Midwestern State vs. Western New Mexico
Saturday, Oct. 1, 2016 | 2:30 p.m. (Central)
Ben Altamirano Field | Silver City, N.M.
Records: Midwestern State (3-0, 2-0 LSC); Western New Mexico (2-2, 2-1 LSC)
Radio: ESPN 95.5 FM
Watch: WNMUMustangs.com  
Listen: Mustangs Digital Network  
Live Stats: WNMUMustangs.com  
 
SETTING THE STAGE
No. 10 Midwestern State hits the road to take on Western New Mexico Saturday afternoon at Ben Altamirano Field in Silver City. Kickoff is set for 2:30 p.m. (Central Time). The Lone Star Conference game is also WNMU's Homecoming.
 
FOR STARTERS
- For the second straight week, Midwestern State plays a brand new member of the Lone Star Conference Saturday at Western New Mexico's Ben Altamirano Field in Silver City.
- With a win, Midwestern would enjoy a 4-0 start to the season for the eighth time in the last 13 years.
- MSU boasted come-from-behind victories in each of the first three weeks of the season and have overcome deficits to win 10 times since the start of last season.
- Midwestern State meets Western New Mexico for the first time since 2001. It will also be the first "Battle of the Mustangs" as MSU changed nicknames in 2005.
- Western New Mexico has won its last two games beating Oklahoma Panhandle State and UT-Permian Basin -- after falling to San Diego and Eastern New Mexico.
- Western New Mexico is celebrating Homecoming.
 
ABOUT THE SERIES
- Midwestern State meets Western New Mexico for the fourth time on the gridiron Saturday afternoon at Ben Altamirano Field.
- WNMU leads the overall series which dates back to the 1995 season two games to one.
- Saturday's game marks MSU third trip to Silver City as WNMU won the first meeting 54-24 in 1995 and MSU rolled to an 82-6 victory in 2001.
- MSU's 82-6 win over Western New Mexico on Oct. 13, 2001 marked the largest margin of victory in school history and was also the last time the programs faced off on the gridiron.
- WNMU claimed a 36-22 victory in the only meeting in Wichita Falls on Oct. 12, 1996.
 
SCOUTING THE WNMU MUSTANGS
- Western New Mexico rides a two game winning streak into Saturday's Homecoming matchup with Midwestern State.
- WNMU rebounded from consecutive season opening losses to San Diego (27-0) and Eastern New Mexico (37-16) to beat Oklahoma Panhandle State (44-21) and UT-Permian Basin (68-17).
- Western New Mexico is playing its first season as a full member of the Lone Star Conference previously competing in the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference.
- Senior wide receiver Xavier Ayers, an All American last season, leads the LSC in receiving yards (391) and receiving yards per game (97.8) while ranking second in receptions per game (5.5). He is 14th in NCAA Division II with five receiving touchdowns.
- Ayers amassed 100-or-more receiving yards in each of the last three weeks after being held to four receptions for 16 yards in the season opener against San Diego.
- Senior quarterback Javia Hall, a transfer from UTEP, has connected on 60-of-102 passes (58.8 percent) for 832 yards with 10 touchdowns and three interceptions. Hall has struck for four touchdowns through the air in each of the last two games and is coming off of a season-best 284-yard performance against UT-Permian Basin.
- WNMU scored three touchdowns on returns in last week's 68-17 win over Western New Mexico with a 27-yard fumble return by Aaron Leauma, a 45-yard kickoff return on an onside attempt by Mazin Khalil and a 26-yard punt return on a block by Alfonso Wilson.
- Adam Clark has posted a 28-41 record (.406) in his seventh season at the helm of the WNMU football program.
- Western New Mexico finished seventh in its final season in the RMAC last season with a 3-6 league mark.
 
STRIKING SILVER
- Midwestern State posted its most lopsided win in program history with an 82-6 victory in its last trip to Silver City on Oct. 13, 2001.
- MSU led 61-6 at halftime scoring 36 points in the first quarter and 25 in the second.
- Timothy White (18-145) and Darrell White (5-109) -- not related -- rushed for over 100 yards for MSU.
- Pierre Johnson caught five passes for 120 yards and two touchdowns.
- MSU amassed 671 yards of offense (390 rushing/291 passing) and held WNMU to 117.
 
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 114-43 record (.726).  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 127-51 overall record (.713) and led Southeast Missouri State to a 1988 MIAA co-championship.
 
GOING FOR FOUR
- MSU can extend its winning streak to four games for the 18th time in program history with a win over Western New Mexico.
- Fourteen of MSU's four-game winning streaks have come during the Bill Maskill era.
- The Mustangs have started eight seasons with at least four consecutive wins including a program best 10-0 sweep through the regular season in 2011.
- MSU has won at least four consecutive games in 11 of the last 12 seasons with the lone exception coming in 2014 when the Mustangs amassed to three-game winning streaks.
 
MAROON SEPTEMBER
- MSU stands at 51-9 (.850) in games played before Oct. 1 in the Bill Maskill era.
- Since 2006, Midwestern stands an outstanding 40-3 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.
 
HOT AND COLD
- Midwestern State has outscored the opposition 67-24 in the second half this season sparked by a 47-6 edge in the third quarter.
- The Mustangs have not fared well in the second quarter when MSU has been outscored 32-7.
- MSU has led in just one game going into halftime.
 
ROAD WARRIORS
- Midwestern State plays four of its first five games on the road this season.
- 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).
 
DOWN, BUT NOT OUT
- Midwestern State has trailed in 12 games since the start of the 2015 seasons including in each of their last nine contests dating back to last season.
- The Mustangs improved to 10-2 in those games after overcoming a 24-21 deficit three minutes into the second half last week against Panhandle State to win 42-24.
 
MSU IN THE RANKINGS
- Midwestern State moved ahead one spot to No. 10 in this week's AFCA Division II Top 25.
- The Mustangs have carried a national ranking for each of the last 14 polls dating back to last season.
- The Mustangs improved two spots to No. 7 in this week's D2Football.com rankings.
- MSU is ranked 24th in the Massey Ratings while Western New Mexico is 98th.
- The Mustangs are 18th in the Hero Sports Bennett Rankings compared to Western New Mexico which is 96th.
- The Hero Sports Bennett Rankings have the Lone Star Conference as the second strongest league in NCAA Division II.
 
GAME REWIND: MSU 42, OPSU 24
- Midwestern State improved to 3-0 for the third consecutive year and for the 11th time in the last 13 with a 42-24 win over Oklahoma Panhandle State.
- Play was suspended due to lightning at the 9:22 mark of the first quarter Saturday night then resumed on Sunday.
- MSU scored the last 21 points of the game after falling behind 24-21 in the third quarter to complete its third come-from-behind victory this season and 10th since the start of the 2015 campaign.
- Sophomore Adrian Seales became the third MSU rusher to go over 100 yards this season going for 103 yards on 17 carries with one touchdown.
- Sophomore Vincent Johnson ran for multiple touchdowns in this third consecutive game. He ranks fourth in NCAA Division II with eight rushing touchdowns and is fourth in scoring at 16.0 points per game.
- Senior quarterback Quade Coward eclipsed the 200-yard passing mark for the third straight game connecting on 16-of-23 passes for 235 yards including his first two TD passes of the season.
- Sophomore Sir'Vell Ford made a career-high 11 tackles and became the first player since Micah Hill (vs. Texas A&M-Kingsville/Oct. 18, 2008) to intercept two passes in a game.
 
NEXT UP
Midwestern State resumes its newly minted rivalry with Texas A&M-Commerce in the NCAA Division II Game of the Week featured on ESPN3 next Saturday at Memorial Stadium in Commerce. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m.