ARKADELPHIA, Ark.- The Ouachita Tigers (5-0, 3-0 GAC) enter their sixth game of the 2012 boasting a No. 11 ranking in the AFCA Coaches Poll and holding the seventh best total defense in the country. All of that could mean nothing though if they don't take care of business on Saturday against Arkansas-Monticello (1-5, 0-4 GAC).
 
The Tigers last trip to Monticello ended much differently than they would have liked. The Tigers entered their 2010 match-up with the Boll Weevils as the No. 14 team in the country, but UAM took a 34-32 victory over the nationally-ranked Tigers. Ouachita looks to ward off any chance of it happening again, as they try to stretch UAM's losing streak to six.
 
QUARTERBACK SITUATIONS
Ouachita and Arkansas-Monticello enter this weekend in fairly similar quarterback situations. So far this season, Ouachita has started three different quarterbacks. Ty Towers is listed as the starter on the Tiger depth chart this week as Benson Jordan continues to let his shoulder heal after he incurred an injury against Arkansas Tech. Towers is 2-0 as a starting quarterback, but is a listed wide receiver.
 
UAM has started two different quarterbacks so far this year, but have used four during the course of the season. Damon Wicker is slated to start for the Boll Weevils, after starting the last two games. Trey Taylor, a starting wide receiver for UAM, is listed as the backup.
 
OFFENSIVE LINE SUCCESSES
Ouachita currently boasts one of the best offensive lines in the conference. They have only allowed two sacks so far this season and are giving the running backs huge holes to run through. Ouachita is currently averaging 188 yards per game on the ground, in large part due to the great play of the line.
 
RUNNING BACK DEPTH
Although Chris Rycraw is obviously the workhorse of the Tiger running game, Steven Kehner has proven to be a viable option for the Tigers as well. So far this season, Rycraw has racked up 535 yards and six touchdowns and averages 4.9 yards per carry. Kehner has been a nice compliment to Rycraw, recording 259 yards and three touchdowns while averaging 5.5 yards per carry. Although Towers is starting at quarterback, he has done his share in the ground game as well, recording 231 yards and a touchdown.
 
DEFENSE IS KEY
Ouachita's defense had a spectacular second half in last week's contest against Southwestern Oklahoma, not giving up a single point and helping the Tigers to post a 21-0 run in the second half. A large part of their defensive success is due to the pressure from the Tiger defensive line and the solid play of the Tiger secondary. Most notable in the Tiger secondary last week was Etauj Allen, who recorded eight tackles and five pass break ups, many of which came at pivotal moments of the game. Although there was only one sack recorded against the Bulldogs, Southwestern's Dustin Stenta was under constant pressure all game long and was never able to settle in after halftime. The Tiger defense looks to carry that momentum into this weekend, against the Boll Weevil offense which currently averages 345 yards per game.
 
ALL TIME NUMBERS
Ouachita holds the all-time series lead over the Boll Weevils with a 38-32-1 record. This is the 72nd meeting between the two teams. Current trends seem to be against the Tigers though, as UAM has won three of the last four meetings between the two teams. Ouachita won last year's meeting by a score of 38-20 in the Boomtown Classic. This weekend is UAM's homecoming game. They are currently on a four game win streak in homecoming contests.
 
A LITTLE INSIGHT
So far this season, the Boll Weevils have given up 196 yards per game on the ground. If the Tiger rushing game continues playing the way that they have in recent weeks, Rycraw and Kehner should be able to find some holes and make some plays. Monticello's pass defense has been pretty solid this season, only giving up 193 yards per game, which includes the 411 yards that they gave up to Henderson State last week.
 
WHAT'S ADVERSITY?
So far this season, Head Coach Todd Knight, his coaching staff and his team have overcome a large number of injuries. One of the most notable is the season ending injury to reining GAC Offensive Player of the Year Casey Cooper. The Tigers have overcome against all odds though, and enter this week's game with a 5-0 record, including a 3-0 mark in GAC play.
 
Kickoff on Saturday is scheduled for 3 p.m. The game can be followed by either listening to Rex Nelson and company via the Ouachita Football Network or by following UAM's Live Stats. Along with the Live Stats and Live Audio, UAM will have live video streaming of the game. Those can be found at the links below.
 
LIVE AUDIO
LIVE STATS
LIVE VIDEO

-Josh Fink, Sports Information Director