Tarleton State tops the Lone Star Conference standings at 5-0 in league play and 7-0 overall. 
 
      This week features four LSC games and one non-conference contest.  The Western New Mexico at Texas A&M-Commerce game will air via live television broadcast as part of LSC Football on Nexstar.
 
      LSC football teams are 35-27 overall this season.  The squads are 6-4 combined versus the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference, Northern Sun Intercollegiate Athletic Conference, and Great Northwest Athletic Conference teams, which are also in NCAA Super Regional Four.
 
      LSC schedule and results available here: http://www.lonestarconference.org/calendar.aspx?path=football
 
LSC FOOTBALL ON ESPN3
A pair of Lone Star Conference games will be featured as part of the 2019 Division II football showcase schedule on ESPN3.
 
      The Midwestern State at Texas A&M-Commerce match-up on October 12 in Commerce, Texas, and the Texas A&M-Commerce at West Texas A&M contest on November 2 in Canyon, Texas, were selected to be streamed on ESPN3, and available on the ESPN App.
 
      ESPN3 is ESPN’s live multiscreen sports network, a destination that delivers thousands of exclusive sports events annually. It is accessible on computers via ESPN.com/watch and on smartphones, tablets and streaming devices through the ESPN app. The network currently is available nationwide at no additional cost to fans who receive their high-speed internet connection or video subscription from an affiliated service provider. It also is available at no cost to U.S. college students and U.S.-based military personnel via computers, smartphones and tablets connected to on-campus educational and on-base military broadband and Wi-Fi networks.
 
LSC FOOTBALL ON NEXSTAR
The Lone Star Conference and Nexstar Media Group, Inc. announced a new partnership to bring college football fans exclusive coverage of multiple matchups featuring NCAA Division II teams via live television broadcast and streaming online video.
 
      Four LSC games - Western New Mexico at Texas A&M-Commerce (Oct. 26), Midwestern State at Tarleton State (Nov. 2), West Texas A&M at Texas A&M-Kingsville (Nov. 9), and Texas A&M-Commerce at Angelo State (Nov. 16) - will air via live television broadcast and/or streaming online video exclusively on network-affiliated stations and/or websites owned by Nexstar and select broadcast partners including: KTAB (Abilene), KASY (Albuquerque), KCPN (Amarillo), KBVO (Austin), KVEO (Brownsville), KTSM (El Paso), KLBK (Lubbock), KMID (Midland/Odessa), KSAN (San Angelo), KTPN (Tyler), KWKT (Waco) and KJBO (Wichita Falls).
 
LSC TO HOST 2019 DIVISION II FOOTBALL NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP GAME
Following a tremendous experience in 2018, the NCAA Division II Football Committee has chosen McKinney Independent School District Stadium in McKinney, Texas, as the host site of the 2019-21 Division II football national championship games.
 
      The 2019 title game is set for 2 p.m. CST on Saturday, Dec. 21 and will be televised live by ESPNU.
 
      The Lone Star Conference in conjunction with McKinney ISD hosted the 2018 championship game.
 
      McKinney ISD Stadium and Community Event Center, a 12,000-seat facility built primarily for football, will host the Division II Football Championship games on Dec. 21, 2019, Dec. 19, 2020 and Dec. 18, 2021.
 
PLAYERS OF THE WEEK
OFFENSIVE
Triston Williams, Midwestern State, SO, Agricultural Business, QB, Andrews, Texas, Andrews HS
Williams matched a program single-game record connecting for six touchdown passes to lead Midwestern State to a 70-35 Homecoming win over Texas A&M-Kingsville Saturday night at Memorial Stadium. The sophomore from Andrews connected on 13-of-21 passes for 354 yards including two scoring strikes to Tyrique Edwards and Kylan Harrison while hitting Xavier Land and Lazarus Fisher for TD connections in the second half. The performance netted the second-best passing efficiency rating in NCAA Division II this season at 297.8 which is also the best ever for an MSU quarterback. Williams sported averages of 27.2 yards per completion and 16.9 yards per attempt. It was his second consecutive 300-yard performance.
 
DEFENSIVE
Jai Edwards, Tarleton State, SR, Kinesiology and Business, S, Atascocita, Texas, Atascocita HS
Edwards led the No. 4-ranked Texans on defense with 11 tackles in a 35-21 win over No. 20 Texas A&M-Commerce in a battle of LSC unbeatens. Of the 11 tackles by Edwards, seven were solo tackles in the secondary. The senior also posted a tackle for loss, but his biggest play of the game also clinched the victory. On 4th-and-9 and the Lions driving in Texan territory only down two touchdowns, Edwards’ huge hit on the A&M-Commerce receiver broke up a catch and gave the ball back to the Texans with four minutes left to run out the clock and seal the win. Edwards and the Texans held A&M-Commerce to 15 points below their season average and limited the rushing offense to just 64 yards for the game.
 
SPECIAL TEAMS
Tyler Vargas, Eastern New Mexico, SR, University Studies, K, San Diego, Calif., Ramona HS
Vargas connected on both field goal attempts and went 6-for-6 on PAT attempts in the Hound's 48-17 win over Western New Mexico on Saturday night. Vargas converted field goals from 47 and 28 yards and punted one time in the game for 46 yards to pin the Mustangs inside their own 20-yard line.
 
WEEKLY AWARDS
Offensive
S-9       Daniel McCants, Tarleton State
S-16     Wyatt Strand, Eastern New Mexico
S-23     Miklo Smalls, Texas A&M-Commerce
S-30     Zimari Manning, Tarleton State
O-7      Paul Terry, Eastern New Mexico
O-14    Miklo Smalls, Texas A&M-Commerce (2)
O-21    Triston Williams, Midwestern State
 
Defensive
S-9       Melik Owens, Midwestern State
S-16     Quincy Arceneaux, Eastern New Mexico
S-23     B.J. Jefferson, Tarleton State
S-30     Josh Quinton, Angelo State
O-7      B.J. Jefferson, Tarleton State (2)
O-14    B.J. Jefferson, Tarleton State (3)
O-21    Jai Edwards, Tarleton State
 
Special Teams
S-9       Jaron Imbriani, Midwestern State
S-16     Tobias Harris, West Texas A&M
S-23     Dominique Ramsey, Texas A&M-Commerce
S-30     Donte Ross, Texas A&M-Kingsville
O-7      Justin Manyweather, Eastern New Mexico
O-14    Josh Wilson, Texas A&M-Kingsville
O-21    Tyler Vargas, Eastern New Mexico
 
SELECTED NOTABLE PERFORMANCES
   Kris Barnes, Texas A&M-Kingsville, had a career day for the Javelinas in the loss to Midwestern State as he rushed for a career-best 130 yards on 13 carries for one touchdown in the contest. His 40-yard sprint in the third quarter was the second-longest rush on the year by a member of the Blue and Gold, which was also a career long.
   Paul Terry, Eastern New Mexico, continued his streak of games with 100 yards or more rushing with 180 yards on 25 attempts and two touchdowns in the Hound's 48-17 win over Western New Mexico. Terry scored twice in a span of less than five minutes early in the fourth quarter to help the Greyhounds outscore Western New Mexico 31-7 in the second half of action. The Amarillo, Texas product has rushed for over 100 yards in every game this season ranks second in Division II football with 1,167 yards rushing on the year.
   Zimari Manning, Tarleton State, continues to tear opposing defenses apart after hauling in seven catches for 131 yards and three touchdowns in a 35-21 homecoming victory over No. 20 Texas A&M-Commerce. It’s Manning’s second three-touchdown game this season as he now leads the nation with 12 touchdown receptions and has already matched his total from last season in just seven games. Manning had touchdown receptions of 19, 2, and 39 yards and two of the three scores put the Texans up by double digits over  A&M-Commerce and the final TD clinched the game to put the Texans up 35-14 in the fourth quarter. Manning and the Texan offense combined for 455 yards of offense against a Lion defense that came in holding teams to just 308 yards.
   Nick Gerber, West Texas A&M, set a career-high in passing yards as West Texas A&M's attempt to overcome a 10-point halftime deficit for the second straight week came up short against No. 25 Angelo State. The redshirt sophomore completed 16-of-41 passes for 242 yards and two touchdowns, both of those going to Semaj Mitchell. He threw for 154 yards on 11-of-22 passing in the fourth quarter alone as the Buffs went 3-for-3 on fourth down conversions.
   Josh Quinton, Angelo State, was a force on the No. 25 Rams' defense this weekend in a 17-14 victory over the West Texas A&M Buffaloes. Quinton registered 12 tackles with three solo and nine assists. He helped hold the Buffs to just 42 yards through the first half.
   Lamontre Huval, Eastern New Mexico, was vital in the Hound's 48-17 win over Western New Mexico as the Eastern New Mexico defense limited the Mustangs to just 289 total yards for the game. Huval forced and recovered a fumble to record one of two turnovers for the Greyhounds on Saturday night and totaled nine tackles on the evening. The Greyhounds limited the league's top passing offense to just 164 yards through the air and allowed just one offensive touchdown for the game.
   Christian Hernandez, Tarleton State, converted on all five extra point attempts for No. 4 Tarleton in a 35-21 victory over No. 20 Texas A&M-Commerce. Hernandez now ranks fifth in the LSC in scoring with 53 points.