CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. – In its first of back-to-back home games before a season-ending road trip, Austin Peay State University's football team hosts Central Arkansas in a 3 p.m., Saturday United Athletic Conference battle for the Stacheville's Salute to Service game at Fortera Stadium.

Austin Peay returns home after falling to Southern Utah, 33-17, to drop to 5-4 overall and 3-3 in UAC play. Central Arkansas enters Saturday's game after losing back-to-back games to West Georgia and Eastern Kentucky to fall to 3-6 overall and 2-3 in the UAC. The Governors are 1-5 all-time against Central Arkansas, but picked up their first win in the series during the Bears' last trip to Fortera Stadium in 2023.

The Govs are 4-0 at Fortera Stadium this season and 33-14 since 2017. Central Arkansas is 1-4 on the road this season and 20-27 under eighth-year head coach Nathan Brown.

Quarterback Chris Parson leads the Austin Peay offense with 116 carries for 423 yards and 10 touchdowns; he also has completed 150-of-234 passes for 2,144 yards and 16 touchdowns. Parson is the second quarterback in program history with double-digit passing and rushing touchdowns in a season, joining Sonny Defilippis, who threw 12 touchdowns and rushed for 10 touchdowns during the 1980 season.

Javious Bond leads the Governors' running backs with 35 carries for 311 yards and four touchdowns, while Courtland Simmons has rushed 57 times for 279 yards and three touchdowns. Wide receivers Jaden Robinson and Shemar Kirk are tied for 20th in the FCS and lead the UAC with six touchdown catches each; they have totaled 483 and 469 receiving yards, respectively, this season.

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 60 tackles, 34 solo tackles, and two interceptions; he also has 5.0 tackles for loss, 2.0 sacks, and a forced fumble.

Ellis Ellis Jr. leads the Governors and is tied for third in the UAC with six pass breakups this season. On the defensive front, Davion Hood ranks third in the UAC with 9.0 tackles for loss and fourth with 5.0 sacks – he leads the Govs in those categories and has recorded a tackle for loss in all nine games this season.

After connecting on a season-long 48-yard field goal at Southern Utah, Carson Smith is 8-for-10 on field goals and 40-for-40 on PATs this season. Smith now is tied for sixth in Austin Peay history with 21-career made field goals and ranks sixth with 72-career PATs.

Bond also ranks 54th in the FCS and second in the UAC with 324 combined kick return yards, totaling a league-leading 115 punt-return yards and 209 kick-return yards. Corey Richardson also ranks 11th in the UAC with 140 combined kick return yards, with all his yardage on kickoff returns.

Saturday's game is Stacheville's Salute to Service game, presented by Bojangles.

Tickets are available online at 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.

New to gameday at Fortera Stadium this season is the Coors Light Tailgate Experience and Big Gov Pregame Show, located between the Jenkins Family Fieldhouse and Fortera Stadium. Buffalo Wild Wings will provide food each week, while Coca-Cola, AJAX Distributing, and Michael Waltrip Brewing Co. will provide alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverage options. The tailgate also will be home to the Big Gov Pregame Show, hosted by Ryan Ploeckelman and Kyle King on ESPN Clarksville with APSU Vice President for Military and Veterans Affairs, U.S. Army Major General (Retired) Walt Lord joining the show. For the Stacheville' Salute to Service game, all veterans and active-duty service members will receive free access to the Coors Light Tailgate Experience. More information on the Coors Light Tailgate Experience can be found here, and tickets can be purchased by calling the Austin Peay Ticket Office at 931-221-7329.

Fans also can purchase tickets to the Blazin' VIPeay Zone, presented by Buffalo Wild Wings, available at all home games this season. Buffalo Wild Wings will provide all-you-can-eat food and drinks – including beer in the Blazin' VIPeay Zone, which will be located in the south end zone of Fortera Stadium under the scoreboard and will open one hour prior to kickoff, when the gates open, before closing at the end of halftime.

Saturday's game will be streamed on ESPN+ with Barry Gresham and Ethan Schmidt 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. Governors' Gameday pregame coverage begins an hour before kickoff, following the Big Gov Pregame Show.

NOTABLY

DECADE OF THE GOVS

Despite being only halfway through the 2020s, Austin Peay is eight wins away from matching its 43 wins in the 1980s as the winningest decade in program history. The Governors are 35-29 in the 2020s, and their .547 winning percentage is the second best in a decade in program history, trailing only the .551 (32-26-1) winning percentage from the 1940s. The Govs also are 19-11 at home during the 2020s, and their .633 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.

DEFEND THE FORT

With a 4-0 record at home, Austin Peay is two wins away from posting the second undefeated regular season in Fortera Stadium (renamed in 2016) history. The 2023 UAC Championship team 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 2019 OVC Championship team went 5-1 at The Fort in the regular season, before improving to 6-1 at home with a win over Furman in the first round of the FCS Playoffs. With two home games left, the Governors have a chance to post the best regular-season win total in Fortera Stadium 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 three games left in the regular season, his one-win improvement already is tied for the sixth-best second-year improvement by a head coach in APSU history. Faris is one win away from matching Scotty Walden's two-game improvement (Spring 2020 to Fall 2020), two wins away from Ken Cooper's three-win improvement (1955 to 1956), and three wins away from Bill Schmitz's four-win improvement (1997 to 1998). 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 11 against Central Arkansas, senior defensive back Chase Allen will wear No. 0.

SCOUTING THE BEARS

• Saturday is the seventh meeting between Austin Peay and Central Arkansas; the Bears lead the all-time series, 5-1.
• After going 6-6 overall and 3-5 in the UAC during the 2024 season, Central Arkansas was picked to finish fifth in the 2025 UAC Preseason Coaches Poll. The Bears are 3-6 overall and 2-3 in the UAC with back-to-back losses to West Georgia and Eastern Kentucky.
• Central Arkansas ranks fifth in the UAC in passing offense (211.0), sixth in total offense (372.4), seventh in scoring offense (23.0), and seventh in rushing offense (161.4). Luther Richesson, who is no longer with the team, started the first five games of the season at quarterback for Central Arkansas, but Austin Myers has played in five-straight games and made four-straight starts entering Saturday. Myers is 88-for-150 for 1,160 yards with nine touchdowns and six interceptions. Wide receiver Malachi Henry also ranks 11th in the FCS in receptions (50), 20th in touchdown receptions (6), and 44th in receiving yards (599) – he leads the UAC in the first two categories and ranks third in the latter.
• Central Arkansas ranks fourth in the UAC in rushing defense (161.3), sixth in total defense (389.4), seventh in passing defense (228.1), and eighth in scoring defense (33.8). After giving up 45-plus points in three of its first four games, the Bears have held three of their last four opponents to 21-or-less points. Preseason All-UAC selection Dillon Williams leads the Bears with 51 tackles, while Trevion Traylor and Gary Lewis each have a team-best 6.5 tackles for loss – tied for 11th in the UAC. Lewis also has a team-best 3.0 sacks, which ranks 10th in the UAC.
• Landen Chambers ranks fifth in the FCS in rushing yards (981), seventh in rushing yards per game (109.0), and 40th in rushing touchdowns (7) – he is second in the UAC in the first two categories and fourth in the latter. Chambers also ranks seventh in the FCS and second in the UAC with 129.1 all-purpose yards per game. Chambers has 100-plus rushing yards in six-straight games and in seven-of-nine games this season with a career-best 184 yards and three touchdowns against North Alabama.

UP NEXT

Austin Peay is back at Fortera Stadium for Senior Day when it hosts Samford in a nonconference contest at 1 p.m., Nov. 15. The Week 12 contest between the Governors and Bulldogs will be streamed on ESPN+.

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