Football 10/15/2025 3:00:00 PM Chris Brannick

Central Oklahoma Hosts Emporia State

Bronchos Welcome Hornets Saturday Night In Edmond

EDMOND – Central Oklahoma hosts Emporia State Saturday night in an MIAA matchup at Chad Richison Stadium between two teams looking to carry momentum into the second half of the season.

UCO is 3-3 on the year with a 3-2 record in the MIAA. Emporia State is also 3-3 with a 2-2 record in league play.

"It's a big game for several reasons," UCO head football coach Adam Dorrel said. "It always is with Emporia because of all the Oklahoma connections between their coach and players and our guys. We're sort of close in proximity too. But it's also big because we're both in a spot we can't lose any more games."

Central Oklahoma is 2-1 at home this season and looking to come back from the lone loss two weeks ago in Edmond. UCO is also looking to win two in a row for the second time this season. It's first two MIAA wins came in Week 1 and Week 3 over Pitt State and Washburn.

The Bronchos are coming off a big MIAA road win in Week 6, when Central beat Fort Hays State 21-14 in Hays, Kansas last Saturday. UCO is averaging 24.3 points per game this season and doing so behind 434.2 yards of total offense per contest. Central averages 230.3 yards passing per game and 203.8 yards rushing per game.

Jett Huff is leading the UCO offense and has 768 yards passing through four games played this season. He has six touchdown passes. Huff had 169 yards passing in Week 0 and 44 in Week 1 only playing one quarter before an injury. He returned in Week 5 to throw for 394 yards and four touchdowns against Central Missouri and threw for 161 yards and two scores last week at Fort Hays State.

Ashton Schumann continues to lead UCO's receivers and has 38 receptions for 505 yards with two touchdowns through six games played. His fourth catch on Saturday was not only a touchdown but the 100th reception of his short career. In 19 career games, the sophomore became the 18th player in school history to reach 100 career receptions.

Javohn Thomas has 164 yards and Hagen Hacker has 138 with one touchdown. Dominique Dunn has 132 yards and three touchdowns.

William Mason is leading the rushing attack with 585 yards on 83 carries this season, an average of 7.0 yards per rush. He has three touchdowns on the ground and adds five receptions for 49 yards and one touchdown. Mason leads the MIAA in yards per carry and ranks 12th in the country.

Jaylen Cottrell is third in the MIAA and 24th nationally at 6.3 yards per carry. The senior has 321 yards on 51 carries and four touchdowns. Cottrell also has nine receptions for 78 yards.

Dev Matthews has emerged as a big third option and has 31 carries for 242 yards, 5.9 yards per carry, and two touchdowns this season. He's coming off his first career 100-yard game last week at Fort Hays State, and one of his two scores that was a 62-yard burst.

Defensively, Central Oklahoma is allowing 28.8 points per game on 385.8 yards of total offense. Opponents pass for 243.6 yards against the Bronchos and run for 142.2 yards per game against UCO. UCO as a team has 15 sacks and 43 total tackles in the backfield. The Bronchos also have 25 quarterback hurries to their credit, led by Johnny Wilson's six. Reese Roller and Cameron Done have four each.

Junior All-American Jack Puckett and senior All-MIAA pick Connor Johnson lead UCO's defense at linebacker. Johnson has a team-high 34 tackles while Puckett has 32. Puckett has a team-high eight tackles in the backfield while Johnson has three. Puckett also holds an edge with two sacks to Johnson's one, while Johnson edges Puckett 3-2 in both pass breakups and QB hurries.

UCO's pass defense has 23 pass breakups in six games to go with two interceptions. Willie Rice's five breakups leads the way while Marcus Works has four. Antwan Gilbreath and Bryant Coley each have interceptions for the Bronchos.

Emporia State is averaging 29.5 points per game as the Hornets come to Edmond. ESU puts up 442.7 yards of offense per game, split between 334.0 yards passing and 107.7 yards rushing. Emporia gives up 27.0 points per game with its defense allowing 392.0 yards per game (208.2 rushing and 183.8 passing).

Emporia State opened the season with a 27-7 non-conference win against Minot State but lost 41-20 at Angelo State in its other non-con. The Hornets lost three in a row, opening MIAA play with losses at Nebraska Kearney and at home against Pittsburg State. ESU has won two in a row since, beating Missouri Western and Missouri Southern.

Central Oklahoma and Emporia State have met 25 times on the football field all the way back to 1928. UCO owns a 13-11-1 advantage in the series and won 55-38 last season in Edmond. The 55 points a year ago are the most scored in any game in the matchup. Central is 7-5 against the Hornets at home.

UCO is spending almost the entire month of October at home, playing three of four games at Chad Richison Stadium. The Bronchos dropped a close 35-34 decision to Central Missouri at home Oct. 4 and won its only road game of the month last week at Fort Hays State, 21-14.

Central Oklahoma hosts Northeastern State next weekend for Homecoming in what will be the 83rd meeting between the schools that compete for The President's Cup. UCO has won 10 straight in that series, a record for the 110-year-old rivalry.

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Players Mentioned

#0 Jaylen Cottrell: RB; 6' 2"; Senior

#5 Dominique Dunn: TE; 6' 3"; Senior

#14 Antwan Gilbreath: DB; 6' 0"; Redshirt Freshman

#2 Hagen Hacker: WR; 6' 0"; Sophomore

#3 Jett Huff: QB; 5' 8"; Junior

#21 Connor Johnson: LB; 6' 3"; Senior

#22 William Mason: RB; 6' 2"; Junior

#6 Dev Mathews: RB; 6' 0"; Sophomore

#30 Jack Puckett: LB; 6' 1"; Junior

#1 Willie Rice: DB; 5' 10"; Senior

Players Mentioned

#0 Jaylen Cottrell
: 6' 2"; Senior
: RB

#5 Dominique Dunn
: 6' 3"; Senior
: TE

#14 Antwan Gilbreath
: 6' 0"; Redshirt Freshman
: DB

#2 Hagen Hacker
: 6' 0"; Sophomore
: WR

#3 Jett Huff
: 5' 8"; Junior
: QB

#21 Connor Johnson
: 6' 3"; Senior
: LB

#22 William Mason
: 6' 2"; Junior
: RB

#6 Dev Mathews
: 6' 0"; Sophomore
: RB

#30 Jack Puckett
: 6' 1"; Junior
: LB

#1 Willie Rice
: 5' 10"; Senior
: DB