-
Members of the Lions football team shown in practice. Courtesy Lions Athletics, Josh Manck
To play at Globe Life Park, Sept. 11
COMMERCE- Texas A&M University-Commerce has released its 2021 football competition schedule, featuring 11 games with an exciting neutral site contest in Lone Star Conference play.
The Lions' game against Midwestern State on Sept. 11 will be played at Globe Life Park in Arlington, with A&M-Commerce as the home team. This will mark the Lions' first regular season neutral site game since the Lone Star Conference Football Festival in 2014, and the first Division II game played at Globe Life Park. Globe Life Park will be in its second fall season as a football facility.
"I think it will be an exciting opportunity for the young men on this football team to play at Globe Life Park," A&M-Commerce head football coach David Bailiff said. "I went to several of the XFL games there last year, and it's a beautiful venue with incredible amenities. I'm excited for this team and this university to show what we have there."
Tickets for this game will be sold by the Texas Rangers ticket office beginning in early April. More information, including specific sale date, will be released on LionAthletics.com and our social media channels in the coming days.
The 2021 game is the first of a two-game series between A&M-Commerce and Midwestern State at Globe Life Park. The 2022 game between the Lions and Mustangs will be played at Globe Life Park on Oct. 8, with Midwestern State as the home team.
The Lions and Mustangs will be meeting for the 26th time in a hotly contested series, with the Lions holding a 14-11 lead in the alltime series. This will be the first true neutral site game in the series since 1952. The split game in 2018 which finished at Denton's Apogee Stadium was classified as an MSU home game, as the game began in Wichita Falls.
"We are thrilled to welcome two storied Lone Star Conference football programs to Globe Life Park for the next two college football seasons," said Sean Decker, Rangers Executive Vice President for Sports and Entertainment. "Our ability to successfully host professional, college, and high school football events in our iconic setup has already proven to be a tremendous experience for student-athletes, fans, and coaches. It has been a pleasure to work with the leadership at Texas A&M-Commerce and Midwestern State to make this game a reality."
The Lions have also completed their 11-game schedule for the fall with the addition of the University of Fort Lauderdale for a home game on Saturday, Oct. 2. The Eagles are members of the National Christian College Athletic Association. This contest fills the spot in the schedule left when Azusa Pacific dropped its program.
"We are ecstatic to usher in our 2021 season with a schedule which gives our students, alumni, and fans seven opportunities to see the Lions within our north Texas footprint," said A&M-Commerce director of athletics Tim McMurray. "Not only do we have a chance to showcase our institution in iconic Globe Life Park, but our schedule allows for six true home opportunities in Commerce. We appreciate our partners at the Texas Rangers for allowing us to bring Lion Football to a larger stage."
The schedule updates for the year gives the Lions six home games, four road games, and a neutral site contest. The home opener is now the West Florida game on Sept. 18, which will be a re match of the 2017 national championship game and matches up two of the last three NCAA Division II National Champions.
"It's going to be great to have six home games and a game you don't have to travel far to," Bailiff said. "Our student-athletes won't get exhausted with a lot of travel, and it's also an incredible value to our fans to know they can come to six games in Commerce. Very rarely in my career have I had the chance to have six home games and the normal routine a team develops will help in a long season."
Season ticket plans will go on sale shortly, which will include the Homecoming game on October 16 against Western New Mexico. The Hall of Fame game, other special dates, and other important details will be announced soon.
The Lions 2021 schedule is:
• Thursday, Sept. 2, TAMUC @ Colorado State-Pueblo at 6 p.m.
• Saturday, Sept. 11, Midwestern State vs TAMUC @ Globe Life Park at 6 p.m.
• Saturday, Sept. 18, West Florida @TAMUC at 6 p.m.
• Saturday, Sept. 25, TAMUC @ Texas A&M-Kingsville at TBA
• Saturday, Oct. 2, Fort Lauderdale @ TAMUC at 6 p.m.
• Saturday, Oct. 9, Saginaw Valley State @ TAMUC at 4 p.m.
• Saturday, Oct. 16, Western New Mexico @ TAMUC at 4 p.m.
• Saturday, Oct. 23, TAMUC @ West Texas A&M at TBA
• Saturday, Oct. 30, UT Permian Basin @ TAMUC at 4 p.m.
• Saturday, Nov. 6, TAMUC @ Angelo State at TBA
• Saturday, Nov. 13, Eastern New Mexico @ TAMUC at 4 p.m.