The Lowdown: (RV) Evangel University at No. 7 Friends University
Location: Adair-Austin Stadium
Kickoff: Sept. 27 @ 6:00 PM
Live Stream: https://urbanedgenetwork.net/watch/2842
Live Stats: https://friendsathletics.com/sidearmstats/football/summary
Flying with the Falcons: The now No. 7-ranked Friends University Falcons continued to overwhelm the opposition with a 59-15 victory at Tabor College last Saturday (Sept. 20) in Hillsboro, Kan. to improve to a perfect 4-0 on the season.
The Falcons are the highest scoring team in the NAIA at 64.0 ppg and are pacing the nation in both rushing yards (500.0 ypg) and sacks (22).
K'Vonte Baker is tops in the NAIA with 11 rushing touchdowns on the season and leads the Falcons with 369 rushing yards, while Nick Cordova is second with 316 rushing yards and five scores on the ground. Michael Lopez has also scored four rushing touchdowns for Friends.
Defensively, Tyler Lane is tied for first in the KCAC Bissell Division with 3.5 sacks and Tyson Wallace is first on the Falcons with 22 tackles. Lane (5.5) and Makhi Byrd (5.0) lead the way in tackles behind the line for Friends.
Truitt Bosher has made both of his field goal attempts this season and has drilled 34 of his 35 extra-point attempts.
Scouting the Valor: The (RV) Evangel University Valor suffered their first setback of the season last Saturday at home to now (RV) McPherson College, 17-10. The previous week, Evangel knocked off now No. 17-ranked Southwestern College 35-25 on the road.
Quarterback Reid Potts has thrown for 937 yards with eight touchdowns against just one interception for Evangel this season. Eric Williams II is pacing the KCAC Kessinger Division in rushing yards (468) and rushing touchdowns (six), while also catching a team-leading four touchdowns. Broc Lyle leads the Valor receiving corps with 19 catches and 309 yards.
Draven VanGilder leads the Valor defense with 29 tackles and is tied for the team lead in tackles for loss (5.0). Deacon Peterson has a team-high three sacks on the season for Evangel.
The Series: The Falcons are looking for their first victory over Evangel, as the Valor have won all three meetings on record, including the past two seasons as a KCAC member.
Tickets: Purchase Football season tickets or single-game tickets HERE!
Who's up for some Raising Canes: If the Falcons score a touchdown in the fourth quarter Saturday night vs. Evangel, everyone in attendance will receive a BOGO card to the new Raising Canes location here in Wichita. You must stay to the end of the game to redeem your card, Go Falcons!
Farha Roofing: We are proud to have Farha Roofing as a sponsor of Friends University Athletics this season! Click HERE for more info on the services Farha can offer!
Rush to Score: Both the Falcons and Valor rank within the top five in the NAIA in rushing yards, with Friends tops overall with 500 yards per game and Evangel ranking fifth with 268 yards per game.
Complimentary Dominance: The Falcons have flexed their muscle on both sides of the ball this season, leading the NAIA in points per game (64.0 ppg) and ranking second in yards per game (553.8). On the flip side, the Falcons are first in the nation in both yards allowed per game (135.3) and sacks (22).
Hometown Hero: A Wichita Heights HS product, K'Vonte Baker was named KCAC Player of the Year during his first season with the Falcons in 2023 after leading the NAIA in rushing scores (25) and ranking third in rushing yards per game (115.3). His 1268 total rushing yards were the most by a Falcon since 2016 (Jesse Rogers). Last year, Baker ran for a team-leading 1225 yards on the ground, bolstered by a career-high 214 rushing yards in a 56-10 victory at Avila University (Sept. 14). Baker was named the KCAC Kessinger Division Co-Offensive Player of the Year for the 2024 campaign and was named the Offensive Player of the Game after leading the Falcons with 179 yards on the ground and one rushing touchdown in a 47-35 victory over OUAZ for Friends' first-ever NAIA playoff win. He has picked right back up this season with an NAIA-leading 11 rushing touchdowns along with a team-leading 369 yards on the ground.
Click HERE to read Baker describe the thrilling experience of playing in his hometown of Wichita!
Rushing to History: The Falcons accumulated a NAIA single-season record 5,351 rushing yards last season under head coach Terry Harrison's pristine flexbone offensive system. Friends is well ahead of the pack again this season with 500.0 rushing yards per game, a full 183 yards per game ahead of second place Mayville State.
Rush Hour: The Falcons have led the NAIA in rushing in all three years of head coach Terry's Harrison's tenure. This rushing success particularly correlates with Harrison, as he's now coached the last six NAIA team leaders in rushing (his last three years at Bethel and all three seasons at Friends.
Falcons by the Numbers:
Overall: 4-0
KCAC Bissell Division: 0-0
Home: 2-0
Away: 2-0
The Falcons record when …
Scoring 0-6 points: 0-0
Scoring 7-13 points: 0-0
Scoring 14-20 points: 0-0
Scoring 21-27 points: 0-0
Scoring 28-34 points: 0-0
Scoring 35+ points: 4-0
Allowing 0-6 points: 1-0
Allowing 7-13 points: 1-0
Allowing 14-20 points: 2-0
Allowing 21-27 points: 0-0
Allowing 28-34 points: 0-0
Allowing 35+ points: 0-0
Scoring first: 3-0
Opponent scores first: 1-0
Leading at halftime: 4-0
Trailing at halftime: 0-0
Tied at halftime: 0-0
Committing fewer turnovers: 2-0
Committing more turnovers: 2-0
Turnovers are even: 0-0
Leading in total offense: 4-0
Trailing in total offense: 0-0
Winning time of possession: 2-0
Losing time of possession: 2-0
The Coaches:
Terry Harrison enters his fourth season as the Friends University head football coach.
Harrison appeared to be the perfect choice to lead the Falcon program and has done nothing to change that perception going into his fourth season at the helm.
In his three seasons thus far, Harrison has overseen the NAIA's top rushing offense in total yards and yards per game.
Last season, the Falcons' progression reached its apex with the program's first conference title since 2008 and first NAIA FCS Playoff victory in school history. Harrison earned KCAC Kessinger Division and Victory Sports Network (VSN) NAIA Coach of the Year honors after guiding the Falcons to an 11-2 record for the team's most wins in the modern era.
Under Harrison, K'Vonte Baker was named the KCAC Kessinger Division Co-Offensive Player of the Year and offensive lineman Kyree Watkins was selected as a first-team AFCA NAIA Coaches' All-American. Overall, the Falcons averaged 411.6 rushing yards per game, nearly 100 yards ahead of the next closest team (Taylor, 311.7) while also rushing for a nation-leading 58 touchdowns last season.
In 2023, Harrison guided the Falcons to their first winning record since 2014 (9-2) and coached 20 All-KCAC players, including KCAC Player of the Year K'Vonte Baker along with NAIA All-American and Rimington Award winner Keegan Martin.
Harrison arrived on campus after transforming fellow KCAC member Bethel College into a conference and national power.
After taking over a Bethel program in 2018 that was 1-9 and at the bottom of the league the previous season, Harrison's impact was felt immediately as he installed the flexbone offense and guided the team to finish third in the NAIA in rushing offense (274.4) per game.
The following season, Harrison would begin to affect the wins column by leading the Threshers to a second-place showing in the KCAC with an 8-3 overall record. Bethel continued to climb the leaderboard nationally, finishing tops in the NAIA in total rushing offense (4,084) and rushing offense per game (371.3) while ranking third in passing efficiency (180.3).
The best was yet to come as the next season, Harrison and the Threshers captured a Co-KCAC regular season championship and an NAIA national playoff berth to wind up No. 13 in the final NAIA FirstDown PlayBook Top 25 poll. The conference championship was the Threshers' first since 2007 and the national playoff appearance represented the first since the 2006 campaign and only the third in school history.
Once again, Harrison's squad set the standard nationally in rushing, leading the country in both total rushing offense (3828) and rushing offense per game (348.0) for the second consecutive season.
Harrison had the Threshers rolling again this year with a 9-2 overall record and a 9-1 league mark that netted the squad their second consecutive co-KCAC regular season title along with a final NAIA national ranking of 17th.
Harrison is embarking on his second go-round as a head coach of the Falcons in Wichita, as he spent five seasons as the head coach of the Wichita Heights High School Falcons. At Heights, Harrison guided the team to four Kansas 5A regional titles, a district championship and a Greater-Area Wichita-League title along with a 38-16 overall record. In 2016, Harrison was named the City-League Coach of the Year.
He has also received the opportunity to speak at multiple coaching clinics, with the most recent engagement being the Tulsa Glazier Mega Clinic in 2016.
Harrison was a three-year captain at Sterling College and graduated in 2004 with a Bachelor of Sciences in Physical Education and Health. He then earned his Masters of Science in School Leadership from Baker University in 2011.
Chuck Hepola is in his 11th season as head coach of the Evangel University Valor after returning to his alma mater in 2015. He is also now serving as the school's Director of Athletics. In their first season in the KCAC in 2023, Hepola guided the Valor to an undefeated regular season and the inaugural Kessinger Division championship.
Hepola brought Evangel to national prominence early in his tenure and earned the Heart South Division Coach of the Year in 2018.
He also guided the Valor to Top 10 NAIA rankings during the 2018 and 2019 seasons.
Hepola's coaching career includes assistant coaching stops at the University of Tulsa and East Central University while also serving as the Director of Football Operations at Louisiana-Monroe and an associate head coach position at Nicholls State University, an NCAA FCS school in the Southland Conference.
Up Next: The Falcons will play their final cross divisional game next Saturday (Oct. 4) at Ottawa University for a 6 pm kickoff in Ottawa, Kan.
