COMMERCE - The third-ranked Texas A&M University-Commerce Lions' football team plays its first of five home games this Saturday, hosting William Jewell Colllege for CommUniverCity Day at Memorial Stadium.
WHO: William Jewell College at Texas A&M University-Commerce
WHERE: Commerce | Memorial Stadium
WHEN: 6 p.m. on Saturday, September 9
RECORDS: A&M-Commerce is 1-0 with an 8-7 win over North Alabama. William Jewell is 0-1
RANKINGS: Texas A&M-Commerce is ranked No. 3 in the AFCA Coaches' Poll in the D2Football.com Media Poll. William Jewell is unranked.
LIVE AUDIO: Lion Sports Network -- KETR 88.9 FM, Commerce (
http://www.ketr.org)
LIVE VIDEO: http://www.LionAthletics.com/live
LIVE STATS: http://www.statbroadcast.com/events/statmonitr.php?gid=tame
LIONS OPEN HOME SCHEDULE
• The A&M-Commerce Lions come home to Commerce for CommUniverCity Day, the first of five games at Memorial Stadium scheduled for 2017.
• CommUniverCity Day is named to celebrate the collaborative partnerships between the Community, University, and City of Commerce.
• Numerous presentations to community partners who help advance those partnerships will be made on field throughout the game.
ALL-TIME SERIES
• This is the first meeting between the two schools.
• A&M-Commerce is 2-0 against current Great Lakes Valley Conference (GLVC) teams, with a pair of wins over Truman State in 1937 and 1938..
CLOSER #ToTheTop
• With the release of the Lions as the No. 3 team in the nation in both the AFCA and D2Football.com polls, the Lions have now reached their highest AFCA ranking since the poll was introduced in 2000.
• The Lions' previous high ranking in the AFCA poll was fourth last season.
• A&M-Commerce has been ranked in 28 straight AFCA polls, dating back to the 2015 preseason poll. This is A&M-Commerce's 34th all-time appearance in the AFCA poll since its inception in 2000.
SMITH IS LSC PLAYER OF THE WEEK
• Lion safety
Chris Smith has been named the Lone Star Conference's Defensive Player of the Week for his efforts in the Lions' 8-7 win at North Alabama.
• Smith - a junior from Mansfield - had six tackles, including two tackles for loss against North Alabama.
• He made arguably the biggest defensive play of the game for the Lions, recording a UNA safety that not only gave the Lions two points, but also another possession. The Lions used this possession to drive down the field for the game-winning field goal.
CARTHEL 5TH IN SCHOOL HISTORY IN WINS
• Head coach
Colby Carthel now ranks fifth in A&M-Commerce history in coaching wins with 35 wins.
• However, he will be in fifth for a while, as his 35 wins are just over half of J.V. Sikes' 63 wins in fourth place.
| 1 |
Ernest Hawkins |
1964-85 |
132-92-6 |
| 2 |
Eddie Vowell |
1986-98 |
74-71-1 |
| 3 |
Bob Berry |
1935-41, 46-50 |
72-34-8 |
| 4 |
J.V. Sikes |
1954-63 |
63-34-4 |
| 5 |
Colby Carthel |
2013-pres. |
35-14 |
| 6 |
M.A. Smith |
1951-53 |
30-2-1 |
DEFENSE HOLDS STRONG IN VICTORY
• The Lion defense held North Alabama to only a solitary touchdown in the 8-7 win last week.
• This is the fourth time the Lions have held their opponent to fewer than 10 points in the four-plus seasons under head coach
Colby Carthel.
• The 8 points in a win is the lowest winning total for the Lions since September 16, 1995, when East Texas State took a 6-3 win at Henderson State in Arkadelphia.
• Since Ernest Hawkins took over as coach at ET in 1964, the Lions have scored in single digits and won on seven occasions.
| 9/1/17 |
at North Alabama |
8-7 |
| 9/16/1995 |
at Henderson State |
6-3 |
| 9/4/1986 |
LIVINGSTON |
9-2 |
| 11/3/1979 |
TEXAS A&I |
3-0 |
| 11/5/1977 |
TEXAS A&I |
7-6 |
| 10/30/1965 |
at Howard Payne |
6-0 |
| 11/6/1965 |
SAM HOUSTON STATE |
7-0 |
MARTINEZ KICKS LIONS TO WIN
• Kicker
Kristov Martinez has scored 207 points in his career, which currently ranks eighth in A&M-Commerce history.
• The A&M-Commerce all-time leader in scoring is Billy Watkins, who scored 281 points from 1990-93 on 134 PATs and 49 field goals.
• Martinez moved up to third on the career field goal list with a pair of 30-yarders at UNA.
| CAREER SCORING LEADERS |
| 1. |
281 |
Billy Watkins (134 PAT, 49 FG) |
1990-93 |
| 2. |
224 |
David Dell (104 PAT, 40 FG) |
1995-98 |
| 3. |
222 |
Aundra Thompson (37 TD) |
1972-75 |
| 4. |
219 |
Saul Martinez (126 PAT, 31 FG) |
2013-14 |
| 5. |
216 |
Marvin Brown (36 TD) |
1951-52 |
| 6. |
210 |
Ricky Dirks (35 TD) |
1981-84 |
| 7. |
208 |
Leonard Allen (121 PAT, 29 FG) |
1973-76 |
| 8. |
207 |
Kristov Martinez (111 PAT, 30 FG) |
2015-pres. |
| 9. |
180 |
Cary Noiel (30 TD) |
1978-81 |
|
180 |
Gary Compton (30 TD) |
1986-90 |
| CAREER PATs MADE LEADERS |
| 1. |
134 |
Billy Watkins (134-143) |
1990-93 |
| 2. |
126 |
Saul Martinez (126-130) |
2013-14 |
| 3. |
121 |
Leonard Allen (121-134) |
1973-76 |
| 4. |
111 |
Kristov Martinez (111-117) |
2015-pres. |
| 5. |
105 |
Kevin Garman (105-113) |
1981-84 |
| 6. |
104 |
David Dell (104-111) |
1995-98 |
| 7. |
93 |
Mark Regian (93-70) |
1968-71 |
| 8. |
55 |
Randy Weston (55-62) |
1999-02 |
|
55 |
Lloyd Corder (55-69) |
1951-52 |
| 10. |
51 |
A. Abo-Mahmood (51-55) |
2009-10 |
| CAREER FIELD GOALS MADE LEADERS |
| 1. |
49 |
Billy Watkins (49-84) |
1990-93 |
| 2. |
40 |
David Dell (40-61) |
1995-98 |
| 3. |
32 |
Kristov Martinez (32-45) |
2015-pres. |
| 4. |
31 |
Saul Martinez (31-38) |
2013-14 |
| 5. |
29 |
Ha'a Bento (29-44) |
2004-05 |
|
29 |
Leonard Allen (29-52) |
1973-76 |
| 7. |
26 |
Randy Weston (26-37) |
1999-02 |
| 8. |
21 |
Kevin Garman (21-41) |
1981-84 |
| 9. |
16 |
Mark Regian (16-29) |
1968-71 |
| 10. |
14 |
A. Abo-Mahmood (14-20) |
2009-10 |
OUT OF CONFERENCE SUCCESS UNDER CARTHEL
• With the win over North Alabama, the Lions are now 5-1 in non-conference Division II games in the regular season under head coach
Colby Carthel.
• The only Division II non-conference regular season loss in that time was at home to No. 10 Delta State in 2015.
FOUR LIONS NAMED D2FOOTBALL.COM PRESEASON ALL-AMERICANS
• Four A&M-Commerce Lions earned Preseason All-American honors from D2Football.com, as announced late Monday.
• Quarterback
Luis Perez and offensive lineman
Jared Machorro earned first team All-American honors.
• Cornerback
Yusef Sterling-Lowe and SAM linebacker
Travon Blanchard were named second team preseason All-Americans.
DEFENSE WRECKS UNA
• The Lion defense unleashed havoc on the UNA defense in the opener with six sacks and 13 tackles for loss.
• A&M-Commerce ranks third in the nation in sacks and sixth in the nation in tackles for loss after the opening week of action.
• Both marks are the most in a single game for the Lions since the 2014 season.
•
Brucks Saathoff,
Chris Smith, and
Peyton Searcy each had two tackles for loss.
LIONS AGAInST THE SHOW ME STATE
• The Lions are 7-0 against teams from the state of Missouri, including a 26-7 win over Missouri Valley College in the Tangerine Bowl of 1958.
• A&M-Commerce is 2-0 against Division II power Northwest Missouri State.
• Two of these schools have now changed names. Northeast Missouri State is Truman State, and Southwest Missouri State is simply Missouri State.
• The Lions are scheduled to return this game and play in Liberty, Mo., next season.
| Oct 15, 1937 |
at Northeast Missouri State |
W |
41-12 |
| Nov 24, 1938 |
NORTHEAST MISSOURI STATE |
W |
52-0 |
| Dec 27, 1958 |
vs. Missouri Valley (Tangerine Bowl) |
W |
26-7 |
| Sep 23, 1967 |
at Southwest Missouri State |
W |
37-15 |
| Sep 28, 1968 |
SOUTHWEST MISSOURI STATE |
W |
52-0 |
| Sep 11, 1993 |
at Northwest Missouri State |
W |
45-11 |
| Sep 10, 1994 |
NORTHWEST MISSOURI STATE |
W |
49-13 |
| Sep 9, 2017 |
WILLIAM JEWELL |
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