By RANGERS ATHLETIC DEPARTMENT
After an exciting opening night of football for Northwestern’s football team in week one, the second game of the season proved far less dramatic.
In front of a new attendance record for fans at Wilkins Stadium on the campus of Southern Arkansas in Magnolia, Arkansas, the Muleriders defeated the Rangers with a final score of 33-14.
The Muleriders have been not only dominant over the Rangers since the Rangers have been admitted into the Great American Conference in 2012, but also throughout the course of time as the Rangers haven’t beaten SAU since 1978.
After a record setting offensive performance in week one from the Rangers offense, week two proved to be quite the opposite statistically for the Rangers. Quarterback Reid Miller managed just 206 passing yards and one touchdown compared to his school-record seven touchdowns in the first game. The other major statistical turn around for the Rangers actually proved to be a positive one for the Ranger defense, which struggled in week one, kept SAU’s notoriously high-powered offense mostly in check.
The Ranger’s defense would show their improvement immediately as they held the Mulerider’s to just a field goal after a Miller fumble on just the third play of the game. A Miller touchdown pass to his favorite target, Riley Hess, gave the Rangers their only lead of the ballgame at 7-3.
Two quick touchdowns that included an 87-yard wide receiver sweep by SAU’s Karonce Higgins quickly put the Muleriders up 17-10 midway through the second quarter. After back-and-forth stalled drives, the Muleriders added a field goal just before half to take the lead into halftime at 20-7.
A three-and-out to start the second half for SAU set up the Rangers to cut into the deficit, but Miller and company were once again unable to get anything going on the offensive side of the ball. The only other scoring play for the third quarter came at the 7:38 mark when the Muleriders kicked another field goal to extend the lead to 23-7.
The Rangers finally got a spark when senior Jarion Tudman returned a kick-off 94 yards for a touchdown, but a failed onside kick by the Rangers put the final nail in the coffin for the Rangers.
The loss puts the Rangers at 1-1(1-1 GAC) for the season. Northwestern will be back in action Friday when they travel to Arkadelphia, Arkansas, to take on the Henderson State Reddies with kickoff set for 2 p.m.