EMPORIA, Kansas (WIBW) – On Thursday night, under the lights at Welch Stadium, Week 0 of the 2024 season between Emporia State and Washburn will begin.
The Hornets have made two bowl appearances in their consecutive 9-3 seasons and will bring home a ring in 2023.
Head coach Garin Higgins announced Monday that Gunnar Gundy, who transferred from Oklahoma State, will be the new starting quarterback following the graduation of Braden Gleason.
Higgins said the competition for the quarterback position is the biggest since he arrived in Emporia, but also discussed the decision to select Gundy as the new starter.
“I think it’s just how far he’s come in such a short period of time,” Higgins said. “I think that’s what we looked at and said, okay, he’s done 16 to 17 training sessions or however many it was and then we made the decision. Considering where he is in that limited time, we just felt like we wanted to move on and that was the best thing for us.”
Gundy played with his father for the Cowboys the last three seasons, but now that he’s a Hornet, they’re not looking for the next Gleason, they’re looking for a Gunnar Gundy.
“I told Gunner, ‘Hey, I don’t want you looking over your shoulder all the time either. If we come out and struggle, there’s going to be some growing pains. That’s not Braden back there. We told Gunner, we don’t expect him to be Braden, we expect him to be himself, and it’s our job as coaches to come up with a game plan that fits him and doing the things he likes to do, that’s huge. I mean, when someone is comfortable, they have a lot of confidence. I think that was the deciding factor, just where he’s been in a short period of time,” Higgins added.
He also mentioned that Gundy is a left-handed quarterback just like Braden, which is a huge help since Higgins said he can also venture to other places during practice because Gleason and Gundy click right away.
The players say that they are not preparing any differently, it is all a blank slate.
“It’s the first game, so it’s a little different because I always say that everyone is always going to go out there in the first game and do their best because there’s no adversity yet,” Higgins said.
“My biggest concern is making sure everyone is ready when the lights come on and it’s our first game. They’ll be ready, we’ll be ready to play. It’s not about getting out of our skins and doing things differently than we did in camp and just playing. Keep your identity, stick to your identity,” he added.
“It’s kind of a new team without it being a new team. A lot of young guys that didn’t necessarily have the MIAA experience last year but have it now,” said senior defensive lineman Rafe Goucher.
“It’s one of the oldest rivalries in Division II, so it means a lot to everyone and you can feel it every time we play them. It’s not just another week, we take it seriously,” said senior offensive lineman Sherman Deaton.
Kick-off is at 7pm
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