FULL GAME NOTES vs. No. 2 Southern Oregon (Sept. 3)
EOU RECORD BOOK
2016 OPPONENTS
 
LA GRANDE, Ore. – The season opener for the (RV) EOU football team features one of the hottest in-state rivalries in the country, as the Blue and Gold squares off against No. 2 Southern Oregon on Saturday night at Community Stadium.
 
Ninth-year head football coach Tim Camp caught up with the Sports Information Office to comment on the matchup, as seen in the video above.
 
THE MATCHUP
EOU kicks off its 84th season of football in program history by hosting No. 2 Southern Oregon on Saturday, Sept. 3. Kickoff in La Grande is set for 6 p.m.
 
SERIES HISTORY
Saturday marks the 71st meeting between the two in-state rivals. The Raiders own an all-time record of 51-16-3. EOU's last victory came in 2014, as the Blue and Gold mustered a 31-27 upset in Ashland, Ore.
 
The Blue and Gold has brought home two victories over Southern Oregon since the 2013 campaign. From 2010-14, EOU was the only squad to upend the Raiders in Ashland.
 
LIVE STATS/VIDEO
Fans can listen to the game on NewsTalk 103.1, while live video is available pay-per-view ($7.95) on EOUsports.com. As usual, Ken Kennedy (play-by-play) will be the voice of the Blue and Gold. To follow live stats and/or watch live video, click here.
 
CAMP CLOSING IN ON HISTORY
In his ninth year at the helm, Camp (47-40) is just two wins shy of becoming the all-time winningest coach in program history. He has tied a program-best eight wins twice (2011, 2014) since taking over the Mountaineers in 2008.
 
SEASON OPENERS
Under Camp, EOU is 4-4 in season openers. Two of those four losses were to the Raiders.  
 
THE OPPONENT
The Raiders are coming off their second-straight trip to the NAIA National Football Championship, as they dropped a 31-14 decision to Marian (Ind.). Two years ago, Southern Oregon won the national title after defeating Marian, 55-31. 
 
In 2015, Southern Oregon finished second in the Frontier Conference with an 8-2 record. The Raiders ranked in the top 10 nationally in 10 statistical categories, including sacks (42), total offense (479 yards/game), first downs (24.6/game), total rushing offense (3,000), and third-down conversions (49.5). The squad also led the conference in scoring (39.4/game) and total offense.
 
LAST MEETING
EOU suffered a 48-37 loss to then-ranked No. 8 Southern Oregon on Senior Day in La Grande last season. The Mountaineers nearly rallied from a 22-point (45-23) deficit in the second half, but simply ran out of time.
 
Zach Bartlow threw for 228 yards and four touchdowns, and he also led the Blue and Gold with 111 yards on the ground with one rushing touchdown. Making just his second appearance on the offensive end for EOU, Alfred Gross added 82 rushing yards on 14 carries. On the defensive end, a pair of graduates in Gary Posten and Adam Bese combined for 26 tackles.
 
MOUNTAINEERS BY THE NUMBERS
16: Number of wins all-time for EOU over Southern Oregon. Three of those 16 have come during Camp's leadership.
4-4: EOU's record in season openers under Camp.
5-11: EOU's record vs. top-10 opponents since Camp took over the program in 2008. EOU's last top-10 upset was on Oct. 10, 2015 (Def. No. 4 Carroll, 28-21).
5: Number of Frontier Conference teams either ranked in the top 25 or receiving votes in the preseason poll.
10: Number of times EOU has defeated Southern Oregon in La Grande.
61: Number of years since EOU's first-ever win over Southern Oregon (21-20 on Oct. 22, 1955).
75: Percent of EOU's receiving yards returning from 2015.
48: Percent of EOU's rushing yards returning from 2015.
97: Percent of EOU's passing yards returning from 2015.
2,3: EOU's national rankings last season in kickoff returns (No. 2) and punt returns (No. 3).
 
EOU TABBED NO. 26
EOU was one of five teams from the Frontier Conference to earn recognition in the 2016 NAIA Coaches' Preseason Top 25 Poll, as the Mountaineers collected 24 votes and earned a spot at No. 26.

QUARTET CHOSEN AS TEAM CAPTAINS
Camp announced on Monday evening that senior quarterback Zach Bartlow, senior defensive back John Payne, junior wide receiver Calvin Connors, and senior linebacker Tucker Stanley would be the team captains for the 2016 campaign.
 
2016 SEASON PREVIEW
To view the complete season preview, click here.

 
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