BLACKWATER DRAW, N.M. (Football) – Texas A&M University-Kingsville (1-3, 0-1 LSC) hits the road for its first Lone Star Conference away game this weekend. The Javelinas will take on Eastern New Mexico University (2-2, 0-2 LSC) on Oct. 3 at 4 p.m. CT (3 p.m. local) at Blackwater Draw.
 
The Javelinas are 19-7 all-time against the Greyhounds, but ENMU has won the last three matchups, including two last season (Oct. 4 and LSC Playoffs).
 
In New Mexico, the Javelinas are 7-6 versus the Hounds.
 
THE GAME
- Texas A&M-Kingsville (1-3, 0-1 LSC) vs. Eastern New Mexico (2-2, 0-2 LSC)
- Saturday, Oct. 3, 4 p.m. CT, Greyhound Stadium (6,100)
- Live Stats: http://stats.statbroadcast.com/broadcast/?id=92301
- Video ($): http://goeasternathletics.com/watch/?Live=459
- Radio: KSIX 1230 AM, 96.1 FM, 103.3 FM, KTAI 91.1 FM and www.SportsRadioCC.com; Bob Pena (play-by-play) and Kelvin Queliz (color) bring the call on the Javelina Sports Radio Network
- Social Media: Follow @JavelinaFB and @JavelinaSports on Twitter and Instagram, like www.Facebook.com/JavelinaSports.com page on Facebook and search JavelinaSTRONG and LSCfb for conversation and information
- Game Notes (PDF): http://javelinaathletics.com/sports/2013/11/7/FB_1107131507.aspx?path=football
 
Career night for carr
Against West Alabama, Myles Carr had a career game throwing the ball. He set career bests in pass attempts (47), completions (25), yards (342) and touchdown passes (3). With his 300-yard passing game, Carr became the first Javelina since Carl Bedford reached the mark on Nov. 2, 2013 against Tarleton State.
 
Special Team Woes
This season has been tough on the Javelinas' special team units. Two field goals, two punts and a point after attempt have been blocked by opponents. TAMUK has also allowed opponents to return three kicks for touchdowns, two coming on kickoffs by West Alabama.
 
3rd Down Struggles
The Javelinas have struggled this season converting third downs. They have been successful just 18 of 62 times (29.0%). Five third down conversions are the most for the Blue and Gold this season, accomplishing the feat twice (Incarnate Word and West Alabama) The other two games has seen the Hogs convert on third down four times each.
 
Thomas' goes wild on lions
Sophomore wide receiver Jordan Thomas put up a career night against No. 22/22 A&M-Commerce. In front of 7,336 fans, he set career highs with eight catches and 173 yards receiving. The San Antonio native posted the most receiving yards by a Javelina receiver since Robert Armstrong has 166 against Valdosta State in the 2013 season finale. Thomas pulled in two deep passes for 53 and 51 yards to set the Hogs up inside the 10.
 
Big man punts
Listed as a 6-foot, 4-inch defensive lineman, Sione Tupouata lined up three times as the punter versus No. 22/22 A&M-Commerce. He ended up averaging 31.0 yards a punt with a long of 36 yards. All three of his kicks ended with the Lions returner calling for a fair catch.
 
Red Zone Woes
Going into the game at Eastern New Mexico, Texas A&M-Kingsville is 9-for-12 when they enter the red zone. Six of the nine scores have been for touchdowns and three resulted in short field goals. Against A&M-Commerce, the Javelinas were just 1-of-2 with their lone score being a field goal and the other trip ended on an interception at the goal line.
 
Battle for Chennault cup
Texas A&M-Kingsville and A&M-Commerce faced off for the 22nd time for the Chennault Cup. The Lions came out victorious by 20 and will maintain control of the trophy for the fourth straight year. All-time, the Javelinas lead the cup series 16-6. The four game losing streak to A&M-Commerce is the longest all-time for the Blue and Gold.
 
Throw It Up To Autry
Junior wide receiver Anthony Autry had a big game receiving in only his second as a Javelina. He caught six passes for 125 yards and two touchdowns. He became the first Blue and Gold receiver to record a 100-plus yard receiving game since Robert Armstrong in the 2013 season finale against Valdosta State (Nov. 16, 2013).
 
Vasquez Runs Wild
Shawn Vasquez recorded his second career 100-yard running game in a TAMUK uniform against Missouri S&T. He ran for a career-high 116 yards and scored twice, including a 66-yard run on the Javelinas first offense play. His previous career best was 107 at West Texas A&M last season.
 
First L to UIW
The University of the Incarnate Word defeated Texas A&M-Kingsville in the season opener 18-16. It was the first time in four meetings that the Javelinas were not victories against the Cardinals. The deciding points were scored when UIW ran in a blocked PAT that did not cross the neutral zone.
 
Robinson's TFLs
Sophomore defensive end Braedon Robinson is closing in the Javelinas' top 20 tackles for losses list. He currently has 13.5 in his career after recording one TFL in the season opener at Incarnate Word. With 4.5 more TFLs, Robinson would tie five former Blue and Gold players for 19th on the career list.
 
SAFETY!
The first points of the 2015 season for the Blue and Gold was a safety when Incarnate Word snapped the ball over their punter's head in the second quarter. The two-point play was the first for TAMUK since Nov. 10, 2007 against Angelo State. Coincidentally, that safety also came when a punt was snapped out of the end zone.
 
Season Opening Defeat
For the second straight year, Texas A&M-Kingsville came out on the short end of their season opener. The first game of 2014 saw the Javelinas fall 27-14 to Humboldt State at home. It is the first time the Hoggies have lost back-to-back season openers since they dropped three straight from 2006-08.
 
Division I Opponent
For the first time since 2008, the Javelinas played a Division I opponent when they opened the season at Incarnate Word. With the loss, the Blue and Gold have now dropped two straight to higher level opponents following their 18-16 setback to the Cardinals. Previously, TAMUK lost to North Dakota in the 2008 season. The last victory over a DI opponent was on Sept. 20, 2003 at home against Nicholls State (Southland Conference) by the score of 27-26.
 
TAMUK vs. DI Programs
All-time against Division I opponents, Texas A&M-Kingsville fell to 29-20 following the season opener in San Antonio. The most wins are 11 against Texas Southern of the Southwestern Athletic Conference. The Javelinas also have victories over Hawaii, Idaho State, Lamar, Nevada, Nicholls State, Northern Arizona, Prairie View A&M, Texas State and UTEP. All records are from 1973 onward when the NCAA went to numerical divisions.
 
Opening drive
Texas A&M University-Kingsville (1-3, 0-1 LSC) plays their first Lone Star Conference road game of the season on Saturday, Oct. 3 at 4 p.m. CT. The Javelinas will face Eastern New Mexico (2-2, 0-2 LSC) for possibly the final time in Greyhound Stadium as ENMU is currently building an on-campus stadium slated to open for the 2016 season.
 
Mitchell's Completions
Senior quarterback Trey Mitchell enters the season 21st on Texas A&M-Kingsville's career completions list with 224. He is 13 shy of tying James Guidry (1985-87) and needs 76 to become the 18th Javelina ever with 300 career completions. The program record is 819 by Nate Poppell (2008-12).
 
Wilkinson Era
Texas A&M-Kingsville begins the Daren Wilkinson era in 2015. He is the 11th all-time and 10th full-time head coach in program history. Coming off a national championship at Colorado State-Pueblo as the offensive coordinator in 2014, Wilkinson looks to restore the glory to Javelina football.
 
Newcomers Galore
The 2015 Javelinas will feature 53 new players that have never set foot on campus prior to preseason camp. The newcomers comprise 48.2% of the 110-man roster. With so many new faces, nearly every starting position is up for grabs prior to the first contest of the year.
 
New Look Defense
With nearly an entire new coaching staff, changes were expected on the style of play on both sides of the ball. Defensively, the Javelinas will run a 3-4 base defense in 2015. The defensive coaching staff installed the new scheme at a slow methodical pace to help avoid "paralysis by analyses."
 
Offensive Returners
Texas A&M-Kingsville returns only four starters from last season with three being offensive lineman (Christian Garcia, Aundra Long and Bo Villarreal). Jordan Thomas led the team in receiving with 41 catches, 547 yards and three touchdowns. The second leading returning catching the pigskin is running back Greg Pitre at 6.4 yards/game.
 
The strong point for the Javelinas is in the backfield. Along with Pitre (287 yds/1 TD), fellow running backs Shawn Vasquez (585 yds/5 TD) and Joe Te'o (270 yds/4 TDs) will hit the field again this year.
 
Defensive Returners
Seven starters are back from the 2014 Javelina defense. Leading the way on the line is Braedon Robinson. He led the squad with 12.5 tackles for losses and 4.5 sacks at defensive end. AA Vaaulu recorded 12 tackles, four of them solo, two quarterback hurries, a pass break-up and deflection as a defensive tackle.
 
Trevor Moses leads the linebackers core following an 81-tackle campaign. He posted 4.5 tackles for a loss along with forcing and recovering a fumble. DeMarcus Spurlock appeared in 10 games last year, including the final seven. He finished with 20 tackles, 1.5 tackles for loss and 0.5 sacks. Also seeing action in 2014 was Miles Kirksey (6 tkls) and ZeMarcus Green (11 tkls).
 
Lamont Hills is slated to start at strong safety after making 52 tackles a year ago. Starting all 11 games was Kelechi Amushie, who also recorded one of the squad's five interceptions. Joe Crowe posted 13 solo tackles and assisted on nine while breaking up six passes. Emond Hobbs appeared in four games, starting three, with 20 tackles, seven of them solo.
 
Special Team Returners
Returning from last year among the special teams is kicker Max Lehnig. He went was 2-for-8 last season on field goals with both of his makes coming from between 20 and 29 yards, longest being 28 yards. On extra-points, Lehnig converted 25-of-27 with a miss coming against A&M-Commerce at the LSC Football Festival and in the season finale at McMurry.
 
While Lehnig also handled punting duties last season (57 punts, 34.9 avg), he is going to give way this season to senior Tristan Hernandez. Last season the Converse, Texas native did not appear in any games for the Blue and Gold but was named to the LSC Fall Commissioner's Honor Roll.
 
Joe Crowe, listed as the #2 kick and punt returner, returned 17 kickoffs last season for 348 yards and an average of 20.5. His longest was 46 at Tarleton State. He also recorded one punt return of 43 yards versus #RV A&M-Commerce. Shawn Vasquez heads into the season opener as the #1 kick returner for the Javelinas. He finished 2014 with four returns of 37 yards (9.2 avg) and a long of 16 coming at West Texas A&M.
 
Jefferson in Seattle
Javelina Hall of Famer and defensive backs coach James Jefferson spent part of the summer interning with the Seattle Seahawks during their preseason training camp. He played five seasons (1989-93) with the Seahawks. A highlight from his time in the Northwest was setting the team record with a 97-yard kickoff return in his first season with the squad.
 
#Javelinastrong
Throughout the season, the Javelinas will use the hashtag #JavelinaSTRONG to promote all 14 of their athletic programs. We encourage our fans to join us in a positive manner by using the hashtag throughout the 2015-16 campaign.
 
Weekly Captains
This year head coach Daren Wilkinson has elected to go with different team captains each week. This is the second time in the past couple of years that this system will be used, rather than have captains selected for the entire season.
 
 
AFCA NCAA Division II Coaches Poll (Sept. 28)
Rk School (1st votes) Rec.    Pts. Prev.
1. Minnesota St.-Mankato (30) 4-0 798    1
2. West Georgia (2)       4-0     756         2
3. Northwest Missouri St. 4-0 735         3
4. Ferris St.                       3-0     703         4
5. Delta St.                        4-0     668         5
6. Angelo St.*^               4-0     631         6
7. Sioux Falls                    4-0     596         7
8. North Alabama          3-0     561         8
9. Valdosta St.                 3-0     552         9
10. Colorado St.-Pueblo 3-1   480       10
11. Colorado Mines       4-0     469       11
12. Harding                                   4-0     448    12
13. Ashland                      4-0     409       13
14. Shepherd (W. Va.) 4-0     346       16
15. Pittsburg St.              3-1     335       15
16. Humboldt St.            3-0     301       17
17. Tuskegee                   4-0     272       18
18t. A&M-Commerce*^ 3-1  197       20
18t. Michigan Tech        4-0     197       23
20. Midwestern St.*^  4-0     189       23
21. Concord (W. Va.)    3-1     184       19
22. Lenoir-Rhyne           3-1     163       22
23. Emporia St.                4-0       93      NR
24. Ouachita Baptist      3-1       87       24
25. Minnesota-Duluth 2-2       49       25
 
Dropped Out: Slippery Rock (Pa.) (14)
 
Others Receiving Votes: Grand Valley St., 29; Arkansas Tech, 28; Azusa Pacific, 26; Wingate, 23; Slippery Rock (Pa.), 19; Stonehill, 11; Washburn, 9; West Texas A&M*^, 7; Colorado Mesa, 6; Fort Hays State, 6; Henderson State, 5; East Central, 4; Virginia Union, 4; Newberry, 2; Bloomsburg, 1; Indianapolis, 1.
 
* denotes LSC opponent | ^ denotes 2015 opponent
 
LSC IN 2015 AFCA RANKINGS
WEEK P    1    2    3    4    5    6    7    8   9 10
ASU    13  12  8    6    6
ENMU      NR       NR       NR NR       NR
MSU   RV RV RV 23  20
TAMUC    22  18  22  20  T18
TSU     RV RV NR       NR       NR
TAMUK    NR       NR       NR NR       NR
WT      RV NR       RV RV RV
 
THIS WEEK'S SCHEDULE
Saturday, October 3, 2015
*Texas A&M-Kingsville at Eastern N.M., 4 p.m.
*Midwestern State at Angelo State, 7 p.m.
*Texas A&M-Commerce at Tarleton State, 7 p.m.
 
All times are CST
 
LSC WEEKLY AWARDS
Offensive
Week 1: Kyle Washington, Sr., QB, Angelo St.
Week 2: Geremy Alridge-Mitchell, Sr., RB, West Texas A&M
Week 3: Geremy Alridge-Michtell, Sr., RB, West Texas A&M
Week 4: Hagen Hutchinson, So., QB, Midwestern St.
 
Defensive
Week 1: Marqui Christian, Sr., S, Midwestern St.
Week 2: Hunter Streuling, So., S, West Texas A&M
Week 3: Marqui Christian, Sr., S, Midwestern St.
Week 4: Clayton Callicutt, Sr., DE, Angelo St.
 
Special Teams
Week 1: Fred Lawrence, So., PR/KR, Angelo St.
Week 2: Andy Alkhazshvilly, Sr., K, Midwestern St.
Week 3: Connor Hollabaugh, Jr., K, West Texas A&M
Week 4: Daniel McCants, R-Fr., PR/KR, Tarleton St.
 
Captains
Week 1: Kelechi Amushie, Aundra Long, Greg Pitre, Braedon Robinson
Week 2: Joe Te'o, Jordan Thomas, AA Vaaulu
Week 3: Anthony Autry, Kevin Johnson, DeMarcus Spurlock, Christian Garcia
Week 4: Aundra Long, Trevor Moses, Daniel Ramirez, Braedon Robinson
 
D2Football.com Top 25 Poll (Sept. 29)
Rank                Team                  Rec.    LW
1             Minnesota State        4-0         1
2                  Ferris State             3-0         2
3                West Georgia           4-0         3
4                   Sioux Falls               4-0         5
5          Northwest Missouri     4-0         4
6                   Delta State              4-0         6
7                  CSU-Pueblo             3-1         7
8              North Alabama          3-0         8
9               Valdosta State          3-0         9
10            Angelo State*^         4-0       10
11           Colorado Mines         4-0       11
12            Pittsburg State          3-1       12
13                    Harding                 4-0       13
14             Michigan Tech          4-0       15
15         Minnesota-Duluth      2-2       16
16                 Shepherd               4-0       17
17 Texas A&M-Commerce*^ 3-1     18
18              Lenoir-Rhyne           3-1       19
19                   Ashland                 4-0       20
20           Humboldt State         3-0       21
21             Emporia State           4-0       22
22                   Concord                3-1       23
23           Ouachita Baptist        3-1       24
24         Grand Valley State      3-1       25
25           Central Missouri        2-2     NR
 
* denotes LSC opponent | ^ denotes 2014 opponent
 
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