FHSU Athletics
Fort Hays State (2-6) at
Emporia State (6-2)
Saturday, October 29 - 2 p.m.
Emporia, Kan. - Welch Stadium
Radio - KJLS (103.3)
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Fort Hays State Football heads on the road this week to Emporia State. Kickoff at Welch Stadium on Saturday (Oct. 29) in Emporia will be at 2 p.m. The Tigers enter the contest at 2-6 for the season, while the Hornets are 6-2 and receiving votes in the latest AFCA Division II Poll.
The Tigers are coming off a 27-14 win over Central Missouri last week in Hays. The Tigers rushed for over 200 yards in a game for the first time this season, climbing over the mark by a yard at 201. Adrian Soto led the rushing attack with 98 yards, while Jack Dawson had 89 and Ethan Forrester had 14. FHSU is 34-1 under head coach Chris Brown when rushing for at least 200 yards in a game. Fort Hays State has held the opposition to 14 points in each of its wins this season.
Emporia State is fresh off a tight 24-21 victory over Missouri Southern last week in Joplin. The Hornets have won four straight games entering this contest. Their two losses this season were tight games, falling by eight points at Central Oklahoma and just one point to conference-leading Pittsburg State. The Hornets average 448.4 yards per game, which is the best among MIAA schools.
This will be the 95th meeting between FHSU and Emporia State in football. The Hornets hold an 18-game advantage in the all-time series, but just a slight 8-7 margin since FHSU joined the MIAA in 2006. Emporia State stormed back late in last year's meeting in Hays to leave with a 15-12 win. Fort Hays State is looking for its first win in Emporia since the 2014 season.
Jack Dawson and Ethan Forrester have developed a good one-two punch for the Tigers at quarterback over the past couple of weeks. They combined for 103 rushing yards (Dawson 89, Forrester 14) and 157 passing yards (Dawson 126, Forrester 31) in last week's win over Central Missouri. The previous week they combined for 228 yards of total offense (Dawson 124, Forrester 104).
Adrian Soto continues to lead the Tigers on the ground attack with 503 rushing yards. Manny Ramsey has hauled in a team-best 37 receptions and 591 yards for the air attack.
Makel Williams leads the Tiger defense with 61 tackles. Mason Perez, Daniel Howard, Layke Heimerman, and Ty Cooper all have at least 35 for the season. Jeremiah Jackson-Trotter is second in the MIAA in sacks (7.5) and tackles for loss (11.5). Eight different Tigers have interceptions recorded this season.