EL DORADO, Ark. – Officially official. The 13th Murphy USA Classic is set as Southern Arkansas and Ouachita will tangle in the Week 8 affair from El Dorado’s Memorial Stadium on October 22. Kickoff from Union County is set for 2 p.m. The announcement was made during a luncheon on Tuesday from the boomtown’s Murphy Arts District with dignitaries from both universities, Murphy USA, the game’s planning committee, the City of El Dorado and El Dorado School District on hand.
“I think this is an incredible opportunity,” noted first-year Mulerider head coach Brad Smiley. Smiley also talked about how great it is that the youth of the community of El Dorado and surrounding areas are being exposed to the college experience each year, while referencing the defending Arkansas High School Class 6A State Champion Wildcats.
“We signed two El Dorado Wildcats this offseason, Ouachita Baptist signed one, Arkansas Tech signed a couple and they [Tech] played in the game last year. You got to think that maybe the youth in this area growing up watching these games gave them the exposure to these universities and now they are off taking the next step in their lives getting to play college football and earn a degree. I really think that is what it’s all about.”
Southern Arkansas will appear in the south Arkansas showdown for the 11th time overall with this fall’s appearance marking the eighth consecutive year that the Muleriders have made the familiar 38-mile jaunt east across county lines. The Muleriders played in the inaugural game in 2009 when it was simply known as the Boomtown Classic and previously made appearances in 2010 and 2012 before playing in the classic in each of the last seven years that it has been contested.
“The Murphy USA Classic is always one of the highlights of the GAC regular season football schedule,” remarked Great American Conference Commissioner Will Prewitt on the annual event. “In particular, the SAU-OBU games in the past have provided some incredible matchups in El Dorado. I certainly anticipate another great game between these two quality programs this fall.”
Ouachita will make its fifth appearance in El Dorado since its first appearance in 2011. This fall’s tilt will see the Tigers match up with Southern Arkansas for the fourth time. Two of the three previous matchups in the neutral site meeting were decided by four points or less and none of the three matchups have resulted in fewer than 59 combined points.
The Muleriders have claimed the MUSAC hardware four times including a 32-28 win over Ouachita in 2015. SAU knocked off Henderson State in 2016 and 2018 and defeated Arkansas Tech last season.
Event chairman John Thomas Shepherd said, “The Murphy USA Classic offers a one-of-a-kind game day experience, bringing two teams together in a town filled with plenty of alumni from both schools. We are thrilled to welcome both outstanding teams, along with their fans. This event allows residents of El Dorado and the surrounding area to experience big-time college football at home. In turn, hosting this game allows El Dorado to showcase all that it has to offer to the thousands of fans who attend from all over the region.”
More information on event developments surrounding the weekend as well as ticket information will be available soon at www.MuleriderAthletics.com.
Murphy USA Classic All-Time History
2009 | Arkansas-Monticello def. Southern Arkansas (17-6)
2010 | Arkansas-Monticello def. Southern Arkansas (28-23)
2011 | Ouachita def. Arkansas-Monticello (38-20)
2012 | Harding def. Southern Arkansas (23-20)
2013 | Henderson State def. Arkansas Tech (45-14)
2014 | Henderson State def. Southern Arkansas (55-41)
2015 | Southern Arkansas def. Ouachita (32-28)
2016 | Southern Arkansas def. Henderson State (50-24)
2017 | Ouachita def. Southern Arkansas (45-42)
2018 | Southern Arkansas def. Henderson State (34-14)
2019 | Ouachita def. Southern Arkansas (38-21)
2021 | Southern Arkansas def. Arkansas Tech (34-17)
Appearances (including ’22 game) in the Murphy USA Classic
Southern Arkansas – 11
Ouachita – 5
Henderson State – 4
Arkansas-Monticello – 3
Arkansas Tech – 2
Harding – 1