The No. 2 Lions football team looks to extend its undefeated season after their trip to Southern Arkansas this weekend.

The Lions were able to hold onto the victory against Harding last weekend despite only having 25 yards rushing, compared to Harding’s 381 yards rushing for the game.

The Lions were lead by senior quarterback Lee Chapple, who threw for 308 yards and three touchdowns, including two in the fourth quarter.

“He missed some deep throws early on in the game and started to hit those deep balls in the second half, and we needed that,” said head coach Terry Bowden.

The Lions also got some big plays from receivers Mo Milliam, Tristan Purifoy and Jason Smith, who combined for 261 yards and two touchdowns.

“When you play a team that loads the box to stop the run, you got to hit some of those deep balls, and we did that, and our receivers made some plays for us,” Bowden said.

The No. 2 Lions (4-0) will play their first true road game of the season against Southern Arkansas (1-3), who gave the No. 5 Valdosta State everything they could handle last weekend.

The Muleriders had a 21-17 lead going into the fourth, but Valdosta scored 21 unanswered points to win the game 38-21.

The Muleriders also played the Lions’ last opponent Harding the first game of the season at home, but were blown out with a final score of 63-14. The Muleriders had no answer for the Harding triple option, giving up 515 yards rushing for the game.

The Muleriders average 21.8 points per game against their opponents this year. They are lead offensively by quarterback Tyler Sykora, who averages 207 yards passing per game and six touchdowns.

Also included is running back Mark Johnson, who averages 93 yards rushing per game with five touchdowns on the season.

Defensively, the Muleriders are lead by linebacker A.J. Steele, who leads the team in tackles with 27 on the season.

Last season the Lions blew out Southern Arkansas at Braly stadium with a final score of 48-6.

Chapple completed 16 of 26 passes while throwing for 195 yards and two touchdowns. The running game had a combined 141 yards for the game.

The Lions will travel to Southern Arkansas Saturday with kick-off scheduled for 6 p.m.

Game Recap

• The Lions held on to a 28-20 victory against Harding despite getting outrushed 381 to 25.
• Senior quarterback Lee Chapple finished the game throwing for 308 yards and three touchdown, including two in the fourth quarter.
• The Lions got big plays out of Mo Milliam, Tristan Purifoy and Jason Smith, who combined for 261 yards recieving and two touchdowns.