Date:	Saturday, October 13, 2012
Kickoff:	7 p.m.
Location:	Wichita Falls, Texas
Stadium:	Memorial Stadium
Series:	Midwestern State leads 8-5
Video:	No video available
Radio:	KIXY 94.7 FM Jeremy Bryant (Play-by-Play) Randy Ward (Color)
Live Stats:	MSUMustangs.com
Tickets:	www.MSUticketsonline.com or 940-397-4779

FULL RELEASE

The Game

The Rams will head to Wichita Falls to face No. 13 Midwestern State at 7 p.m. at Memorial Stadium. It is the 14th meeting all time between the two schools and the Mustangs lead the series 8-5. 

Midwestern State

No. 13 Midwestern State is 4-1 on the season. The Mustangs are on a four game winning streak after losing its season opener to Tarleton State. Bill Maskill is the head coach and has a 73-32 career record. 

Last Week

The 21st ranked West Texas A&M Buffaloes (5-1, 4-0) remained undefeated in the Lone Star Conference with a 35-9 victory over the Angelo State Rams (3-3, 2-1) on a cold and windy night at San Angelo Stadium. 

Ranked Teams Everywhere

No. 13 Midwestern State will be the second-straight nationally ranked opponent and the fourth in the last five games for the Rams. The other ranked opponents include No. 18 Valdosta State, No. 19 Abilene Christian  and No. 21 West Texas A&M. The Rams are 1-2 against ranked opponents this season. 

Season Long

Jarred Martin kicked a season long 40-yard field goal in the first quarter against West Texas A&M. It is his second field goal of the year and ties his season-long field goal. Martin has a career-long of 42 yards. 

First Career Interception

In the fourth quarter of the West Texas A&M game, sophomore Courtney Moore picked off Dustin Vaughan for his first career interception. It is the fourth interception by the Ram defense this season. 

On the Road

This will only be the second true road game of the season for the Rams. Angelo State excelled on the road last season with a 4-2 record away from San Angelo Stadium. ASU defeated Eastern New Mexico, 49-19 in its only road game of the season. 

Limiting a Potent Offense

The Ram defense held West Texas A&M's high-powered offense to 398 total yards which is 76 yards below the Buffs per game average. 

Leading at Halftime

When the band is playing at halftime and concession stands are busy be sure to check the halftime score because the Rams are a perfect 3-0 when leading at halftime. 

LSC's No. 1 Defense

The Rams enter this week at the No. 1 overall defense in the Lone Star Conference. The defense is giving up just 317.3 yards per game this season. It is the No. 33 ranked defense in NCAA Division II as well. 

Defensive Touchdown

Rush Seaver's 25-yard interception return for a touchdown in the second quarter against the Greyhounds of Eastern New Mexico is the first interception returned for a touchdown since Terrance Preston performed the feat on Sept 11, 2010. 

Defensive Player of the Week

Rush Seaver was named LSC Defensive Player of the Week for the week of Sept. 22 after upsetting No. 19 Abilene Christian. The sophomore registered 2.5 sacks, two tackles for loss and led the Rams with eight tackles. He was a part of the defense that limited the Wildcats to nine yards rushing. 

Stopping the Run

In 17 games under defensive coordinator Mike Walton, the Ram defense has held opponents under 100-yards rushing seven times. The nine rushing yards that Abilene Christian tallied is tied for the second lowest.  

Sacks Galore

The Rams pressured the LSC's Preseason Offensive Player of the Year, Mitchell Gale, all game and produced seven sacks for a defense that came in with only two for the season. The seven sacks are the most under defensive coordinator Mike Walton and the most since recording seven against Texas A&M-Commerce back on Sept. 11, 2011. 

Beating a Ranked Team

The Rams win over No. 19 Abilene Christian marks the first time Angelo State has defeated a ranked opponent since 2009.  ASU beat No. 17 Midwestern State 20-17 on a last second field goal by Ryan Smith. 

Moving Up The List

Blake Hamblin has thrown for 2,928 passing yards so far in his career. He has passed Brannon Smith for 12th on the list. Smith threw for 2,645 yards in his career. Up next on the career yardage list is Dwight Burns with 2,972 yards. 

Answering the Bell

No. 19 Abilene Christian got out to an early 9-0 lead after its first two drives of the game. Trailing in its third-straight game, the Rams were able to fight the adversity. A one-yard run by Blake Hamblin cut the lead to 9-7 and the defense took up the slack. The Wildcats were held scoreless through the second and third quarters as the Rams scored 28 points en route to a 28-23 victory. 

The Century Mark Part II

One game after Dakarai Pecikonis caught his 100th career reception, senior C.J. Akins grabbed his 100th career reception against ACU. Akins totaled six catches on the night for 56 yards.

The End of a Rivalry

The rivarly betwen ACU and Angelo Stat started back in 1964 with ACU winning the first meeting 33-22. Over the next 44 years the two teams have faced each other every season except for 1971. The teams have battled twice during a season three times. The Rams have the longest winning streak with 11 straight victories form 1987 to 1995. The Wildcats are winners of the last six games. Abilene Christian is the team the Rams have played the most in program history. 

Anchoring the Line

The Ram offensive line has seen a plethora of new faces with Trent Davis, Anthony Landry,  Anthony Lewis, Steven Jackson and Rodney Smith, all seeing playing time for the first season at ASU. Isi and Watkin Cocker, brothers from Euless, are two that have helped shore the line up as well. The duo started their first game together against Chadron State. 

Too Many Turnovers

The Rams gave Chadron State four turnovers that prevented Angelo State from finding a rhythm on the offensive end. The three fumbles and one interception were the most in a game since ACU forced two fumbles and two interceptions on Oct. 10, 2009. 

Defensive Stand

The Rams defense held Western State to 175 total yards in its season opening 42-14 win. The 175 yards is the fewest yards allowed by an Angelo State defense since Sept. 19, 2009 when Central Oklahoma only mustered 172 total yards. 

Rare Feats

Fans got to see something that the Rams haven't done in quite a while during the Western State game. The first quarter blocked punt by Jared Ross and the scoop and score by Courtney Moore were both something the Rams haven't accomplished in a while. The last time the Rams blocked a punt was against Texas A&M-Commerce in 2008. Ram fans haven't seen a blocked punt returned for a touchdown since prior to 1999. 

Team Captains

Isi Cocker, Blake Hamblin, Alvin Johnson and Rush Seaver were named captains by their teammates. 

Building a Foundation

The 2012 Rams roster will take on a younger look with 73 players being underclassmen. A total of 56 have yet to receive any experience at the collegiate level. The infusion of youth should provide the foundation needed to build success at Angelo State. 

Young Guns

A year after not playing a single true freshman, the Rams had five true freshman in the first game of the season. Clayton Callicutt, Riley Davis, Jared Kutz, Brandon Lee and Joseph Pickett all saw action. Pickett averaged 50.5 yards per punt while Kutz recorded a 58.0 yard per kick average on kickoffs. Davis was the Rams fourth leading tackler and Callicutt made four tackles. Lee had one tackle for loss during the game. 

Five States Represent the Rams

Five states throughout the United States makeup the Rams football roster. Arizona, Illinois and New Mexico each have one player with California being second most with five. Texas dominates the roster as 93 of the team's 101 players call the Lone Star State home. 

Head Coach

Angelo State: Will Wagner (Hardin-Simmons, '96) in his second season as head coach of the Rams. The Odessa native helped Northwest Missouri State win three national championships as an assistant head coach and defensive backs coach.

Staff Additions

Head coach Will Wagner added three new coaches to his staff. Drew Dallas and Gary Salgado both were promoted from graduate assistant positions. Dallas is the recruiting coordinator and wide receivers coach, while Salgado takesRA over the special teams unit and coach the defensive line. The other new member is offensive line coach Jay Eilers. Eilers played collegiately at Northwest Missouri State and has 13 years of experience in both the high school and college ranks. 

The Program

Angelo State won the NAIA National Championship in 1978 and has won three Lone Star Conference  Championships (1978, 1984, 1987). The Rams have seen five NCAA D-II playoff appearances and produced 57 All-Americans. Angelo State has sent 11 student-athletes on to successful NFL careers, including Pierce Holt, who earned two Super Bowl rings with the San Francisco 49ers in 1988 and 1989. He was a two-time Pro Bowl selection and was inducted into the NCAA Division II Football Hall of Fame in 2000. Legendary Baylor head coach Grant Teaff coached at ASU, and has been inducted into the National Football Foundation Hall of Fame with Holt and former Rams' tackle Rodney Cason.

Follow From Home

If you cannot attend the Angelo State football game, ASU has you covered. Jeremy Bryant will call the game with help from analyst Randy Ward on 94.7 KIXY-FM, which will also be streamed on AngeloSports.com. Live updates will be provided on Angelo State's Facebook page along with its Twitter account, @AngeloSports.