at 613.
• Greg Eggleston Jr. was just named the Ticketsmarter WAC Defensive Player of the Week after his two-interception performance against New Mexico Highlands. He's the first Tarleton freshman (true or redshirt) to have two interceptions in a game since Dee Collins had two against Southwestern Oklahoma State in 2008.
• This is Tarleton's second road game of the year. Before the Texans' loss at SFA in the season opener, Tarleton had won seven straight road games. Including the loss at SFA, Tarleton has won 11 of its last 13 road games.

 
ROAD WARRIORS
The Texans haven't been fazed much playing in front of opposing crowds. Including their season-opening loss at Stephen F. Austin, Tarleton has won an incredible 11 of its last 13 games on the road, one of which was a 2018 playoff loss at No. 1 Minnesota State- Mankato. The Texans had knocked off seven wins in a row from 2019-20, going 6-0 in 2019 and 1-0 in 2020. 
 
Over this 13-game span, the Texans have averaged 39.7 points while giving up an average of 18.9 points per game. The difference in scoring margin across the 13 games is 270 points, 20.8 points per contest.
 
POUND THE ROCK
In their last game, Tarleton once again turned to the running attack to get it done. The Texans finished with 276 net yards on 42 attempts, averaging 6.6 yards per rush as a team, with four rushing touchdowns. Daniel Wright Jr. had 142 yards rushing on 15 attempts, good for 9.5 yards per carry, and Ryheem Skinner totaled 126 rushing yards on 15 carries, 8.4 yards on average.
 
On the season, Tarleton is averaging 215.3 rushing yards per game, a mark that would put them 18th best in the FCS, if not for the reclassification period. This season when earning 200+ yards on the ground, Tarleton is 2-0; 0-2 when falling short of 200. In fact, the Texans have won 32 straight games when grinding out 200 or more yards on the ground, not having lost one since the 2015 season opener vs. Findlay (35-34, 247 yards).
 
Individually, Wright has posted two 100+ rushing yard games in his four played. He'd have the 16th most rushing yards at the FCS level, if not for reclassification, and the tied-13th most rushing yards per carry at 6.57.
 
BITSON'S BIG SEASON
Tariq Bitson has been Tarleton's No. 1 receiver virtually all season, leading the way with 18 receptions, 363 receiving yards and three touchdowns. His 363 receiving yards is the highest mark in the WAC and would be 12th in FCS if not for reclassification. He's averaging 20.2 yards per catch, a mark that would put him 21st in FCS. He's had two 100+ yard receiving games this season, including a 136-yard night on Saturday against New Mexico Highlands. That was largely due to Tarleton's longest play of the season thus far, an 84-yard catch and run that was stopped at the 1-yard line on the very first offensive play of the game. That's the fourth longest reception of any player in FCS this year.
 
Against Southern Utah, Bitson caught a touchdown on each of Tarleton's first three drives of the game. He finished with six catches, 82 yards and three TDs. Bitson fell just one touchdown short of tying the team record for receiving TDs in a game. He is the first Tarleton player with three receiving touchdowns in a game since Zimari Manning at Western New Mexico on Nov. 16, 2019. He's one of eight players at the FCS level this year to have 3+ touchdown catches in a game, and one of 16 across NCAA Division I.
 
HAFFORD AMONG THE FEW
Devin Hafford has been one of the top defensive players not just for Tarleton in 2021, but across NCAA Division I football. To begin the year, the defensive back had two fumble recoveries at Stephen F. Austin. He became the only Tarleton player in at least the past 10 years to recover multiple fumbles on defense in a single game, and was one of two FCS players with multiple fumble recoveries in the first week. Against SUU, Hafford had two interceptions, returning one back 35 yards for a touchdown.
 
At four takeaways, Hafford has the tied-most across all of Division I. Only three other players in the FCS have four takeaways (Villanova's Christian Benford has four interceptions; Furman's Travis Blackshear has three interceptions and one fumble recovery; Western Illinois' Michael Lawson has three interceptions and one fumble recovery). Only three players in the FBS have four takeaways (Oregon's Verone McKinley III and South Carolina's Jaylan Foster each have four interceptions; East Carolina's Ja'Quan McMillian has three interceptions, one fumble recovery). Hafford is one of just two players across both FCS and FBS with multiple takeaways in multiple games this year, along with Benford.
 
BEST OF THE WAC
Tarleton is prominently featured across the top of the Western Athletic Conference stat leaderboards this season...
Steven Duncan:
- 2nd in total passing yards (863)
- 2nd in completion percentage (.680)
- 2nd in total completions (70)
- 3rd in total touchdown passes (six)
- 3rd in passing yards per game (215.8)
Daniel Wright Jr.:
- 1st in total all-purpose yards (446)
- 2nd in rushing yards per game (82.3)
- 2nd in total rushing yards (329)
- T-2nd in total rushing touchdowns (two)
- 4th in average yards per carry (6.6)
Jayy McDonald:
- T-2nd in total rushing touchdowns (two)
- 3rd in rushing yards per game (67.3)
- 3rd in average yards per carry (7.2)
- 4th in total rushing yards (202)
Ryheem Skinner:
- 5th in rushing yards per game (47.5)
- 5th in total rushing yards (190)
Khalil Banks:
- T-2nd in total rushing touchdowns (two)
Tariq Bitson:
- 1st in total receiving yards (363)
- 1st in average yards per reception (20.2)
- 2nd in receiving yards per game (90.8)
- T-2nd in total receiving touchdowns (three)
- 4th in total receptions (18)
D.J. Harris:
- 1st in total tackles (41)
- 2nd in tackles per game (10.3)
- T-3rd in tackles for a loss (5.0)
Devin Hafford:
- 1st in fumble recoveries (two)
- T-3rd in interceptions (two)
Ronnell Wilson:
- 3rd in total tackles (32)
- 4th in tackles per game (8.0)
- T-5th in total sacks (2.0)
Greg Eggleston Jr.:
- T-3rd in interceptions (two)
Marsean Fisher:
- T-4th in pass breakups (three)
Adrian Guzman:
- T-2nd in field goal makes (four)
- T-3rd in extra-point makes (17)
Jake Walrath:
- 1st in punts inside the 20 (six)
 
HALL OF FAME WORTHY
The Cotton Bowl Hall of Fame will be on Oct. 5 at AT&T Stadium in Arlington. Tarleton assistant coach (RB/TE) Jonathan Beasley will be among the seven enshrined as part of the 12th Cotton Bowl Hall of Fame Class for his play at quarterback at Kansas State. The other inductees are Notre Dame split end Tom Gatewood, Arkansas guard Jerry Jones, Ole Miss running back/wide receiver Dexter McCluster, Texas defensive end Cory Redding, Boston College linebacker Bill Romanowski and Kansas State head coach Bill Snyder.
 
Described in the summary: "Nothing seemed to faze Kansas State quarterback Jonathan Beasley. Not even a playing field covered in snow after a winter storm blew through North Texas just hours before the start of the 2001 Cotton Bowl Classic. Beasley set records for first-half efficiency by rolling up 238 yards in total offense and logged the second-highest number of yards passing with 193 against Tennessee. On the ground or through the air, he was relentless. He ran 14 yards for the game's first score, and then passed for touchdowns of 56 and 10 yards. By the time the third quarter rolled around, most of the snow had evaporated along with Tennessee's chances of winning. Beasley and the Wildcats pounded out 507 yards in total offense and cruised to a rousing 35-21 defeat of the Volunteers."
 
WAC WEEKLY AWARD
Through four weeks of college football, two Tarleton players have earned WAC Defensive Player of the Week honors...
 
In Week 2, linebacker D.J. Harris was named the Ticketsmarter WAC Defensive Player of the Week for his dominant performance against Fort Lewis. Harris had 13 tackles (six solo), a forced safety, 1.5 sacks, 3.0 tackles for a loss and three quarterback hurries.
 
In Week 4, defensive back Greg Eggleston Jr. was named the Ticketsmarter WAC Defensive Player of the Week for his two-interception game against New Mexico Highlands. He's the first Tarleton freshman (true or redshirt) to have two interceptions in a single game since Dee Collins had two picks against Southwestern Oklahoma State in 2008 as a redshirt freshman.
 
GROUNDING THE SKYHAWKS
In Week 2, the Texans put a whooping on Fort Lewis, winning 54-7. Four different Texans had 50 or more yards on the ground, and three different running backs ran one in for a score. Daniel Wright Jr. led everyone with 115 yards on 14 carries. Jayy McDonald had 92 yards on 10 carries and two TDs. Khalil Banks also had a pair of touchdowns to go with 53 rushing yards, while Ryheem Skinner rounded things out with 50 yards and a TD.
 
Against Fort Lewis, Tarleton allowed 188 yards of total offense, 3.1 yards per play (103 yards passing, 85 yards rushing). They also forced a safety and two fumbles. Under defensive coordinator Marcus Patton, this was the ninth time the Texans' opponent had fewer than 200 yards of total offense -- Tarleton is a perfect 9-0 in those games.
 
A blowout win meant a chance to give several Texans some real game experience. A total of 56 players got into the game for Tarleton, with 22 different players recording a tackle, 10 different players recording a reception, seven different players recording a rushing attempt, and two quarterbacks playing about a half of football each.
 
THE BEST IN TEXAS
Since the start of the 2018 season, there has not been a better scholarship football program in the entire state of Texas than Tarleton State University. The Texans enter Saturday's game with 30 wins since the start of 2018, tied for the most wins in the state by an NCAA Division I or II program. The list of the top scholarship programs in Texas over that span are as follows:
 

#	School	League	Wins
1.	Tarleton	WAC	30
2.	Texas A&M	SEC	29
3.	Texas	Big XII	28
4	Sam Houston	WAC	26
	SMU	AAC	26
6.	Baylor	Big XII	24
7.	A&M-Commerce	LSC	23
8.	TCU	Big XII	20
9.	West Texas A&M	LSC	19
	Angelo State	LSC	19

 
WINNING PROBLEM
With wins in their next two, TSU would bring its senior college era record over .500 for the first time since 1961. In 1961 under head Johnny Dunn, Tarleton won its first-ever game as a senior college 20-14 over Southwestern Oklahoma. Tarleton lost its next three and had a chance to bring its all-time record to .500 again in the season finale, but lost 21-6 to the East Central Tigers and had not reached the .500 mark as a four-year program again until defeating Northeastern State in their second to last game of 2020 to bring their senior college record to 309-309-3. East Central spoiled it again with a 21-14 win. The Texans are currently at 311-312-3 in their senior college history.
 
MILESTONE WATCH – WILSON THE WALL
6: Ronnell Wilson (322) is six tackles away from matching Marquis Wadley (328, 2011-13) for third on Tarleton's all-time tackles leaderboard. 
17: He is 17 tackles short of second place (Robert Ivey, 339, 1985-88). Tally Neal (1975-78) is first at 613.
 
UP NEXT FOR TARLETON
Tarleton will be on their bye week next week, with no game scheduled for the weekend of Oct. 9. Their next game will be on the road again, this time at Dixie State on Saturday, Oct. 16, at 8 p.m. CT in St. George, Utah. Dixie State is currently winless, sitting at 0-3 on the year.