The Teams: #22 Tarleton Texans (1-1 FCS Independent) vs. Dixie State (0-0 FCS Independent)
Where: Stephenville, Texas
Stadium: Memorial Stadium
Time: 2:00 p.m. CT
Streaming Platform: ESPN+
Radio: Tarleton Sports Network on 90.5 FM (Byron Anderson, Kyle Masters)
 
TEXAN FOOTBALL GAME DAY
Fresh off its first-ever win as a Division I program, Tarleton will return home for a 2 p.m. afternoon showdown with fellow FCS Independent program and WAC transitional school Dixie State in Stephenville at Memorial Stadium.
 
Kickoff is scheduled for 2:00 p.m. CT. on ESPN+. John Liddle and Scott Garner will have the call from Memorial Stadium in Stephenville. The Tarleton Sports Network presented by the North Texas Ford Dealers will have the radio call online at TarletonSports.com/watch or on the airwaves at 90.5 FM in Stephenville and surrounding areas.
 
Limited tickets remain available for purchase at TarletonSports.com/Tickets. Due to COVID-19-related limitations, Memorial Stadium will only seat 50-percent of its capacity. Student tickets remain free of charge, but Tarleton students with a valid ID will need to order a ticket through the ticket software. Walk-up ticket sales are not permitted this spring. All tickets must be purchased online in advance.
 
GAME DAY FESTIVITIES

• Saturday is 'Pink Out' day at Memorial Stadium. Tarleton will welcome the Pink Warrior Angels, who will be on hand to promote cancer awareness. Fans are encouraged to wear pink in addition to their purple and white.
• Texan Alley Tailgate will open at 9 a.m. in Lot A and limited spaces are available for purchase at the gate. Special COVID-19 safety protocols will be in place. For maps of the area and complete tailgating policies, visit TarletonSports.com/TexanAlley. Non-tailgating lots will open four hours prior to kickoff.

 
ABOUT THE MATCHUP

• This is the first-ever meeting between Tarleton and Dixie State on the football field.
• Tarleton and Dixie State are in the midst of similar university journeys as FCS Independent football programs. Both the Texans and Trailblazers made the jump from NCAA Division II to Division I as members of the Western Athletic Conference (WAC) on July 1. Since the WAC does not currently sponsor football, both teams are FCS Independents until the WAC reinstates football this fall.

 
QUICK HITS

• Tarleton is coming off its first win as an NCAA Division I program and its first-ever win over an FBS-level opponent. The Texans defeated FBS Independent New Mexico State 43-17 at UTEP's The Sun Bowl in El Paso last Sunday afternoon.
• Todd Whitten enters the game as Tarleton's all-time wins leader (80) and win percentage (.678). While every new victory is a milestone, his win last week made him the first Texan coach in school history to reach 80 career victories for the purple and white.
• This is the first of two games this season between the Texans and Trailblazers. Tarleton is scheduled to visit Dixie State in St. George, Utah on March 13. This is the first time that Tarleton has scheduled the same team in the regular season twice since 1990. The Texans have played the same opponent in the same season since then on multiple occasions in seeded, playoff settings.
• Tarleton was without five offensive starters last week due to COVID-19 protocols. They will be without the one positive test from last week; but the four others, who were sidelined as a result of contact tracing, will be eligible to return following a series of testing throughout this week.

 
NEW DIVISION WITH A BRIGHT FUTURE

• INDEPENDENT, FOR NOW: Tarleton State University made the jump to NCAA Division I and the Western Athletic Conference last July and is currently in its first year of a four-year transition period. The WAC stopped sponsoring football back in 2012, making Tarleton an independent football program for the spring 2021 season. However, the WAC has announced an expansion that will bring four football-playing schools into the WAC as early as July 1, 2021 – Lamar, Abilene Christian, Sam Houston State and Stephen F. Austin. This move will bring football back to the Western Athletic Conference at the FCS Level.
• EYES ON FBS: With the revival of the WAC at the FCS level, the question remains of – will the WAC return to its former FBS glory days? The answer is simple: that's the plan. In a recent interview with Yahoo Sports, Tarleton President Dr. James Hurley said, "Our goal going into this is to immediately start laying out a plan among the presidents and athletic directors to develop a strategic plan to become an FBS conference. That work will start Day 1. We understand that realistically this is going to be at least a five-year process."
• WAC-ASUN CHALLENGE: Officially titled the WAC-ASUN Challenge, the Western Athletic Conference and ASUN Conference have agreed on a football scheduling alliance that will allow for the seven institutions to be eligible for an automatic qualification into the 2021 NCAA FCS Playoffs.

 
NOTABLES

• TARLETON DOMINATES PHIL STEELE PRESEASON ALL-INDY TEAM: The reputation of Tarleton Texan Football precedes itself as the Texans had 11 players named to the Phil Steele 2020 FCS Preseason All-Independent Team in July – the most of any of the four FCS Independent programs recognized. J.F. Thomas (WR) was named the Independent Preseason Player of the Year by Steele while the following players were named to the All-Indy Team – Khalil Banks (RB), Kendall Dearth (OG), Zach Perry (OT), Chris Radford (DL), Jordan Wells (DL), Ronnell Wilson (LB), Erick Willis (LB), Benjie Franklin (DB), Devin Hafford (DB) and Stephen Reeves (DS).
• WILSON, HAFFORD NAMED DCTF 2020 PRESEASON ALL-TEXAS SMALL COLLEGE: Tarleton Football senior All-American defenders Ronnell Wilson and Devin Hafford were named to Dave Campbell's Texas Football 2020 Preseason All-Texas Small College team last June. To qualify, a player must participate at a four-year institution in Texas that plays below the FBS level. The All-Texas Small College team consist of NCAA FCS Division 1 programs, Division II and Division III.
• TARLETON CRACKS NATIONAL TOP 25 POLL AFTER ROUT OF NM STATE: The thrashing of FBS New Mexico State opened the eyes of national voters as the Texans debuted at No. 22 in the Stats Perform FCS Top 25 ranking for the first time in school history. In the national rankings, Tarleton joins the ranks of FCS elite – including a familiar foe, McNeese State, who debuted at No. 19.
• STATS PERFORM FCS NATIONAL TEAM OF THE WEEK: The Texans were named the Stats Perform FCS National Team of the week after defeating New Mexico State on Feb. 21 in El Paso. Tarleton earned their first win as a Division I institution and their first win ever against an FBS-level opponent. The Texans totaled 501 yards of offense while the Texan defense held New Mexico State to 241 yards for the afternoon. Tarleton forced three interceptions – two by Donovan Banks and one from Benjie Franklin on the opening drive of the second half.
• BURSTON CLAIMS NATIONAL OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK: Burston was a spark plug for the Texans after being elevated to the starting QB position hours before kickoff when five Tarleton offensive starters were held out due to COVID-19 safety protocols. In his first career start, the senior from Vallejo, California wasted no time making his presence felt. He took a QB keeper around the left side for a 70-yard touchdown run on the first play from scrimmage. On Tarleton's second drive, he connected with Douglas on an 86-yard touchdown pass on the first play again. For the day, Burston threw for 252 yards and two scores while rushing for 79 more with a pair of touchdowns. He accounted for four Tarleton touchdowns in the 43-17 rout.
• DOUGLAS NAMED HONORABLE MENTION OFFENSIVE POW: Behind Burston, Gabe Douglas was an honorable mention selection for the offensive honor. Douglas was the primary beneficiary of Burston's career performance. The junior wide receiver welcomed himself to Texan Nation with a seven-catch, 190-yard afternoon with two touchdowns. All career highs for the junior wideout in his second game at Tarleton.
• DEFEATING AN FBS PROGRAM: Between the fall and this spring's season, FCS schools have played 37 games against FBS programs and Tarleton recorded just the second victory for an FCS program against an FBS opponent. Only Jacksonville State has defeated an FBS opponent this year – def. Florida International 19-10 on Oct. 23, 2020.
• BATTING 1.000 AGAINST FBS: As Tarleton's only FBS opponent on the schedule, Tarleton will finish the season with a 1.000 winning percentage against FBS programs this season. The Texans join The Citadel (1-0; 2019) as the only FCS schools to boast a 1.000 winning percentage in a season against FBS opponents.
• FIRST-YEAR TRANSITION VS FBS: According to the available data on NCAA.com, Tarleton is the first program in their first-year of transition to defeat an FBS program.
• TARLETON VS. D1 TEAMS: Since joining the NCAA in 1994, Tarleton played 15 games against NCAA Division I opponents and have six wins in those games, including last week's win over FBS New Mexico State. Todd Whitten has three wins against D1 competition during his tenure at Tarleton.
• NUMBER CHANGES: Devin Hafford will wear No. 2 Saturday afternoon. He currently switches to No. 0 on the road; Marvin Landy switched from No. 81 to No. 24 prior to kickoff vs. McNeese State. He will be No. 24 for the remainder of the season.
• 100-YARD RUSHERS SINCE 2016: Braelon Bridges became the sixth player to have a 100-yard rushing game since Whitten returned in 2016, joining Daniel McCants (12), Xavier Turner (10), Joseph Sadler (4), Adam Berryman (3) and Khalil Banks (1). Bridges' 112 yards against McNeese State was the first Tarleton rusher not named Daniel McCants to rush for 100 yards since Khalil Banks (168) on Sept. 7, 2019.
• BURST-ON OF SPEED: Cameron Burston's 79 rushing yards against New Mexico State was the team leader on the ground. This is the first time that a Tarleton quarterback has led the team in rushing since Collin Strahan on Oct. 18, 2014. Strahan rushed for 157 yards against Eastern New Mexico in Portales.
• STOUT TEXAN DEFENSE: When Todd Whitten tasked defensive coordinator Marcus Patton in taking over the stop troops in 2016, he inherited a defense that ranked last nationally in nearly every statistical category. As the Texans prepare to enter the Division I ranks, they'll do it as one of the elite defenses in the entire country – returning three All-Americans and five seniors with key roles in the turnaround. Tarleton is coming off back-to-back seasons in which they ranked among the top 10 in the nation in scoring defense. The Texans return three All-Americans – Ronnell Wilson, Devin Hafford and Jordan Wells. Wilson and Hafford, as well as Chris Radford, Erick Willis and Tre Johnson, still remain from the first recruiting class of the Whitten/Patton era.
• THE PATTON EFFECT: When Marcus Patton accepted the job as Tarleton's defensive coordinator in the spring of 2016, he inherited a Texan defense that had given up 296.3 rushing yards, 263.3 passing yards and 559.6 total yards per game – last in the nation at the D2 level.
• Over the 2018-19 seasons, Tarleton had cut those numbers essentially in half. While boasting a 24-2 record over the last two years, Patton's defense is allowing 102.0 rushing, 193.5 passing, and 295.6 total yards per game.
• FROM D2 DESPAIR TO D1 DEFENSE: When Todd Whitten returned to Tarleton as head coach following the 2015 season, his first hire was defensive coordinator, Marcus Patton. The request was simple: fix the nation's worst Division II defense. Tarleton ranked last or near the bottom of every defensive statistical category in the nation in 2015. Whitten and Patton went to work in recruiting the type of players that could turn things around – enter Ronnell Wilson, Devin Hafford, Tre Johnson and Erick Willis. Those four Texans signed on as part of Tarleton's 2016 recruiting class and have since turned Tarleton into one of the nation's most feared defenses in Division II during the last two undefeated regular seasons and now will take the field for Tarleton at the NCAA Division I level.

 
UP NEXT FOR TARLETON
Next Saturday is Family Weekend at Tarleton State University. The Texans will play host to Mississippi College for a 2 p.m. kickoff at Memorial Stadium in Stephenville. Limited tickets remain available for purchase at TarletonSports.com/Tickets. Due to COVID-19-related limitations, Memorial Stadium will only seat 50-percent of its capacity. Student tickets remain free of charge, but Tarleton students with a valid ID will need to order a ticket through the ticket software. Walk-up ticket sales are not permitted this spring. All tickets must be purchased online in advance.