Game Notes
BELTON, Texas – There is no NCAA postseason for Division III football this season, but for the University of Mary Hardin-Baylor football team Saturday's regular season finale against Louisiana College certainly has the feel of a playoff game. That's because the Cru will host the Wildcats for a noon kickoff at Crusader Stadium with a berth in the American Southwest Conference Championship Game on the line.
The Cru has already clinched at least a share of the ASC East Division title after improving to 3-0 overall and in conference play with a come from behind 30-28 victory at East Texas Baptist University two weeks ago in Marshall. Now UMHB will take on a resurgent Louisiana College program that is looking to play spoiler. The Wildcats are 2-1 overall and in the ASC after posting their own comeback win over Southwestern University last Saturday in Pineville. With UMHB and LC at the top of the East Division standings, Saturday's game sets up as a true Divisional Championship Game. The winner advances to next week's ASC Championship Game and will face Hardin-Simmons University in Abilene. A loss to Wildcats would see the Cru play host to Texas Lutheran University in the ASC's third-place game next weekend. First-year head coach Andrew Maddox has the Wildcats playing good football this spring and the Cru coaching staff is working hard to make sure the team understands the challenge ahead this weekend.
"We have to make sure our players recognize that this isn't the Louisiana College teams we have faced the last couple of years," Cru Head Coach
Pete Fredenburg said. "There is so much at stake on Saturday and we always get every team's best shot. LC has a talented and hungry team and we have to be ready to meet that challenge. This program's goal is to win championships and we have to go out and perform well on Saturday to put ourselves in position to play for a conference championship."
UMHB leads the all-time series with Louisiana College 20-0 and won last season's meeting 82-0 in Pineville. This will also likely be the final meeting between the two programs. The Wildcats are leaving the ASC at the end of the school year to join the NAIA.
Saturday's game will also be broadcast live on Fox Sports Radio (93.9 FM/1330 AM) and through the station's web site with the pre-game show starting at 11:30 AM. UMHB will provide free live video streaming and live statistics for the game with access to the stream available at the following link:
http://portal.stretchinternet.com/umhb/. Tickets will be available at the gate on game day with adult tickets selling for $10 and student tickets selling for $5. All tickets are general admission and social distancing and masking will also be encouraged. There will be no tailgating allowed at UMHB home football games this spring.
