WICHITA FALLS, Texas – Midwestern State welcomes Sul Ross State to Memorial Stadium for the annual homecoming game. Kickoff is scheduled for 6 p.m. on Saturday night.

The Mustangs are coming off a 36-32 victory over Angelo State as they improved their overall record to 5-2, and their record in the Lone Star Conference is 4-1. Midwestern State remained undefeated in four home games this season.

The two teams combined for 1,106 yards of total offense. Angelo State rolled up 563 yards, and the Mustangs finished the night with 543 yards of total offense. Ace Traylor scored on a 1-yard run to cap a seven-play, 63-yard drive with 4:17 remaining, and MSU stopped Angelo State on fourth down at the Mustang 32-yard line with two seconds remaining to secure its first win over the Rams since 2021.

Junior quarterback Kaden Brown completed 27-of-40 passes for 383 yards and three touchdowns, completing passes to eight different receivers. Fabian Baez caught five passes for 157 yards and a touchdown. Dexter Stigall IV and Traylor both caught touchdown passes in the victory.

Midwestern State boasts the No. 1 passing offense in NCAA Division II with 385.6 yards per game and is second in total offense with 547.1 yards per game. MSU has the highest scoring offense in the LSC with 41.6 points per game.

The Mustangs have picked up more first downs than any other program in D2 with 202 through seven games, and they are second in the league —13th in the nation — with a third-down conversion rate of 51.6 percent.

Brown is completing 69 percent of his passes (182-of-265) for 357.7 yards per game, which leads the conference and is second in the nation. Brown has thrown for 2,504 yards this season and 19 touchdowns. Brown surpassed Mitch Brown's 1998 season for the fourth-most passing yards in a season at Midwestern State. Brown is 601 yards behind Layton Rabb's 2018 campaign for third, and he needs 605 yards to move past Rabb's 2017 season. Zack Eskridge holds the school record with 3,295 yards passing in the 2009 season. Brown is tied with Sean Jastrab for the fifth-most touchdown passes by an MSU quarterback. Jastrab threw 19 touchdown passes last season for the Mustangs.

Baez leads the team with 505 receiving yards and is tied with Dalton Bailey for the team lead with four touchdown receptions. Dominic Cox has 335 yards receiving and has caught three touchdown passes along with Stigall. Baez and Cox lead the tea in receptions per game. Baez with 5.14 and Cox with 4.71.

Joseph Dodds is the leading rusher for the Mustangs with 509 yards on 105 carries and has rushed for a team-leading six touchdowns. Dodds also leads MSU with 92 all-purpose yards per game. 

Midwestern State is fifth in the LSC in total defense, allowing 435.3 yards per game, and has the fourth-best scoring defense in the league with opponents putting up 32.4 points per game.

Brycen Lewis leads the team in tackles with 43 and interceptions with three. He was named the Lone Star Conference Defensive Player of the Week following the Mustangs' 36-32 victory over Angelo State on Saturday night. 

Lewis made a career-high 17 tackles, including eight solo stops, and forced a fumble in the win over the Rams. The tackle total is the second most for a single game in the LSC this season and the most by an MSU player since 2018, when Josh Wydermyer made 17 tackles in a 35-34 overtime loss to Tarleton State. Lewis is tied with Tim O'Brien, Chris Cardinale, Marqui Christian and Daniel Laudermilk for the fourth-most tackles by an MSU defender in a single game.

Midwestern State only allowed Angelo State to score one touchdown in the second half. Lewis made four tackles on the Rams' final drive.

The Mustangs have intercepted 13 passes this season. Jake Potucek and Ethan Dishman have both picked off two passes this season, while six other defenders have one interception apiece. MSU has forced four fumbles but has only recovered one fumble this season.

Potucek is tied with Lewis for the team lead in solo tackles with 18. Tyler Cooks has 37 tackles, and Nathanael Hall has 31. Potucek has 29 total tackles for the Mustangs, who have the second-best third-down conversion defense in the LSC. Opponents only convert third down 37.6 percent of the time.

Ronald Manning has recorded a team-leading 3.5 sacks, and Jack Oliver leads the defense with six tackles for loss. The Stangs have 43.5 tackles for loss and have sacked the quarterback 12 times this season.

Midwestern State leads the all-time series with Sul Ross State, 8-6, and has won both meetings since the Lobos joined the conference in 2024. The Mustangs were 69-23 winners in Alpine, Texas, last season as Sean Jastrab completed 25-of-32 passes for 271 yards and tied the school record with six touchdown passes in a game. Jaden Coulter rushed for 116 yards on 10 carries and scored two touchdowns in the win last year. Conner Dunphy caught six passes for 60 yards and had one of the touchdown grabs.

Sul Ross State (2-5, 1-4) is coming off a 48-41 loss to Western New Mexico and has lost back-to-back games since defeating Eastern New Mexico ,56-43. The Lobos also defeated Adams State in its second game of the season, 53-26, but Sul Ross State is 0-2 on the road following a 64-0 loss at Angelo State two weeks ago. The Lobos have lost their last 17 road games. The last road win for Sul Ross State was a 43-23 victory at McMurry in the 2023 season finale.

Sul Ross State is eighth in the LSC with 28.4 points per game and is also eighth in scoring defense, allowing 48.9 points per game.

Kyree Payton leads the conference and is sixth in the nation with 32.5 yards per kickoff return and has returned a kick 90 yards for a touchdown this season in a 34-20 season-opening loss to Wayland Baptist.

Freshman quarterback Will Howell is completing 59 percent of his passes (159-of-268) for 1,936 yards with 15 touchdown passes and nine interceptions. Will Craven has caught 42 passes for 567 yards, and Ronald Bell has caught five touchdown passes for the Lobos this year. 

Howell is the leading rusher for the Lobos with 361 yards on 90 carries (4.0 yards per carry), and Rashad Madden is averaging 6.1 yards per carry with 295 yards on 48 carries for Sul Ross State. 

The Lobos are converting third down 36.9 percent of the time and are 5-for-21 on fourth down. Sul Ross and lost nine fumbles and has the most turnovers in the LSC with 19 this season.

The defense is allowing 445.9 yards per game and has forced 11 turnovers. Opponents are converting third down 38.5 percent of the time and are 10-of-19 on fourth down.

Sophomore linebacker Byron Carter is the leading tackler for the Lobos with 57, including a team-leading 35 solo stops. Emmanuel Osom leads the team with 10 tackles for loss and 5.5 sacks. The Lobos have 13 sacks and 40 tackles for loss this season.