The victory gave Harding three straight wins over nationally-ranked teams for the first time since the Bisons joined the NCAA in 1997. Harding also defeated 12th-ranked Delta State this season and 20th-ranked Ouachita Baptist last season. Both of those games were on the road. Saturday’s win was Harding’s first at home since a 27-10 victory over Arkansas Tech in 2005.
Harding had lost its last five games to North Alabama and had been outscored 104-0 by the Lions in the last nine quarters played between the two teams.
Trailing 28-23 to start the fourth quarter, Harding’s defense stuffed North Alabama quarterback Lee Chapple on 4th-and-1 from the 1-yard line to keep the game within reach.
Harding took it final possession at their 49-yard line with 2:27 left. Three plays later, the Bisons found themselves with 4th-and-16 at the HU 43. Following a timeout, Harding called a halfback pass with junior Jeremy Holt passing to Kurt Adams for 22 yards and a first down.
Three plays later, Harding again faced a fourth down, this time with seven yards to go. Powell threw his first completion of the game to Holt, who picked up 10 yards and another first down. After a spike to kill the clock, Powell lofted a pass to Watson in the end zone. Watson timed his leap perfectly and went up over former University of Tennessee cornerback Brent Vinson and came down with the game-winning catch.
Watson also had the game-winning touchdown reception in Harding’s upset of Delta State on Oct. 16. With the touchdown catch, Watson, a senior, became only the fourth Harding player with over 2,000 receiving yards in his career.
Harding (6-4, 4-4) controlled the game in the first half, rushing for 224 yards against North Alabama’s fourth-ranked rush defense in Division II. The Bisons had three rushing touchdowns, two by freshman Colton Kamper, and a 49-yard romp by junior Jeremy Holt.
North Alabama (8-3, 5-3) scored on a 39-yard touchdown pass from Lee Chapple to Tim Hawthorne in the first quarter and took advantage of a Harding fumble to score on a Chapple one-yard run with 38 seconds left before halftime. Harding led 23-14 at the break.
Harding fumbled a season-high seven times in the game, and North Alabama’s Bryan Thomas scooped up one in the third quarter and returned it 73 yards for a touchdown that left Harding ahead only 23-21.
North Alabama then took a 28-23 lead on a Chris Coffey one-yard run with 1:51 left in the third.
Following Watson’s touchdown catch, Harding went for two, but Kale Gelles was stopped just short of the goal line.
North Alabama advanced their final possession to the Harding 31-yard line, but Bison defensive back Jasper Bodiford tackled UNA wide receiver Chales McClain in-bounds and the clock ran out.
The Bisons entered the game as the sixth-ranked rushing offense in Division II and rushed for 328 yards against the GSC’s top-ranked defense. Powell had 97 rushing yards on 17 carries and Holt had 96 yards on eight carries. Gelles, the GSC’s leading rusher, carried 18 times for 63 yards.
Harding’s defense, tops in the nation in sacks entering the game, added four more against North Alabama and broke the school record with 43 for the season. Sophomore Josh Aldridge had three tackles for loss, including two sacks, and forced two fumbles.
The game was the final collegiate contest for Harding’s 15 seniors. It was also the final game for the Bisons as a member of the Gulf South Conference. Harding will move to a yet-unnamed conference next season that will include six Arkansas universities and three Oklahoma universities.
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