THE GAME: Missouri Baptist University will play its ninth football game in the inaugural 2014 season on Saturday, Oct. 25, 2014 against NAIA opponent and fellow first-season football squad, Arizona Christian University. This is the fourth game of the season for the Spartans against an NAIA opponent. This will be the seventh game of the season for the Firestorm and ninth for the Spartans. Harry Schroeder will be on the call for MBU along with Coach Rich Nixon. Guy Danhoff will cover the sideline.
MAKING HISTORY: Missouri Baptist Football made history on Aug. 28, 2014 at NCAA Division I FCS opponent Southeast Missouri State in the team's first game in team history. MBU dropped that game 77-0 in Cape Girardeau in front of a crowd of over 7,000. Today's game will be the ninth game in the career of head coach Jason Burianek, and just the second home game of the season. MBU is still looking to post its first win of the season after a53-13 loss to NCAA Division II opponent Tiffin University one week ago. For the first time in team history, the Spartans will face a fellow first-year program in the Firestorm.
ARIZONA CHRISTIAN: The Firestorm are also in their first season of play and have seen their fare share of success and adversity. In the team's first game in history against Evangel, Jordan Gabriel made national headlines with a 108-yard punt return for a touchdown. The play was featured on ESPN's SportsCenter and set a new record in the NAIA.
Quarterback Ryan Esslinger leads the team offense in 2014. The 6-1 freshman has just under a 63 percent completion percentage with an average of 234 yards per game passing.
FOR THE RECORD: MBU's two-touchdown performance against Tiffin was its first since Sept. 20 vs. William Penn. Over one-third of MBU opponent's points are off turnovers. This will be the second home game for MBU in 2014.
ON THE AIR: Missouri Baptist will provide the live-streamed coverage on the Spartan Digital Network beginning at 7:00 p.m. with the pregame show. Harry Schroeder, the voice of the Spartans, will provide the play-by-play. Rich Nixon will serve as the analyst with Guy Danhoff on the sideline. The FREE web stream can be picked-up at:
Portal.stretchinternet.com/mobap
Live stats will be provided on the Spartan Digital Network as well.
Fans are also encouraged to email the broadcast to share their thoughts and to ask questions at sportsinfo@mobap.edu
