ODESSA, Texas (November 7, 2025) – The University of Texas Permian Basin football team (7-2 overall, 5-2 LSC) will close out its regular season with back-to-back home games. First, it will be Eastern New Mexico University (3-6, 3-4) during "Week 10". Kickoff between the Falcons and Greyhounds will start at 7 p.m. on Saturday, November 8, from Astound Broadband Stadium in Midland, Texas.

FALCONS IN THE POLLS
The UTPB football team moved up one spot from No. 17 to No. 16 in the D2Football.com Media Poll and moved up three spots from No. 20 to No. 17 in the American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) Division II Coaches' Poll. It was the second week in a row UTPB moved up one spot in the D2Football.com Poll and three spots in the AFCA Poll.

NO. 1 DEFENSE IN THE LSC
UTPB has the Lone Star Conference's top-rated defense, allowing just 248.8 yards per game. In addition, opponents are scoring just 16.8 points per game against UTPB, which also leads the league.

UTPB is also second the league in total offense at 439.1 yards per game, and is the least penalized team in the league, averaging just 45.3 yards per game.

FALCONS' LAST TIME OUT
No. 20 UT Permian Basin overpowers Western New Mexico, 66-7: No. 20 UTPB totaled 658 yards of total offense – the third most in program history – to power past Western New Mexico, 66-7, at Ben Altamirano Field. UTPB scored at least two touchdowns in all four quarters to secure its second straight win. Kanon Gibson was 16-of-27 for 323 passing yards and three touchdowns, Kory Harris ran for 112 yards and two scores on 17 carries and Ben Patterson caught three passes for 115 yards and a touchdown to lead UTPB's offense. Jalani Jefferson returned an interception 35 yards for a touchdown and David Walker had three tackles for loss and two sacks to fuel the Falcons' defense that surrendered just 182 yards of total offense.

THE SERIES (UTPB VS. ENMU)
The Falcons and Greyhounds meet for the ninth time on the gridiron this Saturday with UTPB winning the last five matchups and holding the 5-3 advantage in the series.

THE LAST TIME THEY MET
UT Permian Basin rolls past Eastern New Mexico, 64-14: UTPB had it all working on Saturday at Eastern New Mexico, scoring nine touchdowns while passing for over 300 yards and rushing for more than 250 in a 64-14 victory at Steve Loy Family Foundation Stadium. UTPB had 29 first downs. Issac Mooring passed for 222 yards and three touchdowns, Tyler Cleveland ran for 115 yards and two touchdowns on eight carries and Jeremiah Cooley caught four passes for 106 yards and two scores. Defensively, Tristan Exline had 12 tackles – three for loss – and one forced fumble and Yemi Oyesanya had 1.5 sacks and three tackles for loss. ENMU's Matthew Quartieri had 21 tackles, which is the most in a single game in the LSC this season.

GREYHOUNDS UNDER THE LENS
ENMU runs a triple-option attack and boasts the best rushing offense (317.4 YPG) in the Lone Star Conference.

One of the key aspects of Eastern New Mexico's rushing attack is how many student-athletes are capable of adding yards in a hurry. Three players have over 500 rushing yards and nine have over 100 rushing yards. Quarterback Jarius Stewart is second in the LSC with nine rushing touchdowns. Demarion Finch is second on the team with eight touchdowns and Chad Ragle has four touchdowns on the ground. Nine Greyhounds have scored a rushing touchdown this season.

The best statistical category for Eastern New Mexico is clearly rushing yards per game as they rank third nationally in that stat. One area to focus on is extending drives. The Hounds convert on 43.5 percent of their third downs and 61.1 percent of their fourth downs. Those both rank in the top-40 in the nation. ENMU is also good at keeping time of possession. Their 33:48 per game ranks 10th in NCAA DII this season.

Two weeks ago, Eastern New Mexico junior quarterback Jarius Stewart ran for an LSC record 382 yards and the Greyhounds racked up 712 yards on the ground – another conference mark – en route to a 59-35 win over Western New Mexico in the Chile Bowl game at Steve Loy Family Foundation Stadium. Stewart carried the ball 33 times and had five touchdowns. He broke the league record of 342 yards set by Northeastern State Carlton Boothe in 1998. The Greyhounds' rushing mark was just seven yards shy of the NCAA Division II's record set in 1971. Stewart had at least one touchdown in all four quarters – three of them allowed ENMU to tie or take the lead and three were for over 50 yards. He also threw one pass for 38 yards. Demarion Finch ran for 125 yards and a touchdown on 15 carries. ENMU was led on defense by Dylan Quartieri's seven tackles – 3.5 for loss – and 1.5 sacks. DJ Moore also had a sack and Stanton Chambers forced a fumble.

GREYHOUNDS' LAST TIME OUT
Eastern New Mexico tops Sul Ross State, 40-34: Quarterback Jarius Stewart ran for 173 yards and two touchdowns to lead Eastern New Mexico to a 40-34 victory over Sul Ross State at Al Whitehead Field at Steve Loy Family Foundation Stadium. ENMU, which won for the second straight week, totaled 443 yards on the ground. Demarion Finch added 91 yards on the ground and two touchdowns and William Reynolds had 83 yards and a score. Defensively, Matthew Quartieri had eight tackles (three for a loss) for the Greyhounds. SRSU, which led 10-6 after the first quarter, got 302 yards passing and 96 yards rushing from Kye Callicoatte. Jose Trevino ran for 87 yards and three scores for the Lobos. Brendon Martin had a game-high 17 tackles and Darryl Minor Jr. had 15 stops.

ENMU HEAD COACH
Kelley Lee returned to Eastern New Mexico in January of 2023 for his second stint as the head coach in Portales. Lee holds an overall record of 34-33 for the Greyhounds. Lee led the Hounds to their first Division II bowl game victory against Southern Arkansas in the 2019 Heritage Bowl.

Lee served as the ENMU offensive coordinator for five seasons under Josh Lynn before taking over the reins in Portales in 2017. From 2017-2020 as the program's head coach, he coached 50 All-LSC honorees and three All-Americans.

CONFERENCE OUTLOOK
With two weeks remaining in the regular season, No. 8 Central Washington remains atop the Lone Star Conference football standings at 7-0 and has won six straight games.

The Wildcats (8-1 overall), who have won seven straight games, topped No. 16 Angelo State in a battle of ranked teams. No. 20 UT Permian Basin, Western Oregon, West Texas A&M and Eastern New Mexico also won in Week 9. WOU increased its win streak to five games in a row.

Week 10 will feature all 10 teams in action with five conference matchups on Saturday. If CWU defeats Sul Ross State, it would clinch at least a share of the LSC title. The two play at 7 p.m. CT in Alpine, Texas. Second-place WOU (7-2, 6-1 LSC) travels to San Angelo, Texas, to face Angelo State at 6 p.m. CT. If CWU and WOU each prevail, it would set up a Week 11 showdown between the two in Monmouth, Ore.

WT is leading the league in total offense at 454.7 yards per game, followed by UTPB (439.1) and Texas A&M-Kingsville (433.9). CWU is scoring a league-high 44.9 points per game.

UTPB has the conference's top-rated defense, allowing just 284.8 yards per game. CWU (339.7), followed by ASU (346). Opponents are scoring just 16.8 points per game against UTPB, which leads the league.

UTPB is the least penalized team in the league, averaging just 45.3 yards per game.

The LSC has had four D2Football.com national player of the week selections this season. UTPB junior linebacker Tristan Exline was named National Defensive Player of the Week after the first week of the year. CWU sophomore kick returner Beau Philllips (Sept. 30) and Midwestern State freshman punt returner Cedonyae Lott (Oct. 7) earned the title of National Special Teams Player of the Week. ENMU junior quarterback Jarius Stewart was named National Offensive Player of the Week on Oct. 28 after breaking the LSC's single-game rushing record.

ASU was picked as the favorite to win the LSC title this season, according to the league's preseason poll. Exline and ASU quarterback Braeden Fuller were predicted to win preseason player of the year honors.

LIVE COVERAGE
Saturday night's contest will be broadcasted on FloCollege. The LSC and FloCollege reached a historic agreement in August 2024 for the largest streaming rights deal in NCAA Division II history. Fans have two different subscription options: $19.99 per month or $107.88 per year ($8.99/month).

To follow the action for the Falcons all season long, please check out our Live Events page for all of the video and live stats details: https://utpbfalcons.com/coverage.

In addition, all UTPB home and away football games can be heard live on KQRX 95.1 FM, 95X, a West Texas Radio Group station" with the pre-game show beginning 30 minutes prior to kickoff. Monty Montgomery (Play-by-Play) and Chad Kelly (Color Commentary) begin their first season together in the broadcast booth.