# 2024 Harding Bisons football team

The 2024 Harding Bisons football team represented Harding University in the 2024 NCAA Division II football season as a member of the Great American Conference (GAC). The Bisons were led by eighth-year head coach Paul Simmons and played their home games at First Security Stadium in Searcy, Arkansas.
The team entered the 2024 season as both the reigning GAC champion and the defending NCAA Division II national champion.

## Preseason

The GAC coaches preseason poll was released on August 1, 2024. The Bisons were predicted to finish first in the conference, receiving 10 of the 12 first place votes, while Oauchita Baptist and Southern Arkansas each received one first place vote.

## Schedule

| Date | Time | Opponent | Rank | Site | Result | Attendance |
| September 5 | 7:00 p.m. | Southern Nazarene | No. 1 | First Security StadiumSearcy, AR | W 59–0 | 3,500 |
| September 14 | 7:00 p.m. | at Oklahoma Baptist | No. 1 | Crain Family StadiumShawnee, OK | W 59–7 | 2,706 |
| September 19 | 6:00 p.m. | at Arkansas–Monticello | No. 1 | Cotton Boll StadiumMonticello, AR | W 63–3 | 2,100 |
| September 28 | 7:00 p.m. | No. 20 Henderson State | No. 1 | First Security StadiumSearcy, AR | W 66–0 | 5,200 |
| October 5 | 2:00 p.m. | at Southwestern Oklahoma State | No. 1 | Milam StadiumWeatherford, OK | W 57–3 | 905 |
| October 12 | 2:00 p.m. | Northwestern Oklahoma State | No. 1 | First Security StadiumSearcy, AR | W 62–0 | 2,100 |
| October 19 | 7:00 p.m. | at No. 9 Ouachita Baptist | No. 1 | Cliff Harris StadiumArkadelphia, AR | L 13–17 | 7,322 |
| October 26 | 3:00 p.m. | No. 22 Southern Arkansas | No. 7 | First Security StadiumSearcy, AR | W 49–17 | 5,400 |
| October 31 | 7:00 p.m. | Southeastern Oklahoma State | No. 6 | First Security StadiumSearcy, AR | W 56–14 | 1,900 |
| November 9 | 2:00 p.m. | at East Central | No. 4 | Koi Ishto StadiumAda, OK | W 34–7 | 1,907 |
| November 16 | 2:00 p.m. | Arkansas Tech | No. 4 | First Security StadiumSearcy, AR | W 57–27 | 2,100 |
| November 23 | 1:00 p.m. | at No. 13 Pittsburg State* | No. 4 | Carnie Smith StadiumPittsburg, KS (NCAA Division II first round) | W 48–3 | 4,894 |
| November 30 | 12:00 p.m. | at No. 5 Grand Valley State* | No. 4 | Lubbers StadiumAllendale, MI (NCAA Division II second round) | W 44–26 | 2,844 |
| December 7 | 12:00 p.m. | at No. 2 Ferris State* | No. 4 | Top Taggart FieldBig Rapids, MI (NCAA Division II quarterfinal) | L 7–41 | 4,120 |
| *Non-conference gameHomecomingRankings from AFCA Poll released prior to the gameAll times are in Central time |||||||

## Rankings

Ranking movements Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking ( ) = First-place votes :
| | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week |
| Poll | Pre | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | Final |
| AFCA | 1 (25) | 1 (25)* | 1 (27) | 1 (27) | 1 (29) | 1 (29) | 1 (30) | 1 (30) | 7 | 6 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 |
| D2 Football | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 8 | 7 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 4 |
* A new poll was not released for this week, so for comparison purposes, the previous week's ranking is inserted in this week's slot.

## Game summaries
### Southern Nazarene

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Crimson Storm | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| No. 1 Bisons | 14 | 28 | 10 | 7 | 59 |
at First Security Stadium, Searcy, Arkansas
* Date: September 5
* Game time: 7:00 p.m. CDT
* Game weather: Sunny, 82 °F (28 °C)
* Game attendance: 3,500
* Referee: Michael Catton
* Box score, Recap
| Statistics | SNU | HAR |
| First downs | 4 | 24 |
| Total yards | 49 | 607 |
| Rushing yards | 33 | 554 |
| Passing yards | 16 | 53 |
| Turnovers | 1 | 3 |
| Time of possession | 25:38 | 34:22 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Southern Nazarene | Passing | Rasheed Noel | 2/5, 17 yards |
| Southern Nazarene | Rushing | Evan Rader | 1 rush, 37 yards |
| Southern Nazarene | Receiving | Dalen Smith | 1 reception, 9 yards |
| Harding | Passing | Cole Keylon | 2/5, 53 yards, TD |
| Harding | Rushing | Andrew Miller | 6 rushes, 129 yards, TD |
| Harding | Receiving | Will White | 1 reception, 32 yards |

### At Oklahoma Baptist

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| No. 1 HAR Bisons | 14 | 17 | 21 | 7 | 59 |
| OKB Bison | 0 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 7 |
at Crain Family Stadium, Shawnee, Oklahoma
* Date: September 14
* Game time: 7:00 p.m. CDT
* Game weather: Sunny, 88 °F (31 °C)
* Game attendance: 2,706
* Referee: Darin Lair
* Box score, Recap
| Statistics | HAR | OKB |
| First downs | 31 | 8 |
| Total yards | 506 | 157 |
| Rushing yards | 427 | 27 |
| Passing yards | 79 | 130 |
| Turnovers | 1 | 2 |
| Time of possession | 42:24 | 17:36 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Harding | Passing | Cole Keylon | 4/6, 60 yards, TD |
| Harding | Rushing | Blake Delacruz | 14 rushes, 68 yards, 2 TD |
| Harding | Receiving | Stone Sheffield | 2 receptions, 53 yards, TD |
| Oklahoma Baptist | Passing | Kenny Rosenthal | 12/33, 110 yards, TD, 2 INT |
| Oklahoma Baptist | Rushing | Caden Peevy | 2 rushes, 19 yards |
| Oklahoma Baptist | Receiving | Michael Marshall | 4 receptions, 33 yards |

### At Arkansas–Monticello

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| No. 1 Bisons | 35 | 7 | 14 | 7 | 63 |
| Boll Weevils | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 3 |
at Cotton Boll Stadium, Monticello, Arkansas
* Date: September 19
* Game time: 6:00 p.m. CDT
* Game weather: Sunny
* Game attendance: 2,100
* Referee: Brad Frisby
* Box score, Recap
| Statistics | HAR | UAM |
| First downs | 23 | 9 |
| Total yards | 578 | 191 |
| Rushing yards | 433 | 104 |
| Passing yards | 145 | 87 |
| Turnovers | 1 | 3 |
| Time of possession | 32:42 | 27:09 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Harding | Passing | Cole Keylon | 3/4, 145 yards, 2 TD |
| Harding | Rushing | Andrew Miller | 6 rushes, 78 yards, 2 TD |
| Harding | Receiving | Braden Jay | 1 reception, 70 yards, TD |
| Arkansas–Monticello | Passing | Demilon Brown | 9/20, 79 yards, 3 INT |
| Arkansas–Monticello | Rushing | Tyler Reed | 17 rushes, 73 yards |
| Arkansas–Monticello | Receiving | Isaiah Cross | 3 receptions, 32 yards |

### No. 20 Henderson State

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| No. 20 Reddies | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| No. 1 Bisons | 28 | 21 | 10 | 7 | 66 |
at First Security Stadium, Searcy, Arkansas
* Date: September 28
* Game time: 7:00 p.m. CDT
* Game weather: Cloudy, 73 °F (23 °C)
* Game attendance: 5,200
* Referee: Jimmy Malone
* Box score, Recap
| Statistics | HSU | HAR |
| First downs | 4 | 25 |
| Total yards | 153 | 618 |
| Rushing yards | 28 | 546 |
| Passing yards | 125 | 72 |
| Turnovers | 3 | 0 |
| Time of possession | 18:49 | 41:11 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Henderson State | Passing | Andrew Edwards | 7/19, 125 yards, 2 INT |
| Henderson State | Rushing | Andrew Edwards | 4 rushes, 11 yards |
| Henderson State | Receiving | Jalen Abraham | 2 receptions, 59 yards |
| Harding | Passing | Cole Keylon | 1/1, 41 yards |
| Harding | Rushing | Braden Jay | 4 rushes, 162 yards, 3 TD |
| Harding | Receiving | Will White | 1 reception, 41 yards |

### At SW Oklahoma State

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| No. 1 Bisons | 19 | 17 | 7 | 14 | 57 |
| Bulldogs | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
at Milam Stadium, Weatherford, Oklahoma
* Date: October 5
* Game time: 2:00 p.m. CDT
* Game weather: Sunny
* Game attendance: 905
* Referee: Allen Tatum
* Box score, Recap
| Statistics | HAR | SWO |
| First downs | 25 | 5 |
| Total yards | 523 | 95 |
| Rushing yards | 393 | 73 |
| Passing yards | 130 | 22 |
| Turnovers | 1 | 2 |
| Time of possession | 33:00 | 27:00 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Harding | Passing | Cole Keylon | 4/5, 130 yards, 3 TD |
| Harding | Rushing | Kyler Finney | 8 rushes, 87 yards, TD |
| Harding | Receiving | Braden Jay | 1 reception, 54 yards, TD |
| SW Oklahoma State | Passing | Kai Kunz | 7/15, 22 yards |
| SW Oklahoma State | Rushing | Kai Kunz | 12 rushes, 60 yards |
| SW Oklahoma State | Receiving | Michael Arceneaux II | 5 receptions, 8 yards |

### NW Oklahoma State

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Rangers | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| No. 1 Bisons | 21 | 14 | 6 | 21 | 62 |
at First Security Stadium, Searcy, Arkansas
* Date: October 12
* Game time: 2:00 p.m. CDT
* Game weather: Sunny, 86 °F (30 °C)
* Game attendance: 2,100
* Referee: Dewayne Barbee
* Box score, Recap
| Statistics | NWO | HAR |
| First downs | 4 | 28 |
| Total yards | 32 | 502 |
| Rushing yards | 24 | 418 |
| Passing yards | 8 | 84 |
| Turnovers | 2 | 0 |
| Time of possession | 25:31 | 34:29 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| NW Oklahoma State | Passing | Brodey Johnson | 5/11, 9 yards, INT |
| NW Oklahoma State | Rushing | Darien Gill | 11 rushes, 46 yards |
| NW Oklahoma State | Receiving | Travis Romar | 3 receptions, 13 yards |
| Harding | Passing | Cole Keylon | 2/3, 64 yards, TD |
| Harding | Rushing | Andrew Miller | 11 rushes, 107 yards |
| Harding | Receiving | Braden Jay | 1 reception, 54 yards |

### At No. 9 Ouachita Baptist

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| No. 1 Bisons | 7 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 13 |
| No. 9 Tigers | 7 | 3 | 0 | 7 | 17 |
at Cliff Harris Stadium, Arkadelphia, Arkansas
* Date: October 19
* Game time: 7:00 p.m. CDT
* Game weather: Clear, 64 °F (18 °C)
* Game attendance: 7,322
* Referee: Brad Frisby
* Box score, Recap
| Statistics | HAR | OUA |
| First downs | 15 | 12 |
| Total yards | 288 | 198 |
| Rushing yards | 218 | 85 |
| Passing yards | 70 | 113 |
| Turnovers | 2 | 1 |
| Time of possession | 33:02 | 26:58 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Harding | Passing | Cole Keylon | 5/12, 57 yards |
| Harding | Rushing | Cole Keylon | 14 rushes, 78 yards |
| Harding | Receiving | Darius Brown | 3 receptions, 38 yards |
| Ouachita Baptist | Passing | Eli Livingston | 10/18, 109 yards, INT |
| Ouachita Baptist | Rushing | Kendel Givens | 13 rushes, 47 yards, TD |
| Ouachita Baptist | Receiving | Connor Flannigan | 5 receptions, 62 yards |

### No. 22 Southern Arkansas

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| No. 22 Muleriders | 3 | 0 | 7 | 7 | 17 |
| No. 7 Bisons | 14 | 21 | 7 | 7 | 49 |
at First Security Stadium, Searcy, Arkansas
* Date: October 26
* Game time: 3:00 p.m. CDT
* Game weather: Cloudy, 71 °F (22 °C)
* Game attendance: 5,400
* Referee: Jimmy Malone
* Box score, Recap
| Statistics | SAU | HAR |
| First downs | 21 | 15 |
| Total yards | 417 | 423 |
| Rushing yards | 221 | 340 |
| Passing yards | 196 | 83 |
| Turnovers | 1 | 0 |
| Time of possession | 31:33 | 28:27 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Southern Arkansas | Passing | Judd Barton | 18/31, 196 yards, TD |
| Southern Arkansas | Rushing | Judd Barton | 14 rushes, 87 yards |
| Southern Arkansas | Receiving | Seth Johnson | 1 reception, 49 yards, TD |
| Harding | Passing | Cole Keylon | 2/4, 83 yards, TD |
| Harding | Rushing | Braden Jay | 7 rushes, 136 yards, TD |
| Harding | Receiving | Blake Delacruz | 1 reception, 52 yards, TD |

### SE Oklahoma State

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Savage Storm | 0 | 7 | 0 | 7 | 14 |
| No. 6 Bisons | 0 | 28 | 14 | 14 | 56 |
at First Security Stadium, Searcy, Arkansas
* Date: October 31
* Game time: 7:00 p.m. CDT
* Game weather: Cloudy, 67 °F (19 °C)
* Game attendance: 1,900
* Referee: Allen Tatum
* Box score, Recap
| Statistics | SOU | HAR |
| First downs | 13 | 19 |
| Total yards | 275 | 490 |
| Rushing yards | 151 | 415 |
| Passing yards | 124 | 75 |
| Turnovers | 4 | 1 |
| Time of possession | 29:16 | 30:44 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| SE Oklahoma State | Passing | Cergio Perez | 7/24, 124 yards, TD, 3 INT |
| SE Oklahoma State | Rushing | D. J. Brown | 21 rushes, 67 yards, TD |
| SE Oklahoma State | Receiving | Kobe Jennings | 4 receptions, 67 yards, TD |
| Harding | Passing | Cole Keylon | 2/4, 75 yards, TD |
| Harding | Rushing | Braden Jay | 6 rushes, 108 yards, 2 TD |
| Harding | Receiving | Braden Jay | 1 reception, 53 yards, TD |

### At East Central

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| No. 4 Bisons | 7 | 13 | 7 | 7 | 34 |
| Tigers | 0 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 7 |
at Koi Ishto Stadium, Ada, Oklahoma
* Date: November 16
* Game time: 2:00 p.m. CST
* Game weather: Sunny
* Game attendance: 1,907
* Referee: Allen Tatum
* Box score, Recap
| Statistics | HAR | ECU |
| First downs | 26 | 8 |
| Total yards | 469 | 106 |
| Rushing yards | 435 | 52 |
| Passing yards | 34 | 54 |
| Turnovers | 1 | 0 |
| Time of possession | 33:41 | 26:19 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Harding | Passing | Braden Jay | 1/1, 34 yards |
| Harding | Rushing | Andrew Miller | 16 rushes, 151 yards, 2 TD |
| Harding | Receiving | Darius Brown | 1 reception, 34 yards |
| East Central | Passing | Sergio Kennedy | 13/19, 54 yards |
| East Central | Rushing | Cade Searcy | 10 rushes, 29 yards |
| East Central | Receiving | Bryce Bodkin | 3 receptions, 28 yards |

### Arkansas Tech

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Wonder Boys | 0 | 7 | 7 | 13 | 27 |
| No. 4 Bisons | 23 | 20 | 14 | 0 | 57 |
at First Security Stadium, Searcy, Arkansas
* Date: November 16
* Game time: 2:00 p.m. CST
* Game weather: Sunny, 65 °F (18 °C)
* Game attendance: 2,100
* Referee: Darin Lair
* Box score, Recap
| Statistics | ATU | HAR |
| First downs | 19 | 28 |
| Total yards | 312 | 520 |
| Rushing yards | 34 | 498 |
| Passing yards | 278 | 22 |
| Turnovers | 1 | 1 |
| Time of possession | 22:15 | 37:45 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Arkansas Tech | Passing | Ethan Everson | 17/35, 261 yards, 3 TD, INT |
| Arkansas Tech | Rushing | Deuce Wise | 9 rushes, 13 yards |
| Arkansas Tech | Receiving | Jordan Jackson | 6 receptions, 102 yards |
| Harding | Passing | Cole Keylon | 2/3, 22 yards |
| Harding | Rushing | Braden Jay | 7 rushes, 104 yards, 2 TD |
| Harding | Receiving | Andrew Miller | 1 reception, 11 yards |

### At No. 13 Pittsburg State (NCAA Division II First Round)

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| No. 4 Bisons | 0 | 24 | 14 | 10 | 48 |
| No. 13 Gorillas | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
at Carnie Smith Stadium, Pittsburg, Kansas
* Date: November 23
* Game time: 1:00 p.m. CST
* Game weather: Sunny, 60 °F (16 °C)
* Game attendance: 4,894
* Referee: Brad Mutnick
* TV: ESPN+
* Box score, Recap
| Statistics | HAR | PSU |
| First downs | 28 | 10 |
| Total yards | 585 | 148 |
| Rushing yards | 518 | 39 |
| Passing yards | 67 | 109 |
| Turnovers | 2 | 2 |
| Time of possession | 37:10 | 22:50 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Harding | Passing | Cole Keylon | 2/3, 50 yards, TD, INT |
| Harding | Rushing | Blake Delacruz | 15 rushes, 89 yards |
| Harding | Receiving | Darius Brown | 1 reception, 50 yards, TD |
| Pittsburg State | Passing | Chad Dodson Jr. | 11/24, 104 yards, INT |
| Pittsburg State | Rushing | Noah Hernandez | 12 rushes, 42 yards |
| Pittsburg State | Receiving | Jack Roberts | 3 receptions, 65 yards |

### At No. 5 Grand Valley State (NCAA Division II Second Round)

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| No. 4 Bisons | 0 | 17 | 14 | 13 | 44 |
| No. 5 Lakers | 7 | 0 | 6 | 13 | 26 |
at Lubbers Stadium, Allendale, Michigan
* Date: November 30
* Game time: 12:00 p.m. CST/1:00 p.m. EST
* Game weather: Snow, 26 °F (−3 °C)
* Game attendance: 2,844
* Referee: Tristan Severson
* TV: ESPN+
* Box score, Recap
| Statistics | HAR | GVSU |
| First downs | 28 | 13 |
| Total yards | 475 | 223 |
| Rushing yards | 475 | 44 |
| Passing yards | 0 | 179 |
| Turnovers | 0 | 1 |
| Time of possession | 39:03 | 20:57 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Harding | Passing | Cole Keylon | 0/1, 0 yards |
| Harding | Rushing | Andrew Miller | 15 rushes, 202 yards, 3 TD |
| Harding | Receiving | None | |
| Grand Valley State | Passing | Ike Udengwu | 13/25, 179 yards |
| Grand Valley State | Rushing | Khalil Eichelberger | 9 rushes, 36 yards, TD |
| Grand Valley State | Receiving | Syone Usma-Harper | 3 receptions, 58 yards |

### At No. 2 Ferris State (NCAA Division II Quarter Final)

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| No. 4 Bisons | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 7 |
| No. 2 Bulldogs | 13 | 7 | 14 | 7 | 41 |
at Top Taggart Field, Big Rapids, Michigan
* Date: December 7
* Game time: 12:00 p.m. CST/1:00 p.m. EST
* Game weather: Sunny, 38 °F (3 °C)
* Game attendance: 4,120
* Referee: Dwight Neibling
* TV: ESPN+
* Box score, Recap
| Statistics | HAR | FSU |
| First downs | 11 | 24 |
| Total yards | 193 | 452 |
| Rushing yards | 130 | 287 |
| Passing yards | 63 | 165 |
| Turnovers | 2 | 0 |
| Time of possession | 28:13 | 31:47 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Harding | Passing | Cole Keylon | 5/7, 63 yards, INT |
| Harding | Rushing | Blake Delacruz | 10 rushes, 43 yards |
| Harding | Receiving | Dane Romberger | 2 receptions, 36 yards |
| Ferris State | Passing | Trinidad Chambliss | 18/27, 145 yards, 2 TD |
| Ferris State | Rushing | Taariik Brett | 3 rushes, 89 yards |
| Ferris State | Receiving | Brady Rose | 7 receptions, 45 yards |