Demons visit Bowers Saturday at 2 p.m.
10/24/2013 10:09:00 AM | Football
The No. 7 ranked Sam Houston Bearkats put their record-breaking home winning streak on the line Saturday against a familiar foe.
The football series between Northwestern State and the Kats began in 1929. The pair have played every year since the two were in the Gulf Star Conference in 1984. The Demons hold a 19-16-1 advantage in the series.
Another reason the two teams are so familiar to each other is on the sidelines.
Three Sam Houston State assistant coaches have Northwestern State backgrounds.
Bearkat offensive coordinator Doug Ruse was at NSU with coaches Sam Goodwin and Steve Roberts. Defensive coordinator Mike Collins and defensive secondary coach Ben Beasley were on Demon staffs during Scott Stoker's time as head coach.
“Northwestern State is a solid program. They're going to present us a lot of challenges,” Sam Houston head coach Wilie Fritz. “They have excellent size in both their offensive and defensive lines. We're going to have to be at the top of our game.”
The Demons opened their 2013 schedule with a big road win at Missouri State but have won only twice more as Northwestern State enters the game with a 3-4 overall record and are 0-2 in Southland.
Offensively, the Demons have four backs who share the rushing load. All four have cracked the 100-yard rushing barrier at least once in their careers after Daniel Taylor's 102-yard performance at Nicholls. Garrett Atzenweiler was on the number, with 100 in 15 carries at UAB. Seniors Rob Walker and Rumeall Morris posted 100-yard games in previous seasons.
Zach Adkins runs the Demon passing attack. The quarterback has completed 144 of 230 passes for 1,504 yards and 10 touchdowns.
His favorite target is Ed Eagan. The sophomore wide receiver had 145 yards receiving on seven catches vs. Southeastern, the most receiving yardage by a Demon since Darius Duffy had 147 on 12 catches in the 10th game of the 2009 season, also against Southeastern Louisiana. Eagan has 29 catches for 371 yards and two touchdowns this year.
Defensively, Patrick Black has totaled 64 tackles and JeMarcus Marshall leads the team with six sacks.
Tickets for the Sam Houston State versus Northwestern State contest are available online now at www.gobearkats.com.
The SHSU athletic ticket office located in the Ron Mafrige Field House in the south end zone of Bowers Stadium is open from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. The ticket office telephone is (936) 294-1729.
Tickets for the 88th “Battle of the Piney Woods” at Reliant Stadium on Saturday, Nov. 2, are also available online and at the ticket office.
