MonticelloLive

The University of Arkansas at Monticello football team concludes its non-conference schedule with a 6 p.m. contest at No. 17 Delta State on Saturday in hopes of breaking the 11-game losing streak with the Statesmen.The last Weevil win was in 1996, when then head coach Tommy Barnes led UAM to a 41-34 win. Ironically, that game was the third game of the season and was played in Cleveland, Miss., which are the same conditions for this weekend’s contest.

That said, the Weevils have won the only two contests in series history during the third week of the season.

The only other time the scheduling worked in that matter was in the 1958 AIC championship season, when the Weevils came away the 13-7 victors under then head coach Willis “Convoy” Leslie.

UAM enters Saturday’s contest 2-0 for the first time since 2000. The news does not stop there. Also for the first time since 2000, UAM received one vote in the latest American Football Coaches Association Top 25 Poll.

Headlining the Gulf South Conference news is Monday’s announcement of sophomore quarterback Scott Buisson (5-10, 175, Metairie, La.) as the conference’s offensive player of the week after tallying 403 total yards of offense in the win over Missouri S&T.

“This is an exciting time for our program,” said fourth-year head coach Gwaine Mathews. “The football world is respecting what we have done up to this point…We just can’t let all of this get to our heads. Our players are excited, but at the same time, they know they have business to take care of.”

At the end of the 2007 season, the UAM offense had the GSC’s best rushing attack. Two weeks into the 2008 season, the team is defending its ground, leading the way with just over 250 rushing yards per game. Individually, sophomore Johnny Polite (5-5, 190, McGehee, Ark.) leads the league with an average of 117.5 rushing yards per game, but as Mathews says, he has a problem holding on to the football.

“You know, Johnny Polite leads the GSC in rushing, but he also leads the universe in turnovers,” said Mathews in his weekly luncheon. “Our staff is really working with him on his ball position, but there is just something about putting that game uniform on that makes him forget his fundamentals.”

This week’s opponent is no stranger to Mathews. He coordinated the Statesmen defense that won the national championship in 2000.

Since then, Delta State has only had one losing season over a span of seven years that included two NCAA D-II playoff appearances and a GSC championship in 2007.

Last week, Delta State suffered a 52-27 loss to McNeese State in its 2008 season opener, but racked up close to 500 yards of total offense against one of the best NCAA Division I-FCS programs in the country. McNeese State is ranked in the top 10 in most polls at its level.

The game can be heard live on the radio at KHBM-FM 93.7 in Monticello. That broadcast will be streamed live over the Internet at uamsports.com. The pre-game coach’s show starts at approximately 5:30 p.m. with kickoff to follow at 6 p.m.

SERIES INFO: Delta State leads the all-time series 24-6 and has won 11 consecutive contests. The series dates back to 1947. The Statesmen won that game 25-20 in Monticello. The Weevils are 1-2 against the Statesmen in the eights of each decade.