A&M-Commerce Lions at Southeastern Oklahoma Savage Storm
Saturday, October 5 • 2 p.m.
Paul Laird Field • Durant, Okla.
Records: A&M-Commerce (2-2); Southeastern Oklahoma (1-3)

Radio: KETR 88.9 FM (listen online at KETR.org)
Live Statistics: LionAthletics.com
Twitter Updates: @Lion_Athletics
A&M-Commerce Football Game Notes (PDF)

Opening Kick
A&M-Commerce steps out of Lone Star Conference play this week, making the short trip north to Durant, Okla., to battle Southeastern Oklahoma at 2 p.m. Saturday at Paul Laird Stadium. The road game against the Savage Storm marks the Lions' shortest road trip of the season as Durant sits just 75 miles north of Commerce.

Lions on the Web
Fans unable to make it to Durant, Okla., for Saturday's game against the Savage Storm can still catch every Lion play. KETR 88.9 FM will carry the game live with Charlie Chitwood and Brock Callaway on the call, and will be streamed online at KETR.org. Live stats will be available at LionAthletics.com while Twitter followers can get in-game updates @Lion_Athletics.

Scouting the Savage Storm
Roster • Statistics
2013: 1-3 overall, 1-3 Great American Conference
Last Week: Lost to Ouachita Baptist 45-7 in Arkadelphia, Ark.
Head Coach: Ray Richards (Northern Michigan, '81). Ninth season at Southeastern Oklahoma (39-45, .464); 13th season overall (53-76, .411)
Key Offensive Players:
• #16 Nick Sioson (So., QB): 118-of-209 (56.5%) for 1,244 yards (311.0 ypg), 9 TDs, 10 INTs
• #35 Devion Wortham (R-Fr., RB): 49 rushes for 366 yards (7.5 avg.), 4 TDs, long of 87
• #28 Ladarius Abrams (So., RB): 55 rushes for 229 yards (4.2 avg.), 2 TDs, long of 17
• #6 Anthony Foster (Jr., WR): 35 catches for 457 yards (13.06 avg.), 1 TD, long of 43
Key Defensive Players:
• #22 Greg Jackson (Jr., DB): 24 tackles (13 solo), 2.5 TFL, 1 PBU
• #3 Eric Walker (Sr., CB): 21 tackles (14 solo), 3 PBU
• #25 Chad Tucker (Jr., S): 18 tackles (13 solo), 2 PBU, 1 QBH, 1 FF, 1 INT
• #10 Russell Hurst (Sr., LB): 15 tackles (11 solo), 2.0 TFL, 1.0 Sack, 1 PBU, 1 QBH, 1 FR
Synopsis: Southeastern Oklahoma State enters Saturday's game with a 1-3 overall record as its first four games were all Great American Conference matches. The Savage Storm opened up the year with a 56-50 shootout victory over Southern Arkansas, followed by losses to Arkansas-Monticello (42-34), eighth-ranked Henderson State (44-35) and Ouachita Baptist (45-7). Southeastern Oklahoma's game against the Lions is the Savage Storms' only non-conference game of the season as 10 of their 11 games are against GAC opponent. Head coach Ray Richards is 3-4 all-time against A&M-Commerce, including a 1-2 mark against the Lions in Durant.

Series Information
Saturday's game marks the 19th all-time meeting between A&M-Commerce and Southeastern Oklahoma in a series that dates back to 1919, beginning with a 0-0 tie. With last season's 31-6 win in the season opener, the Savage Storm hold a slim 9-8-1 edge in the all-time series as the two teams have split the past 10 meetings. A&M-Commerce's last win over Southeastern Oklahoma came in 2010 as the Lions upended the Savage Storm 19-14 at Memorial Stadium as the two teams use to be Lone Star Conference divisional rivals. A&M-Commerce is 4-3 all-time in Durant, including a 27-17 victory in 2009.

Late Rally Comes Up Short As Lions Fall to 23rd-Ranked Mustangs
Heading into the fourth quarter Saturday evening, A&M-Commerce found itself trailing 23rd-ranked Midwestern State by 17 points at Memorial Stadium. The Lions made a furious comeback, pulling to within six at 30-24 with 1:32 remaining, but could not recover the onside kick to drop its third-straight decision to the Mustangs, who made their first trip to Commerce since 2005. A&M-Commerce made great strides from its previous two meetings with Midwestern State, having lost the last two games by an average margin of 48.5 points, and still hold an 11-7 edge in the all-time series against the Mustangs. It closes out a grueling September schedule which saw A&M-Commerce battle three-straight ranked opponents, sitting at 2-2 following the first four games of the season.

Rollison Surpasses 1,000 Yards
Junior quarterback Tyrik Rollison completed 17 of his 39 passes for 222 yards and two touchdowns Saturday, pushing him over the 1,000-yard passing mark on the season. Through the first four games of 2013, Rollison has completed 85 of 148 passes (57.4%) for 1,146 yards, 11 touchdowns and just four interceptions. The Sulphur Springs native is averaging 286.5 passing yards per game and is currently on pace to throw for over 3,100 yards in 2013, which would make him both the all-time single-season passing leader as well as the first quarterback to throw for over 3,000 yards in a season.

Smith, Howard Shine on Lions Receiving Attack
A pair of new receivers stepped up to help A&M-Commerce rally back against Midwestern State Saturday night. Freshman Stacy Howard set had four catches for 52 yards, including a 32-yard reception, while junior Seth Smith led the team with 77 yards receiving on three catches. Smith hauled in a season-long 48-yard reception in the first quarter to set up the Lions' first field goal before catching a 14-yard touchdown pass in the second quarter for his first score of 2013. Junior Vernon Johnson also had four catches for 44 yards on the night while emerging as a threat on kickoff returns as well, returning three kicks for 89 yards, including a 42-yard scamper in the third quarter.

Garrett Flashes Glimpses of Optimism
One of the biggest areas the Lions have been lacking in previous years has been the rushing attack, but freshman Ki-Janaven Garrett is bringing some excitement to the backfield for A&M-Commerce fans. The freshman from Center rushed for 78 yards on 19 carries against Midwestern State, the most rushing yards for an A&M-Commerce player since former Lion Marcus Graham rushed for 152 yards against Eastern New Mexico on November 5th, 2011. Through the first four games of 2013, Garrett has compiled 139 yards on 41 carries, averaging 3.4 yards per rush, with a pair of touchdowns.

Moore Notches 100th Career Tackle
Senior defensive lineman Tevin Moore reached an impressive career milestone Saturday evening against Midwestern State as the four-year starter had six tackles against the Mustangs, giving him 100 tackles for his A&M-commerce career. A 2010 All-LSC selection, Moore ranks second on the Lions with 20 tackles on the year while remaining the Lone Star Conference leader in both sacks (5.0) and tackles for loss (8.0). Two other senior defenders are right on his heels as well as fellow lineman Jake Williams sits at 99 career tackles following his four-stop performance against Midwestern State while defensive back Marcus Fore is at 98 career stops.

Lions Surpass 2012 Scoring Output
With the 24 points scored against Midwestern State Saturday evening, A&M-Commerce has amassed 148 points through the first four games of 2013, an average of 37.0 points per game. The revamped offensive attack has already surpassed the point total for the entire 2012 season as A&M-Commerce managed just 126 points through the 10 games of last year's schedule, an average of just 12.6 points per game. Offensively, A&M-Commerce is averaging 375.8 yards per game in 2013, which is nearly 100 yards more than the 280.6 yards per game the Lions averaged throughout the 2012 season.

Pitts Sets Career Mark Against Mustangs
Sophomore linebacker Cole Pitts was a player the A&M-Commerce coaching staff mentioned had caught their attention during both spring and summer workouts, and the sophomore from Alvin continues to emerge as one of the solid contributors to the Lions' defensive backfield. Pitts set a new career-best with six tackles, including 1.5 tackles for loss, against Midwestern State Saturday evening, upping his season total to 19, which is tied for third on the squad. Pitts' notched four unassisted stops against the Mustangs, upping his season total to nine.

Martinez Adds Stability to Lion Kicking Attack
Junior kicker Saul Martinez is doing exactly what he was expected to do when he was brought to Commerce - add stability to the Lion kicking attack. Through the first four games of 2013, Martinez leads A&M-Commerce with 28 points, averaging 7.0 points per game for the Lions. He has been perfect on extra points, hitting all 19 of his attempts, while putting three of his five field goal attempts through the uprights, including a career-long 34-yarder against Midwestern State into a headwind with the rain falling.

Snapping the Road Woes
A&M-Commerce heads to Durant, Okla., this week looking to bring to a close an extended road losing streak. The Lions' last true road victory was a 31-30 win at Central Oklahoma on October 30, 2010 as A&M-Commerce is 0-11 in road games since that date. The Lions notched their first victory away from Memorial Stadium during that span earlier this season, defeating 25th-ranked Delta State 44-37 in a neutral site showdown at AT&T Stadium in Arlington on September 13th.

Lions Rank Among National Leaders
Through the first four weeks of the 2013 season, A&M-Commerce continues to rank among the Division II national leaders in a pair of categories. The Lions sit second in the nation in tackles for loss per game, averaging 12.5 per game after recording 10 against Midwestern State, while ranking third nationally in sacks per game at 5.0. Individually, Ronald Fields ranks sixth among Division II in both passes defended (2.0 per game) and punt return average (17.4 ypr) while Tyrik Rollison is 14th in touchdown passes (11) and Tevin Moore sits 17th nationally in tackles for loss per game (2.0).

Lions Among Lone Star Conference Leaders
A&M-Commerce continues to rank among the Lone Star Conference leaders in both the team and individual standings in a handful of categories. As a team, the Lions continue to rank first in sacks (20) and are second in scoring offense (37.0), rushing defense (108.5 ypg), passing offense (309.0 ypg), kickoff returns (24.7 ypr), punt returns (14.1 ypr), first downs (22.2) and opponent third down conversion percentage (30.0). Individually, Tevin Moore continues to lead the LSC in both sacks (1.25) and tackles for loss (2.00) with Ronald Fields sitting first overall in both punt return average (17.4) and passes defended per game (2.00). Tyrik Rollison sits among the conference's top-three in three categories as does Vernon Johnson, who finally cracked the LSC leaders after meeting the required participation in 75% of the team's games on the year.

Looking Ahead
A&M-Commerce remains on the road, making the trip south for the annual meeting with arch rival Texas A&M-Kingsville on Saturday, October 12th. The longest active series, the Lions and Javelinas will tangle for the 61st time and will once again battle for the Chennault Cup which currently sits in A&M-Commerce's possession following the Lions' 21-14 overtime victory in 2012. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. from Javelina Stadium.

For the complete game notes, click the PDF link above