By CADE KENNEDY, Sports Editor
The Northwestern football team lost to Ouachita Baptist, 64-17, on Oct. 2 at Cliff Harris Stadium in Arkadelphia, Arkansas.
Several of the Rangers that played in the game were either freshmen or sophomores, so the game was a learning experience.
“Ouachita Baptist is a very good measuring stick for us,” said Matt Walter, the head coach of the Rangers. “We played a lot of young players, and they got first-hand experience of what a playoff team looks like, and what a Top 10 team in the country looks like.”
Ouachita Baptist ran over the Rangers, as the Tigers had 442 rushing yards on the day. Ouachita ran the ball 44 times throughout the game, giving it an average of 10 yards per carry, meaning the team averaged a first down every time it ran the ball.
The Rangers had more carries than the Tigers, but were not able to produce the same results. The Rangers rushed for 150 yards on 46 carries and only averaged 3.3 yards per carry.
Ouachita Baptist set the tone for the game on its first drive, as players ran the ball for four straight plays, including a 42-yard touchdown run by Kendel Givens to put the Tigers on the board.
The Rangers marched down the field on their first drive but were stopped when they threw an incomplete pass on fourth down. Ouachita Baptist continued to gash the Ranger defense, and the Tigers rolled through the game.
Despite the score, there were positives to take away from the game for Northwestern.
The Rangers were able to win the time of possession battle, as Ouachita Baptist had the ball for 25 minutes, while the Rangers had the ball for 35 minutes.
The Rangers committed six penalties for 45 yards, which will continue to bring their average number of penalties down.
The Rangers will play Saturday against the Arkansas-Monticello Boll Weevils at 4 p.m. at Ranger Field for Homecoming.
The Rangers have maintained a 5-3 record against the Boll Weevils since 2012, but three of the last four meetings between the two teams were one possession games.
Arkansas-Monticello has a 3-2 record on the season, with wins over Southwestern, Arkansas Tech and Southern Nazarene, and losses to Henderson State and Oklahoma Baptist.
