WESTERN OREGON FOOTBALL
Game 7 – No. 10 Central Washington (6-0, 4-0 GNAC) at Western Oregon (2-4, 1-3 GNAC)
1:05 p.m. - Saturday, Oct. 14
McArthur Field | Monmouth, Ore.
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MONMOUTH, Ore.—Playing in front of its home crowd for just the second time this season, the Western Oregon University football team will host No. 10-ranked Central Washington on Hall of Fame induction day at McArthur Field on Saturday.
 
2017 HALL OF FAME INDUCTEES: WOU's six-member Hall of Fame Class will be inducted following the game (est. 4:45 p.m.) in the Willamette Room inside the Werner University Center. The event is open to the public… For more information contact the WOU athletic office at 503-838-8449.

RECENT SERIES HISTORY: CWU holds a 5-3 edge over the Wolves over the past four seasons, including victories in both home and away contests a year ago… The average score in the last eight contests has been 30.6-to-20.6 in favor of the Wildcats… CWU has averaged a 19.6 winning margin in its five wins while WOU holds a 4.6 margin in its three wins over CWU since 2013.

WOU vs. CWU Date Winner Score Location *10/15/16 Central Washington 35-0 Ellensburg *09/10/16 Central Washington 41-20 Monmouth *10/17/15 Western Oregon 31-25 Monmouth *09/19/15 Central Washington 40-19 Ellensburg *10/18/14 Central Washington 24-20 Ellensburg *09/20/14 Western Oregon 36-34 Monmouth *11/09/13 Western Oregon 32-26 Monmouth *09/14/13 Central Washington 20-7 Ellensburg *GNAC

ABOUT CENTRAL WASHINGTON (6-0, 4-0 GNAC): Central Washington, ranked No. 10 in the latest NCAA DI Poll, defeated Humboldt State, 55-27, in a battle of unbeaten teams last week… Quarterback Reilly Hennessey was named the GNAC Offensive Player of the Week after throwing for 316 yards and five touchdowns while adding 118 yards on 13 carries…  The Wildcats are second in the GNAC in scoring offense at 42.7 point sper game and lead the league by allowing just 276.5 yards per game... The Wildcats boast the GNAC's No. 3-5 rushers in Christian Cummings (99.0 ypg), Reilly Hennesssy (55.5 ypg) and Austin Pernell (54.8 ypg)... Kevin Haynes leads the defense with 48 total tackles while teammate Bo Banner leads the GNAC with six sacks.

TURNOVER BATTLE: The Wolves are tied for fifth in NCAA DII with a +10 turnover margin… In six games, WOU has forced 12 interceptions and forced six fumbles (five recovered)… The offense, meanwhile, has committed just seven turnovers (5 INT, 2 fumblers)…  The Wolves' defense has returned four turnovers for scores, tied for No. 2 in NCAA DII.

DUCKWORTH CLIMBING THE RANKS: Senior quarterback Nick Duckworth has landed in the elite groups of NCAA DII signal callers: Through six games, Duckworth is ranked in the top 20 in several NCAA DII categories: No. 10 in passing touchdowns (16), No. 12 in passing yards (1,716), No. 17 in passing yards per game (286.0)

REVIS LEADS DII: In six games this season, senior Paul Revis has hauled in 64 catches for 730 yards…  His 10.7 receptions per game average leads NCAA DII with the next best rate 9.8 receptions per game by Shepards's Ryan Feiss... Revis' 121.7 yards per game mark is good for No. 6 in the nation.

JOHNSON GNAC POW (Sept. 25): Tyler Johnson came up with 17 tackles, two tackles for loss and forced a fumble, which later resulted in a touchdown, against Humboldt State on Sept. 23. Johnson also had an interception in the fourth quarter. His 17 tackles was tied for the sixth most in a single game in WOU history.

SALDANA, ANDERSON GNAC POWS (Sept. 18): After a 58-21 win at Western New Mexico State, WOU junior Adrian Saldana and redshirt freshman Curtis Anderson were named the GNAC Players of the Week… Anderson earned the defensive honor after recording seven tackles (3 solo, 4 assists) and picking off two passes… Anderson's second interception was returned 72 yards for a touchdown… Saldana scored 14 points to earn the Special Team Player of the Week honor… Saldana made 3-of-4 on field goal attempts, including a 38-yarder, and was 5-of-5 on extra points.  

HIGHBURGER GNAC POW (Sept. 11): Senior linebacker Bo Highburger was tabbed as the GNAC Defensive Player of the Week on Sept. 11 after his performance against Central Washington University… Highburger totaled 10 tackles, including one sack and a fumble recovery in the 30-23 loss in Ellensburg… Highburger returned the fumble recovery 79 yards for a touchdown to help the Wolves recover from a 24-3 deficit and finish within a single score of the Wildcats.

OFFENSIVE RETURNERS: WOU returns a pair of quarterbacks with starting experience with Nick Duckworth and Phillip Fenumiai returning for their senior seasons… Duckworth led the team with 1,387 passing yards and 10 touchdowns while Fenumiai paced the team with 480 rushing yards… The team's top two receivers return in Paul Revis and Keoni Piceno… Revis led the GNAC with 70 receptions and 1,057 yards… Piceno caught 34 passes for 333 yards… Several familiar faces are also back along the offensive line with Brad Christensen (7 starts), Bryson Dizon (8 starts) and Ron Rose (8 starts) back in the mix.

DEFENSIVE RETURNERS: Linebackers Tyler Johnson and Bo Highburger headline the defensive side of the ball with both players starting all 10 games… Highburger finished the year with a team-high 111 tackles (63 solo) while Johnson tallied 65 tackles (37 solo) and five sacks… Nathan Jones, Trebriel Larry and Derek Parnell return as the most experienced defensive backs with all three receiving multiple starting assignments a year ago.

GNAC PRESEASON POLL: Western Oregon was picked to finish fourth according to the GNAC Coaches' Preseason Poll… Defending champion Azusa Pacific received all five first-place votes to lead the pack… Central Washington and Humboldt State went second and third in the poll while Simon Fraser was picked to place fifth.

2016 RECAP: WOU finished 2016 with a 4-6 overall record and a 3-5 mark in GNAC contests… The Wolves opened the season with a 38-30 win at NCAA DI Sacramento State with WOU outgaining the Hornets 180 to 133 on the ground… WOU also played at NCAA DI Montana State to complete its non-conference schedule… The Wolves went 2-2 in the first half of GNAC play with a 48-42 win at then No. 24-ranked Humboldt State.

Game #6 Recap: Western Oregon def. Simon Fraser, 82-21
WOU tied a GNAC record with 11 touchdowns while quarterback Nick Duckworth tied a WOU and GNAC all-time single-game mark with six touchdown passes in an 82-21 win over Simon Fraser on Oct. 7… Keoni Piceno scored on a pair of 56-yard catches to lead the receiving group with 112 yards… Taylor Poyadue carried the ball 13 times for 130 yards while kicker Adrian Saldana scored 16 points on the dafter going 10-for-11 on extra points and 2-for-2 in field goal attempts (23 & 35 yards)… The Wolves scored on a blocked punt in the first quarter and on a 55-yard interception return by Trebriel Larry in the fourth quarter.

Game #5 Recap: Azusa Pacific def. Western Oregon, 48-17
Tied 17-17 in the third quarter, Azusa Pacific scored 31 unanswered point to defeat Western Oregon on Sept. 30... The Cougars did not commit a turnover and forced three WOU interceptions... AZU scored on five of its seven possessions in the second half... Nick Duckworth completed 17-of-38 passing attempts for 174 yards... Paul Revis caught nine passes for 101 yards.

Game #4 Recap: #16 Humboldt State def. Western Oregon, 49-48
In the first GNAC overtime game since 2014, Humboldt State survived an Oregon road trip after a missed extra point in the first session of overtime on Sept. 23… Paul Revis caught 15 passes for 176 yards, both No. 2 single-season bests for the senior… Nick Duckworth completed 33-of-50 passes for 382 yards and four touchdowns… WOU scored 28 straight points to take a 35-14 lead just after the halftime break, only to see HSU score touchdowns on four of five possessions late in the second half to take the lead… HSU ran the ball five straight times in overtime and scored on a 3-yard Garder TD run… On 3rd-and 15 in WOU's overtime possession, Duckworth tossed a 30-yard touchdown to Paul Revis to match the Lumberjacks before the failed extra point attempt.

Game #3 Recap: Western Oregon def. Western New Mexico, 58-21
With a pair of interceptions returned for a touchdown, WOU picked up its first win of the year on the road in Silver City, N.M. on Sept. 16… The Wolves put up 33 points in the second quarter alone to generate a first-half lead… Nick Duckworth completed 17-of-24 passing attempts for 293 yards and four touchdowns… Two of his touchdown tosses went to Zack, Suarez, including a 61-yard strike in the second quarter to go up 30-7.

Game #2 Recap: Central Washington def. Western Oregon, 30-23
Central Washington jumped out to a 24-3 lead with 10 minutes to play in the second half but a 79-yard fumble return by Bo Highburger sparked a late rally for the Wolves… Nick Duckworthfound Torreahno Sweet for a 57-yard strike with five minutes remaining to pull within a single score, but a CWU recovery on the ensuing on-side kick prevented the continued comeback attempt… The game was moved from Ellensburg due to reduced air quality from wild fires in the region… The game was played north of Seattle in Bothell, Washington.

Game #1 Recap: Idaho State de. Western Oregon, 37-6
Looking to topple an NCAA DI program for the second straight season, the Wolves held a 6-3 lead at the half at Idaho State in the season opener… The Bengals scored touchdowns on five straight possessions in the second half to pull away… WOU quarterback Nick Duckworth ended the day with 288 yards passing on 27 of 55 attempts… On the receiving end, Paul Revis caught 13 passes for 137 yards