COMMERCE - The No. 6 Texas A&M University-Commerce Lions hit the road again this week, traveling to Goodwell, Okla., for the Lions' first-ever meeting with Oklahoma Panhandle State University.
WHO: Texas A&M University-Commerce at Oklahoma Panhandle State University
WHERE: Goodwell, Okla. | Carl Wooten Field
WHEN: 1 p.m. on Saturday, October 1
RECORDS: Texas A&M-Commerce is 4-0 overall and 2-0 in the Lone Star Conference after a 38-36 win over Texas A&M-Kingsville. Oklahoma Panhandle State is 1-3 overall and 0-2 in the LSC after a 42-24 loss at Midwestern State that started Saturday and ended Sunday due to a weather delay..
RANKINGS: Texas A&M-Commerce is ranked No. 6 in the AFCA Coaches' Poll and No. 8 in the D2Football.com Media Poll. OPSU is unranked.
LIVE AUDIO: Lion Sports Network -- KETR 88.9 FM, Commerce (
http://www.ketr.org), Thunder Country KRVA 101.7 FM, Sulphur Springs (
http://www.mythundercountry.com/)
LIVE VIDEO: TBA
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HANGIN' WITH MR. COOPER
• A&M-Commerce All-American running back
Richard Cooper earned LSC Offensive Player of the Week honors with a career performance, rushing for 224 yards and two touchdowns on 19 carries.
• His 11.8 yards per carry average was 1/10 of a yard short of the school record.
• It is the 11th-most rushing yards by a Lion in a single game.
| 1. |
323 |
Arthur James |
vs Abilene Chr |
1968 |
| 2 |
263 |
Arthur James |
vs SWTexas |
1968 |
| 3 |
251 |
Ricky Dirks |
vs Cameron |
1983 |
| 4 |
246 |
Kenneth Parks |
vs UCO |
1972 |
| 5 |
244 |
Kenneth Parks |
vs Angelo |
1972 |
| 6 |
242 |
Aundra Thompson |
vs HPU |
1975 |
| 7 |
238 |
Donald Lee |
vs ENMU |
1985 |
|
238 |
Demetrius Rector |
vs UCO |
2001 |
| 9 |
233 |
Arthur James |
vs Sul Ross |
1967 |
| 10 |
227 |
Kenneth Parks |
vs A&I |
1972 |
| 11 |
224 |
RICHARD COOPER |
vs TAMUK |
2016 |
• Cooper also continues his march upwards in the all-time A&M-Commerce rushing record books.
| Rk |
Yards |
Player |
Years |
| 1. |
4,285 |
Arthur James |
1966-69 |
| 2 |
3,757 |
Aundra Thompson |
1972-75 |
| 3. |
3,268 |
Cary Noiel |
1978-81 |
| 4. |
3,191 |
Ricky Dirks |
1982-84 |
| 5. |
2,545 |
Richard Cooper |
2013-pres. |
WEEK 4 AFCA RANKING TIES PROGRAM'S BEST
• The Lions are ranked sixth in the nation in Division II according to the American Football Coaches Association Coaches Poll this week.
• The Lions are ranked sixth nationally for the second consecutive week following the 38-36 win over Texas A&M-Kingsville. The Lions earned 586 points in this week's poll, adding 20 points to last week's total.
• A&M-Commerce has now been ranked in 18 straight AFCA polls, dating back to the 2015 preseason poll.
• This is A&M-Commerce's 24th all-time appearance in the AFCA poll since its inception in 2000.
• The ranking ties the best ranking for A&M-Commerce since the AFCA Division II Poll began in 2000.
DOMINGUEZ BOOTS WAY TO LSC POTW HONORS
• A&M-Commerce punter
Hector Dominguez earned Lone Star Conference Special Teams Player of the Week honors for his performance vs. Texas A&M-Kingsville
• Dominguez - a senior from Monterey Park, Calif. - booted seven punts on Saturday night and pinned the Javelinas inside their own 20-yardline three times - all of which were inside the 10-yardline as well.
• His final punt of the night went out of bounds inside the Texas A&M-Kingsville 1-yardline, forcing a 99-yard Javelina drive. Dominguez had an average of 38.6 yards per punt with a long punt of 49 yards in the Lions' 38-36 victory.
PEREZ CONTINUES TO IMPRESS
•Texas A&M-Commerce quarterback
Luis Perez has been fantastic in his introduction to the Lion lineup.
• Perez is featured prominently in the NCAA Division II and Lone Star Conference statistical rankings
• He leads the LSC in four categories - completion percentage, pass efficiency, passing yards per attempt and passing yards per completion.
| Stat |
LSC |
D2 |
Stat |
| Completion Pct |
1 |
8 |
69.9 |
| Completion/Gm |
5 |
68 |
17.0 |
| Pass Efficiency |
1 |
4 |
197.7 |
| Pass TDs |
3 |
41 |
8 |
| Pass Yds |
5 |
83 |
797 |
| Pass Yds/Gm |
2 |
29 |
265.7 |
| Pass Yds/Att |
1 |
4 |
10.92 |
| Pass Yds/Cmp |
1 |
17 |
15.63 |
| Pts Responsible |
3 |
68 |
48 |
| Pts Resp/Gm |
3 |
35 |
16.7 |
| Total Offense |
4 |
50 |
266.7 |
FIRST TIME AGAINST THE AGGIES
• The Lions and Oklahoma Panhandle State have never met. This is OPSU's third game in Lone Star Conference play and the Lions' 513th Lone Star Conference game.
• This is the first game for A&M-Commerce against a team named the "Aggies" since the 1993 season finale against Cameron. That was the last game in Cameron's program history.
HOLDING ON TO THE ROCK
• A&M-Commerce has turned the ball over only once this season.
• The Lions are one of only four teams to have lost the ball one time this year.
• The other three schools tied for the national lead in this category are Colorado Mesa, California (Pa.), and Indiana (Pa.)
MY BALL! LIONS LEAD IN TURNOVER MARGIN
• A&M-Commerce has also snagged eight turnovers in the three games which count toward statistics.
• After three interceptions in each the Delta State and Eastern New Mexico games, the Lions recovered two fumbles vs. A&M-Kingsville.
• The Lions are now tied for fourth nationally in turnover margin per game.
HOOKS ON THE RUN
•
Shawn Hooks has proven to be a dangerous weapon for the Lions in the punt return game.
• He ranks second in the league with a punt return average of 15.5 yards per return, which ranks 22nd nationally.
• Hooks is only behind West Texas A&M return man PJ Leonce, who is averaging 17.0 yards per punt return.
ON THE ROAD AGAIN
• The Lions return to the road this week for the third of six road games, all of substantial distance.
• With the addition of Oklahoma Panhandle State, Western New Mexico and UT Permian Basin to the Lone Star Conference, A&M-Commerce will visit all three new schools.
| Opponent |
1-way mileage |
| Delta State |
362 |
| Eastern New Mexico |
476 |
| Oklahoma Panhandle State |
483 |
| Western New Mexico |
853 |
| Angelo State |
341 |
| UT Permian Basin |
418 |
| TOTAL |
2,933 |
RETURN TO THE SOONER STATE
• The Lions routinely played in Oklahoma in a previous iteration of the Lone Star Conference, but this is the first time to head to the Sooner State since playing at Southeastern Oklahoma on Oct. 5, 2013.
• Goodwell is only 10 miles north of the Texas border via highway and roughly 30 miles south of Kansas.
HOT START
• The Lions have started the season with four consecutive wins for the first time since 1980, when ET won the first six games of the year on the way to a Lone Star Conference championship.
• The 2016 squad is the ninth team in the storied history of A&M-Commerce football to win its first four games.
