Complete Game Notes
Game 6: Nebraska Kearney (3-2, 3-2 MIAA) at Lincoln (0-5, 0-5 MIAA)
Date/Time: Saturday, Oct. 12 - 2:00 p.m.
Location: Jefferson City, Mo.
Stadium (Capacity): Dwight T. Reed Stadium (5,500)
Tickets: Adults - $10 | Children Under the Age of Six - Free  | Non-LU Students/LU Faculty & Staff - $5 | LU Students (With ID) - Free
Streaming - http://www.themiaanetwork.com
Radio - KJLU 88.9 FM - Jefferson City, Mo.
Audiocast - http://radio.securenetsystems.net/v5/KJLU
Live Stats - https://lubluetigers.com/sidearmstats/football/
Series - Tied, 1-1

THE KICKOFF 
The Blue Tigers begin a two-game homestand on Saturday (Oct. 12) when the Lincoln football team hosts Nebraska Kearney for a 2:00 p.m. CDT contest. This will be the third home game of the season for the Blue Tigers and the first meeting with the Lopers since 2013.

Lincoln's defense has created 16 turnovers this year and Hosea Franklin is one of the nation's top running backs, but the Blue Tigers enter the week seeking their first win of 2019. LU had another big day on the ground against MIAA-leader Pittsburg State, but fell to the Gorillas, 56-14, last Saturday (Oct. 5).

Nebraska Kearney has alternated wins and losses in every game this season, entering Saturday with a 3-2 record. The Lopers have won road games at Missouri Southern and Emporia State but are 1-2 at home after beating Northeastern State, 45-10, this past weekend.

QUICK HITS 
- Lincoln and Nebraska Kearney will meet for the third time on Saturday, with the series tied at 1-1.

- Lincoln won a crazy weather-affected Homecoming game in 2012, as the Blue Tigers topped the Lopers, 34-27, in a contest that included a lightning delay longer than the game itself and the two halves being played at two different venues. That's the only previous meeting in this series that was played in Jefferson City.

- In the rematch in Kearney, Neb. in 2013, the Lopers won, 24-14 thanks to a 17-point fourth quarter.

- A victory for Lincoln would be its first against an MIAA opponent since the end of the 2013 season, when Lincoln closed the year with back-to-back home victories against Northeastern State and Southwest Baptist.

- This will be the first day game of 2019 at Dwight T. Reed Stadium after LU's first two home games of the season were played under the lights.

- Lincoln is in the midst of 11-straight conference games to begin the 2019 campaign. The only non-conference game will be the St. Louis Heritage Football Classic against Kentucky State in the Dome at America's Center on Nov. 23.

- The Blue Tigers enter this week's game with an all-time record of 260-459-25.

- Malik Hoskins was named the interim head coach of the Blue Tigers in May 2019 and enters the week with an LU record of 0-5 and an overall record of 3-12.

- After a five-year absence, Lincoln has returned to the MIAA for its 24th season as a football-playing member. The Blue Tigers, who were an associate member of the GLVC from 2014-18, previously played in the MIAA from 1970-89 and from 2011-13. The MIAA is the fifth different conference in which the Blue Tigers have been a member, joining the Midwest Athletic Association, the Great Lakes Football Conference, the Central States Football League and the GLVC.

- This is the 89th season of Lincoln football. The Blue Tigers first fielded a team in 1920 and played every year until 1943, when Lincoln took a year off due to World War II. LU then played each season from 1944-1989. The football program was disbanded at that point, but was brought back in 2000.

BLUE TIGERS TO WATCH
OFFENSE - Hosea Franklin had the best opening week of the season by an NCAA Division II rusher, as he gained 251 yards on 20 carries, breaking the LU single-game record in the process. Franklin is averaging 149.4 yards per game and 6.9 yards per carry.

CJ Closser and Dre'Shon Alston each caught TD passes from Chancellor Johnson in his first start as Lincoln's quarterback. Tori Hicks made a pair of touchdown catches against Missouri Southern, and Franklin has made six catches for 47 yards. Alston leads the Blue Tigers with seven grabs while Hicks and Rashaad Harris each have six.

DEFENSE - The Blue Tiger defense made a huge impact in the season opener, forcing Washburn into seven turnovers. LU had three interceptions and forced and recovered four fumbles. The LU defense continued its opportunistic ways against Missouri Southern, tallying another pick and two more fumble recoveries.

Cody Alexander had a pair of interceptions in the opener and is third among the Blue Tigers with 30 tackles while Hasan Muhammad-Rogers, who has two fumble recoveries and an interception, ranks fourth with 28 total takedowns. Piere' Jones has broken up three passes and has made a fumble recovery to go with 13 tackles, and Quan Mason has a pair of quarterback hurries.

Bri'on Sanders, who has forced two fumbles on the year, and Chavon Gross, who has three picks, are tied for the team lead in tackling with 35 apiece. Thomas Burton has forced two fumbles and notched 14 tackles, and Cody Bagby has a fumble recovery while Vontavious Thacker has a hurry. Thacker has 26 tackles, TeAndre Skinner has 26 takedowns, and Elliott Albert is next on the list with 20.

SPECIAL TEAMS - Reagan Harrell has had eight punts pin opponents inside their 20-yard line, and has had two kicks travel at least 50 yards while averaging 36.6 yards. On kickoffs, Javier Moreno is averaging 52.0 yards while, in the return game, the Blue Tigers are led by Muhammad-Rogers with 17.7 yards on kickoffs and 5.3 yards on punts.

NEBRASKA KEARNEY AT A GLANCE
Nebraska Kearney is home to one of NCAA Division II's best rushing attacks, as the Lopers lead the MIAA and are second nationally with 326.2 yards per game. Four of the league's top-12 rushers are Lopers, with Darrius Webb's 6.2 average per carry ranking 29th in the country. UNK is also good at stopping the run, rating second in the MIAA and 30th nationally by allowing just 107.8 yards per game on the ground. Nebraska Kearney is additionally leading the league and ranked 14th in the country with less than one sack allowed per game, and the team has Division II's 21st-rated offense (461.0).

The Lopers have scored 17 rushing touchdowns, led by five from TJ Davis and three by David Goodwin, who is leading UNK with 394 yards. In the passing game, UNK has just four touchdowns to go with four interceptions, with Alex McGinnis, who has completed 40 passes for 589 yards, having tossed all four scoring passes. Sedarius Young leads the Lopers with seven grabs for 191 yards.

Sal Silvio is having a terrific season, boasting 33 tackles, 4.5 tackles for loss, three sacks, two passes broken up and a forced fumble and recovery. LaRoy James is next on the tackling chart with 32 takedowns, including 18 which were unassisted, and Hinwa Allieu has a team-high 3.5 sacks and five tackles for loss.

In the kicking game, Junior Gonzalez is 3-for-6 on field goals with a long of 27, and Kendall Raschein averages 57.3 yards on kickoffs and 38.3 yards on punts. Eight of Raschein's punts have pinned opponents inside the 20, and two have traveled at least 50 yards.

THE COACHES
Malik Hoskins was elevated to the position of interim head coach after spending the past two seasons serving as Lincoln's offensive coordinator. This is Hoskins' second stint as an interim head coach, as he held that title at Lane in 2015. Before coming to Lincoln, Hoskins coached at Bacone, where he worked with six offensive players who earned some form of all-conference recognition. In 2018, Hoskins was selected to attend the NCAA/NFL Coaches Academy due to his commitment to player development.

Josh Lynn is in his third season as the head coach of the Lopers and has coached UNK to 11 wins. Lynn, who also coaches most of Nebraska Kearney's offensive skill players, came to UNK after coaching his alma mater, Eastern New Mexico, to 27 wins between 2012-16.

BROKEN RECORD:  Hosea Franklin started 2019 on a record-breaking note by rushing for 251 yards against Washburn on Sept. 5. That total broke a nearly 50-year-old record, surpassing the 245 yards gained by Leo "The Lincoln Locomotive" Lewis in the early 1940s. Franklin averaged 12.6 yards per carry, the third-most by any NCAA DII player during the first week of the season.

LET'S BE FRANK: No running back in the MIAA is off to a hotter start than Hosea Franklin, as the sophomore leads the conference with 149.4 yards per game. Franklin, the only MIAA running back averaging over 100 yards per game, also leads the conference in total rushing yards (747) and ranks third in all-purpose yards (158.8).

NATIONAL LEADERS:  Hosea Franklin is off to a hot start, ranking third in Division II in both total rushing yards and rushing yards per game (149.4). Franklin, who additionally rates 10th nationally in all-purpose yardage (158.8), is not the only Blue Tiger high in the NCAA DII rankings, as Chavon Gross is 13th in solo tackles (6.0, an average that leads the MIAA) and is 11th in interceptions (three), while Cody Alexander leads NCAA DII in fumbles recovered (three).

TAKE ME AWAY:  Opportunistic would be the best way to describe the Lincoln defense's performance thus far in 2019, as the Blue Tigers have picked off six passes and both forced and recovered 10 fumbles. The 16 takeaways lead the MIAA and are fifth in NCAA Division II this season, and Lincoln is second in fumbles recovered.

TACKLING MACHINES:  In addition to creating turnovers, Lincoln also tackles well, with a few Blue Tigers ranking among the best in Division II. Chavon Gross is 13th in the nation with 6.0 solo tackles per game while Bri'on Sanders is 37th (5.2), and both players are respectively first and third in the MIAA in those statistics.

THE RUNDOWN:  Bolstered by an outstanding opening night by Hosea Franklin, LU currently boasts the sixth-best rushing attack in the MIAA. LU, which is also 29th in the nation, is averaging 201.8 yards per game on the ground. Franklin's 6.9 yards per carry are ninth nationally.

RETURN TO ME:  Hasan Muhammad-Rogers ended the 2018 campaign as one of the best kick returners in the GLVC, rating third in the conference and 45th nationally with 581 combined kick return yards. The senior has now become one of the MIAA's best kick returners, ranking second in the league and 17th in DII with 326 yards.

UNDER THE LIGHTS:  For the first time in LU history, the Blue Tigers opened the season with four-straight night games. With two Thursday night contests and a pair of Saturday night games to begin the year, this week's daytime match marks the longest into a season that LU will have played its first day game.

ALL-CONFERENCE:  Lincoln returns a pair of players who earned All-GLVC recognition for their stellar play in 2018. Hasan Muhammed-Rogers, a playmaker who also helped the Blue Tigers on both offense and special teams, was an All-GLVC second team selection at defensive back, as he had 57 tackles while breaking up three passes. Chavon Gross, meanwhile, was named to the all-league team as an honorable mention at defensive back after breaking up 10 passes, notching 4.5 tackles for loss and 40 total takedowns.

ON THE AIR:  Blue Tiger football is back on KJLU, as all six of Lincoln's home games will be broadcast this year. LU fans can also listen to four of the Blue Tigers' five road games online, as Lincoln play-by-play announcer James Stanley will provide an audiocast for the games at Washburn, Pittsburg State, Northwest Missouri and at Central Missouri. The road games will be audiocast through Facebook Live at https://www.facebook.com/BlueTigerAthletics.

IT'S A CLASSIC:  Tickets are now on sale for the St. Louis Heritage Football Classic, a game at the Dome at America's Center between Lincoln and Kentucky State. Visit www.lubluetigers.com/shfc2019 to reserve your seats for the Nov. 23 match-up of HBCUs.

GEAR UP FOR THE GAME:  LU fans can get everything they need for the game at www.BlueTigersStore.com, the official online store for LU athletics. Everything from jerseys to office supplies can be found on the site, with a portion of all sales going to benefit Lincoln athletics.

UP NEXT:  The Blue Tigers host Northeastern State for Homecoming next Saturday (Oct. 19) with kickoff set for 2:00 p.m. CDT.