NATCHITOCHES, La. _ The University of Central Arkansas Bears will try to close out their Southland Conference season Saturday with their sixth straight league victory when they take on the Northwestern State Demons at Turpin Stadium.
The Bears opened their SLC season back in September with a 31-10 loss to Sam Houston State on the road. Since then, they have knocked off five straight opponents and sit in second place in the standings, one game behind the Bearkats. UCA finishes the regular season next week against Texas State, which is a non-conference game this year because of TSU’s impending move to the Western Athletic Conference.
The Bears (6-3, 5-1) are just ahead of the Demons (5-3, 3-1) heading into Saturday’s 3:05 kickoff. The game will be a Southland Television production, UCA’s third televised game in the past four weeks. The Bears have won both of their previous SLC TV games.
The teams have split four games since UCA m oved into the SLC in 2006. The Demons won 24-19 last year in Conway. UCA beat Southeastern Louisiana 55-29 in last week’s tuneup while NSU, riding a three-game winning streak, topped Texas State 23-10.
The Bears feature the third-best passing offense in the league, led by senior Nathan Dick, who is third in passing yards per game and third in total offense. He was the SLC Offensive Player of the Week this week after completing 20 of 29 passes for 299 yards and a career-high five touchdowns last Saturday.
Dick is second in the league in pass efficiency, while NSU’s Brad Henderson is third. The Bears are second in scoring offense, averaging 33.7 points per game. The Demons are sixth at 24.6 points. The Demons lead the league with 15 interceptions, while the Bears are third with 12. UCA is second in turnover margin after forcing Southeastern into nine turnovers.
The coaching staffs have some familiar faces on both sidelines. UCA has two former NSU coaches, assistant head coach Slade Nagle and receivers coach Matt Kubik. NSU has a former UCA coach in offensive coordinator Todd Cooley.
