Football | 11/14/2023 6:39:00 PM
November 14, 2023-For the eighth time in the last 11 seasons, Emporia State football has earned an extra game as they will take on Southern Nazarene of the Great American Conference in the Fun Town RV Heritage Bowl. The bowl will kick-off at 12 noon on December 2 at Community Bank & Trust Stadium at Tiger Field in Corsicana, Texas.
Emporia State is 8-3 on the year and receiving votes in the latest AFCA National Poll. The Hornets are leading the nation in completion percentage, are second in passing offense and fourth in total offense. Unanimous First-Team All-MIAA quarterback
Braden Gleason is leading the nation in completion percentage, is second in touchdown passes, total offense and points responsible for, and fifth in passing efficiency. First-Team All-MIAA receiver
Tyler Kahmann is leading the nation in touchdown catches, is fourth in receptions and sixth in receiving yards. First-Team All-MIAA receiver
Jaylen Varner is ranked fourth nationally in catches per game, seventh in touchdown receptions and tenth in receiving yards. MIAA Special Teams Player of the Year
Ross Brungardt is leading the MIAA and ranked ninth in the nation in punting.
Jaaron Joseph is third in the MIAA in interceptions.
Southern Nazarene is 6-5 on the year. They have the second ranked rushing attack in the nation at 290.2 yards per game. Quarterback Gage Porter is leading the nation with 25 rushing touchdowns and is ranked third in the nation at 158.1 rushing yards per game. He also averages 154.3 passing yards per game and has thrown ten touchdown passes. Defensively they were ninth in the GAC in passing yards allowed at 192.5 yards per game and ranked 107
th in the nation in pass efficiency defense.
Teams will arrive late afternoon on Thursday, November 30. During their time in Corsicana, teams will participate in local community events starting with the Banquet on Thursday evening, High Five Friday at local schools and a Pep Rally in downtown Corsicana on Friday.
Tickets are on-sale now at heritagebowl.org and are all $10. When selecting tickets the Hornets will be designated the home team.
In 2012 the Hornets broke a nine year postseason drought with a 45-38 win over Texas A&M-Kingsville in Kanza Bowl. The next year Emporia State travelled to Minn.-Duluth for their first NCAA Playoff game since 2003. The Hornets returned to the playoffs in 2015 and defeated Minnesota State 51-49 and Henderson State 29-3 before falling to eventual national champion Northwest Missouri in the national quarterfinals. The next year Emporia State played host to their first NCAA Playoff game in school history was they defeated Minn.-Duluth 59-26 in Welch Stadium before again falling to the eventual national champions from Northwest Missouri in the second round. The Hornets returned to a bowl game in 2018 when they defeated Ark.-Monticello 30-22 in the Corsicana Bowl in Corsicana, Texas. The lone bowl loss for Emporia State was 37-34 to Southeastern Oklahoma in the 2021 Live United Bowl as the Savage Storm kicked a field goal with six seconds left for the win. The Hornets avenged that loss the next year as Emporia State took advantage of five Southeastern Oklahoma turnovers on the way to a 48-27 win in the 2022 Farmers Bank & Trust Live United Bowl.
Emporia State is 10-9 all-time in the post season with a 5-3 record in bowl games, a 2-3 record in the NAIA Playoffs and a 3-4 record in the NCAA Division II Playoffs.
Information regarding alumni events in Corsicana will be coming out in the coming days.
