#21 MIDWESTERN STATE (6-2, 5-0 LSC)
at WEST TEXAS A&M (5-4, 4-2 LSC)

Saturday, Nov. 6 -- 6 p.m.
Buffalo Stadium (Canyon, Texas)
All-Time Series: WT leads 18-15

CANYON, Texas -- No. 21 Midwestern State can clinch at least a share of the Lone Star Conference, but will have to overcome a tough challenge from rival West Texas A&M. Kickoff is set for 6 p.m. at Buffalo Stadium.

GOING TO THE GAME? Individual game tickets are available for purchase at www.GoBuffsGo.com.

FIVE THINGS TO KNOW

1 |  Midwestern State can clinch at least a share of its fourth Lone Star Conference championship if the Mustangs can beat West Texas A&M. MSU claimed outright titles in 2011 and 2017 with unbeaten runs through the league. The Mustangs split the 2012 title with West Texas A&M. MSU can clinch an outright title with wins in the final two weeks of the season or with one win and a Texas A&M-Commerce loss. The Lions play at Angelo State tonight before hosting Eastern New Mexico next week.

2 |  With a win over West Texas A&M, Midwestern State would clinch its ninth overall conference title which would include four in the Lone Star Conference (2011, 2012, 2017), 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 would match men's basketball for the second most in the history of any program at MSU trailing only men's soccer which clinched its 13th league championship earlier this week.

3 |  Midwestern State coach Bill Maskill goes for his 150th win in his 20th season at the helm of the program. No other coach in program history has more than 31. 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 heading into weekend play.

4 |  Midwestern State was ranked fourth in the second edition of the NCAA Division II Super Region Four Rankings released earlier this week. If the playoffs started today, the Mustangs would play host to Angelo State with the winner heading to Golden, Colo. to take on top-seeded Colorado School of Mines. The rankings include No. 1 Colorado School of Mines, No. 2 Augustana (S.D.), No. 3 Central Washington, No. 4 MSU, No. 5 Angelo State, No. 6 Western Colorado, No. 7 Bemidji State (Minn.), No. 8 Minnesota Duluth, No. 9 Colorado Mesa and No. 10 Northern State (S.D.). The top seven teams advance to NCAA Division II postseason play.

5 |  Midwestern State has won 18 more games than any other active Lone Star Conference program since the start of the 2000 season. The Mustangs are 163-67 (.709) over the timeframe and are averaging nearly eight wins a season. MSU managed at least eight victories in 11 seasons since the start of the 2000 campaign. The Mustangs are trailed by West Texas A&M (145-104/.582), Texas A&M-Commerce (123-110/.529), Texas A&M-Kingsville (112-114/.496), Angelo State (112-118/.487) and Eastern New Mexico (96-115/.455). UT Permian Basin is 20-37 (.351) since starting football in 2016, while Western New Mexico is 7-35 (.171) since entering the LSC in 2017.

FIVE OFFENSIVE STORY LINES

1 |  Midwestern State boasts the No. 2 total offense in the Lone Star Conference ranking 35th in NCAA Division II at 425 yards per game. The Mustangs have accounted for at least 398 yards of total offense in five of their seven games this season with a high output of 613 yards in a 52-10 win last week over Western New Mexico. MSU owns the second-best passing offense in the Lone Star Conference ranking 36th nationally with 255.4 yards per game. The Mustangs are also fourth in the LSC and 50th in NCAA Division II averaging 169.6 rushing yards per game. 

2 |  The top two Red Zone offenses in the Lone Star Conference meet Saturday night in Canyon. West Texas A&M has scored on 89.5 percent of its 38 excursions inside the 20-yard line, but only 25 of those drives resulted in touchdowns (66 percent). Midwestern State has scored on 89 percent of its 38 forays into the Red Zone, but have scored 20 touchdowns (71 percent).

3 |  Senior wide receiver Kylan Harrison used his fifth collegiate 100-yard receiving game to jump into eighth place on Midwestern State's all-time receiving yardage list. Harrison set season highs with seven catches for 129 yards with a 73-yard touchdown in last week's 52-10 win over Western New Mexico. Harrison advanced his career totals to 79 receptions for 1,538 yards. Harrison needs 118 yards to move past DelJuan Lee (98-1655 yards from 2006-07) and into seventh place. With last week's TD reception, Harrison moved into a tie for second with David Little (2008-11) with 19 touchdowns. He is one behind program leader Andy Tanner, who had 20 touchdown catches from 2006-09. Harrison earned LSC Offensive Player of the Week honors earlier this season after making five catches for 116 yards with two touchdowns in a 31-24 win over Eastern New Mexico. Harrison ranks second in the LSC and 82nd nationally with 68.1 receiving yards per game.

4 |  Midwestern State senior Dillon Sterling-Cole is the Lone Star Conference leader rating 38h in NCAA Division II in total offense at 257.5 yards per game and ranks second in the league and 43rd nationally throwing for 235 yards per game. He is also second in the league passing for 19 touchdowns. Sterling-Cole needs 72 passing yards to move into 10th on MSU's all-time single season list. He earned LSC Player of the Week honors earlier this season after throwing for 391 yards and five touchdowns in a 35-17 win at Angelo State.

5 |  Redshirt-freshman Ja'Juan Mason hauled in a 55-yard touchdown in last week's 52-10 win over Western New Mexico. It was his third touchdown of the season boosting his totals to 19 receptions for 449 yards this season. He leads the LSC and ranks fifth nationally averaging 23.63 yards per catch. Freshman Jayden Moore's first collegiate catch went for an 85-yard touchdown last week against Western New Mexico. The Waxahachie product finished the game with three catches for 122 yards.

FIVE DEFENSIVE STORY LINES

1 |  Midwestern State ranks second in the Lone Star Conference and seventh in NCAA Division II with 8.6 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 twice posted nine tackles for loss against Angelo State and Central Washington. The Mustangs also made eight tackles for loss against Texas A&M-Commerce and Western New Mexico. Both of Midwestern State's starting defensive ends rank in the top 10 in tackles for loss in the Lone Star Conference. Melik Owens is second (26th in D2) with 1.4 tackles for loss per game, while Jaylon Abdul-Karim is fifth (81st in D2) at 1.1.

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 seventh in the Lone Star Conference and 94th in NCAA Division II in total defense. The Mustangs yield 374.2 yards per game, while ranking sixth in the league against the pass (237.2 yards per game) and sixth against the rush (137.0 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.

4 |  Midwestern State ranks second in the Lone Star Conference and 32nd in NCAA Division II Red Zone defense. For the season, the Mustangs have allowed scores on 17 of 24 opponent possessions inside the 20-yard line including 12 touchdowns. That is a 70.8-percent success rate. MSU has been much better over the last five weeks limiting the opposition to scores in just nine of 16 Red Zone chances (56.3 percent) with five touchdowns.

5 |  Junior linebacker Justin Guillory leads Midwestern State with 50 tackles including six stops for loss and 2.5 sacks. Senior linebacker Rigoberto Carrillo is second with 42 including 6.5 for loss and 1.5 sacks. Senior defensive end Melik Owens is next with 37 tackles (11.5 tackles for loss, four sacks) followed by senior defensive end Jaylon Abdul-Karim with 34 (nine tackles for loss, two sacks).

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 last week's 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 second in the Lone Star Conference and 29th in NCAA Division II averaging 39.8 yards per punt. He has placed 19 of his 39 punts inside the 20-yard line, forced seven fair catches with seven punts of 50-or-more yards including a long of 70. The kickoff specialist boasts 11 touchbacks on 28 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 six field goal attempts including a pair of makes from beyond 40 yards. His is also 27-of-28 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 149-59 mark (.716) 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 162-67 career coaching record (.707) including a 13-8 run during two seasons at Southeast Missouri State in 1988 and 1989.

THE SERIES WITH THE BUFFALOES

Midwestern State meets West Texas A&M for the 34th time on the gridiron Saturday night at Buffalo Stadium in Canyon. WT leads the series which dates back to the 1947 by a slim 18-15 margin. The teams have split the last 12 meetings dating back to the 2008 with each program owning one win on the other team's home field. MSU has lost in its last three trips to Canyon, but the Mustangs' last win was miraculous. Marqui Christian picked up a loose ball and ran in for an 18-yard touchdown with 55 seconds remaining after the WT punter kicked the ball off his personal protector to gift Midwestern a 52-48 win and a share of the 2012 Lone Star Conference title.

MSU vs. WT (last 12 meetings)

Date	Score	Location
11/16/2019	West Texas A&M 34, Midwestern State 24	Canyon
11/10/2018	Midwestern State 24, West Texas A&M 23 (OT)	Wichita Falls
10/21/2017	Midwestern State 45, West Texas A&M 3	Wichita Falls
10/22/2016	West Texas A&M 35, Midwestern State 27	Canyon
10/10/2015	Midwestern State 24, West Texas A&M 17	Wichita Falls
10/11/2014	West Texas A&M 34, Midwestern State 13	Canyon
11/16/2013	West Texas A&M 19, Midwestern State 12	Wichita Falls
11/3/2012	Midwestern State 52, West Texas A&M 48	Canyon
11/5/2011	Midwestern State 35, West Texas A&M 21	Wichita Falls
10/23/2010	West Texas A&M 42, Midwestern State 29	Canyon
10/3/2009	Midwestern State 31, West Texas A&M 19	Wichita Falls
10/4/2008	West Texas A&M 42, Midwestern State 14	Canyon

A Mustangs win would...

- make Midwestern State 7-2 overall and 6-0 in the Lone Star Conference.
- make Midwestern State 16-18 all-time against West Texas A&M.
- snap a three-game losing streak against West Texas A&M in Canyon.
- be Midwestern State's first win in Canyon since beating WT 52-48 in 2012.
- be Midwestern State's first win at Buffalo Stadium.
- clinch at least a share of Midwestern State's fourth Lone Star Conference title.
- be Bill Maskill's 150th coaching win at Midwestern State (150-59 in 20 seasons).

A Mustangs loss would...

- make Midwestern State 6-3 overall and 5-1 in the Lone Star Conference.
- make Midwestern State 15-19 all-time against West Texas A&M.
- be the fourth straight loss against West Texas A&M in Canyon.
- make Bill Maskill 149-60 at Midwestern State and 162-66 overall.