Midwestern State vs. Texas A&M-Commerce
Saturday, Oct. 8, 2016 | 7 p.m.
Memorial Stadium | Commerce, Texas
Records: Midwestern State (4-0, 3-0 LSC); Texas A&M-Commerce (4-0, 3-0 LSC)
Radio: ESPN 95.5 FM
Watch: ESPN3**
Listen: Mustangs Digital Network  
Live Stats: LionAthletics.com 
 
SETTING THE STAGE
No. 7 Midwestern State takes on 4th-ranked Texas A&M-Commerce in a Lone Star Conference showdown Saturday afternoon at A&M-Commerce's Memorial Stadium. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m.
 
FOR STARTERS
- Midwestern State and Texas A&M-Commerce square off as the NCAA Division II Game of the Week broadcasting on ESPN3.
- The Mustangs and Lions are two of 16 remaining unbeaten teams in NCAA Division II.
- The winner of Saturday's contest takes over the outright lead in the Lone Star Conference standings.
- This will be the fourth meeting in the last five games between the programs to be played in Commerce.
 
MUSTANGS, LIONS ON ESPN3
- Midwestern State and Texas A&M-Commerce will be featured as the NCAA Division II Game of the Week Saturday at Memorial Stadium in Commerce.
- After following the ESPN3/WatchESPN link to http://es.pn/2dNVYL9, fans will need to log in to WatchESPN using their credentials from their WatchESPN affiliated provider. Please note that their provider must have an agreement with ESPN to watch Saturday's game and most of the content on the site. Those who are on a college campus or military base will not need to log in.
 
ABOUT THE SERIES
- Midwestern State and Texas A&M-Commerce meet for the 22nd time on the gridiron Saturday afternoon in Commerce.
- The Lions lead the series which dates back to the 1947 season 12-9, but MSU has won nine of the last 11 meetings between the teams since the start of the 2001 season.
- More recently, the Mustangs have claimed wins in five of the last six meetings with Texas A&M-Commerce going back to the 2011 season.
- The teams split games last season with the Lions taking a 27-14 win in regular season play before MSU rallied to claim the LSC postseason title with a 37-33 win -- both games were played in Commerce.
- Saturday's meeting will mark the fourth time in the last five games of the series that the game takes place in Commerce.
- Midwestern State is 3-8 all-time against the Lions in Commerce but two of those wins have come since 2013.
 
DRAMATIC TAMING OF THE LIONS
- Midwestern State has won a pair of thrillers over A&M-Commerce in the last two seasons.
- MSU overcame a 17-point fourth quarter deficit to beat No. 22-ranked Texas A&M-Commerce 40-37 in overtime on Oct. 25, 2014 with a 4-yard run by Chauncey Harris.
- MSU erased a nine-point Texas A&M-Commerce advantage with 9:52 to play rallying with a 30-yard Hagen Hutchinson-to-Arsenio Phillips TD pass and a 4-yard interception return by Harold Wills in the LSC postseason title game on Nov. 14, 2015 to beat the 11th-ranked Lions, 37-33.
 
SCOUTING THE LIONS
- Texas A&M-Commerce are one of 16 unbeaten teams remaining in NCAA Division II officially at 4-0.
- The Lions also claimed a 62-0 win over University of Faith (Fla.) to open the season. The University of Faith (Fla.) is deemed a non-countable opponent by the NCAA as it doesn't meet accreditation or membership requirements.
- Texas A&M-Commerce ranks as the top scoring offense and defense in the LSC scoring 40.5 points per game while allowing 21.8.
- The LSC's top-ranked offense (465.3 yards per game) is led by junior quarterback Luis Perez who completed 85-of-121 passes (70.2 percent) for 1,193 yards and 11 touchdowns. He thrown one interception -- last week at Oklahoma Panhandle State -- in 121 attempts.
- Senior Richard Cooper tops Texas A&M-Commerce's ground attack running for 428 yards and six touchdowns. He rushed for a season-high 224 yards on 19 carries against Texas A&M-Kingsville.
- Senior wideout Lance Evans leads the Lions' receiving crops making 21 catches for 335 yards with four touchdowns. He boasts a pair of 100-yard performances going for 123 yards on four catches against Delta State (Miss.) and 110 yards on seven receptions at Oklahoma Panhandle State.
- Colby Carthel is 27-12 (.692) in his fourth season at the helm of the Texas A&M-Commerce program.
 
ABOUT BILL MASKILL
- Bill Maskill is in his 17th season as a head coach and 15th campaign at Midwestern State.
- Maskill has led the Mustangs to winning ledgers in each of his years at the helm of the program including the school's first Lone Star Conference championship in 2009 and first undefeated regular season in 2011.
- Under Maskill's guidance, MSU has advanced to the NCAA Division II postseason in the 2004, 2006, 2009, 2011, 2012 and 2015 seasons while amassing a 115-43 record (.728).  He was named LSC Coach of the Year in 2009, 2011, 2012 and 2015, and was the AFCA Regional Coach of the Year in 2011.
- In all, Maskill has coached 21 All-Americans, 47 all-region selections and 60 All-Lone Star Conference first teamers in his 15 seasons in Wichita Falls.
- Maskill is starting his 48th year as a football coach. His coaching experience includes stops as a Division I assistant at Vanderbilt (twice), Southern Methodist, Wake Forest, Oregon, Tulane, Louisville, Arizona State, Bowling Green and Iowa.
- Maskill has a 128-51 overall record (.715) and led Southeast Missouri State to a 1988 MIAA co-championship.
 
GOING FOR FIVE
- MSU can extend its winning streak to five games for the 14th time in program history with a win over Texas A&M-Commerce.
- Nine of MSU's five-game winning streaks have come during the Bill Maskill era.
- The Mustangs have started nine seasons with at least four consecutive wins including a program best 10-0 sweep through the regular season in 2011.
- Midwestern is looking for its second consecutive and seventh 5-0 start to a season. MSU's best regular season run came in 2011 (10-0) and the Mustangs rolled to a 7-0 start last season. MSU has also posted 5-0 starts three other times during the Maskill era (2006, 2007, 2010).
- MSU has won at least four consecutive games in 12 of the last 13 seasons with the lone exception coming in 2014 when the Mustangs amassed two three-game winning streaks.
 
FACING THE RANKINGS
- Midwestern State boasts a 10-2 record against nationally ranked opposition in regular season games since the start of the 2011 season.
- The Mustangs are 6-14 all-time against teams ranked in the Top 10 of the AFCA D2 Poll, but have won three of the last four over the last three seasons.
- Saturday marks the fourth time MSU will be involved in an AFCA D2 Poll Top 10 tussle.
- MSU faces its first nationally ranked opponent this season after going 3-2 against rated opposition last season splitting games with Texas A&M-Commerce, which was ranked 11th heading into both contests.
- This is the third consecutive meeting between MSU and A&M-Commerce that both teams carry a national ranking. MSU was 10th and A&M-C was 11th in both games in 2015.
 
MSU IN THE NATIONAL RANKINGS
- Midwestern State moved ahead three spots to No. 7 in this week's AFCA Division II Top 25.
- The Mustangs have carried a national ranking for each of the last 15 polls dating back to last season.
- The Mustangs improved two spots to No. 5 in this week's D2Football.com rankings.
- MSU is ranked 16th in the Massey Ratings while Texas A&M-Commerce is 11th.
- The Mustangs are 17th in the Hero Sports Bennett Rankings compared to Texas A&M-Commerce which is sixth.
- The Hero Sports Bennett Rankings have the Lone Star Conference as the second strongest league in NCAA Division II.
 
ROAD WARRIORS
- Midwestern State is one of four Lone Star Conference teams to play four of its first five games on the road this season joining Angelo State, Oklahoma Panhandle State and West Texas A&M.
- On those trips, the Mustangs will log 4,152 round-trip miles which includes excursions to Kirksville, Mo. (1,336 miles), Kingsville, Texas (1,066 miles), Silver City, N.M. (1,406 miles) and Commerce, Texas (344 miles).
 
SULTANS OF THE SECOND HALF
- Midwestern State has outscored its last 10 opponents in the second half dating back to West Texas A&M on Oct. 10, 2015 last season. The Buffs outscored MSU 14-10 after halftime but the Mustangs won 24-17.
- MSU has outscored the opposition 96-39 through four games in 2016. That's average score of 24-10 after intermission.
- The Mustangs have outscored the opposition 54-12 in the third quarter and 42-27 in the fourth.
 
REWIND: MSU 43, WNMU 22
- Midwestern State never trailed in a 43-22 win at Western New Mexico for the first time since beating West Texas A&M 24-17 on Oct. 10, 2015 last season at Memorial Stadium.
- MSU rushed for a season-high 259 yards as a team which was the most since running for 271 yards against West Texas A&M last season (10/10/15).
- The Mustangs have scored at least 31 points in all four games this season which is the first time since tallying at least 31 points in all 11 games in 2011.
- Sophomore RB Vincent Johnson earned LSC Offensive Player of the Week honors after running for 103 yards and three touchdowns. It was his third career 100-yard rushing game and second this season.
- Senior RB Dante Taylor rushed for 94 yards on 10 carries while catching one pass for 35 yards to account for 129 yards of total offense.
- Taylor's 94 rushing yards were the most since running for 159 yards in back-to-back weeks against Angelo State and West Texas A&M in 2014.
- Senior Statron Jones slipped a tackle on a slant pattern and went 63 yards for a first-quarter touchdown just a week after he took a bubble screen 72 yards for a score.
- Redshirt-freshman DL Quailon Haynes was credited with six tackles with a pair of sacks including a strip sack to change momentum early in the fourth quarter. It was Haynes' first collegiate game.
- Redshirt-freshman CB DaMarcus Wilson recorded his first career interception late in the first half.
 
OFFENSIVE TEAM NOTES
- Midwestern State boasts the No. 2 rushing attack in the Lone Star Conference 210.5 yards per game on the ground.
-MSU upped its rushing total each week this season going from 150 at Truman State, 215 at Texas A&M-Kingsville, 218 vs. Panhandle State and 259 at Western New Mexico.
- The Mustangs rank second in the league in tackles for loss allowed at 4.75.
- MSU's passing attack has produced at least 200 yards in three of four outings this season, but is making big plays going for 13.51 yards per completion which ranks third in the LSC.
- MSU has produced 436.7 yards of total offense per game ranking 42nd in NCAA Division II and third in the LSC.
- Three different rushers -- Vincent Johnson (2), Adrian Seales (1) and Quade Coward (1) have ran for 100 yards in a game for MSU this season.
 
DEFENSIVE TEAM NOTES
- Midwestern State boasts the top Red Zone defense in the Lone Star Conference as the Mustangs have permitted scores on just 13-of-19 (68 percent) opponent trips inside the 20-yard line with only nine touchdowns (47 percent).
- Three of MSU's five interceptions this season have come in the end zone.
- MSU yielded a season-high 467 yards of offense to Western New Mexico including a campaign most 291 through the air.
- The Mustangs have yielded at least one passing touchdown and one rushing score in each game in 2016.
- The Mustangs have produced 42 points off of 10 turnovers this season.
 
SPECIAL TEAMS NOTES
- Midwestern State ranks second in the LSC and 28th in NCAA Division II in kickoff returns at 24.93 yards per return, while leading the LSC kick return defense giving up 17.29 yards per return.
- MSU also leads the LSC with two blocked punts, but have also permitted two blocked punts to knock down the net punting average to 27.83 yards per punt.
 
UP NEXT
Midwestern State plays host to Angelo State Saturday at Memorial Stadium. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m.