ODESSA, Texas (March 17, 2025) – Head Coach Kris McCullough has announced the 2025 UT Permian Basin football schedule. The upcoming UTPB football schedule features six home games with the Falcons opening up Lone Star Conference play in "Week 3" after a pair of nonconference foes and a bye week.

The Falcons begin the season with a "Week 0" home game against the nationally-ranked University of Central Oklahoma Bronchos on August 30 at Astound Broadband Stadium.

This year's annual game at Ratliff Stadium in Odessa, Texas, will see the Falcons take on Central Washington University at 6 p.m. on Saturday, October 11. All other home games for the Falcons this season will be played at Astound Broadband Stadium in Midland, Texas.

In addition, for the second consecutive year, admission to all Falcon football games and tailgating spots will be free. Tailgate setup begins at noon on gameday on a first-come, first-serve basis. Pregame festivities will include activities for future Falcons along with a DJ, and food trucks, performances by the UTPB cheer/dance teams, and the marching band.

Coach McCullough spoke on his team's upcoming schedule and said, "Overall, I think this is an excellent schedule. I like the nonconference schedule and having a top-25 team here at home to start the season to really gauge where you are. I think they're going to be number two in the country in the preseason poll, so that's going to be huge. I think our nonconference games are two of the better ones we've had in a while. This schedule is not an easy one. We have three preseason top-25 teams and probably three top-15 teams that we have to face. But that that doesn't take away from the other teams either.
 
2025 UTPB Football Schedule:
Week 0: Saturday, August 30 vs. Central Oklahoma | 6 p.m. | Astound Broadband Stadium
        Theme: Band Day / Black Out
Week 1: Saturday, September 6 at Adams State (Alamosa, Colorado)
Week 2: Saturday, September 13 – BYE
Week 3: Saturday, September 20 at *Texas A&M-Kingsville (Kingsville, Texas)
Week 4: Saturday, September 27 vs. *Midwestern State | 6 p.m. | Astound Broadband Stadium
        Theme: Family Weekend / Orange Out
Week 5: Saturday, October 4 at *Angelo State (San Angelo, Texas)
Week 6: Saturday, October 11 vs. *Central Washington | 6 p.m. | Ratliff Stadium
        Theme: Pink Out / Pink The Basin / Breast Cancer Awareness
Week 7: Saturday, October 18 at *Western Oregon (Monmouth, Oregon)
Week 8: Saturday, October 25 vs. *West Texas A&M| 6 p.m. | Astound Broadband Stadium 
        Theme: Homecoming / Hall of Fame Weekend
Week 9: Saturday, November 1 at *Western New Mexico (Silver City, New Mexico)
Week 10: Saturday, November 8 vs. *Eastern New Mexico | 7 p.m. | Astound Broadband Stadium
        Theme: Military Appreciation / First Responders Day / Youth Football Day
Week 11: Saturday, November 15 vs. *Sul Ross State | 6 p.m. | Astound Broadband Stadium
        Theme: Senior Day

*Lone Star Conference Game
Home Games listed in Bold
All times listed are Central Time
 
 
Schedule Deep Dive:

Week 0 vs. Central Oklahoma Bronchos
2024 Record: 11-2 | First Meeting
 
"Week 0" will see the Falcons and Bronchos face off for the first time. Central Oklahoma went 11-2 last season and won the MIAA Championship for the first time since joining the league in 2012. UCO also made the Division II Football Championship for the first time since 2003, earned the No. 4 seed in Super Region III, hosted a playoff game for the first time since 1998, and advanced to the second round of the playoffs before falling to top-seed and eventual national champion Ferris State in the Super Region III semifinal. In 2024, UCO led the country in total offense (6,997 yards), had the third-rated passing offense (4,323 yards) and put up the fifth-ranked scoring offense (577 total points; 44.3 avg.) in the country. UCO Head Coach Adam Dorrel, a three-time national coach of the year, is 22-13 in three seasons with the Bronchos. After a 6-5 campaign followed by a 5-6 run, UCO turned a corner in Dorrel's third year this past Fall. The Bronchos started the year 7-0 and won the MIAA title with a 10-1 overall record and an 8-1 mark in league play. The Bronchos beat Ouachita Baptist in the NCAA Division II Football Championship first round before falling in the regional semifinal at Ferris State. Central Oklahoma ended the year ranked No. 9 in the country in the American Football Coaches' Association Top 25. Central Oklahoma saw five players earn All-American and All-Region honors after 18 earned All-MIAA honors following the regular season. Dorrel was named MIAA Coach of the Year and AFCA Regional Coach of the Year. Junior Montriel Lee was named MIAA Offensive Lineman of the Year and wide receiver Ashton Schumann was the Freshman of the Year. Lee paved the way for the offense from his position at right guard. A First Team D2CCA All-Region and MIAA Offensive Lineman of the Year and First Team All-MIAA selection from the No. 1 offense in the country, Lee started every game at right guard and paved the way for the No. 1 offense in the country (538.4 yards per game). The team set the single-season scoring record (577 points) and single-season first downs record (337) at UCO. Lee led the way for No. 3 pass offense (332.6) and No. 13 rush offense (205.7).

Words from Coach McCullough: "This gives us a true region test in the first game of the season. It really helps us gauge where we are as a program and where we are for the 2025 edition of the Falcons. We've always played top-25 matchups early on in the season. Two years ago, it was Western Colorado at their place. Last year, we were at CSU-Pueblo. To start this year with UCO, it's not going to be an easy task. They have one of the best receivers and quarterbacks in the country, they have 15 or 16 starters back from last year's team and they have one of the best head coaches in the country in Adam Dorrel who won national championships at Northwest Missouri State. I have a ton of respect for their staff and I've always wanted to play UCO and never got the opportunity. They're a great program and I look forward to seeing how our guys are going to respond to that. Luckily, there's plenty of time between now and then to get ready."
 

Week 1 vs. Adams State Grizzlies
2024 Record: 0-11 | Last Meeting: September 14, 2024, W 67-14
 
For the third year in a row, the Falcons' first road game of the season will come in the state of Colorado. In the first-ever matchup between UTPB and Adams State last season, a 67-14 victory for the Falcons at Astound Broadband Stadium, UTPB Head Coach Kris McCullough earned his first win as a Falcon against a team from Colorado. UTPB finished with four touchdowns on the ground and four in the air, and added one touchdown on special teams. Junior running back Kory Harris rushed 24 times for 155 yards and two touchdowns, graduate student quarterback Dylan Graham completed 15-of-24 passes for 272 yards and threw a touchdown pass to four different players, and sophomore Traylen Suel showed off his speed with a 96-yard kickoff returned for a touchdown for UTPB's first points of the second half and caught a 47-yard touchdown pass from Graham on the first play of the next UTPB drive. In all, UTPB finished with exactly 306 rushing yard and 306 passing yards. The total of 612 total yards was the fourth most for the Falcons in the McCullough era. The Grizzlies finished this past season with an overall record of 0-11 and a 0-9 mark in RMAC play. On December 18, 2024, Adams State athletic director Katelyn Smith announced that Levi Gallas will be the Grizzlies next head football coach. Gallas had been the defensive coordinator at West Texas A&M for the past two seasons. Gallas is no stranger to Adams State. As a player, he was an All-RMAC selection in both football and track. A linebacker on the gridiron, he was a two-time team captain and the team MVP in 2009. He attended Adams State from 2005 to 2010, earning a bachelor's degree in human performance and physical education.

Words from Coach McCullough: "I've never won in the state of Colorado as a head coach, and Adams State is going to be a different team from last year. They hired the defensive coordinator from West Texas A&M to be their head coach. It's not going to be easy to go there and play them on the road. The only film we're going to have is going to be from their first game against Western New Mexico the week before us."
 

Week 3 at Texas A&M-Kingsville Javelinas
2024 Record: 7-4 | Last Meeting: September 21, 2024, L 20-14
 
After their bye week, the Falcons will open up LSC play on the road, taking on Texas A&M-Kingsville during the Javelinas' Family Night. The Falcons and Javelinas meet for the 10th time on the gridiron with TAMUK holding a 6-3 advantage in the series. It will be the fifth trip by the Falcons to Kingsville, Texas, but the first since the 2022 season. UTPB is 1-3 on the road against TAMUK. In 2023, one of the turning points in the season for UTPB was a 29-17 home win over No. 16 nationally-ranked Texas A&M-Kingsville that allowed the Falcons to improve to 2-0 in the LSC. The win over the Javelinas that year marked UTPB's first win in program history over a nationally-ranked team. Last season, however, it was the Javelinas who handed UTPB its first loss in LSC action in two seasons and sealed a 20-14 win during "Week 3" at Astound Broadband Stadium with an endzone interception. In the game, UTPB junior running back Kory Harris became UTPB's career rushing leader with 1,644 yards at the time. On December 23, 2024, Texas A&M-Kingsville announced that Scott Parr would become the head coach of the institution's storied football program. Parr joined the program as head football coach after serving as Co-Offensive Coordinator at Louisiana Tech University since 2022. Prior to that, Parr led the Navarro College (Texas) Bulldog football program as head coach from 2019-2021. Under his leadership, the Bulldogs were South West Junior College Football Conference Champions in 2019, the same year Parr was named SWJCFC Coach of the Year. Parr replaces former head coach Michael Salinas, who was named Executive Director of Javelina Athletics in November. Salinas said Parr's record for developing leaders on and off the field will immediately impact the program.

Words from Coach McCullough: "I haven't been to Kingsville yet as the head coach, so I'm looking forward to Kingsville's tradition and history that is one of the best in Division II athletics in any sport. They're going to be a great team; those guys are going to throw the ball 60 times, so it's going to be a tall task for our defense. Scott Parr is a coach that tries to score 50, 60, or 70 points a game as a play caller. We're going to have to be on our toes and are going to have to play a lot better than we did last year against Kingsville. Their defensive coordinator is still there. He's one of the best defensive coordinators I've had to go up against, so it's going to be a tough test. One thing I do like about our schedule is you play your two nonconference games and you get to really figure out who you are as a football team, and then heading into Lone Star Conference play, you have an extra week there to prepare for the air-raid offense of Texas A&M Kingsville. They're going to be a well-coached football team and it's going to be a tough road test."
 

Week 4 vs. Midwestern State Mustangs
2024 Record: 4-7 | Last Meeting: September 28, 2024, W 27-3
 
The Falcons will play at home for the first time in LSC action in 2025 against Midwestern State. In 2024, UTPB got back into the win column with a 27-3 road win at Midwestern State, earning its second road win at MSU in as many seasons. In the previous season, UTPB beat the Mustangs by eight points, 21-13, for the first road win at MSU in program history. In last year's matchup in Wichita Falls, Texas, UTPB got on the scoreboard first just four plays into its first possession of the game with a 58-yard touchdown pass from graduate student quarterback Dylan Graham to former Mustang Ja'Juan Mason. In the end, UTPB finished with points in all four quarters and outgained MSU 441-253 overall, its third time reaching at least 400 yards of total offense within the first five games of the season. Following the season, Midwestern State's Demonte Greene was named LSC Offensive Freshman of the Year. Greene led the Mustangs with 35 receptions for 550 yards and five touchdowns. Greene also averaged 13.8 yards on 13 punt returns. Midwestern State last took home the LSC trophy in 2021.

Words from Coach McCullough: "Coach Rich Renner is a great man first and foremost, but a great coach as well. They have had some staff turnover and they're going to the air-raid offense as well. They hired a young analyst from Texas Tech University who's going to run some Zach Kitley schematics, so they're going to be a fast tempo, throw-it-around-the-yard type of team, just like Kingsville. So, in back-to-back games, our defensive backs have got to be locked in and ready to roll."
 

Week 5 at Angelo State Rams
2024 Record: 9-3 | Last Meeting: October 5, 2024, L 7-36
 
"Week Five" will feature arguably the biggest matchup of the season for UTPB. Two seasons ago, UTPB beat Angelo State 28-23 on the road, and the Falcons will be looking for a similar performance on the road this time around. It was the second win over a ranked opponent in school history at the time and was the first win over ASU in program history. This season, the Falcons and Rams meet for the ninth time on the gridiron with ASU holding the 7-1 advantage in the series. In their matchup last season at Astround Broadband Stadium, which was dubbed as the FloSports Game of the Week, UTPB suffered its second loss of the season in LSC action, falling 36-7 to the Rams. ASU junior quarterback Brayden Fuller was 9-for-15 for 112 yards and one passing touchdown for ASU, but was a killer on the ground, taking off 15 times for a grand total of 146 yards and three scores. Fuller was named the LSC Offensive Player of the Year and was a finalist for the prestigious Harlon Hill Trophy Award which is given to Division II's top player of the year. Fuller led the conference in passing yards (2,180) and passing touchdowns (18), adding 648 yards on the ground and 10 rushing scores. He was named the LSC Player of the Week five times during the season. Junior Andrew Pitts was named the LSC Defensive Back of the Year for the second time in his career after finishing the season with six interceptions, eight pass breakups, and 38 tackles. For the third time since taking over the program in 2019, Head Coach Jeff Girsch was named the LSC Coach of the Year after leading the Rams to a second conference championship in three seasons. Girsch holds a .778 winning percentage at ASU and is currently the winningest coach in program history. 16th-ranked Angelo State ultimately closed out its 2024 season with a 24-14 loss to Bemidji State in a home game in the first round of the NCAA Division II Football Championship. The Rams finish the 2024 campaign with a 9-3 overall record, making their third appearance in the playoffs in four seasons.

Words from Coach McCullough: "Coach Jeff Girsch is probably one of the best coaches I know. He's going to have those guys ready to roll. It's pretty heated in those games, but that's what college football is about. As a head coach, you love that, and our guys love that type of atmosphere. I'm excited to go back to San Angelo, Texas, and have a night game there again. The last time we were there was a pretty special night, so we've got to find a way to replicate that."
 

Week 6 vs. Central Washington Wildcats
2024 Record: 8-4 | Last Meeting: October 12, 2024, W 14-13
 
UTPB's biggest win in 2024 came on the road at Central Washington, and the Falcons are looking for their third win in a row over the Wildcats after capturing the first LSC Championship in program history with a 42-14 victory over CWU at Astound Broadband Stadium in the final regular season game of 2023. In last's year meeting between the two teams in Washington, freshman quarterback Issac Mooring made his first-career start and led the Falcons to a hard-fought 14-13 victory on the road against No. 9-ranked CWU. In addition to earning a top-10 win on the road, it was the highest nationally-ranked team the Falcons have defeated in program history. Mooring would finish 12-of-24 for 107 yards passing, but showed his toughness as he led the Falcons with 55 rushing yards and two touchdowns on 16 attempts. In the second half alone, Mooring was 9-for-13 for 105 yards passing while adding 42 rushing yards. 19th-ranked CWU later fell in the first round of the NCAA Division II Championship Playoffs at 10th-ranked and No. 2-seeded Western Colorado Mountaineers by a 28-21 score. In addition to finishing the season with its second of back-to-back playoff appearances, CWU finished with an 8-4 overall record and was second in the LSC with a 7-2 record, which included three shutout performances by the defense. At the end of the regular season, redshirt junior running back Tyler Flanagan earned his second-straight LSC Offensive Back of the Year award while redshirt junior center Slade Edwards was tabbed as the LSC Offensive Lineman of the Year. Redshirt freshman defensive lineman Mikaio Edward was named the Defensive Freshman of the Year. This year's contest between the Falcons and Wildcats will be their fourth meeting on the gridiron, but the first at Ratliff Stadium.

Words from Coach McCullough: "They're just a winning program. They're always in that title hunt and in the playoff hunt. In the last two years, they had a shot at the playoffs and had a game against us where we beat them by 23 at home. Then they played Angelo State last year for a conference title and lost that one last second. They're a good football team and they're definitely going to have a grudge match against us. The last two seasons, we beat them both at their place and beat them here in Midland, so playing them for a third time around will be awesome, and it's a matchup I'm definitely looking forward to."
 

Week 7 at Western Oregon Wolves
2024 Record: 6-5 | Last Meeting: October 19, 2024, L 27-30 (OT)
 
The last two seasons saw the Falcons host the Wolves for their Homecoming Game. This time around, UTPB will travel to Monmouth, Oregon, for the first time since the 2022 season. The Falcons and Wolves will battle for the fourth time on the gridiron. In their most recent meeting last year, the UTPB offense started off hot with touchdowns on two of its first three drives of the game, but from there WOU settled things down, turned to the run game and pulled out a 30-27 overtime victory during the Falcons' Senior Day on a windy Saturday night inside Astound Broadband Stadium. The Wolves put together a 20-point second quarter in the win and a missed extra point attempt by the Falcons in the third quarter proved costly. The Wolves are coming off a 6-5 campaign in 2024 that included going 6-3 in the LSC to finish tied for third. The Wolves only had one conference loss going into the final two weeks of the regular season before falling at home against No. 23-ranked Angelo State, 38-16, and losing on the road at No. 25-ranked Central Washington, 13-3. WOU sophomore cornerback Andrew Simpson was named to the Division II Conference Commissioners Association All-Super Region 4 Second Team after a breakout 2024 campaign. The Beaverton, Oregon, native finished second in NCAA DII in passes defended per game (1.6) and fifth in interceptions per game (0.5). Overall, Simpson was tied for third in the nation with six interceptions and tied for second in passes defended with 18. Simpson's six interceptions is tied for the fifth-most in WOU history. Only four players since the Wolves joined the NCAA in 2001 have had six or more interceptions in a season.

Words from Coach McCullough: "I'm looking forward to that trip. I've never been to the state of Oregon. I grew up an Oregon duck fan, which is crazy being from Arkansas, so I always wanted to go to Oregon. I am looking forward to that trip, but it will be against a football team that came to our place last year and beat us pretty good. It looked like a close game, it went to overtime, but it really wasn't that close. They were massive and we didn't have an answer. We couldn't move the ball on them. So, we just talked about a grudge match with Central Washington, this may be our grudge match because that kept us out of the playoffs last year."
 

Week 8 vs. West Texas A&M Buffaloes
2024 Record: 5-6 | Last Meeting: October 26, 2024, W 21-7
 
The Falcons and Buffaloes will meet for the ninth time on the gridiron with WT holding a 5-3 advantage in the series that dates back to 2016. The Falcons have taken down the Buffs in each of the last two seasons. Last year on the road at WT, UTPB scored on each of its first three possessions of the game and the defense forced three turnovers as the Falcons took down the Buffs by a score of 21-7 at Bain-Schaeffer Buffalo Stadium. In addition to being back-to-back wins against the Buffaloes, this was the Falcons' first-ever victory in Canyon, Texas. The second play of the game for the Falcons and first pass for freshman quarterback Issac Mooring went 54 yards down the right sideline to junior Ben Patterson for six points.

Words from Coach McCullough: "When you think of the Lone Star Conference over the last 20 years, WT is one of the teams you think of, so anytime you play them, it's always going to be a game you want to go win, but it's going to be a team that's different than last year. They have a new defensive coordinator who was the defensive backs coach and a new offensive coordinator who we just faced in the bowl game from Central Missouri. So, they are going to be a different team, but we have some time to figure out who they are. I look forward to that game to wrap up our October schedule."
 

Week 9 at Western New Mexico Mustangs
2024 Record: 2-9 | Last Meeting: August 31, 2024, W 41-3
 
The Falcons and Mustangs meet for the 10th time in school history on the gridiron. UTPB is 7-2 all-time in the series and has won each of the last five meetings between the two teams. No. 21 nationally-ranked UTPB faced little resistance en route to a 41-3 win over Western New Mexico in what was the season opener and first LSC game of the season for both teams last season during "Week 0" inside Ratliff Stadium. The Mustangs finished the 2024 season 2-9 on the year, going 0-9 in LSC play. This year's game in Silver City, New Mexico, will be Faculty Appreciation Day for WNMU.

Words from Coach McCullough: "I always look forward to this trip. There's nothing there, but it's also a pretty cool stadium to play in. Our guys like playing there, so that's always a good thing when the guys want to go on that trip."
 

Week 10 vs. Eastern New Mexico Greyhounds
2024 Record: 3-8 | Last Meeting: November 9, 2024, W 64-14
 
The Falcons and Greyhounds meet for the ninth time on the gridiron with UTPB winning the last five matchups and holding a 5-3 advantage in the series. In their matchup last season, UTPB scored nine touchdowns while passing for over 300 yards and rushing for over 250 yards in a 64-14 victory over the Greyhounds at Steve Loy Family Foundation Stadium. UTPB's 575 yards of total offense was its third most during the season. In the end, three of the Falcons' final four touchdowns of the game came on just one play. Mooring was 23-for-31 passing for 222 yards and three touchdowns, setting season-highs at the time in completions, passing yards and passing touchdowns. On the ground, both junior running back Kory Harris and senior running back Tyler Cleveland rushed for two scores. Harris ran 20 times for 81 yards while Cleveland made the most of his eight touches, running for 115 yards, which included a 73-yard touchdown run for the final touchdown of the game. ENMU completed its 2024 season with a 3-8 (1-8 LSC) record.

Words from Coach McCullough: "They run a triple option, which is always tough. We're so focused on UCO right now, but it's hard because you have to talk about the triple option in Spring ball and Fall camp. You have to discuss what we are going to try to do against the triple option because if you just go all season or all year long and don't introduce that until the week before you play them, you're going to struggle against them. You have to have your ducks in a row when you play the triple option, so it's not easy. Whether it's home or on the road in Portales, New Mexico, it's not an easy game."
 

Week 11 vs. Sul Ross State Lobos
2024 Record: 3-8 | Last Meeting: November 16, 2024, W 75-7
 
The Falcons and Lobos meet for the fourth time on the gridiron. Last season's matchup was the first meeting between the two teams since September 2, 2017. Each of the previous two meetings between the teams came in Odessa during UTPB's first two seasons. Last year, however, was nothing like the first two meetings. In its final regular-season game of the 2024 season, UTPB got five passing touchdowns from freshman quarterback Issac Mooring combined with four rushing touchdowns from junior running Kory Harris in a 75-7 victory at Sul Ross State. The 75 points scored were the most by any LSC team in a single game in 2024. In addition, the Falcons averaged nine yards per play and finished with 711 total yards of offense, which was good for a new program record, breaking the previous record of 677 yards set on October 14, 2023, vs. Eastern New Mexico University. In addition, it marked the ninth time in two seasons under Head Coach Kris McCullough that the Falcons went for over 500 yards of offense in a game. In the end, 10 of UTPB's 11 drives in the game that did not end either the first or second half resulted in a touchdown. UTPB scored a touchdown on all seven of its drives in the first half and had 472 yards of offense at halftime. It started with a 77-yard touchdown pass from Mooring to senior Deon Cook, who caught the ball down the right sideline before cutting all the way across the field for the score on the very first play of the game. Harris would finish the game with 26 carries for a program-record of 201 yards, which was good for 7.7 yards per attempt. He became the first UTPB runner to surpass 200 rushing yards in a game and 1,000 yards in a season (1,009 yards at the time). In addition, with his four touchdowns, he tied the UTPB single-season record for both rushing touchdowns (11) and total touchdowns (12) before breaking them with a pair of rushing touchdowns in the Bowl Game against Central Missouri. As a team, UTPB finished the game against the Lobos with a season-high 318 rushing yards on 45 carries. Mooring added just two passing attempts to his total in the second half, finishing 26-for-28 for 353 yards for the game. In addition to setting a program record for passing percentage (92.9 percent) and gaining career-highs in passing yards and passing touchdowns, Mooring now has the seventh most passing yards in a game for a single player in program history. Meanwhile, UTPB's 393 combined passing yards were the fifth most in a game in program history. This offseason, Sul Ross State selected Lee Hays as the new head football coach. Hays got his coaching start at Texas A&M Kingsville, 1997-98. He oversaw the tight ends while helping the Javelinas to a 20-5 record, winning the LSC title twice and qualifying for the NCAA Division II playoffs both seasons. Hays comes to Alpine from Lubbock-Cooper High School (2018-24) where he was the offensive line coach and assistant offensive coordinator. Over the last four years, he helped the Pirates to the most wins and play-off games in school history. He has a Bachelor of Science in Kinesiology from Texas A&M Kingsville and a Master of Interdisciplinary Studies from West Texas A&M.

Words from Coach McCullough: "Coach Lee Hays is well-known in the state of Texas. He had a pretty good career at places like Texas Tech and Baylor, some of the top-tier programs. He has been a high school coach the last few years, but getting the opportunity to be a head coach now, I've talked to him a few times and talked to him at the Lone Star Conference coaches meeting a few weeks ago. We've even talked on the phone a few times about possibly scrimmaging in the near future in the Spring. We can scrimmage other teams in the Spring, it's just a tough location for us. It's hard to find a school outside the Lone Star Conference to come to Odessa or for us to go there in the Spring just because it's such a long way. The game this year is going to be Senior Day for us, and hopefully it's not our last game of the season, but I am looking forward to playing those guys here."