No. 11 Lions take on CSU-Pueblo Saturday

Texas A&M-Commerce | Football

COMMERCE – The No. 11 Texas A&M University-Commerce plays its final non-conference game of the 2019 season with a key regional matchup at No. 20 Colorado State-Pueblo. Texas A&M University-Commerce plays at Colorado State University-Pueblo’s| Neta & Eddie DeRose ThunderBowl at 6 p.m. MDT (7 p.m. CDT) on Saturday, September 28. The Lions are 3-0 after defeating Eastern New Mexico 45-27 in the Lone Star Conference opener. CSU-Pueblo is now 2-1 after being tripped up by No. 17 Colorado School of Mines, 34-14, snapping a 15-game home winning streak. A&M-Commerce is ranked No. 11 in the AFCA Coaches’ Poll and the D2Football.com Media Poll. CSU-Pueblo is ranked No. 20 in the AFCA Coaches’ Poll and No. 16 in the D2Football.com Poll. LIVE AUDIO: Lion Sports Network — KETR 88.9 FM, Commerce (http://www.ketr.org)LIVE VIDEO: https://portal.stretchinternet.com/csu-pueblo/LIVE STATS: http://www.statbroadcast.com/events/statbroadcast.php?t=1&gid=csup

BAILIFF BEGINS ON RIGHT FOOT

Lion Football head coach David Bailiff was hired in December 2018 as the 20th head football coach at A&M-Commerce. Since East Texas joined the Lone Star Conference as charter members in 1931, Bailiff is the 13th head coach of the Lions. He has won all three of his “firsts” games at A&M-Commerce, defeating Nuevo Leon for the win in his first game, beating Western Oregon for the win in his first road game, and taking down Eastern New Mexico in his first LSC game. Bailiff was the head coach at Texas State University from 2004-06 and at Rice University from 2007-17. The Lions’ 2019 season will be Bailiff’s 15th season as a collegiate head coach. As a collegiate head coach, Bailiff has led a team to the NCAA Division I National Semifinals and has made five total postseason appearances with a 5-2 postseason record. The 2005 Texas State Bobcats were Division I National Semifinalists, and Bailiff led the Rice Owls to four bowls with a 3-1 record in those games. Bailiff has led teams to 10-win seasons in three seasons (one at Texas State, two at Rice). Under his watch, the Owls had the most wins in school history over a two

(18), three (25), and four (30) year periods. Rice’s 18-9 mark from 2013-14 was the second-best of any FBS program in Texas.

THUNDERWOLVES

This is the second meeting between these two schools in football. Pueblo upset the then-No. 1 Lions, 23-13, in rainy conditions in Commerce last year. The Lions have played two other games against the RMAC. All three previous games against RMAC schools have been played in Commerce. This is the Lions’ first non-conference game in the Mountain Time Zone. A&M-Commerce defeated Colorado Mesa 34-23 in the first round of the 2016 NCAA Division II playoffs.

LIONS CONTINUE RANKINGS RUN

The Lions jumped to No. 11 nationally in the 2019 American Football Coaches Association Division II Coaches’ Poll released Monday. A&M-Commerce has been ranked in 57 consecutive AFCA polls, dating back to the 2015 preseason poll. This is A&M-Commerce’s 63rd all-time appearance in the AFCA poll since its inception in 2000. In the polls recognized by Division II as the top rating system, the Lions have been recognized as a nationally ranked team 112 times since joining Division II in 1981.

SENIORS SUCCEED OVER CAREER

The 2018 senior class claimed sole possession of the school record for wins in a four-year period with 43. The 2019 senior class is already on pace to challenge that record, with a record of 41-6 through 47 games. They 're six games from tying the school record for games played by a senior class.