CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. – In a rematch of last year's United Athletic Conference Championship, Austin Peay State University's football team opens conference play with a 6 p.m., Saturday night showdown against No. 7 Central Arkansas at Estes Stadium in Conway, Arkansas.

Last season, the Governors beat the Bears, 14-12, in Clarksville to claim the inaugural UAC crown and an automatic qualifier for the 2023 FCS Playoffs. Austin Peay is 6-0 all-time in UAC contests and has won eight-straight conference games dating back to the 2022 season. The Govs' 6-0 record in the UAC last season marked their first season with a perfect record in conference play in program history.

Austin Peay is still looking for its first win of the Jeff Faris Era after falling to Louisville and No. 10 Southern Illinois in its first two contests. Central Arkansas opened the season with a 34-31 loss at Arkansas State before going on the road to beat Lindenwood, 34-13, in Week 2.

The Governors were 4-2 on the road and 3-0 on the road in conference games last season. Central Arkansas, who is playing its home opener on Saturday, was 5-1 at Estes Stadium last season, with their lone defeat coming against Tarleton State in a UAC contest.

Austin Peay was picked to finish fifth in the United Athletic Conference Preseason Coaches Poll, while the Bears were tabbed to win the league with five first-place votes.

With Central Arkansas ranked No. 7 in both FCS polls, Austin Peay is looking to pick up its first ranked-FCS win since beating No, 7 Jacksonville State, 13-10, on March 30, 2021. The Governors last win against a ranked opponent came when they beat the Bears in the 2023 regular-season finale.

Single-game and group tickets for Austin Peay's six remaining home games are available online at LetsGoPeay.com/BuyTickets, through TicketMaster, or by calling the Austin Peay Athletics ticket office at 931-221-PEAY (7329). Special ticket offers and information on everything happening in and around Fortera Stadium can be found in this week's Fan Experience preview.

Saturday's game will be streamed on ESPN+ with Dylan McLemore and JB Brazeal on the call. Fans also can tune into the Governors Sports Network on ESPN Clarksville (104.1 FM/540 AM) or via the TuneIn app to hear Brian Rives and Van Stokes call all the action. ESPN Clarksville will kick off its coverage by re-airing the Austin Peay Football Coaches Show at 4 p.m., followed by pregame coverage, which begins an hour before kickoff.

NOTABLY

REPEAYT CHAMPS

For the first time in program history, Austin Peay won back-to-back conference championships with the 2023 United Athletic Conference and the 2022 ASUN Conference titles. When you add in the 2019 Ohio Valley Conference championship, the Govs have won three titles – in three conferences – since 2019.

The Times They Are a-Changin'

Dating back to 2017, Austin Peay's 50 victories are the 10th most in the FCS and the seventh-most among current FCS programs. The Govs' 50 wins are the most among UAC members since 2017, with Central Arkansas (48) and Eastern Kentucky (40) in second and third, respectively. The Governors' 50 victories in the past eight seasons are the most in any eight-year stretch in program history and are just one less than the 51 victories they had in 19 seasons from 1998-2016. The Govs also have five winning seasons since 2017 after posting just eight winning seasons in their first 39 years in the FCS (1978-2016).

MEET THE GOVS

With just 35 returning letterwinners and 11 players that redshirted a season ago, Austin Peay has 61 newcomers on its 2024 roster. The 61 newcomers are made up of 26 true freshmen and 35 transfers, including nine players who have been at the Power 5 level. Austin Peay's 35 transfers are made up of 21 transfers from FBS programs, seven from FCS programs, and seven from Division II programs.

THE OLD GUYS

Preseason All-UAC selections Chandler Kirton and Hosea Knifeley Jr. are Austin Peay's two returning starters from the 2023 season. Kirton, who was named a 2024 Stats Perform FCS Preseason Third Team All-America selection, has started every game for the Governors over the past three seasons with 22 starts at right guard and three starts at center. Hosea Knifeley Jr. has 14 career starts and started 10 games during the 2023 season when he led the Govs with four sacks. Harrison Wilkes, who started 11 games in 2022 and 17 games in his career, opened the 2023 season as APSU's starter at left guard before a Week 2 injury forced him to miss the remainder of the season.

FARIS ERA, YEAR I

A Knoxville, Tennessee native, Jeff Faris was named Austin Peay's 22nd head football coach in December 2023. In his first season at the helm of the Governors football program, Faris looks to join Dave Aaron (5-4, 1946), James "Boots" Donnelly (8-3, 1977), Watson Brown (7-4, 1979), Rick Christophel (7-4, 2007), Mark Hudspeth (11-4, 2019), and Scotty Walden (4-2, 2020-21) as the seventh head coach in program history to post a winning record in their first season. A winning season for the Govs would mark the third-straight Austin Peay head coach to have a winning record in their debut season.

SCOUTING THE BEARS

• Saturday is the sixth meeting between Austin Peay and Central Arkansas; the Bears lead the all-time series, 4-1, but the Govs won the last meeting.
• The Governors are 0-1 all-time in Conway, Arkansas.
• After going 7-4 overall and finishing second in the UAC with a 4-2 record, Central Arkansas received five first-place votes and was picked to win the UAC in the 2024 Preseason Coaches Poll. The Bears also were picked as the preseason favorites in Stats Performs' UAC preseason predictions.
• Central Arkansas' offense had three players on the UAC's Preseason All-Conference Team, led by quarterback Will McElvain. Now in his third season at Central Arkansas, McElvain has passed for 5,570 yards and 44 touchdowns in his career. However, the duo of running backs Darius Hale and ShunDerrick Powell are the strength of the Bears' offense. Hale and Powell have combined for 5,642 rushing yards and 62 rushing touchdowns in their careers, in addition to 983 receiving yards and five touchdown receptions.
• One of the top defensive units in the FCS, Central Arkansas had three defensive players on the UAC's Preseason All-Conference Team. Linebacker Demetrias Charles and safety TaMuarion Wilson ranked second and third on the team with 72 and 64 tackles, respectively, last season. Wilson added 5.5 tackles for loss, two interceptions, and eight pass breakups to earn 2023 First Team All-UAC, while Charles had one tackle for loss and an interception. As a team, Central Arkansas led the UAC in total defense (330.8), scoring defense (23.0), and rushing defense (104.1) last season.
• A two-time Buck Buchannan Award finalist, David Walker was the only unanimous selection to the UAC's 2024 Preseason All-Conference defense. Walker was the 2023 UAC Defensive Player of the Year and a 2023 First Team All-UAC selection after leading the league in tackles for oss (18.0) and sacks (8.5) – he ranked eighth and 20th in the FCS in those categories. Walker, who also was the 2022 ASUN Defensive Player of the Year, has 36.5 tackles for loss and 25 sacks in his career and is a six-time All-American.

UP NEXT

After Saturday's UAC opener against Central Arkansas, Austin Peay returns home to take on Alabama A&M at 6 p.m., Sept. 21 at Fortera Stadium in Clarksville, Tennessee. The Week 4 contest between the Governors and Bulldogs will be streamed on ESPN+.

For news and updates throughout the 2023 season, follow Govs football on X (@GovsFB) and Instagram (@GovsFootball) or stay tuned here at LetsGoPeay.com.