ODESSA, Texas (September 25, 2026) – After becoming the first Lone Star Conference team so far this season with two wins in conference play, The University of Texas Permian Basin football team (2-1 overall, 2-0 LSC) looks to improve to 3-0 in the LSC. The Falcons continue their four-game road swing on Saturday, September 26, starting at 3 p.m. Central Time / 2 p.m. Mountain Time at Eastern New Mexico University (0-3, 0-1) in Portales, New Mexico.

FALCONS' LAST TIME OUT
UT Permian Basin set the tone early with three touchdowns on its first three drives and had four interceptions – taking two back for scores – to cruise to a 66-7 win at Jackson Field in Alpine, Texas. UTPB, which led 45-0 at halftime, got 215 yards passing and three TDs from Nate TenBarge and 95 yards rushing and two scores from Tyler Camden. Layne Horak returned a pick for the second straight week and Eli Leiataua also took one back. Leiataua totaled two INTs and Nicholas Elso had two sacks and forced a fumble. Diego Chavarria was 9-for-9 on extra-point attempts and also made a 38-yard field goal, while Micai Thompson returned a kickoff 98 yards for a TD. Ronald Bell had four catches for 81 yards for SRSU.

SCOUTING UTPB
UT Permian Basin enters the matchup riding back-to-back conference victories after opening the season with a loss to UT Rio Grande Valley. The Falcons responded with a 69-14 victory over Western New Mexico before defeating Sul Ross State 66-7 on the road.

The Falcons are averaging 162.3 rushing yards and 209 passing yards per game. Their defense has surrendered just seven touchdowns through its first three contests, the fewest in the LSC. UTPB was picked fifth in the conference's preseason poll and continues to receive votes in this week's AFCA Top 25 Poll for the fourth week in a row.

THE SERIES (UTPB VS. ENMU)
Saturday marks the 10th meeting between UT Permian Basin and Eastern New Mexico, with the Falcons holding a 6-3 advantage in the all-time series. UTPB has won six straight meetings between the two teams by an average of 20 points, while Eastern's most recent victory came at home in 2018 when the Greyhounds defeated the Falcons 24-7. ENMU won the first-ever meeting between the programs, 34-3, in 2016.

Saturday's matchup will also be the first Lone Star Conference game at home for the Greyhounds under their new head coach, Art Briles.

Eastern will look to defend its home field and pick up its first victory of the 2026 season this Saturday. ENMU Athletics will also be hosting the 1991 Lone Star Conference Championship football team reunion this weekend, where the former players and coaches will be honored during the first quarter of Saturday's game. The first 500 fans will receive a replica 1991 Championship Ring, sponsored by Homespot.

THE LAST TIME THEY MET
No. 17 UT Permian Basin holds off Eastern New Mexico, 47-34: No. 17 UT Permian Basin got off to a strong start and held off Eastern New Mexico for a 47-34 win at Astound Broadband Stadium. It was the third straight victory for the Falcons, who improved to 6-2 in league play. UTPB, which totaled 572 yards of total offense, built up a 40-7 lead at halftime thanks to two touchdown passes and a TD run by Kanon Gibson. Kory Harris, Adrian Cormier and Camden Tyler also added rushing TDs in the first half. Gibson finished 26 of 42 for 321 yards and Harris (83 yards on 12 carries) ran for two scores. Ben Patterson caught four passes for 99 yards and a TD. UTPB's Tristan Exline had 20 tackles – eight solo and six for loss of 38 yards – two forced fumbles and a sack. ENMU's Nora Robert ran for 165 yards on 11 carries and Gerry Gomez caught four passes for 143 yards. Jarrion Patton and Tamarr Fairman had interceptions for the Greyhounds, and Ryan Travis averaged 42.5 yards on four punts.

GREYHOUNDS' LAST TIME OUT
Greyhounds fall to Javelinas in LSC opener: Texas A&M-Kingsville went on a scoring spree beginning in the second quarter and rolled to a 53-22 win over Eastern New Mexico at Javelinas Stadium. Trailing 15-14 with 10:01 left in the second quarter, TAMUK scored 39 consecutive points to build a 53-15 lead with 10:33 to play. Edward Chumley ran for 188 yards and three touchdowns on 14 carries and Mills Dawson threw for 248 yards and a score. Jeremiah Conaway and Jeremiah Robinson each had 10 tackles and Julian Payne had two interceptions for TAMUK. Jose Trevino had five catches for 57 yards and a TD, while Matthew Quartieri had nine tackles for ENMU.

SCOUTING ENMU
Greyhound Offense: Eastern enters the weekend averaging 450 yards of offense per game, third-best in the LSC, while its 26.3 points per game ranks seventh. The Hounds have already thrown for 718 yards through three games after totaling 1,117 passing yards during the entire 2025 season. ENMU has also accumulated 632 yards on the ground, ranking third in the conference.

Trevino has emerged as one of Eastern's top scoring threats, finding the end zone in each of the first three games and entering the weekend tied for fourth in the LSC with four touchdowns. Kibbles leads the receiving corps with 191 yards, while Darwin Parker follows with 133. At quarterback, Clifton Cooper leads the Hounds with 304 passing yards, followed closely by Jake South with 287.

Defensive Playmakers: Quartieri continues to pace the Greyhound defense with 27 tackles, tying him for third in the LSC entering the weekend. Caleb Jefferson has made an impact in the secondary with two interceptions and two pass breakups, while Logan Howell, Malachi Hannah and Xander Holt have each recorded a sack.

A CLOSER LOOK AT THE GREYHOUNDS
Heading into the season opener, it had been 276 days since Eastern New Mexico University announced former AP College Football Coach of the Year Art Briles would become the 18th head coach in the football program's history. It had also been 3,890 days since Briles coached in a collegiate football game. That streak ended when the new-look Greyhounds went north to Las Vegas, New Mexico, to take on the New Mexico Highlands Cowboys Sanchez Family Stadium to kick off the 2026 season.
 
There is a certain buzz around Portales in excitement for the upcoming football season, a fan base hopeful for a change in direction for the team.

The Lone Star Conference announced the 2026 preseason football poll at media day hosted at the McKinney ISD Stadium. Eastern New Mexico football was selected seventh in the poll and received one first place vote as voted on the by sports information directors, coaches, and media members.

ENMU's Robert Nora and Matthew Quartieri were named conference players to watch for the upcoming season.

Nora, the Clovis native, appeared in nine games for the Greyhounds, accumulating 292 rushing yards, including a 165-yard performance against UT Permian Basin. He also five receptions for 70 yards over the season.

Quartieri started all eleven games for the Hounds and lead the team in total tackles last season with 89.0, finishing sixth in the LSC. He tacked on two interceptions and a sack, and was an all-conference honorable mention selection.

ENMU was represented by J.J. Silver and Dathan Yeary at the media day. Silver is a junior linebacker and defensive captain for the hounds. Yeary is a junior center from Melrose, New Mexico.

HEARTBREAK IN LAS VEGAS: GREYHOUNDS FALL 35-34 IN THRILLING SEASON OPENER
Eastern New Mexico came up short against New Mexico Highlands 35-34 at Sanchez Family Stadium in Las Vegas, N.M. After a six-yard touchdown pass from Clifton Cooper to Jose Trevino with 1:34 remaining to play, ENMU opted to go for the win with a fake extra-point attempt but was unsuccessful. Trevino caught two TD passes and three different ENMU rushers found the end zone (Lake Bennett, Emeka Megwa and Trei Kibbles). Matthew Quartieri had seven tackles and Caleb Jefferson had an interception to lead the Greyounds on defense.

ART BRILES NAMED HEAD FOOTBALL COACH AT EASTERN NEW MEXICO UNIVERSITY
Art Briles is the next head football coach at Eastern New Mexico University. Director of athletics Kevin Fite announces the decision on Monday morning.

Briles, a native of Rule, Texas, has coached football for 40+ years. The 2013 AP College Football Coach of the Year led the University of Houston (2002-07) and Baylor (2008-15) to 10 bowl games and a 99-65 overall record.

With the Bears, Briles compiled a 65-37 mark over eight seasons. His squads won two Big 12 championships and earned six bowl berths. In 2011, quarterback Robert Griffin III won the Heisman Trophy under the guidance of coach Briles.

In Houston, he helped the Cougars go 34-28 over five seasons, including four bowl games and a Conference USA championship.

He has coached four NFL starting quarterbacks - Kevin Kolb, Case Keenum, Robert Griffin III, and Bryce Petty.

At the high school level, Briles holds a record of 185-49-1. He began his head coaching career at Hamlin High School in 1984 and has had stops at Georgetown (1986-87), Stephenville (1988-99), and Mount Vernon (2019-20). With Stephenville, he won four 4A state championships over 12 seasons. Recently, Stephenville ISD built Art Briles Stadium.

CONFERENCE OUTLOOK
All 10 Lone Star Conference football teams were in league action during Week 3. No. 16 Central Washington, Midwestern State, Texas A&M-Kingsville, UT Permian Basin and West Texas A&M all prevailed.

Week 4 will feature five more conference games on Saturday, Sept. 26. Of those matchups, Midwestern State travels to West Texas A&M in a battle of teams that both won their league openers.

MSU is tops in the league in total offense (544 yards per game), while Sul Ross State is tops in defense (345.7 yards per game). MSU is scoring a conference-best 47 points per game and UTPB is allowing a league-low 21.7 points per game. CWU (35.3 yards per game) is the least penalized team in the LSC.

CWU was picked to repeat as the LSC champion this season, according to the league's preseason poll. Western Oregon senior quarterback Jordan McCarty and CWU senior linebacker Brycen Indell were predicted to win preseason player of the year honors.

LIVE COVERAGE
Saturday's contest will be broadcasted on FloCollege. The LSC and FloSports reached a historic agreement in August of 2024 for the largest streaming rights deal in NCAA Division II history. LSC fans will have three subscription plans to choose from: Standard, Student or Family. The Standard Plan is $24.99 per month or $119.88 per year ($9.99/month). The Student Plan is $12.99 per month or $95.88 per year ($7.99/month). Subscribers must have a valid .edu email address from an LSC member institution or affiliate. The Family Plan is $155.88 per year ($12.99/month). FloCollege's newest subscription plan is only available annually. The primary account owner will be able to invite up to two additional individuals to join their account. Each added account will receive its own login with full access to FloCollege and can stream the same or different content from completely different locations.

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.