Midwestern State vs. Oklahoma Panhandle State
Saturday, Sept. 24, 2016 | 7 p.m.
Memorial Stadium | Wichita Falls, Texas
Records: Midwestern State (2-0, 1-0 LSC); Oklahoma Panhandle State (1-2, 0-1 LSC)
Radio: ESPN 95.5 FM
Watch: Mustangs Digital Network 
Listen: Mustangs Digital Network 
Live Stats: MSUMustangs.com 
 
SETTING THE STAGE
No. 11 Midwestern State plays host to Oklahoma Panhandle State in its home opener Saturday night at Memorial Stadium. The Lone Star Conference game is part of MSU's 2016 Family Weekend.
 
FOR STARTERS
- Midwestern State plays brand new members of the Lone Star Conference in each of the next two weeks welcoming associate member Panhandle State on Saturday before traveling to face Western New Mexico next week.
- MSU is looking for its third consecutive 3-0 start with a win over Oklahoma Panhandle State. The Mustangs have started the seasons with at least three wins in eight of the last 10 years.
- The Mustangs boasted come-from-behind victories in each of the first two weeks of the season and have overcome deficits to win nine time since the start of last season.
- Oklahoma Panhandle State is facing its second D2 opponent this season. The Aggies fell at Western New Mexico last week after opening the season with games against FCS competition in back-to-back weeks playing at Sam Houston State and Arkansas-Pine Bluff.
 
COACH TO CURE MD
- For the ninth consecutive year, coach Bill Maskill and the MSU coaching staff is participating in the American Football Coaches Association Coach to Cure MD.
- Coaches across college football are joining in the effort to raise money to battle Duchenne (DOO-SHIN) muscular dystrophy by wearing a Coach to Cure MD patch to raise awareness of the disease.
- Duchenne muscular dystrophy is the most common fatal genetic disorder diagnosed during childhood and primarily affects boys across races and cultures.
- Fans may donate to support the effort by going online to www.CoachtoCureMD.org or may have a $5 contribution added to their wireless phone bill by texting the word CURE to 90999.
 
ABOUT THE SERIES
- Midwestern State meets Oklahoma Panhandle State for the fourth time on the gridiron Saturday night at Memorial Stadium.
- The Mustangs have won each of the previous three meetings by an average victory margin of 29.3 points per game.
- This is the first meeting between the programs since MSU rolled to a 62-0 win on Oct. 14, 2000.
 
SCOUTING THE AGGIES
- Oklahoma Panhandle State plays its fourth consecutive road game Saturday night at Memorial Stadium. The Aggies opened with consecutive games against FCS opponents -- Sam Houston State and Arkansas-Pine Bluff -- before traveling to face Western New Mexico in its inaugural Lone Star Conference game.
- The Aggies made program history with a 20-16 win over Arkansas-Pine Bluff. It was OPSU's first win over an FCS opponent.
- Oklahoma Panhandle State is playing its first season as an associate member of the Lone Star Conference.
- Senior quarterback Shane Truelove leads OPSU's offensive charge completing 54-of-92 passes (58.7 percent) for 647 yards and five touchdowns. The Norco, Calif. native has thrown one interception in 92 attempts this season.
- Senior wideout Andrew Hernandez tops the Aggies' receiving corps with 17 receptions for 248 yards and two touchdowns. The El Paso native made seven catches for 133 yards and two touchdowns in the season opener against Sam Houston State.
- Senior running back Rod Moore is coming off of a 15-carry, 106-yard effort last week at Western New Mexico.
- Russell Gaskamp has posted a 20-23 record (.465) in his fifth season at the helm of the Oklahoma Panhandle State program. The Aggies are 12-8 over the past two seasons.
 
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 113-43 record (.724).  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 126-51 overall record (.712) and led Southeast Missouri State to a 1988 MIAA co-championship.
 
WIND SWEPT WHEAT IS AWFULLY SWEET
- The Mustangs are an astounding 27-1 against Oklahoma institutions since the Bill Maskill era began in 2002 which included a 23-game winning streak against NCAA Division II Oklahoma schools which dated from Oct. 20, 2001 until the Mustangs suffered a 38-33 setback on Oct. 25, 2008 at Central Oklahoma.
- Midwestern has recovered to win the last seven contests against Oklahoma schools.
- The Mustangs have won their last 21 against the Sooner Staters at Memorial Stadium dating back to 42-14 loss to UCO on Sep. 25, 1999.
- Saturday's meeting with Oklahoma Panhandle State is MSU's first game against an Oklahoma institution since beating Northeastern State in the 2011 regular season finale.
 
MAROON SEPTEMBER
- MSU stands at 50-9 (.847) in games played before Oct. 1 in the Bill Maskill era.
- Since 2006, Midwestern stands an outstanding 39-3 to start the season.  All three September losses have been by three points, a 20-17 decision at Angelo State on Sept. 26, 2009, a 20-17 loss at Tarleton State on Sept. 8, 2012, and the 27-24 loss to Tarleton on Sept. 14, 2013.
 
MSU IN THE NATIONAL RANKINGS
- Midwestern State moved ahead one spot to No. 111 in this week's AFCA Division II Top 25.
- The Mustangs have carried a national ranking for each of the last 12 polls dating back to last season.
- The Mustangs improved one spot to No. 9 in this week's D2Football.com rankings.
- MSU is ranked 23rd in the Massey Ratings while Panhandle State is 140th.
- The Mustangs are 20th in the Hero Sports Bennett Rankings compared to Panhandle State which is 131st.
- The Hero Sports Bennett Rankings have the Lone Star Conference as the third strongest league in NCAA Division II.
 
COMEBACK KIDS
- Midwestern State has trailed in 11 games since the start of the 2015 seasons including in each of their last eight contests dating back to last season.
- The Mustangs improved to 9-2 in those games after overcoming a 15-3 deficit in the last weekend at Texas A&M-Kingsville to win 32-30.
 
REWIND: MSU 32, TEXAS A&M-KINGSVILLE 30
- Midwestern State improved to 2-0 for the third straight year and for the eighth time in the last 10 seasons with a 32-30 win over Texas A&M-Kingsville.
- The Mustangs overcame a 15-3 halftime deficit to score 26 points in the third quarter to fuel the comeback.
- The 26 third-quarter points were the most for MSU since the Mustangs scored 28 points in a 48-7 win over the Javelinas in their last trip to Kingsville -- also in the third quarter -- on Nov. 1, 2014.
- It was the fifth time since the start of the 2015 season that the Mustangs overcame a double-figure deficit to win.
- Senior quarterback Quade Coward posted 338 yards of total offense running for a career-best 116 yards and a touchdown while completing 14-of-23 passes for 222 yards.
- Sophomore running back Vinnie Johnson cracked the century mark for the second time in his career going for 101 yards and three touchdowns on 15 carries.
- Sophomore wideout Xavier Land caught four passes for a career-best 121 yards including two catches of 49 yards on the final drives of each half.
- Sophomore Josh Wydermyer led MSU in tackles for a second straight week with 10.
 
UP NEXT
Midwestern State hits the road to take on Western New Mexico Saturday afternoon Ben Altamarino Field in Silver City, N.M. Kickoff is set for 2:30 p.m.