MIDWESTERN STATE (6-3, 5-1 LSC)
vs UT PERMIAN BASIN (5-4, 3-3 LSC)

Saturday, Nov. 13 -- 1 p.m.
Memorial Stadium (Wichita Falls, Texas)
All-Time Series: MSU leads 4-1

WICHITA FALLS, Texas -- Midwestern State is out to clinch an outright Lone Star Conference title if it can beat UT Permian Basin Saturday in the regular season finale at Memorial Stadium. Kickoff is set for 1 p.m.

The game is available via streaming video on the Lone Star Conference Digital Network. A free audio stream featuring the Voice of the Mustangs -- Pete Stein -- is also available at MSUMustangs.com/streaming.

GOING TO THE GAME? All fans must purchase tickets online, then present the QR code to scan at the gate for admittance. No walk-up tickets are available. Purchase your tickets at www.msumustangs.com/tickets.

FIVE THINGS TO KNOW

1 |  Midwestern State has already earned at least a share of its fourth Lone Star Conference title heading into its regular season finale Saturday against UT  Permian Basin. The Mustangs look to clinch its third outright title by closing out the league slate with a 6-1 record. West Texas A&M, Angelo State and Texas A&M-Commerce have all lost at least two games heading into this week's play. MSU also claimed undisputed titles after rolling through the LSC unbeaten in 2011 and 2017. The Mustangs split the 2012 title with West Texas A&M.

2 |  Midwestern State clinched at least a share of its ninth overall conference title despite falling 15-12 at West Texas A&M last week in Canyon. The count includes four Lone Star Conference championships -- 2011, 2012, 2017 and 2021; two in the Texas Intercollegiate Athletic Association (1991, 1994), two in the Gulf Coast Conference (1949, 1950) and one in the Texas Conference (1947). The nine conference titles match the men's basketball program for the second most in the history of any program at MSU trailing men's soccer which clinched its 13th league title last week.

3 |  Midwestern State fell four places to No. 8 in this week's NCAA Division II Super Region Four rankings. The top seven teams advance to the postseason which begins next weekend. The Mustangs are behind No. 1 Colorado School of Mines, No. 2 Angelo State, No. 3 Augustana (S.D.), No. 4 Bemidji State (Minn.), No. 5 Western Colorado, No. 6 Central Washington and No. 7 Minnesota Duluth. Basically, MSU is in a position where it needs to win and look for an upset within the top seven teams. Those pacing teams with better than a .500 record include Western Colorado against Colorado State-Pueblo (6-4) and Minnesota Duluth versus Northern State (7-3).

4 |  Midwestern State coach Bill Maskill takes his second swing at his 150th win in his 20th season at the helm of the program. No other coach in program history has more than 31 victories. With a win, Maskill would be the author of 58.4 percent of all of MSU's football victories. Under Maskill, the football program has claimed four LSC titles and made eight postseason appearances.

5 |  Midwestern State can complete its fifth unbeaten run on its home field at Memorial Stadium during the Bill Maskill era. The Mustangs own an 82-18 record (.820) on their home field since the start of the 2002 season which includes unbeaten regular season runs in 2009 (6-0), 2020 (5-0), 2011 (4-0) and 2017 (6-0). Midwestern State is 27-3 at Memorial Stadium during the regular season since the start of the 2015 campaign.

FIVE OFFENSIVE STORY LINES

1 |  Midwestern State boasts the No. 2 total offense in the Lone Star Conference ranking 42nd in NCAA Division II at 417.6 yards per game. The Mustangs have accounted for at least 398 yards of total offense in six of nine games with a high output of 613 yards in a 52-10 win over Western New Mexico. MSU owns the second-best passing offense in the LSC ranking 35th nationally at 255.4 yards per game. The Mustangs are also fourth in the LSC and 57th in NCAA Division II averaging 162.1 rushing yards per game.

2 |  Midwestern State is the second-best Red Zone scoring offense in the Lone Star Conference ranking 25th in NCAA Division II by converting 27 of 31 trips inside the opponent's 20-yard line for scores (87.1 percent). The Mustangs scored touchdowns on 21 possessions inside the Red Zone this season (67.7 percent).

3 |  Senior wide receiver Kylan Harrison joined former MSU All-American Andy Tanner at the top of the TD receptions list last weekend at West Texas A&M.  It was his 20th career touchdown catch. The week before, Harrison used his fifth collegiate 100-yard game to jump into eighth place on MSU's all-time receiving yardage list. He set season highs with seven catches for 129 yards with a 73-yard touchdown in a 52-10 win over Western New Mexico. Harrison became the eighth wide receiver in program history to top 1,600 yards in his career last week. At 1,602 receiving yards, he now needs 53 yards to move past DelJuan Lee (1,655 receiving yards from 2006-07/7th), 102 yards to pass Statron Jones (1,703 receiving yards from 2013-16/6th), 115 yards to pass Andy Tanner (1,716 yards from 2006-09/5th) and 135 yards to pass Kendrick Gibson (1,736 yards from 2000-01/4th). Harrison earned LSC Offensive Player of the Week honors earlier this season following a 5-catch, 116-yard performance with two touchdowns in a 31-24 win over Eastern New Mexico. Harrison ranks second in the LSC and 76th in NCAA Division II with 67.7 receiving yards per game.

4 |  Midwestern State senior Dillon Sterling-Cole ranks second in the Lone Star Conference in both total offense and passing yards. He rates 32nd in NCAA Division II in total yards per game with 261.7 yards per game, while ranking 39th in passing yards per game at 237.3. He leads the league with 20 passing touchdowns. Sterling-Cole moved into eighth on MSU's single-season passing yards list last week with 2,136. He is the seventh quarterback in program history to throw for more than 2,000 yards in a season. Sterling-Cole earned LSC Offensive Player of the Week honors earlier this season after passing for 391 yards and five touchdowns in a 35-17 win at Angelo State.

5 |  Redshirt-freshman Ja'Juan Mason is on the verge of setting a single season program record in yards per reception. He currently leads the Lone Star Conference and ranks fifth in NCAA Division II averaging 23.15 yards on 20 receptions this season. He boasts TD catches of 76 yards against Angelo State, 55 yards against Western New Mexico and 47 yards at Central Washington. He finished with 121 yards on four catches at Central Washington and 116 yards at Angelo State. His teammate -- Kylan Harrison -- currently tops the all-time yards per reception list averaging 22.82 yards on 22 receptions in 2019.

FIVE DEFENSIVE STORY LINES

1 |  Midwestern State tops the Lone Star Conference and ranks fifth in NCAA Division II with 9.0 tackles for loss per game. MSU has trapped ball carriers behind the line of scrimmage at a steady rate this season including two performances of 14 stops for loss against Quincy and Eastern New Mexico, and had 12 tackles for loss last week at West Texas A&M. The Mustangs twice had nine stops for loss against Angelo State and Central Washington, while also logging eight tackles for loss versus Texas A&M-Commerce and Western New Mexico. In total, the Mustangs have amassed 81 tackles for loss and need five more against UT Permian Basin to enter the top five single-season performances in program history. The 1999 team posted 123 tackles for loss per game followed by 2001 (107 TFL), 2015 (90 TFL), and 2000 and 2006 (86 TFL). Midwestern State boast three players ranking in the top 10 in tackles for loss in the Lone Star Conference. Melik Owens is second (30th in D2) with 1.4 tackles for loss per game, Jaylon Abdul-Karim is fourth (50th in D2) with 1.3, and Justin Guillory is eighth (116th in D2) with 1.0.

2 |  Senior defensive end Melik Owens ranks second on Midwestern State's all-time tackles for loss list at 35.0. He needs 2.0 stops for loss to match Matt Garvin, who made 37.0 tackles for loss from 1995-98. With a half-sack at Tarleton State, Owens moved into a tie for second place with Stephen Turner (2006-09) on the program's all-time sacks list with 15.0. Owens remains 17 sacks behind MSU all-time leader Russ Grissom, who recorded 32.0 sacks from 1989-91. Owens is the all-time leader in yards from tackles for loss with 167 and is second in yards loss from sacks 112 -- just 6 yards behind Grissom's total of 118. Owens ranks second in the LSC with 1.4 tackles for loss per game and ranks seventh in the league with 0.50 sacks per game. 

3 |  Midwestern State ranks sixth in the Lone Star Conference and 90th in NCAA Division II in total defense. The Mustangs yield 368.8 yards per game, while ranking fifth in the league against the pass (223.9 yards per game) and sixth against the rush (162.1 yards per game). The Mustangs permitted the opposition to pile up 400-or-more yards of total offense in each of the first three games of the season, but have not allowed 400 yards in the five games since. MSU also ranks third in the LSC and 36th in NCAA Division II in scoring defense giving up 20.3 points per game. The Mustangs have allowed 17-or-fewer points in each of the last four games.

4 |  Midwestern State leads the Lone Star Conference and ranks 24th in NCAA Division II Red Zone defense. For the season, the Mustangs have allowed scores on 18 of 26 opponent possessions inside the 20-yard line including 13 touchdowns. That is a 69.2 percent scoring rate for the opposition. MSU has been much better over the last five weeks limiting the opponent to scores in seven of 13 Red Zone chances (53.8 percent) with just four touchdowns.

5 |  Junior linebacker Justin Guillory leads Midwestern State with 58 tackles including nine stops for loss and 4.5 sacks. Senior linebacker Rigoberto Carrillo is second with 48 including seven stops for loss and 1.5 sacks. Senior defensive end Jaylon Abdul-Karim is next with 42 tackles (11.5 tackles for loss, three sacks) followed by sophomore cornerback Dylon Davis with 40 tackles.

THREE SPECIAL TEAMS STORY LINES

1 |  Midwestern State senior Kylan Harrison electrified the Homecoming crowd weaving through traffic for a 95-yard kickoff return for a score in a 52-10 win over Western New Mexico. It was the longest kick return in program history while making Harrison the first player to return two kicks for touchdowns for the Mustangs. He also went 92 yards for a TD this spring at Tarleton State. Harrison now stands sixth on MSU's all-time single season kick return yardage chart with 390 and is 10th on the career list with 592. Harrison leads the Lone Star Conference and is fourth in all of NCAA Division II averaging 32.5 yards per return.

2 |  Sophomore Fernando Piedra ranks third in the Lone Star Conference and 30th in NCAA Division II averaging 39.7 yards per punt. He has placed 22 of his 47 punts inside the 20-yard line, forced eight fair catches with nine punts of 50-or-more yards including a long of 70. The kickoff specialist boasts 14 touchbacks on 31 kickoffs. Piedra earned LSC Special Teams Player of the Week after averaging 43.5 yards on eight punts against Angelo State placing four inside the 20-yard line including a long of 70 yards which was downed at the 1. He also produced touchbacks on five of his six kickoffs against the Rams.

3 |  Freshman Ritse Vaes' collegiate career is off to a stellar start. The Wichita Falls Hirschi High School product is nearly perfect since taking over place kicking duties in the second week of the season. Vaes has made each of his seven field goal attempts including a pair of makes from beyond 40 yards. His is also 28-of-29 on his point-after attempts making his first 16 before having a PAT blocked against Texas A&M-Kingsville. Vaes earned LSC Special Teams Player of the Week honors after connected on a season-long 42-yard attempt and going 4-for-4 on his PAT efforts in a 31-30 win over No. 7 Texas A&M-Commerce on Sept. 18 at the former Ballpark in Arlington.

HEAD COACH BILL MASKILL is the dean of the Lone Star Conference football coaching fraternity and stands as the all-time winningest coach in program history boasting a 149-60 mark (.713) since taking over the reins of the Midwestern State program in 2002. During that time, Maskill coached the Mustangs to three Lone Star Conference titles (2011, 2012, 2017), eight playoff showings and one bowl appearance. Overall, Maskill sports a 162-68 career coaching record (.704) including a 13-8 run during two seasons at Southeast Missouri State in 1988 and 1989.

THE SERIES WITH THE FALCONS

Midwestern State and UT Permian Basin meet for the sixth time on the gridiron Saturday afternoon at Memorial Stadium. The Mustangs own a 4-1 edge in the series which dates back to the 2016 season. UTPB, however, claimed its first win of the series 22-21 in overtime to complete the 2021 spring season unbeaten.
 

Date	Score	Location
3/27/2021	UT Permian Basin 22, Midwestern State 21 (OT)	Midland, Texas
9/21/2019	Midwestern State 14, UT Permian Basin 8	Wichita Falls, Texas
9/15/2018	Midwestern State 43, UT Permian Basin 21	Odessa, Texas
10/28/2017	Midwestern State 66, UT Permian Basin 8	Midland, Texas
10/29/2016	Midwestern State 76, UT Permian Basin 21	Wichita Falls, Texas

A Mustangs win would...

- make Midwestern State 7-3 overall and 6-1 in the Lone Star Conference.
- clinch Midwestern State's third outright LSC title (2011, 2017).
- make Midwestern State 5-1 all-time against UT Permian Basin.
- make Midwestern State 83-18 at Memorial Stadium during the Bill Maskill era.
- make Midwestern State 28-3 in regular season games at Memorial Stadium since the start of the 2015 season.
- make Bill Maskill 150-60 at Midwestern State and 163-68 overall.

A Mustangs loss would...

- make Midwestern State 6-4 overall and 5-2 in the Lone Star Conference.
- send Midwestern State into a potential four-way LSC co-championship with West Texas A&M, Angelo State and Texas A&M-Commerce.
- make Midwestern State 4-2 all-time against UT Permian Basin.
- make Midwestern State 82-19 at Memorial Stadium during the Bill Maskill era.
- make Midwestern State 27-4 in regular season games at Memorial Stadium since the start of the 2015 season.
- make Bill Maskill 149-61 at Midwestern State and 162-69 overall.