October 6, 1997
For Immediate Release
Contact: Judy Willson, SID
505.562.4309 or 356-4755

Saturday, October 11
Angelo State University vs. Eastern New Mexico 6:00 pm
Greyhound Stadium, Blackwater Draw, New Mexico

The Teams...Eastern New Mexico is currently 3-2 overall, 1-2 in the LSC and 0-1 in the LSC-South. The Greyhounds are ranked #9 in the West Regional poll that came out today. ENMU lost their second game in a row to Abilene Christian last Saturday, 40-7.

Angelo State is the only remaining undefeated team in the LSC with a 4-0 record. They are 3-0 in the LSC and 1-0 in the South Division. The Rams are currently the #4 team in NCAA Division II and #1 in the West Region. ASU won their first LSC-South Division this weekend against West Texas A&M, 31-23.

The Series...ASU holds a 14-6-1 series lead. The Greyhounds last win over the Rams came in 1992, 26-25.

1968 ENM, 24-0
1969 ASU, 34-8
1976 ASU, 38-24
1977 ASU, 27-0
1978 ASU, 40-0
1979 ASU, 21-7
1980 ASU, 34-7
1981 ASU, 35-14
1984 ASU, 18-17
1985 ENM, 26-24
1986 ASU, 35-14
1987 ENM, 18-0
1988 ASU, 49-18
1989 ENM, 30-20
1990 ASU, 24-15
1991 ENM, 13-12
1992 ENM, 26-25
1993 ASU, 28-0
1994 ASU, 38-0
1995 TIE, 10-10
1996 ASU, 38-28

Against Abilene Christian...Andy Cavalier (Sr., Pampa, Texas) made his first appearance of the season at quarterback. A. Cavalier was a little rusty coming off of knee surgery in late August. He came up with 11 yards on 12 carries.

Sophomore fullback Bruce Hatch (Bloomfield) was the leading rusher for the Hounds with 90 yards and ENMU's only touchdown on 13 carries. Hatch gave Eastern their only lead of the game on a 37-yard run late in the first quarter followed by a Brian Cocking PAT to put the Hounds up, 7-6.

On special teams, Charlie Ragle (Sr., Playas) came up big with two kickoff returns of 43 and 61 yards to put the Hounds in good field position late in the game. Brian Cocking (Sr., Los Alamos) punted well for the Greyhounds with seven punts for an average of 36.4 yards.

Defensively, sophomore linebacker Michael Walton (Earth, Texas) led all tacklers with 14 total tackles. Walton also had three tackles for loss of six yards total. Junior strong safety Tony Cavalier (Pampa, Texas) followed close behind with 10 tackles, one fumble return for 20 yards, two pass deflections and one tackle for a loss of five yards.

About Angelo State...the Rams are led on offense by senior quarterback Erik Hartman. Hartman connected with receiver Chris Brazzell twice and set up a Eric Standley 2-yard run for three touchdowns in the fourth quarter to come from 23-10 down against West Texas A&M on Saturday to win in San Angelo, 31-23. Hartman has thrown for 1,043 yards in four games for the Rams completing 54 of 109 passes. Brazzell is ASU's top receiver with 425 yards and four touchdowns on 20 receptions. Number two receiver Stanley Johnson leads the team in all-purpose yards with 374 receiving, 108 on punt returns and 96 on kickoff returns. The leading rusher is Aric Sardinea with 277 yards and two touchdowns on 61 carries.

The Ram defense is led by linebacker Dominic Reyes with 34 total tackles. Reyes has three tackles for loss of 8 total yards. Tramain Jones is the second leading tackler with 31 and top interception man with two from his cornerback position.

Quotes from Bud...About the Abilene Christian game - "We had a great crowd for Homecoming. We kept shooting ourselves in the leg with turnovers. We have to get that stopped. Take away the turnovers, especially in the first half and you have a different game. The turnovers gave ACU hope and resulted in touchdowns for them. Individually, we had solid performances from Bruce Hatch, Brian Cocking, Charlie Ragle and Tony Cavalier. Charlie was exceptional when he had the opportunity to return the ball. Michael Walton continues to be a factor in every game, as does Jason Swindle. Our defense did a good job shutting down their running game"

About Angelo State - "They are a goooood football team. They are coming in ranked #4 in the nation, that is deserved. They have a well-conceived offense. Erik Hartman is a solid quarterback and they have a strong group of receivers. Their tackles are very mobile. They have a good sound defense. Angelo is very dangerous on punt returns (Stanley Johnson). We need to eliminate turnovers. Once we do that we're going to be alright. We have a young offense that can move the ball. It just has to result in scores."

Coaches Awards for ACU Game...

Leader of the Pack (offense) - Bruce Hatch, FB, So., Bloomfield

Mean Green (defense) - Tony Cavalier, SS, Jr., Pampa, Texas

Hungry Hound (special teams) - Garett Williams, LB, Fr., Monahans, Texas; Charlie Ragle, HB, Sr., Playas

Hustler - Michael Walton, LB, So., Earth, Texas

Big Hit - Jason Swindle, FS, Sr., Albuquerque

Pride (scout team) - Pete Tarin, TB, Fr., Roswell; Neal Douglas, SE, So., Cloudcroft; Tim Isaacs, DL, Fr., Rio Rancho

The New LSC...the 1997 season begins expanded conference competition with 15 schools competing for the Lone Star Conference title. ENMU will compete in the South Division with Abilene Christian University, Angelo State University, Midwestern State University, Tarleton State University, Texas A&M University-Commerce, Texas A&M University-Kingsville and West Texas A&M University. The Greyhounds were picked sixth in the 1997 LSC-South

Division Pre-season Football Poll with 136 points behind Texas A&M-Kingsville (334), Angelo State (274), Texas A&M-Commerce (248), Abilene Christian (210) and Tarleton State (144). They will play each team in the South Division once, with two crossover games thrown in against North Division opponents. Each division will name a champion with the conference champion being determined on a combined divisional and crossdivisional record.

Hounds on the Airwaves...107.5 KSMX-FM will carry all the Greyhound football games at home and on the road. Don Elder will call the play-by-play as the "Voice of the Greyhounds" for the 1997 season. He will be joined on home broadcasts by color man Travis Barger. Elder will also host the weekly Bud Elliott Show on Thursday evenings at 6:30 pm from Juanito's Restaurant in Portales. KSMX is a member of Bergman Broadcasting, Inc.

Hounds on the Tube...the weekly television sports show, Sports Look, will air every week on Thursdays at 9:00 pm on KENW-TV, Channel 3. Dallan Sanders will host the program that takes a look at all the college and high school sports action in the eastern portion of New Mexico.

Coming Up for the Hounds...ENMU will travel to Tarleton State University on Saturday, October 18 at 1:00 pm (Mountain Time) in Stephenville, Texas.