Complete Game Notes
Game 10: Missouri Western (7-3, 7-3 MIAA) at Lincoln (1-9, 1-9 MIAA)
Date/Time: Saturday, Nov. 16 - 12:00 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 - MWSU leads, 3-0

THE KICKOFF 
The Lincoln football team closes the 2019 season on Saturday (Nov. 16) when the Blue Tigers host Missouri Western for a 12:00 p.m. CST contest. In addition to being the final home game of the year, it will also be Senior Day for Lincoln, with six Blue Tigers taking the field for the final time.

Both teams will be trying to end the 2019 season on a high note after suffering losses last Saturday (Nov. 9). Lincoln sophomore Hosea Franklin set a new program record for rushing yards in a year, but LU lost to Central Missouri in Warrensburg, Mo. by a final score of 73-6. Missouri Western also fell on Saturday, dropping a 49-21 decision at home to Nebraska Kearney.

At 4:00 p.m. CST this Saturday, the LU women's basketball team will play their home opener in Jason Gym. Fans who purchase a ticket for the football game will receive free admission to the basketball game.

QUICK HITS 
- Lincoln and Missouri Western will meet for the fourth time on Saturday, with the Griffons having won each of the previous three meetings.

- This will be the first visit to Dwight T. Reed Stadium for Missouri Western, as the other three games in this series were played in St. Joseph, Mo. Lincoln last player MWSU in 2011, with the Griffons winning, 81-20.

- A win for Lincoln would be its first in a season finale since 2013, when the Blue Tigers beat Southwest Baptist at home, 51-28.

- A victory would mark the first time the Blue Tigers have won multiple games against MIAA opponents in a year since ending 2013 with back-to-back home wins against Northeastern State and Southwest Baptist. Lincoln beat Northeastern State earlier this year, 27-9.

- Missouri Western is receiving points in this week's AFCA Division II poll, making it the fourth-straight team LU has played receiving votes in the national rankings.

- Before Saturday's game, a ceremony will be held to honor LU's six seniors: JaJuan Chambers, Chavon Gross, Elex Harris, Hasan Muhammad-Rogers, Bri'on Sanders and Antonio Watts.

- The Blue Tigers enter this week's game with an all-time record of 261-463-25.

- Malik Hoskins was named the interim head coach of the Blue Tigers in May 2019 and enters the week with an LU record of 1-9 and an overall record of 4-16.

- 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 is on fire this season, averaging an MIAA-best 129.8 rushing yards per game with 1,298 total yards on the year. Franklin has three of the conference's top-five single game rushing performances in 2019, including gaining 251 yards against Washburn in the opener.

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 14 catches for 86 yards. Hicks leads LU with 15 receptions for 96 yards while Alston has a team-high 114 receiving yards.

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 has three interceptions, including one he returned 81 yards for a score in the victory over Northeastern State, and is second among the Blue Tigers with 64 tackles. Hasan Muhammad-Rogers has two fumble recoveries and a pick, while Piere' Jones has broken up four passes and has a fumble recovery to go with 17 tackles, and Quan Mason has three QB hurries and a safety.

Bri'on Sanders, who has forced three fumbles, has 53 tackles on the year while Chavon Gross, who has three picks and a forced fumble, leads the team with 70. Thomas Burton has forced two fumbles and notched 20 tackles, and Cody Bagby has a fumble recovery while Vontavious Thacker has a pick-six. Thacker also has 56 tackles while TeAndre Skinner has tallied 46.

SPECIAL TEAMS - Reagan Harrell has had 14 punts pin opponents inside their 20-yard line and five kicks travel at least 50 yards, including one which went 71 yards, and averages 38.0 yards per kick. On kickoffs, Javier Moreno is averaging 52.0 yards while, in the return game, the Blue Tigers are led by Muhammad-Rogers with 17.9 yards on kickoffs and 4.8 yards on punts.

MISSOURI WESTERN AT A GLANCE
The Griffons are 7-3 on the season, but have been out-gained offensively 4,794-4,308, with teams passing for 2,672 yards and rushing for 2,122 yards. The Griffons have an opportunistic defense that has intercepted seven passes, recovered 10 fumbles, broken up 48 passes and recorded 64 tackles for loss.

On offense, Wyatt Steigerwald has completed 151 passes for 2,206 yards and 26 touchdowns against only six picks. Missouri Western uses a two-headed rushing attack led by Markel Smith, who has gained 776 yards while finding the end zone 12 times. Shamar Griffith is next with 645 yards, and both players average 6.1 yards per carry. 10 different Griffons have at least one touchdown reception on the year, led by Cam Grandy with five, and 15 MWSU players have at least one reception. Devon Holmes is the leader in both catches (37) and yards (555).

Sam Webb has three interceptions to go with 10 broken-up passes, and DJ Stirgus has nine break-ups while Kobe Cummings, who has made 59 tackles, is next with five. Evan Chohon leads Missouri Western with 84 tackles, including five for loss, and Anthony Williams has made 75 tackles with 2.5 sacks. Arnold Crayton (10 tackles for loss), Cameron Ravenell (8.5 tackles for loss) and Tyler Baska (three sacks) are among Missouri Western's other top defenders.

In the kicking game, Sam Aviles is 4-for-9 on field goals with a long of 46 yards, and averages 56.6 yards on kickoffs with 11 touchbacks. Luke Theis has punted 46 times with 25 resulting in a fair catch and 13 landing inside of the opponents' 20.

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.

Matt Williamson has directed the Griffons to 18 wins and a Live United Bowl victory in his three years as the head coach. An alum of MWSU, Williamson spent 10 years as an assistant at the NCAA Division I level.

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.

...AND ANOTHER: Hosea Franklin broke a second record last Saturday with 119 rushing yards at Central Missouri. That brought his season total up to 1,298, surpassing the season-record 1,266 yards that Morris Henderson gained on the ground back in 2013. Franklin, one of the nation's top running backs, has rushed for over 100 yards in seven of LU's 10 games and averages 6.3 yards per carry.

LET'S BE FRANK: No running back in the MIAA is having a hotter season than Hosea Franklin, as the sophomore leads the conference with 129.8 yards per game. Franklin, who is the only MIAA running back averaging over 100 yards per game, also leads the conference in total rushing yards (1,298) and is fourth in all-purpose yards (138.4).

NATIONAL LEADER:  Hosea Franklin currently ranks seventh in Division II in total rushing yards and eighth in rushing yards per game (129.8). Franklin, who additionally rates 23rd nationally in all-purpose yardage (138.4), is also 19th in the country in yards per carry (6.3).

NATIONAL DEFENSE:  Several other Blue Tigers are rated highly in the NCAA Division II rankings, especially on the defensive side of the ball. Cody Alexander, whose 81-yard pick six rates as the eighth-longest in DII this season, is fourth in the nation with three fumble recoveries, and is tied with Chavon Gross for 111th nationally with three interceptions. Gross is 19th in the country in solo tackles (5.6), and Bri'on Sanders is 26th nationally with three forced fumbles.

THE RUNDOWN:  Bolstered by an outstanding opening night by Hosea Franklin, Lincoln boasts the seventh-best rushing attack in the MIAA. LU, which is also 47th in the nation, is averaging 191.8 yards per game on the ground. Franklin's 6.3 yards per carry are 19th nationally.

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 eight passes, forced 12 fumbles and recovered 11. The 19 takeaways rank third in the MIAA and are currently the 51st-most in Division II this season, with LU rating 17th nationally in fumbles recovered.

MAY THE FOURTH BE WITH YOU:  Lincoln has been sharp on fourth down on both sides of the ball, ranking third in the MIAA in fourth downs converted as well as seventh in fourth down defense. LU has allowed opponents to pick up a first down on fourth down just 44.4-percent of the time, the 69th-best mark in NCAA Division II. Offensively, Lincoln is 62nd nationally with a 52.4-percent success rate on fourth down.

PUNT ON IT:  Reagan Harrell has given Lincoln a boost as the team's punter, averaging 38.0 yards per kick with a long of 71 yards. His longest punt, achieved against Nebraska Kearney, is just five yards short of the Lincoln record of 76 yards. Harrell's average, meanwhile, ranks 12th in the MIAA and 76th in the country. Harrell has been backed up by a special teams unit that allows just 6.1 yards on punt returns, which currently stands as the 51st-fewest in Division II.

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 three 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 and at Northwest 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 Show Me Classic, a basketball game at Chaifetz Arena between Lincoln and Harris-Stowe. Visit www.lubluetigers.com/smc2019 to reserve your seats for the Nov. 22 match-up.

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.

DOUBLE HEADER:  After the game, bring the voucher you received at the gate over to Jason Gym to get into the women's basketball game for free!