Missouri Western Athletics will pay tribute to healthcare workers and community heroes during "Salute To Heroes Night," as the Griffons take on Emporia State at 6 p.m. Healthcare workers and school teachers can show their ID at the gate for free admission, and we will recognize them on the field at halftime.
For the second straight week, Missouri Western battled back from a halftime deficit, but the Griffons were able to finish off the comeback against Fort Hays State to move to 1-1 on the season. Shen Butler-Lawson, Jr., had a pair of rushing touchdowns for MWSU and the defense contributed the fireworks, as Kobe Cummings opened the third-quarter onslaught by MWSU with an 80-yard pick six.
Emporia State brings a 2-0 record into Spratt Stadium, with wins over Northeastern State (38-7) and the University of Central Oklahoma (31-21). Garin Higgins is in his 14th season at the helm for Emporia State and he has led the Hornets to 84 wins to just 68 losses. Higgins has a 61-34 record in MIAA action.
SERIES HISTORY
MWSU is 26-16 all-time against Emporia State and they are 10-9 in home contests against the Hornets (8-9 in Spratt Stadium). The Griffons have won the last two meetings between the teams by a combined margin of 42 points, and shut out Emporia State in 2019. Missouri Western has been more consistent during the series, putting together streaks of 10 (1971-1985) and eight (2005-2012) wins respectively, although Emporia State had a five-year run from 2013-2017 where they had the Griffons' number.
FIRST CAREER SCORES
Look for this note to grow over the season, as Missouri Western is a very young team offensively with only one senior on the two-deep roster at the start of the season.
Joining the scoring ranks last Thursday was freshman kicker Cody Lawson. The Yukon, Okla., product was a perfect 5-5 on PATs and chipped through a 20-yard FG for 8 points on the night.
Brandon Hall - 41-yd TD run at UCO
Shen Butler-Lawson, Jr. - 1-yd TD run at UCO
Brison Cobbins - 3-yd TD run at UCO (first career carry)
OTHER FIRSTS
Along with the three running backs that scored against FHSU, freshman RB Jonas Bennett had his first career rushing attempt and freshman QB Reagan Jones played three series under center. He finished 3-for-5 for 28 yards and he finished with 12 yards rushing. Wide Receivers Hezekiah Trotter, Traveon James and C.J. Parks also played a lot for Missouri Western against FHSU and they had their first career receptions.
KEEPING IT 100
Although it's hard to say that the COVID-19 pandemic has a bright side, Shen Butler-Lawson, Jr., is certainly making the bonus year of eligibility count. The Waynesville, Mo., native recorded the first 100-yard rushing night for Missouri Western since 2019. He scored two touchdowns on 23 carries and hit the 100-mark on the nose. The last time this happened was Dec. 7, 2019, as Markel Smith (136) and Shamar Griffith (110) both ran for more than 100 against Henderson State University.
CAREER NIGHT FOR COOP REDUX
Stop us if you've heard this before, but Griffon sophomore wide receiver Cooper Burton had his best day in black and gold on Thursday. In the season opener at UCO, the sophomore from Benton High School in St. Joseph had career highs in receptions (7), receiving yards (90), rushing attempts (3) and rushing yards (23). Against Fort Hays State, Burton pushed his career-best higher with 132 receiving yards, 117 of those coming after the catch. He finished fourth on the team in 2019 as a freshman with 17 catches and he was third with 277 receiving yards.
DOMINATE THE SECOND HALF
MWSU is loaded with veterans on the defensive side of the ball, but they have struggled in the first half in 2021. Against Fort Hays State, MWSU trailed 17-10 and allowed 249 total offensive yards before uncorking a four-touchdown outburst in the third quarter. Two touchdowns came from each of the primary units, as Kobe Cummings had an 80-yard pick-six and Domanic Chapa scooped up a 30-yard fumble return, with Shen Butler-Lawson, Jr., running one in from 19 and Cooper Burton catching an 86-yard bomb from Anthony Vespo.
At UCO, MWSU allowed 24 points and 271 yards of the offensive as the Griffons dug themselves a 24-7 hole in the break. The vets adjusted at halftime and shut out UCO in the second half, limiting the Bronchos to just 112 yards. Of the six possession Central Oklahoma had, MWSU forced them to punt on five of those drives and had three three-and-outs to keep their team in the game.
WRAPPING UP
LB Evan Chohon had a solid tackling night against Fort Hays State, with 10 solo tackles, 7 assisted tackles, a combined sack for a 4-yard loss and a five-yard tackle for loss. He is closing in on the 100 career tackles mark in both categories, needing just 11 solos and 9 assisteds respectively to cross the century mark for his career.
NEED TO PROTECT THE SPRATT
The season-opening loss at Central Oklahoma stopped a streak of 11 consecutive wins away from Spratt Stadium that dated back to week two of the 2018 season. Missouri Western has not had the same success at Spratt Stadium. The Griffons are 9-9 overall at home under Coach Williamson and they're 3-6 at Spratt Stadium in their last eight home games. Coach Williamson's tenure got off to a great start at home at he went 6-1 his first seven games inside Spratt Stadium.
YOUTH MOVEMENT
The COVID-19 pandemic has drastically altered the Missouri Western roster over the last year. Like all other teams, no Griffon lost a season of eligibility last fall and it has made their roster very young and inexperienced. MWSU has 117 players on their current roster and 73 of those players are freshman. 15 are in their third season at MWSU as they redshirted in 2019, while 31 of those freshmen are in their second season and 27 are true freshman. The Griffons have 22 sophomores, 16 of which are in their fourth season and six more in their third year. Missouri Western has only 22 upperclassmen on its roster this season. They have 14 juniors and eight seniors.
GETTIN' PICKY WITH IT
Thursday night, sophomre Kobe Campbell found himself in the right place at the right time, snatching an interception and running it back 80 yards for a touchdown. The pick-six was one of three Griffons interceptions against Fort Hays State, with Trey Vaval and Tristan Davis each recording an INT as well.
WE TALKIN' ABOUT PRESEASON
Missouri Western is picked to finish fourth in the preseason MIAA media poll and they're selected to finished fifth by the league's coaches. Those preseason rankings are the highest for MWSU during Coach Williamson's tenure. The Griffons have finished higher than they were picked in the preseason poll each of the last two years, including in 2019 when they were selected seventh in both preseason polls and they finished tied for third.
SEASON OPENERS
The Griffons are now 29-20-2 all-time in season openers after losing last week at Central Oklahoma. MWSU has struggled to get off to a good start in during Coach Williamson tenure as he is 0-4 and the Griffs have dropped the season opener in five of the last six seasons.
HOME OPENERS
MWSU is 38-12-1 all-time in their home openers. After seeing a seven-game win streak snapped by Northwest Missouri State in 2019, Missouri Western rebounded last week against Fort Hays State. The 38-31 win is the third for MWSU in three home openers against the Tigers, with the Griffons winning 37-14 in 2001 and 23-13 in 2018. Since 1977, Missouri Western is 36-7-1 in their home openers, and they avoided back-to-back losses, something that has happened just twice in program history and only once (1986, 1987) since a full freshman class matriculated through the team.