Texas A&M-Kingsville at Mississippi College
>> Time, date, place: 6 p.m. Saturday, Robinson-Hale Stadium, Clinton, Miss.
>> Records: Texas A&M-Kingsville 0-1; Mississippi College 0-1
>> Last week: Texas A&M-Kingsville did not play; Shorter 29, Mississippi College 5
>> Last season: Did not play.
>> Notes: Texas A&M-Kingsville comes off an early open date after losing to Colorado Mesa 16-13 on Aug. 29. Three missed field goals ended up hurting the Javelinas in their loss. … It was a tough debut for first year head coach Mike Kershaw last week as Mississippi College only managed just 238 total yards of offense in its loss to Shorter.
Wayland Baptist at Sul Ross State
>> Time, date, place: 1 p.m. Saturday, Jackson Field, Alpine
>> Records: Wayland Baptist 1-1 overall, 0-1 Sooner Athletic Conference; Sul Ross State 0-2 overall, 0-2 Lone Star Conference
>> Last Week: Wayland Baptist 41, North American University 6; Eastern New Mexico 36, Sul Ross State 17
>> Last Season: Sul Ross State 27, Wayland Baptist 7
>> Notes: It’s a meeting between two teams that are familiar with each other. Now, Sul Ross State is in the middle of making the transition to NCAA Division II. Wayland Baptist got in the win column with a convincing victory against North American University last week, totaling 351 yards on offense. … After battling the likes of West Texas A&M and Eastern New Mexico, Sul Ross State finally gets a slightly less intimidating opponent, having beaten Wayland Baptist 27-7 a year ago. Quarterback Andrew Martinez threw for 221 yards and two touchdowns against the Greyhounds last week.
Central Washington at Colorado Mesa
>> Time, date, place: 2 p.m. Saturday, Stocker Stadium, Grand Junction, Colo.
>> Records: Central Washington 0-1; Colorado Mesa 1-0
>> Last Week: San Diego 26, Central Washington 7; Colorado Mesa did not play.
>> Last Season: Did not play.
>> Notes: No. 13 Central Washington won’t have to worry about going up against a Division I team this Saturday but the Wildcats will still get a tough challenge on the road. For what it was worth, Central Washington led 7-6 at the end of the first quarter against San Diego. … Colorado Mesa had its bye-week early this year, coming just after its 16-13 season-opening win against Texas A&M-Kingsville.
Eastern New Mexico at Angelo State
>> Time, date, place: 6 p.m. Saturday, LeGrand Stadium, San Angelo
>> Records: Eastern New Mexico 2-0 overall, 1-0 Lone Star Conference; Angelo State 0-2
>> Last Week: Eastern New Mexico 36, Sul Ross State 17; Emporia State 17, Angelo State 12
>> Last Season: Angelo State 23, Eastern New Mexico 14
>> Notes: Eastern New Mexico will get a chance to show if its offense is for real after scoring 99 points combined from the first two games of the season. This week will be the Greyhounds’ first real challenge. … The good news for Angelo State? No more games against the MIAA in the regular season. The Rams are coming off consecutive losses to MIAA schools, losing 21-7 to Fort Hay State before dropping last week’s game. The bad news? Things don’t get much easier this week. An 0-3 start and the rest of the season could be gone. The good news? Angelo State is finally at home.
Western Colorado at West Texas A&M
>> Time, date, place: 7 p.m. Saturday, Bain-Schaeffer Buffalo Stadium
>> Records: Western Colorado 1-0; West Texas A&M 1-1 overall, 1-0 Lone Star Conference
>> Last Week: Western Colorado 38, Midwestern State 33; Colorado School of Mines 41, West Texas A&M 13
>> Last Season: Western Colorado 28, West Texas A&M 6
>> Notes: Western Colorado struggled to put the game away against Midwestern State as the Mustangs found a way to erase a two score deficit last week. Quarterback Drew Nash went 23-of-36 for 252 yards passing and two touchdowns to help lead the Mountaineers. … West Texas A&M will finally play its home opener after being on the road for the last two weeks. The Buffaloes were brought back to earth hard in last week’s loss to No. 5 Colorado School of Mines. Quarterback Sean Johnson threw for 196 yards in West Texas A&M’s loss. It’ll be the second week of facing a team from the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference for the Buffaloes.
New Mexico Highlands at Western New Mexico
>> Time, date, place: 7 p.m. Saturday, Ben Altamirano Field, Silver City, N.M.
>> Records: New Mexico Highlands 0-1; Western New Mexico 1-1 overall, 0-1 Lone Star Conference
>> Last Week: New Mexico Highlands did not play; Western New Mexico 46, Adams State 36
>> Last Season: New Mexico Highlands 48, Western New Mexico 42
>> Notes: The offense looked promising for New Mexico Highlands in the Cowboys’ 63-37 loss to Eastern New Mexico two weeks ago. More will need to be seen with the team coming off a bye week. Quarterback Joey Cave threw for 263 yards against Eastern New Mexico. … Sure, it was against Adams State, a team that’s near the bottom of the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference but last week’s 46-36 win for Western New Mexico was exactly what the Mustangs needed this early in the season. Who knows what the confidence will do in this year’s edition of the La Batalla Bowl rivalry.
Western Oregon at Cal Poly
>> Time, date, place: 7 p.m. Saturday, Mustang Memorial Field at Spanos Stadium, San Luis Obispo, Calif.
>> Records: Western Oregon 0-1; Cal Poly 0-2
>> Last Week: Idaho State 50, Western Oregon 10; Stanford 41, Cal Poly 7
>> Last Season: Did not play.
>> Notes: What doesn’t kill you makes you stronger. After losing 50-10 to Idaho State, Western Oregon gets to face another Division I opponent this week. Only 107 yards of passing was managed by the Wolves last week while the offense put up 167 rushing yards. Luckily for Western Oregon, Cal Poly is struggling. … Cal Poly is still searching for its first win after losing 27-21 to San Diego and being outmatched in last week’s 41-7 loss at Stanford. The Mustangs will at least be at home for the first time this season.
