Football Readies for Buffs

September 18, 2009

Southwestern Oklahoma State University is expected to get a considerable boost by a supportive home crowd filled with parents, family and friends as West Texas A&M University brings its football team to Weatherford Saturday. Kickoff is set for 6 p.m. and the game is part of Parent's Day activities that will be held throughout campus and the community.

Both teams enter the game searching for their first win of the season after suffering a string of disappointing setbacks.

WTAMU's rough start has caught many onlookers by surprise. The Buffs have been near the top of the NCAA Division II teams since the arrival of Coach Dan Carthel in 2005. WTAMU won three consecutive Lone Star Conference Championships (2006, 2007 and 2008). The Buffs began 2009 ranked 11th but have quickly fallen out of favor. All three of WTAMU's losses have come against teams ranked in the national poll - No. 1 Grand Valley State, No. 24 Central Oklahoma and No. 5 Central Washington. Another loss would most certainly end the Buffs postseason streak of appearances at four.

For SWOSU a few bright spots were found in its last game, a 55-10 loss at Angelo State.

Freshman running back Daniel Barwick playing in his first game as a college player gave the offense a lift. Barwick led the team in rushing with 32 yards on seven carries. He made a big first-down catch that helped move the Bulldogs into scoring territory late in the game.

A few plays after Barwick's catch, quarterback Steve Day connected with tight end Joe Sawyer on a 13-yard pass play that was SWOSU's lone touchdown. Defensively, SWOSU continues to look at a number of new players in different spots hoping to improve its consistency.

Nick Walker, in his first start at defensive end, led the team in tackles with 10. Redshirt freshman John Kaye also started for the first time at cornerback and finished the game with nine tackles.

Mainstays Jaron Burgess, Shane Scott and Sam Nwafor continue to pile up big numbers on the tackle chart. Burgess and Scott each have 26 while Nwafor is close behind at 23 through three games.