complete game notes in .pdf format

Storyline
Lindenwood concludes its transition season to the NCAA and the MIAA this week with a road trip to Central Oklahoma. The Bronchos, like the Lions, will be joining the MIAA next season.

Lindenwood will be looking to end the season with eight wins, a mark that very few people expected from the program. The Lions had a very difficult schedule that included two NCAA Division I programs and several games against top NCAA Division II and NAIA programs. The squad has had one of its most exciting seasons in program history, with four games, including three victories, being decided by seven points or less.

Last week, Lindenwood got its first taste of the MIAA with a home game against Central Missouri. Several players, led by running back Denodus O'Bryant and wide receiver Andrew Helmick, showed that they are ready for the next level. O'Bryant rushed for 179 yards, including two long runs of 70 yards or more, and Helmick had 147 receiving yards. Other areas of the team though still needs work as Central Missouri won the game by a 47-28 margin.

Central Oklahoma is 2-8 entering its final game of the 2011 season. The key number for the Bronchos is 25. Central Oklahoma is 2-0 when scoring over 25 points, but 0-8 when scoring 25 or less points.

A Lindenwood Win Would...
- improve the program to 126-116-2 all-time.
- improve the Lions to 74-22 under head coach Patrick Ross.
- improve the team to 3-2 against NCAA Division II competition in 2011.
- cause the team to finish the year with a 3-2 road record.
- improve the team to 3-1-1 all-time against schools from the state of Oklahoma.
- be the team's first victory while playing in the state of Oklahoma.

A Lindenwood Loss Would...
- drop the program to 125-117-2 all-time.
- drop the Lions to 73-23 under head coach Patrick Ross.
- drop the team to 2-3 against NCAA Division II teams in 2011.

Breakout Game
Denodus O'Bryant has been kept down by injuries most of this season, but had a breakout game against Central Missouri. He rushed for 179 yards on just 11 carries, the most rushing yards allowed by the Mules this season to a running back.

O'Bryant is averaging 8.3 yards per rush this season. He has scored five touchdowns and has a school record 46 for his career.

O'Bryant needs just 11 rushing yards this week in order to become the fifth Lion with 2,000 for his career. He is also 25 yards shy of 1,000 receiving yards for his career.

Career Receiving Numbers
Two Lindenwood receivers continue to climb the team's career receiving list. Andrew Helmick ranks sixth with 85 receptions and 1,422 receiving yards, and fourth with 17 receiving touchdowns. Mike Bunton is eighth with 78 receptions and tenth with 877 receiving yards.

Single-Season Receiving
Andrew Helmick is having one of the top single-season receiving years in school history. He has 54 catches for 858 yards and 11 touchdowns. Helmick is in the top five at Lindenwood in all of those categories.

Helmick needs one touchdown reception this upcoming week to tie the school record of 12. That mark was set by Matt Bramow in 2009 in 14 games.

Helmick has already tied the single-season record with four 100-yard receiving games in 2011.

First-Year Quarterback
John Uribe is completing his first season as Lindenwood's starting quarterback. He has thrown for 2,204 yards and 19 touchdowns, and completed 60.9 percent of his passes.

His passing average is the fourth-most for a season in Lindenwood history, his touchdown passes ties for fourth, and his completion percentage is fifth.

Tackle Leader
Chris Howard needs just one tackle this week to become the tenth player during the Patrick Ross era to record at least 80 tackles in a season. If he records two tackles, he will have the most tackles for a Lion since Logen Wright had 90 stops during the 2006 season.

Howard, a senior, enters his final collegiate game with 244 career tackles.

Turnover Leader
Justin Broome leads the defense with four turnovers this year, all interceptions. He is tied for fifth at Lindenwood for single-season interceptions.

All-Purpose Leaders
Lindenwood currently has four players with over 100 all-purpose yards a game. Over the previous seven years, only six Lindenwood players have averaged that many all-purpose yards for a season.

Mike Bunton leads the team with 124.1 all-purpose yards a game. Denodus O'Bryant is second with a 111.7 average, Andrew Helmick is third with a 108.1 average, and Therman McGowan is fourth with a 104.8 mark.

Players of the Week
The team's players of the week for the Central Missouri game were Denodus O'Bryant on offense, Malach Radigan on defense, and Anderson Oliva on special teams.

J.T. Young won the team's Living the D.R.E.A.M. award. That acronym stands for dedication, responsibility, enthusiasm, attitude, and motivation. The award goes to the player who exemplifies those qualities on the practice and game field, around campus, inside the dorm, and in the classroom.

Neal's Kicking Season
Kicker James Neal has put together a quality season. He leads the team with 75 points, with nine field goals and 48 PATs. Neal has missed just one field goal try and is tied for third on the team's single-season field goals made list.

The biggest kick of Neal's season was of course the game-winning field goal as time expired for a win over NCAA Division I Northern Colorado.

Other Kickers
Punter Morris Keseloff is averaging 38.8 yards per punt this season, with a long of 55. He has six punts over 50 yards, and 14 of his 53 punts were inside the 20-yard line. He has a net average of 33.8.

Anderson Oliva has handled most of the kickoff duties this year. He is averaging 60.9 yards per kickoff, and has five touchbacks.

Scoring Offense
Lindenwood is averaging 39.5 points a game this season, which would be the fourth-best total in school history. The Lions have averaged at least 36 points every season since 2007.

Defense Wins Games
In its seven victories this season, Lindenwood is allowing 21.4 points a game. In the three losses, the Lions are allowing 32.0 points a game.

Schedule Breakdown
Lindenwood is 1-1 this season against NCAA Division I teams, 2-2 versus NCAA Division II squads, and 4-0 versus NAIA programs.

About the Bronchos
Central Oklahoma dropped its first four games of the season, but is 2-3 since that time including wins over East Central and Black Hills State. The team is averaging just 18.0 points a game, and allowing 31.1 points a contest.

Ethan Sharp has seen the most snaps at quarterback and is averaging 223.9 passing yards a game. He has seven touchdowns and 11 interceptions. Joshua Birmingham is rushing for nearly 85 yards a game and has another 31.9 receiving. He has eight touchdowns. Christian Hood is the top receiver with 48 catches for 485 yards.

Defensively, the team has forced 25 turnovers, including five interceptions by Devoris Dozier. Tucker Carson leads the team with 101 tackles, 14.5 tackles for loss, and 2.5 sacks.

Last Week
In a contest with another future MIAA program, Central Oklahoma fell by a score of 35-7 last Saturday against Northeastern State. The Bronchos were victims of big plays, as four of Northeastern State's five touchdowns were longer than 25 yards.

Bryce Davis led the offense with six receptions for 105 yards. Ethan Sharp threw for 188 yards, and Joshua Birmingham rushed for 40. Defensively, Tucker Cason had 14 tackles and Drake Ballew recorded 10 stops. Three different players had interceptions.

Head Coach Tracy Holland
Tracy Holland is in his fourth season as the head coach of Central Oklahoma, and he has a coaching record of 15-28 at the school. Prior to taking over the Bronchos, he was head coach at Oklahoma Christian School, where he advanced to two high school state playoffs.

NCAA II Transition
Lindenwood is in its second year of NCAA Division II candidacy in 2011-12. The school has dropped its NAIA membership and is an independent.

In 2012-13, Lindenwood hopes to enter a provisional year in the NCAA. The Lions will join the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association that season.

In 2013-14, assuming all expectations have been met, the NCAA will vote to make Lindenwood a full member.