PORTALES, New Mexico – Midwestern State looks to close out the regular season with a five-game winning streak as it visits Eastern New Mexico. The Mustangs are in contention for a berth in the NCAA DII Football Championship as it enters the season finale on Saturday afternoon at Al Whitehead Field at Steve Loy Family Foundation Stadium. Kickoff is scheduled for 3 p.m. CT. 

The Mustangs closed out their home schedule with a 6-0 record following a 49-34 victory over UT Permian Basin last week, improving their overall record to 8-2 and their conference record to 7-1. Midwestern State is second in the Lone Star Conference, trailing only Central Washington (8-2, 8-0), which is at West Texas A&M for its final game of the regular season.

Midwestern State used a 21-point scoring run in the third quarter to defeat UT Permian Basin 49-34 on Saturday at Memorial Stadium. The Mustangs threw for 212 yards, rushed for 195 and converted nine of 13 third downs.

Kaden Brown completed 19 of 27 passes for 212 yards and three touchdowns and added 94 rushing yards and two scores on 13 carries. Dominic Cox caught seven passes for 73 yards and a touchdown. Aanjay Feliciano added three receptions for 73 yards and a touchdown. Daniel Scarabino recorded a fumble recovery and returned it 12 yards for a touchdown.

MSU absorbed two UTPB touchdown drives early in the fourth quarter, which moved the score to 42-34, then responded with the fourth quarter's decisive scoring possession. Hornel Cloubou sacked Braxton Baker at the UTPB 40 and Charles McKnight recovered the fumble with 5:54 left, giving the Mustangs a short field. Brown converted third downs with runs of 16 and 14 yards on the ensuing eight-play, 40-yard drive, and Kenji Johnson finished it with a 1-yard touchdown run before Kohen Maroney's extra point made it 49-34 with 1:42 remaining. MSU held the ball for 10:28 in the fourth quarter, went 3-for-4 on third down, and closed the game after Ethan Dishman intercepted Baker at the UTPB 30 with 1:04 to play.

Midwestern State is No. 2 in NCAA Division II in total offense with 530.8 yards per game, and the passing attack is No. 1 in the nation with 347.9 yards per game. The Mustangs are the highest scoring team in the LSC and fifth in the nation with 44.8 points per game.

The Mustangs have picked up more first downs than any other program in D2 with 278 through nine games, and they are second in the league —fifth in the nation — with a third-down conversion rate of 53.8 percent. MSU also boasts the second best third-down defense in the league as opponents are only converting 34.1 percent of the time.

Brown is completing 69 percent of his passes (240-of-347) for 318.8 yards per game, which leads the conference and is third in the nation. Brown has thrown for 3,188 yards this season and 30 touchdowns. Brown surpassed Layton Rabb's 3,109 yards for second-most passing yards in a season at MSU. Brown is 107 yards behind Zack Eskridge's school record 3,295 yards passing in the 2009 season. Brown needs one touchdown pass to match Rabb's school record 31 touchdown passes in 2017.

Fabian Baez leads the team with 740 receiving yards and is second on the team with seven touchdown receptions. Dominic Cox has 570 yards receiving and has also caught a team-leading eight touchdown passes. Baez and Cox lead the Stangs in receptions per game — Cox with 5.6 and Baez with 4.6. Cox leads the Stangs with 86.6 all-purpose yards per game.

Joseph Dodds is the leading rusher for the Mustangs with 622 yards on 134 carries and has rushed for a team-leading seven touchdowns. Dodds is second on the team with 76.3 all-purpose yards per game.

Midwestern State is second in the LSC in total defense, allowing 373.2 yards per game, and has the fourth-best scoring defense in the league with opponents putting up 27.5 points per game.

Brycen Lewis leads the team in tackles with 53, including 23 solo stops, and he is tied with Ethan Dishman for the team lead with three interceptions. Oliver Jack leads the team with six of the Mustangs 67.5 tackles for loss. Ronald Manning has 3.5 of the team's 18 sacks this season.

Midwestern State leads the all-time series with Eastern New Mexico, 23-8, but had a four-game winning streak in the series snapped last season with a 56-31 loss to the Greyhounds at Memorial Stadium. The Mustangs won their last visit to ENMU, 36-15, in September of 2024. MSU won 11 of its previous 14 trips to Portales.

Eastern New Mexio (0-10, 0-8) has a 12-game losing streak dating back to last season and lost its last 10 conference games.

The Greyhounds are coming off a 20-7 loss at Angelo State. ENMU finished with 287 yards of total offense, including 251 rushing yards on 53 attempts, averaging 4.7 yards per carry. The Greyhounds recorded 18 first downs, with 16 coming on the ground, and committed just five penalties for 22 yards. Angelo State totaled 328 yards of offense, including 258 rushing yards, with Canon Wiese leading the Rams with 119 yards on 19 carries.

Quarterback Clifton Cooper finished with 99 rushing yards on 24 attempts, while completing 8-of-23 passes for 36 yards. Mekhi Norris added 50 yards on six carries, including ENMU's lone touchdown, while Kyler Fossett contributed 47 rushing yards on eight attempts.

Defensively, Robert Nora led the Greyhounds with 10 total tackles, including six solo stops, one tackle for loss, and a fumble recovery. Matthew Quartieri followed with nine tackles and a forced fumble.

The Greyhounds rank seventh in the nation and second in the conference in total offense with 486 yards per game, but ENMU is eighth in the league with 27.6 points per game. The defense is eighth in the LSC and 156^th in the nation in total defense, allowing opponents to gain 506.3 yards per game.

Cooper is the leading rusher for the Greyhounds with 663 yards on 143 carries. Jose Trevino is rushing for 6.2 yards per carry and has 604 yards on 98 carries for the Greyhounds. Cooper is completing 58 percent of his passes for 186.6 yards per game and thrown 10 touchdowns with 10 interceptions.

Darwin Parker is the leading receiver for ENMU with 47 receptions for 627 yards and three touchdowns. Trei Kibbles has caught a team-leading six touchdowns and has 30 receptions for 612 yards.

Matthew Quartieri leads ENMU with 86 tackles and Xander Holt leads the team with seven tackles for loss and four sacks. Jarrion Patton has six pass breakups, and Caleb Jefferson has two interceptions this season. The Greyhounds have intercepted five passes and recovered four fumbles. ENMU has a minus-13 turnover ratio.

The NCAA Division II Playoff Selection Show is scheduled for 5 p.m. on Sunday and will air on NCAA.com.