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JACKSON, Miss. – The Sul Ross football team saved their longest road trip of the season for this weekend as the Lobos head east to face Belhaven University in a 1:00 p.m. contest Saturday.

This weekend's game marks the first time either team has faced each other on the gridiron.

The Blazers are in their first year of competition in the American Southwest Conference after a run as an NAIA institution.

Live stats and video of the game can be found at http://blazers.belhaven.edu.

QUICK HITS

• Saturday's game will mark first time both teams have faced each other on the football field as the Blazers enter their first year of competition in ASC.
• The Blazers are on a required probationary status in their first year in the ASC and will not be eligible for post season competition in 2015 due to the transition from NAIA to NCAA DIII.
• The Lobos are recovering from a 61-21 defeat to visiting East Texas Baptist at Jackson Field last Saturday. The loss drops Sul Ross to 2-6 on the year and 0-4 in league play.
• Belhaven is 1-8 on the season and currently sports a two-game skid following back-to-back setbacks to East Texas Baptist, 46-13 and McMurry, 14-10.
• The Blazers' lone victory came on October 17 with a 42-33 home win over Warner University.
• The SRSU vs. BU game will mark the season finale for the Blazers while the Lobos will close out the season on Nov. 14 at Howard Payne.
• The Blazers are under the leadership of second year head coach Hal Mumme. Mumme not only brings experience as an assistant coach at the NCAA Division I level, but has been a head coach at Division I Kentucky, New Mexico State, and Southeastern Louisiana. Mumme was also the head coach at NCAA Division II Valdosta State, Iowa Wesleyan (NAIA), and most recently McMurry (Division II and now Division III).
• Mumme spent four seasons at McMurry and led the team to a 27-16 record, including three consecutive winning seasons. Mumme resurrected a McMurry program that had lost 13 consecutive games and had not had a winning season for eight years prior to his arrival.
   

SCOUTING THE BLAZERS

• Belhaven enters this weekend's bout with the Lobos with the No. 1 passing offense in the ASC. After nine games the Blazers have completed 287 of 508 passing attempts for 2903 yards and 22 touchdowns.
• The Blazers also sports the top defense against the pass in the conference holding opponents to 1407 passing yards on the season.
• BU ranks fourth in the ASC in interceptions, just two ahead of the Lobos. Belhaven boasts 14 pick offs for the season.
• The Blazers lead the ASC in first down totals with 191.
• Junior wide out Nate Williams ranks second in the ASC with 63 reception for 653 yards and four touchdowns.
• Freshman Clayton Webb ranks third in the league in passing completing 191 of 344 passes for 14 touchdowns. Webb has been picked off 13 times in 2015.
   

SUL ROSS CONFERENCE NOTES

• Hasan Lipscomb (Houston/Cypress Ridge) ranks fifth in the ASC in rushing with 79 carries for 521 yards and four touchdowns
• Williton Grear (Austin/Del Valle) is seventh in the league with 99 rushes for 469 yards and two scores.
• Byron Jones (League City/Clear Springs) is third in the conference in receiving with 52 catches for 832 yards and seven touchdowns.
• Jones ranks eighth in the ASC in scoring touchdowns with seven with all scores coming through the air.
• Defensively Damian Espinoza (Katy/Pope John Paul XXIII) leads the league with two fumble recoveries.
• Fernie Gonzalez (El Paso/Canutillo) is third in tackles with 66 and averages 8.2 tackles per game.
• Jermaine Stevens (Houston/South Houston) ranks seventh in the conference in interceptions with three. Two of those picks have been returned for touchdowns as Stevens has tallied 127 yards worth of returns.
   

QUOTES FROM COACH JOHN PEARCE

• Thoughts on ETBU's up tempo offense: "They just clicked on all cylinders and we weren't able to respond quickly enough. They run one of the most efficient no huddle offenses in the conference and our younger players were having some trouble early in adjusting to that kind of pace."
• On the overall play of the defense against ETBU: "Fernie (Gonzalez) had a great day for a sophomore against such a fast offense. He had 12 tackles against one of the most experienced offenses in the ASC. Overall, though, we just could not find a way to keep them in check. As I said after the game, we tried zone and man coverage and they had an answer for just about everything we threw at them. This was a game that didn't really come down to as much about athleticism as much as it did just having such a young group of guys competing against a much more experienced ball club."
• On the play of special teams: "Our coverage continues to get better. Fentrese (Milligan, Elgin/EHS) did a great job on our kick return coverage providing some crucial blocks and we're looking better at just providing a solid wedge for our returners."
• On Hasan Lipscomb's and Williton Grear's rushing performance: "Both those guys had a big day. Hasan's been hurt most of the season and to see him come out and compete and fight for every yard and find the end zone was really a silver lining on a long afternoon. Will continues to get better every game. He does a great job of finding holes and just following his blocks and he lets his speed and agility do the rest."
• On facing Hal Mumme's air raid attack: "That's what he's known for. And I'm sure he'll try to exploit our struggles on defending the pass. When we gave up 445 yards through the air last weekend that really sticks out like a sore thumb on the film so we're going to have to solidify some things in our pass coverage to be successful against this bunch. They're not a bad team despite what their record shows. It's just taking them a while to develop their chemistry."
• On making the longest road trip of the season: "We try not to focus on it a whole lot although it is a reality we have to face every other year. Really it boils down to how we organize things. Our big guys will get a chance Friday evening to stretch and actually run some passing routs just to keep things loose. We'll try to segment the trip as much as we can so our guys can keep their legs for kickoff."