By J.T. Keith
The Midwestern State University Mustangs are riding a seven-game winning streak and looking to win another Lone Star Conference title.
The Mustangs (7-1, 3-1), ranked No. 17 in the American Football Coaches’ Association poll, take on the Eastern New Mexico University Greyhounds at 1 p.m. Saturday at Greyhound Stadium.
Last year, the Mustangs defeated the ‘Hounds 51-28 in Wichita Falls, Texas. They did not punt the ball the whole game, running up 516 yards of total offense. The Mustangs hold the series edge against the Greyhounds 14-4, winning the last 11 meetings.
This year, running back Keidrick Jackson leads the LSC with 890 yards and 13 touchdowns. Jackson is Midwestern State’s all-time leader in rushing with 3,717 yards and in all-purpose yards with 3,977.
“Our coaches do a job a good job of recruiting big offensive linemen,” Jackson said at the Lone Star Conference Media Day. “Without those linemen, I do not score touchdowns.”
Helping to carry the load in the backfield is Dante Taylor, who has 399 yards on the season.
Junior quarterback Jake Glover has been steady in his first year as the starter. He has a quarterback efficiency rating of 145.0, with 816 yards passing, and eight touchdowns to only two interceptions.
When the Mustangs go to the air, Joe Sanders has 21 receptions for 276 yards and three touchdowns. No other receiver has more than eight receptions this season.
The defense is full of ballhawks. Neiko Conway leads the LSC with four interceptions, and Ricardo Riascos is third in the LSC with three interceptions. Marqui Christian leads the team in tackles with 39 solo and 39 assists.
The Mustangs have 20 seniors, but most of them are fifth-year seniors who did not play a lot of football until this year. The team went to the playoffs last year, losing to Indianapolis University, and they have their sites set on returning to the playoffs again this year.
“We have extremely good coaches,” Maskill said at Lone Star Conference Media Day. “We pride ourselves on being a family and liking each other, and that has not always been the case. That alone has made all the difference in our teams.”
The Mustangs will not try to trick the ‘Hounds. They will spread the ‘Hounds out and run the ball up the middle into the teeth of the defense. Look for Seth Bailey to have a big game if the ‘Hounds are going to win.
Midwestern is second in the LSC in scoring with an average of 42 points per game.
ENMU‘s defense is No. 1 in total defense in the conference, and No. 2 in scoring defense at 24.9 points per game.
The Mustangs might overlook ENMU, instead focusing on the season finale against West Texas A&M the following week. Seniors are wearing the Green and Silver for the last time at Greyhound Stadium, and they’ll have something to talk about for years to come.
The prediction: ‘Hounds win in overtime 17-14. The Midwestern State University
Mustangs are riding a seven-game winning streak and looking to win another Lone Star Conference title.