Opening with a road game doesn’t bother Roy Thompson as he prepares to begin his first season as Arkansas Tech University head football coach.
“They could put this game in the Walmart parking lot and we’d be fired up to go play it,” said Thompson. “We’ve just talked about being the best version of Arkansas Tech we can be. If they changed the kickoff to the rodeo in town, Tech would be ready to go. You never think this day is going to come fast enough when you get the job, but it’s finally here. We’re excited. We’ve put in a lot of work over these months. Now we get a chance to come out and hopefully display what we’re going to be here at Arkansas Tech for a long time to come.”
The Wonder Boys will face the Southwestern Oklahoma State University Bulldogs in Great American Conference action at Milam Stadium in Weatherford, Okla., on Thursday, Sept. 4. Kickoff is set for 6 p.m.
Pre-game coverage on KCJC 102.3 FM will begin at 5:30 p.m. Listeners outside the Arkansas River Valley may access the broadcast at https://www.youtube.com/live/GmkyjAmjhjY?si=WV2Dg_PHvKD-hfLH. Additional live coverage will be available at www.arkansastechsports.com.
Thompson has emphasized attention to detail as his team has completed preparations for the season opener.
“As a coaching staff, you just want your team to do things the right way,” said Thompson. “We don’t want to have a penalty fest. We want to play good, clean football. The Wonder Boys don’t beat the Wonder Boys, so we want to come out there and play with good fundamentals, good technique and not have a lot of false starts and pre-snap penalties that can get you beat in the end.”
Arkansas Tech is seeking its first winning season since 2017, when the Wonder Boys finished 8-4. That Arkansas Tech team averaged 225 rushing yards per game and allowed 173 rushing yards per game. In every year since, Arkansas Tech has been out-gained on the ground.
“When I got the job, I said we wanted to be able to run the football,” said Thompson. “In camp, I think we’ve done a really good job of developing that mentality. On the defensive side of the ball, we talk about 9-5-9 (nine helmets within five yards of the football 90 percent of the time) and VVR (vicious, violent and relentless). Hopefully, you’re going to see a really good running game and you’re going to see a defense that’s flying around. Our goal on special teams is to be an edge. We want to be able to create some opportunities…pin those guys deep, make some kicks and do the little things right.”
Southwestern Oklahoma State was 3-8 last season, which was a step forward for its program. SWOSU was winless in 2023 and 2021. The Bulldogs haven’t had a winning season since 2015, but second-year head coach and former Southern Arkansas University offensive coordinator Andrew Rice is trying to help SWOSU turn a corner in 2025.
“Those guys are going to do a really good job offensively running the football with the quarterback and the running back,” said Thompson. “They’ve got some unique and difficult run schemes we’ll have to defend. Defensively, (SWOSU) is a 3-3 stack with three high safeties football team. In game one, it really comes down to who you are as a program, who you are on offense and who you are on defense. You have to do what you are good at and understand the checks and adjustments within your scheme. The first game really shows how well you understand what you’re doing on your side of the ball because those in-game adjustments are huge. If you’re doing what you’re good at, a lot of times those come quickly.”
Talk to you on the radio.
Tech Tidbits is a column written by Sam Strasner, ATU director of university relations and radio play-by-play voice for ATU football and basketball.
