MVFC Media Day Kicks Off 101st Season of Racer Football

The Murray State Racers were part of 2025 Missouri Valley Football Conference Media Day at Sanford Pentagon in Sioux Falls, South Dakota on Monday.
 
Head Coach Jody Wright takes the Racers into his second season and the third for the Racers in the best conference in the Football Championship Subdivision (FCS).
 
Wright and student-athletes Jim Ogle and Jawaun Northington traversed the various media car wash stations, including television and podium interviews, creative photo and video shoots and podcasts.
 
“Everybody in this league does a great job in developing players,” said Wright, who has more than 70 newcomers on the 2025 MSU roster. “We’re making steps to close the gap and we’re really excited about where we’re going. We’ve recruited players that fit what we’re looking for. It’s my job to get the right people on the bus, and then we have to get them in the right seats.”
 
Of the new faces in the blue and gold, 56 are freshmen. In Wright’s first full year of recruiting since becoming MSU head coach, special attention was given to playing the long game of bringing in young players that the Racers’ staff can develop.
 
“If you don’t love football, you’ll be exposed quickly on Saturdays in this league,” Wright added. “I feel like we’ve upgraded in a lot of areas especially in our size up front. I think if you can get players from day one, then they go through more things together and that’s how teams get better. We’re going to see a lot of these freshmen see action and we’re going to see what they can do.”
 
The Murray State contingent also participated with the other teams from the MVFC in a community service event, Feeding South Dakota.
 
2025 MSU Preseason Notes

• The Racers have four players selected to the MVFC Preseason Watch List.
• The MSU quartet includes, (QB) Jim Ogle, (WR) JK Carter, (RB) Jawaun Northington, (P) Tom O’Hara.
• Northington begins his senior season with the Racers having played in 27 games at running back with 1,195 yards rushing on 272 carries, with a 4.4 yards per carry and he has scored nine touchdowns.
• Northington is MSU’s leading returning back with 518 yards rushing in 2024 on 111 carries and an average of 4.7 yards per carry.
• Ogle enters the preseason as the top QB on the roster.
• In 2024 Ogle appeared in four games and completed 17-of-43 passes for 200 yards.
• Carter played in 12 games in 2024, with 42 receptions for 560 yards and one TD.
• O’Hara was a freshman punter in 2024 and was second in the MVFC with a average of 44.9 yard per punt.
• The Racers’ roster of 115 student-athletes report at Roy Stewart Stadium on July 29, with the first full practice happening July 30.
• MSU’s third season in the MVFC and 101^st in program history begins (Aug. 30) at East Tennessee State.
• The home opener is (Sept. 6) on MSU Family Weekend when Southeastern Louisiana visits Stewart Stadium.
• The MVFC opener (Oct. 4) has the Racers playing at South Dakota.
• Murray State University enjoys Homecoming Weekend (Nov. 1) as Southern Illinois visits Stewart Stadium.
• The 2025 season also marks the 49th anniversary of the Racer 1 tradition at Murray State.
• A tradition that dates back to 1976, when a thoroughbred horse first made a lap around the Stewart Stadium track after a Racer touchdown.
• Original horse, Violet Cactus, is buried inside the stadium wall in the northeast corner.
• Since 1985, each horse has carried the name of Racer 1.
• The student jockey for Racer 1 in the 2025-26 school year is Breece Mohon, a marketing major from Mayfield, Ky.

 
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