JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. - Central Oklahoma is back on the road in Week 5 as the Bronchos visit Lincoln in Jefferson City, Missouri. Kickoff is scheduled for 2 p.m. Saturday from Dwight T. Reed Stadium.

UCO is 2-2 on the season and coming off a victory over No. 2-ranked Northwest Missouri. The Bronchos beat the Bearcats for the second straight game in Edmond. Central Oklahoma has alternated wins and losses in the first four weeks, losing on the road in Week's 1 and 3 while maintaining a perfect defense of Chad Richison Stadium in Week's 2 and 4. Lincoln is 0-4 this season. The Blue Tigers are 0-2 at home this season, losing to Northwest and Fort Hays State in Week's 2 and 3.

Lincoln is in search of its first win in 2022. The Blue Tigers are averaging 11.7 points per game through four games played. LU averages 240.8 yards per game (165.2 passing and 75.5 rushing). The defense is giving up 48.0 points on 538 yards of offense per game.

Central Oklahoma has two good wins at home, but the Broncho losses even out the stat sheet. UCO is averaging 16.3 points per game to 25.5 allowed. The Bronchos put up 270.5 yards of offense per game, splitting up 141 passing yards with 129.5 rushing yards. UCO, which went 0-for-12 on third down in the win over Northwest, has 29 first downs on the ground and 21 through the air.

Most of UCO's production comes from senior quarterback Stephon Brown. The Kernersville, North Carolina native in four games is 50-for-81 (61.7 pct.) with 444 passing yards and two touchdowns. He also has 49 rushing attempts for 158 yards and three touchdowns. Brown's 111.1 passing yards per game and 39.5 rushing yards per game averages put him at 55.6 percent of UCO's total offense.

Jaylen Cottrell is UCO's leading rusher thanks to a big game in Week 4. The redshirt freshman running back has 167 rushing yards in his first four career games. Cottrell has 167 on 23 carries (7.3 yards per carry) and he has two touchdowns. Cottrell added an 83-yard touchdown run against Northwest Missouri, which is the 11th-longest rush from scrimmage in UCO's storied history.

Central Oklahoma has played stout defense in its home games, and for good portion of its road games too. The Bronchos are allowing 25.5 points per game on 413.3 yards of offense per outing. Opponents average 242.3 passing yards against Central and 171 yards on the ground. UCO's defense has four interceptions and two fumble recoveries, creating a +3 margin in the turnover column for the Bronchos.

Central Oklahoma has more than 30 defensive players this season and most of them are making plays. Blake Barron leads the team with 28 tackles and Dylan Buchheit is second at 27 stops. Buchheit is also one of 16 Bronchos to be in on a tackle behind the line of scrimmage. Connor Johnson and Rae'Quan Wicks both have more than 20 tackles too through four games. Buchheit, Johnson and Wicks all have one pass breakup. 

Kobey Stephens, who has 17 tackles in three games, is one of four Bronchos with an interception. Stephens picked off a pass at Missouri Western in Week 1 and returned it 15 yards. Stephens also has two pass breakups this season. On special teams, the sophomore from Wewoka, Oklahoma is averaging 24 yards per kickoff return.

Central Oklahoma's defense has five sacks in four games this season from five different players. Noah West has 1.5, teaming up with Hunter Largent for one of them. Kalvin Hutchings, Michael Slater and Robert Fuentes all made sacks in UCO's win over Northwest Missouri last week. 

Central Oklahoma owns a 4-0 lead in the series with Lincoln. The teams never met before the Bronchos joined the MIAA in 2012. After playing in 2012 and 2013, Lincoln left the MIAA in football for five years. UCO won 56-25 in 2012 its only visit to Jefferson City. Central Oklahoma won 49-42 in Edmond in 2013. In the two most recent meetings in Edmond, the Bronchos have won 63-0 and 69-28.

Central Oklahoma has a short week before hosting Northeastern State on Thursday, Oct. 6. The game, the annual battle for the President's Cup, is the only MIAA game on the schedule that night. UCO flips the home-away alternations for the second half of the season and will host Fort Hays State in Week 7 after a nine-day break on Saturday, Oct. 15. The Bronchos will visit Washburn (10/22) and Nebraska Kearney (Nov. 5) and host Pittsburg State (10/29, Homecoming) and Central Missouri (11/12, Military Appreciation Day & Senior Day).