Kickoff 7 p.m. CDT
Javelina Stadium on the TAMUK Campus
Kingsville, Texas
 
GAME COVERAGE
The game can be heard in the Twin States on ESPN 104.9, www.espn1049.com or via the ESPN1049 App. Lee Tracey and Robert Upchurch will handle the call. Texas A&M-Kingsville offers a live video feed at http://www.tamuk.tv/. Live stats are available at http://bit.ly/1V6ppSl.
 
THE SERIES
Tied at 1-1. This is the first meeting in 35 years between TAMUK and UWA. The Javelinas won 21-13 in 1977 and the Tigers won 6-2 in 1978.

THE TIGERS
West Alabama is 3-0 after wins at home against Stillman and Cumberland. The Tigers won at Stillman, 13-10, last week.

THE JAVELINAS
Texas A&M-Kingsville is 1-2 following a 37-17 loss to 22nd-ranked Texas A&M-Commerce last week.

THE COACHES
Brett Gilliland is 8-6 in his second season at UWA and his second as a head coach. Darin Wilkinson is 1-2 in his first year at TAMUK and his first as a head coach.

FIRST TIME SINCE 09
West Alabama is off to its first 3-0 start for the first time since the 2009 season. The 199 Tigers went on to finish 8-5 and advance to the second round of the NCAA Division II Playoffs. In each of the last five seasons UWA has been 2-1 after three games.
 
TIGERS ON THE ROAD
This is the second straight road game for West Alabama. The Tigers traveled 90 minutes last week to defeat Miles, 13-10. This week the length of the trip increases from 108 miles on chartered buses to 791 miles via commercial airlines.
 
ON THE ROAD UNDER GILLILAND
UWA is 4-2 in road games since Brett Gilliland took over as head coach prior to the 20014 season.
 
RUN DEFENSE TOPS IN NATION
West Alabama leads the GSC and all of NCAA Division II in rushing defense, allowing an average of just 33.0 yards per game. The Tigers held Miles to 41 yards rushing on 49 carries and limited Cumberland to 10 yards on the ground, minus 5 in the second half.
 
JAVAE NEEDS 85
Senior A-Back Javae Swindle needs just 85 rushing yards to move past Matt Willis and become the all-time leading rusher in West Alabama football history.  Swindle has rushed for 2,087 career yards, including leading the GSC as a sophomore with 117 yards per game and 1,296 rushing yards.
 
HERO SPORTS RANKINGS
West Alabama is ranked No. 35 in this week's Hero Sports Division II rankings, down one spot from last week. The Tigers have been as high as 32nd this season.
 
SCORING GRANT
Even though an injury has not allowed him to kick this season yet, junior place kicker Mark Grant is just five points shy of becoming the all-time scoring leader at West Alabama. Mitch Warfield,a  kicker from 2005-08 is the all-time leader with 180, followed by Ryne Smith wth 177 and Grant with 176.
 
FRONT FOUR STOPPERS
Three of West Alabama's six top tacklers play on the defensive line. Jared Washington is second on the team with 16 stops, while Jherron Jones and Michael Williams are fifth and sixth with 12 and nine tackles, respectively.
 
MEET YOU IN THE BACKFIELD
The West Alabama defense has recorded 25 tackles for loss in three games. What has defensive coordinator Nathan Burton smiling is those 25 are spread among 14 different players.
 
NO TURNOVER RETURN
Possibly the strangest early-season defensive stat for UWA is that while the Tigers have forced six turnovers, they have no return yardage from any of the four fumble recoveries or two pass interceptions.
 
THIRD DOWN CONCERNS
UWA's third-down conversion percentage on offense has dropped each week over the first three games. The Tigers converted 60% (6-10) in game one, 44% (8-18) in game two and then just 30% (4-13) last week at Miles.
 
NO RED FOR YOU!
West Alabama opponents have visited the red zone just twice in three games with both resulting in touchdown passes for the opponents.
 
FIELD GOAL WOES
With All-GSC kicker Mark Grant recovering from injury the Tigers are just 1-for-4 in field goal attempts this fall, having missed the last three in a row.
 
NEXT WEEK
UWA opens GSC play against second-ranked third-ranked West Georgia at Tiger Stadium. Kickoff is set for Saturday, Oct. 3 at 2 p.m.