Will Prewitt, the commissioner of the Great American Conference, has heard the talk.
Both sides of it.
"I've got people that think I'm a genius," Prewitt said. "I've got people that think I'm an idiot."
The source of contention is tonight's five-game, season-opening GAC schedule, most notably the matchup between Ouachita Baptist University and Harding University, two teams that have dominated the conference for the past three seasons and are picked again to finish at the top.
"It's definitely an interesting first week," Prewitt said.
Kickoff is set for 7:05 p.m. on the new artificial turf of Cliff Harris Stadium in Arkadelphia, and the action will be streamed on ESPN3, available for viewing on the network's app.
"When you break out the magic four letters of ESPN, there's a certain cache," Prewitt said.
It doesn't hurt that both teams are ranked nationally in Division II -- OBU at No. 5, Harding No. 18 -- in the American Football Coaches Association preseason poll.
"We may have had a little bit of discussion about it," Prewitt said of how the schedule came to be. "It's not the Battle of the Ravine, but it's a real good rivalry in its own right. When you have to play 11 games in 11 weeks, you know you have the potential to have some big games early."
That's as far as Prewitt would go in romanticizing a matchup that was scripted in 2015.
"It's really more randomness than a master plan," he said.
OBU Coach Todd Knight and Harding's Paul Simmons have said they would rather not meet in Week 1, but they know it's not their decision to make.
"A lot more goes into it than our wants and needs," Knight said.
OBU, the home team coming off a 12-1 season, has had nine months to get ready for Harding's Flexbone offense, which controlled the ball for more than 40 of the game's 60 minutes in the Tigers' 7-3 victory last season.
The Bisons, who outgained the Tigers 308-176, were hurt by a lost fumble at the OBU 6, a missed field goal, and an illegal procedure penalty in the final minute that wiped out a possible game-winning touchdown.
"There were probably eight plays that could have swung the outcome," Simmons said.
Having so much time to prepare for a big game comes with hazards.
"It's a cat-and-mouse thing," Simmons said. "But you run the risk of out-thinking yourself."
"It's the first game. There's going to be ghosts," Knight said of possible wrinkles Harding will introduce in its offense. "Good football teams usually do what they do. We're not sitting here trying to figure out everything that will happen."
Harding, which attempted 54 passes in 12 games last season, is not going to come out and throw the football 30 times.
"I know what they do is very difficult to stop," Knight said. "We can't produce a B and win."
Simmons said there are no secrets between these two teams.
"Sometimes, you play teams, you never know," he said. "These guys are not like that. They know exactly what their bread and butter is."
Cautious as the coaches sound, their players are excited.
They understand the winner of the game will essentially have a two-game lead over the loser with 10 games to play, but they also know that if a team is in the running for the playoffs, an early loss is easier to overcome than a late one.
Harding started 0-3 in 2017, won their next 11 and advanced to the Division II semifinals. The Bisons were 4-2 after losing to Ouachita last season, then won their next five games to advance to the playoffs, losing to national runner-up Ferris State 21-19.
"We hope that's not the case at all," Harding junior fullback Cole Chancey said. "If it were to happen, by chance, all we can do is move on."
Ouachita senior Allie Freeman has played in three of these games, and it's difficult for him to downplay it.
"It's probably the game of the week, in the country, in Division II," Freeman said. "Two of the top teams. It's exciting. It's fun. These are the games you want to play in, at the end of the day."
Ouachita sophomore quarterback Brayden Brazeal, last season's GAC Freshman of the Year, said playing Harding in the opener is motivating.
"It's one of those things you look forward to all summer and all spring," he said. "It's been pounded into us: Harding, Harding, Harding."
HARDING AT OUACHITA BAPTIST
WHEN 7 p.m.
WHERE Cliff Harris Stadium, Arkadelphia
RADIO Ouachita Football Network (KDXE-FM, 101.1, Little Rock, KUOA, AM 1290 and FM 97.7, Siloam Springs KCXY-FM, 95.3, Camden KZNG, AM 1340, FM 94.5 and FM 105.5, Hot Springs KNAS-FM, 105.5, Nashville KQORFM, 105.3, Mena); Harding Sports Network: KVHU 95.3
INTERNET The game will stream on the ESPN app and ESPN.com.
RECORDS Ouachita Baptist (12-1 overall, 11-0 GAC); Harding (9-3, 9-2)
COACHES Todd Knight (112-95 in 21st season at OBU, 140-127-2 in 26 seasons overall); Paul Simmons (20-7 in 3rd season at Harding) SERIES Ouachita Baptist leads 34-24-4
LAST SEASON Ouachita Baptist won 7-3 at Harding
NOTEWORTHY This is the first time the two teams have opened the season against each other. … OBU, picked to finish first in the Great American Conference, is ranked No. 5 in the AFCA Top 25; Harding, picked to finish second in the GAC, is No. 18. … Both teams return nearly all of their offensive skill players, with redshirt sophomore Preston Paden (614 passing, 5 TDs) guiding Harding’s ground-oriented Flexbone. Junior Cole Chancey (961 yards, 14 TDs) is the leading returning rusher, but Tristan Tucker (719, 6), Paden (534, 12) and Taylor Bissell (474, 4) give the Bisons a deep and experienced backfield. The Bisons are replacing three 36-game starters in the middle of their offensive line — a void left by the departures of C Bryce Bray and OGs Heath and Keith Pledger. … GAC Freshman of the Year Brayden Brazeal (1,411 passing, 10 TDs, 2 INTs) leads an OBU offense that returns three of its four leading rushers — Shun’cee Thomas (820, 7), Brockton Brown (647, 16) and Brazeal. One big loss for OBU is the departure of All-GAC OT Justin Gooseberry, who is a graduate transfer at Rice. Twin brother Corey Gooseberry remains to anchor the Tigers’ line. Allie Freeman (54-560 receiving, 3 TDs) is the lone returning starter at wide receiver. … OBU returns nine starters from a defense that finished second in the nation in fewest points allowed (11.5 pg); Harding has four returning starters from the nation’s top-ranked scoring defense (11.3).
Sports on 09/05/2019