CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. – Looking to close the regular season with a resounding eighth victory, Austin Peay State University's football team hits the road to take on No. 5-ranked Tarleton State at 4 p.m., Saturday, in a United Athletic Conference showdown at Memorial Stadium in Stephenville, Texas.

After back-to-back wins at Fortera Stadium, Austin Peay (7-4, 4-3 UAC) hits the road for its regular-season finale when it travels to Tarleton State (10-1, 6-1 UAC) for the first time in program history. The Governors fell to the Texans, 27-17, in their only previous meeting in Clarksville last season.

After a 9-0 start to the season, Tarleton State dropped its only game to Abilene Christian, 31-28, before its bye week. After the off week, the Texans responded with a 61-0 rout of North Alabama in their last outing.

Austin Peay is 1-4 on the road this season and 4-6 under head coach Jeff Faris. The Governors are 6-4 all-time on the road in UAC contests and 7-8 in conference games under Faris. Tarleton State is 5-0 at home this season and 71-23 under 16th-year head coach Todd Whitten, who is in his second stint leading the program.

The Governors are 15-73 all-time and 5-39 on the road against nationally-ranked opponents; they also are 2-18 all-time and 2-11 on the road against top-five ranked opponents. The Govs' last victory against a top-five team was a 42-28 win against No. 3 Sacramento State (12/7/19) in Sacramento, California, in the second round of the FCS Playoffs.

Quarterback Chris Parson leads Austin Peay with 147 carries for 549 yards and 12 touchdowns; he also has completed 189-of-296 passes for 2,710 yards and 19 touchdowns. Parson has recorded 3,259 yards of total offense this season; he ranks fourth in the FCS and leads the UAC with 296.3 yards of total offense per game this season.

Wide receiver Shemar Kirk leads the Govs with 42 receptions for 657 yards and seven touchdowns, while Jaden Robinson is second on the team with 40 catches for 556 yards and six touchdowns. Kirk ranks 22nd in the FCS in touchdown receptions this season, while he and Robinson rank second and third in the UAC, respectively, in that category.

Defensively, redshirt freshman linebacker Montreze Smith Jr., who was one of 22 FCS players named to the Stats Perform Jerry Rice Award Watch List, leads the Governors with 69 tackles, 38 solo tackles, and three interceptions; he also has 7.5 tackles for loss, three sacks, one pass breakup, and one forced fumble.

Ellis Ellis Jr. leads the Govs and is tied for third in the UAC with seven pass breakups. On the defensive front, Davion Hood ranks seventh in the UAC with 9.0 tackles for loss and eighth with 5.0 sacks – he leads the Govs in both categories.

After going 3-4 on field goals, with a season-long 50-yarder, and 3-for-3 on PATs with 12 points scored against Samford, Carson Smith was named the UAC Special Teams Player of the Week for the second-straight week and third time in his career. Smith is 13-for-16 on field goals and 48-for-48 on PATs this season and ranks 16th in the FCS in total points scored (87) and 20th in scoring (7.9 ppg) this season.

Saturday's game will be streamed on ESPN+ with John Liddle and Hek'ma Harrison on the call, with Katie Goodman reporting from the sideline. 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, with pregame coverage beginning an hour before kickoff.

NOTABLY

DECADE OF THE GOVS

Despite being only halfway through the 2020s, Austin Peay is six wins away from matching its 43 wins in the 1980s as the winningest decade in program history. The Governors are 37-29 in the 2020s and their .561 winning percentage is the best in a decade in program history, topping a .551 (32-26-1) winning percentage in the 1940s. The Govs are 21-11 at home during the 2020s, and their .656 winning percentage is the second best in a decade in APSU history, trailing only the .714 (20-8) winning percentage at home in the 1940s. With a 7-4 record this season, the Governors also have secured a winning record for the 24th time in 89 seasons and the fourth time in this decade.

DEFEND THE FORT

Austin Peay finished the regular season with a 6-0 record at home, posting the fourth undefeated season at home in program history. The Govs went 4-0 at home in 1940, 6-0 in 1949, and 5-0 in 1964. The Govs posted the second undefeated regular season in Fortera Stadium (renamed in 2016) history, joining the 2023 UAC Championship team that went 5-0 at The Fort in the regular season, before falling to Chattanooga at home in the first round of the FCS Playoffs. The Govs' six wins at home also matched the 1949 and 2019 OVC Championship teams for the most wins at home in a season in program history.

SECOND-YEAR SURGE

After going 4-8 in his first season at Austin Peay, head coach Jeff Faris has already surpassed his win total from his first season. Faris is the eighth coach in program history to increase their win total in their second season and, with one game left in the regular season, his three-win improvement already is tied with Ken Cooper (1955 to 1956) for the fourth-best second-year improvement by a head coach in APSU history. Faris is now one win away from Bill Schmitz's four-win improvement (1997 to 1998) for the third-best second-year improvement in Austin Peay history. Will Healy's eight-win improvement (2016 to 2017) and Bill Dupes' seven-win improvement (1963 to 1964) are the two best second-year win total increases by a head coach in program history.

WE WILL

On May 6, 2025, Will Hardrick, a senior on the Austin Peay football team, tragically passed away. In addition to a helmet sticker with Hardrick's initials and jersey number, a different Governor will be chosen to wear No. 0 each week in honor of Hardrick. Each Monday of the season, head coach Jeff Faris will select the player who best exemplifies Hardrick's character and work ethic to wear the No. 0 in his honor that week. In Week 13 against Tarleton State, senior Charles Crews III will wear No. 0.

SCOUTING THE TEXANS

• Saturday is the second meeting between Austin Peay and Tarleton State; the Texans won the first-ever meeting last season in Clarksville.
• After going 10-4 overall and 6-2 in the UAC last season, Tarleton St. was picked to win the UAC in the 2025 Preseason Coaches Poll. The Texans qualified for the 2024 FCS Playoffs as the No. 13 seed and beat Drake, 43-29, in the first round before falling to No. 4 South Dakota, 42-31, in the second round.
• Tarleton State leads the FCS in scoring offense (45.2), ranks fifth in total offense (468.5), 14th in rushing offense (207.1), and 15th in passing offense (261.5) – it leads the UAC in all four categories. The Texans have scored 40-plus points in 8-of-10 games and have 500 yards of total offense in four games. Tarleton State has rushed for 31 touchdowns this season, with running backs Caleb Lewis (9), James Paige (8), Tre Page III (7), and Tylan Hines (2) all scoring multiple times. The Texans also have 30 passing touchdowns with five wide receivers and two tight ends all catching three-or-more touchdowns this season.
• Tarleton State ranks fourth in the FCS in passing defense (151.5), seventh in scoring defense (16.1), and 15th in total defense (308.7) – it leads the UAC in all three categories. The Texans also rank 63rd in the FCS and third in the UAC in rushing defense (157.2). Tarleton State leads the FCS with 35 turnovers gained – 13 more than second-place Montana – with an FCS-leading 20 interceptions and 15 fumbles recovered. Eleven Texans have an interception and four have multiple picks, led by an FCS-leading five from Kaysus Kurns, while 13 have recovered a fumble this season.
• The unanimous UAC Preseason Offensive Player of the Year, Victor Gabalis is 137-of-224 for 2,083 yards and 22 touchdowns in nine games. Gabalis ranks third in the FCS in yards per completion (15.2), eighth in pass efficiency (168.1), and 11th in passing touchdowns – he leads the UAC in all three categories. He also ranks 17th in the FCS in passing yards per game (231.4) and 18th in points responsible for per game (14.9) – he is second in the UAC in both categories.

UP NEXT

After Saturday's regular-season finale at Tarleton State, Austin Peay turns its attention toward the FCS Playoff Selection Show at 11:30 a.m., Sunday on ESPNU. The first round of the 2025 FCS Championship kicks off on Sat., Nov. 29, at campus sites.

For news and updates throughout the 2025 season, follow Govs football on X (@GovsFB) and Instagram (@GovsFootball) or stay tuned here at LetsGoPeay.com.