#6 Midwestern State vs. Angelo State
MSU 4-0, 3-0 LSC; ASU 3-2, 1-2 LSC
Saturday, Oct. 14, 2017 | 6 p.m.
Legrand Stadium at 1
st Community Credit Union Field | San Angelo, Texas
Live Stats: AngeloSports.com |
Radio: ESPN 95.5 FM |
Audio: Mustangs Digital Network |
Video (PPV): AngeloSports.com
HONORING ROBERT GRAYS
- Midwestern State will honor teammate Robert Grays with helmet decals with No. 24. The coaches have embroidered patches with Grays' No. 24, as well.
- Fans are encouraged to honor Robert Grays on each kickoff by holding up two fingers on the left hand and four on the right during each kickoff.
- Each of MSU athletic teams will honor Grays in a visual way throughout the 2017-18 academic year.
- The men's and women's soccer teams each intended to halt play in the 24th minute of games on Sept. 21nd and 22nd with a minute long cheer. In the first competition following the incident, MSU senior forward Scott Doney scored in the 24th minute against Rogers State after the crowd spontaneous cheered to halt the game between 24:59 and 24:00 (22nd minute) of the first half then repeated the cheer at the same time in the second half.
- The MSU volleyball squad honors Grays by holding up two fingers on the left hand and four on the right on every Mustangs set point.
- Texas State sophomore linebacker Clifton Lewis, Jr. wore No. 24 in honor of Grays last Saturday against UTSA. Lewis and Grays were teammates at Hightower High in Missouri City.
- Grays suffered a severe neck injury with 3:24 to play in MSU's 31-13 win over Texas A&M-Kingsville on Sept. 16th and passed away on Sept. 19th.
HOOF MARKS
- Midwestern State hits the road for its first road game of the 2017 season Saturday night at Angelo State. The Mustangs were originally slated to take on West Florida on Sept. 9th in Pensacola, but the game was canceled due to the threat of Hurricane Irma. MSU departed Wichita Falls prior to the cancellation making it to Lafayette, La. where the team practiced at UL-Lafayette's Cajun Field before returning to Texas the following day.
- Midwestern State took over sole possession of first place in the Lone Star Conference race on the strength of last week's 47-42 win over No. 2 Texas A&M-Commerce. At 3-0, the Mustangs hold a one-game lead in the loss column over Eastern New Mexico (4-1), Tarleton State (3-1) and Texas A&M-Commerce (2-1).
- The Mustangs are off to their best start since going 7-0 in 2016. MSU also rattled off a 6-0 run to begin the 2015 campaign and are notorious quick starters during the Bill Maskill era. Midwestern has started the season at 4-0 eight times in the last 12 years and have been 5-0 six times over the same stretch. MSU's only unbeaten regular season came in 2011 when the teams went 10-0.
- Midwestern State used its home field dominance at Memorial Stadium to roll off a 4-0 start this season. The Mustangs own a 68-15 mark (.819) on the home field since the start of the Bill Maskill era in 2002 and are 13-2 (.867) since start of 2015 season.
- The Mustangs capped off a 3-0 September with a 35-24 win over Western New Mexico on Sept. 30th. MSU is 49-9 (.845) during the month of September during the Bill Maskill era (since 2002) and sport records of 47-21 (.691) in October and 22-15 (.595) in November.
- Midwestern will play a nine-game regular season slate in 2017 after its Sept. 9th matchup at West Florida was cancelled due to the threat of Hurricane Irma.
- MSU jumped four spots to No. 6 in this week's American Football Coaches' Association Division II Poll. It's the Mustangs' ranking since spending two weeks at No. 4 on Oct. 10 and 17, 2016.
- The Mustangs are ranked 8th D2Football.com rankings.
- MSU moved up seven spots to 27th in the Massey Rankings.
- MSU improved to 12-2 during the regular season versus opponents ranked in the AFCA Top 25 since the start of the 2011 season with last week's 47-42 win over No. 2 Texas A&M-Commerce. Eight of MSU's 12 wins over teams rated in the AFCA Top 25 were higher ranked. Other top wins came against No. 9 Abilene Christian (70-28) in 2011, No. 8 West Alabama (45-21) in 2013, No. 6 Angelo State (29-20) in 2015 and No. 4 Texas A&M-Commerce (26-25) in 2016. The two losses came at the hands of No. 25 West Texas A&M (19-12) in 2013 and No. 11 Texas A&M-Commerce (27-14) in 2015.
- MSU's 47-42 win over No. 2 Texas A&M-Commerce came against the highest ranked opposition in program history. The Mustangs previously fell to No. 2 Northwest Missouri (27-0) in the 2006 NCAA playoffs and to No. 2 Abilene Christian (47-17) in 2008. Midwestern has never faced a team ranked No. 1.
- Midwestern State was picked to finish second in the Lone Star Conference heading into the 2017 season behind Texas A&M-Commerce. The Mustangs have finished second or better six of the last eight season including league titles in 2009, 2011 and 2012.
- The Mustangs are looking to start Lone Star Conference play with four consecutive wins for the third straight year. MSU was 4-0 before falling at Texas A&M-Commerce (27-14) in 2015, but avenged the loss with a 37-33 victory over the Lions in the LSC Playoff championship. Midwestern started the 2016 league slate with five consecutive victories before falling at West Texas A&M (35-27).
- Midwestern State displayed great discipline over the first four games of the season ranking 12th nationally and are second in the LSC in fewest penalty yards assessed (243).
- Bill Maskill is in his 18th season as a head coach and 16th 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, 2015 and 2016 seasons while amassing a 123-46 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 23 All-Americans, 51 all-region selections and 61 All-Lone Star Conference first teamers in his 15 seasons in Wichita Falls.
- Maskill's 123 wins account for 53.5 percent of MSU's all-time victories on the gridiron.
- Midwestern State can clinch its 18th consecutive winning season with one more win. In the State of Texas, the streak is matched only by defending NCAA Division III national champion Mary Hardin Baylor, which can also clinch its 18th straight winning ledger with one more win this season. The top-ranked Cru is off to a 5-0 start this season.
- Midwestern State was won 15 more games than any other LSC member since the start of the 2000 season. That's an average of 7.8 wins per season for an overall mark of 137-54 (.717). The Mustangs are trailed by West Texas A&M (122-85, .589), Tarleton State (119-73, .620), Texas A&M-Kingsville (100-89, .529), Texas A&M-Commerce (87-101, .463), Angelo State (86-102, .457) and Eastern New Mexico (77-98, .440).
- Midwestern State boasts two alumni in the NFL as Amini Silatolu (taken by the Carolina Panthers in the second round of the 2012 NFL Draft) and Marqui Christian (taken in the fifth round of the 2016 NFL Draft) both made opening day rosters. Silatolu is a reserve lineman making his return with the Panthers this season. He was a consensus All-America pick for the Mustangs in 2011. Christian serves as a reserve safety for the Los Angeles Rams. He was a first-team All American claiming the Cliff Harris Award as the nation's top small college defender in 2015.
- The Mustangs' tradition of O-Line Pride has produced six of the last seven Lone Star Conference Offensive Linemen of the Year including Amini Silatolu (2010, 2011), Ken Van Heule (2012), Shadow Stokes (2014), Alfredo Moreno (2015) and D2 Rimington Award winner Akoakoa Paleka-Kennedy in 2016.
AGAINST THE RAMS
- Midwestern State and Angelo State meet for the 21st time on the gridiron Saturday night at Legrand Stadium at 1st Community Credit Union Field.
- The Mustangs hold a 14-6 edge in the series which dates back to the 1946 season.
- MSU has won the last two meetings, four of the last six and seven of the last nine dating back to 2006. The Rams only wins since 2010 came in a season sweep in 2014 as ASU claimed a 45-31 regular season victory before beating the Mustangs 41-36 in the LSC Playoffs.
- No. 20 Midwestern State knocked off 6th-ranked Angelo State 29-20 in a battle of unbeatens in its last trip to San Angelo in 2015. The Mustangs recovered a fumble in the end zone and Sir'Vell Ford scored on a blocked punt return as MSU outscored the Rams 23-13 in the second half to improve to 5-0 on the season.
- No. 4 Midwestern State received another heroic performance from Quade Coward to score with 16 seconds remaining for a 28-21 win over Angelo State last season in Wichita Falls. The Mustangs conceded a 21-0 halftime advantage before Coward completed four consecutive passes going 77 yards in 30 seconds with the winning score coming on a 10-yard post rout to Jerryl Yarbrough.
- The Mustangs have won each of the last four games against Texas A&M-Commerce at Memorial Stadium, but the Lions are making just their second trip to Wichita Falls since 2004.
- Midwestern State is 6-3 all-time on the road against Angelo State. The Mustangs have wins in three of their last four trips to San Angelo.
OFFENSIVE NOTES
- Midwestern State bring the Lone Star Conference's top offense into Saturday's game at Angelo State. MSU ranks 10th in NCAA Division II piling up 490.8 yards per game including 251.3 rushing yards (13th in NCAA D2/2nd in the LSC) and 239.5 passing yards (59th in NCAA D2/5th in the LSC).
- The Mustangs boast the top scoring offense in the Lone Star Conference averaging 42.5 points per game which rates eighth nationally.
- Midwestern State tops the nation in fewest turnovers with three through four games this season. The Mustangs have not turned the ball over in either the last two weeks in wins over Western New Mexico and Texas A&M-Commerce.
- Reigning back-to-back Lone Star Conference Offensive Player of the Week Layton Rabb continued his impressive run as a starting quarterback for the Mustangs amassed a career-best 332 yards of total offense in leading the Mustangs to a 47-42 win over No. 2 Texas A&M-Commerce. Rabb completed 16-of-28 passes for 265 yards and three touchdowns. He also ran for a career-best 67 yards on nine carries.
- Rabb passed for a career-high 326 yards on 20-of-31 passing with two touchdowns in a 35-24 win over Western New Mexico on Sept. 30. It was Rabb's second consecutive game with at least 200 passing yards and it was the biggest passing day by an MSU quarterback since Zack Eskridge threw for 356 yards at Eastern New Mexico on Oct. 31, 2009.
- Rabb ranks second in the LSC and is 10th nationally with a pass efficiency rating of 167.4. He is second in the league and 10th nationally in passing yards per completion (15.13) and third in the LSC and 47th in NCAA D2 with 227.0 passing yards per game.
- Junior running back Adrian Seales ranks second in the LSC in both rushing yards per game (116.0/21st in NCAA D2) and rushing yards per carry (8.00/6th in NCAA D2). He is also second in the league and 63rd nationally with 125.75 all-purpose yards per game.
- Seales notched the fourth best individual rushing game in school history finishing the night with 243 yards on 17 carries and one touchdown in the season opener against Quincy. Seales' performance stands as the fifth-best rushing day this season in NCAA II. The performance was his fourth 100-yard effort of his career. He followed with 83 yards on 13 carries against Texas A&M-Kingsville and 86 yards on 19 carries versus Western New Mexico. Seales has one rushing touchdown in each game this season.
- Former All-America quarterback Daniel Polk is the only player in program history to run for more yards in a game going for 290 against Abilene Christian in 2007, 259 versus Southeastern Oklahoma in 2006 and 244 at Eastern New Mexico in 2005. That means a runner wearing MSU's No. 5 jersey has accounted for the top four rushing efforts in program history as Polk also wore the number.
- Seales moved to 19th on MSU's all-time rushing list in MSU's win over Western New Mexico (9/20) and now has 1,163 rushing yards. He needs 128 yards to pass Stephon Brockington (1,290 yards/1994-95) to move into 18th.
- Junior running back Vincent Johnson ranks fourth in the LSC and 56th in NCAA D2 rushing for 87.8 rushing yards a game, but continues to find the end zone at a record setting clip. He scored three touchdowns in the season opener against Quincy, had two more in a win over Texas A&M-Kingsville then scored another against Western New Mexico before rushing for three in a win over No. 2 Texas A&M-Commerce. Johnson has accounted for multiple rushing touchdowns in 12 games in his career turning the task two times as a freshman in 2015, seven times in 2016 and three times this season.
- Johnson moved past former All-America Brandon Kelsey on MSU's all-time rushing touchdowns list with his touchdown against Western New Mexico and now has 34. He trails Keidrick Jackson (61 TD/2010-13) and Daniel Polk (44 TD/2004-07). With 204 points, Johnson stands fifth on MSU's all-time scoring list behind Keidrick Jackson (372/2010-13), Jose Martinez (291/2007-10), Daniel Polk (266/2004-07) and Greg Saladino (245/2010-13).
- Johnson is 12th on MSU's all-time rushing list with 1,684 career rushing yards. He needs 107 yards to pass Dante Taylor (1,766 yards/2013-16), Derrick Wagoner (1,781 yards/1991-92) and Chauncey Harris (1,790 yards/2010, 12-14) to jump to ninth.
- Johnson has accounted for two 100-yard rushing games this season going for 136 yards on seven carries with three TDs in the season opener against Quincy. He ran for 133 yards and three more scores in a 47-42 victory over No. 2 Texas A&M-Commerce. Johnson has five career 100-yard rushing efforts.
- Sophomore wide receiver Tyrique Edwards enjoyed a breakout performance catching a career-high seven passes for 94 yards including a 23-yard touchdown. Edwards leads the MSU receiving corps with 14 receptions for 230 yards ranking seventh in the LSC at 57.5 receiving yards per game.
- Senior D.J. Myers exploded for four catches for 130 yards including a 54-yard TD reception against Western New Mexico. His nine receptions are second on the squad going for 181 yards and a team-best two touchdowns. Myers averages 20.1 yards per catch.
- Myers' 130 receiving yards were the most since David Little caught seven passes for 136 yards at Incarnate Word on Oct. 1, 2011.
- Sophomore wide receiver Xavier Land snagged his first collegiate touchdown on a 22-yard corner route against Texas A&M-Commerce. Land has made seven catches for 64 yards this season.
- Senior wide receiver DeAndre Black raced 56 yards for a score on a vertical route against Texas A&M-Commerce to up his season totals to eight receptions for 105 yards – an average of 26.2 yards per catch.
- The Mustangs have been great in the Red Zone scoring on 14 of their 15 excursions with 13 touchdowns.
- Behind the starting offensive line of John Rowell (LT), Islam Sbeih (LG), A.J. Roland (C), Kevin Fisher (RG) and Caleb Brown (RT), MSU have permitted a national best 2.25 tackles for loss through four games this season. The group is 12th nationally and tops in the LSC allowing 0.75 quarterback sacks per game.
DEFENSIVE NOTES
- Midwestern State boasts the LSC's No. 3 scoring defense while ranking 45th in NCAA Division II allowing 21.3 points per game.
- The Mustangs rate seventh in the LSC in total defense allowing 412.0 yards per game including 128.8 rushing yards (4th in LSC/48th in D2) and 283.3 passing yards (9th in LSC/159th in D2).
- MSU ranks second in the LSC and ninth in NCAA D2 in the Red Zone allowing seven touchdowns and eight total scores in 17 opponent opportunities inside the 20.
- Sophomore Marcus Wilkerson ripped the ball away from Carandal Hale in the third quarter and returned it 54 yards for a touchdown in a 47-42 win over Texas A&M-Commerce. It was his second defensive score of the season to go along with a 49-yard interception return in the season opener against Quincy (Ill.).
- Sophomore DaMarcus Wilson made seven tackles with an interception and a pass breakup against Texas A&M-Commerce. Wilson leads the Lone Star Conference and is second in NCAA D2 with 2.0 pass defenses a game.
- Junior safety Sir'Vell Ford matched a career-high with 11 tackles against Texas A&M-Commerce. Ford ranks ninth in the LSC and 125th in NCAA D2 with 7.7 tackles per game.
- Up front, the Mustangs rank second in the LSC in quarterback sacks at 3.25 per game getting 3.5 from senior Deandra Stevenson, 3.0 from junior Alec DiValerio and 2.0 by senior Semaj Robinson. Freshman A.J. Gulley, sophomore Travon Ransom and junior Paul Manus have one each.
- Through four games, eight different defenders have recorded at least 18 tackles for MSU led by junior safety Josh Wydermyer with 28. Wydermyer posted eight stops three times this season – Quincy, Western New Mexico and Texas A&M-Commerce.
- Other players with at least 18 tackles include junior safety Sir'Vell Ford (23), sophomore linebacker Tristan Shearman (23), sophomore cornerback DaMarcus Wilson (19), senior WHIP Steven Rogers (19), junior defensive end Alec DiValerio (19), sophomore cornerback Kevin Hayes (18) and sophomore linebacker Zack McMahen (18).
- The MSU defense ranks fifth in the LSC and 69th nationally with 6.8 tackles for loss a game led by senior Semaj Robinson (5.0/27 yards) and junior Alec DiValerio (4.0/27 yards).
SPECIAL TEAMS NOTES
- Senior Mitchell Henton leads the Lone Star Conference averaging 42.2 yards on 13 punts this season. He boasts three punts of 50-or-more yards including a career-best 64-yard effort against Western New Mexico. Henton has placed four punts inside the 20 and forced three fair catches.
- Henton is 15-for-17 on point-after tries over the last two games since taking over for the injured Jaron Imbriani.
- Freshman Drew MacKay averaged 54.8 yards on 20 kickoffs over the past three weeks with five touchbacks and two out-of-bounds in place of Imbriani, who averaged 55.4 yards with two touchbacks in the opener against Quincy.
- Top return man DeAndre Black, an All-America last season, averages 9.3 yards on six punt returns with a long of 24 yards. The senior also averages 21.5 yards on eight kick returns with a long of 39 yards.
- Black is third in the Lone Star Conference and 118th in NCAA D2 in combined kick return yardage (228), third in the LSC and 43rd in NCAA D2 in punt return average (9.3) and fourth in the LSC and 91st nationally in kick return average (21.5).
