• A week after having a home game canceled due to Fort Lauderdale not being able to field a team, top-ranked UWF (3-0) goes on the road for the third time this season, taking on Delta State (2-2) at McCool Stadium Saturday night.
• UWF has won a school-record nine-consecutive games dating back to the 2019 season.
• UWF has won its last six road games, breaking the previous school record set in 2017.
• UWF is 23-9 (.719) all-time on the road, 15-9 (.625) in regular-season road games, and 13-5 (.722) in their last 18. The Argos are also 10-6 (.625) in GSC road games.
FOUR DOWNS WITH UWF
• UWF's offense ranks in the top 10 nationally in scoring offense, passing offense, first downs and third-down conversion.
• UWF is looking for the first 4-0 start in program history. The Argonauts' 3-0 start this year surpassed the previous best start of 2-0 in 2016 and 2017.
• The Argos are 13-8 all-time against ranked teams and have won their last six, breaking the school record set in 2017. UWF is 10-4 on the road against ranked teams.
• UWF will be playing in the state of Mississippi for the fifth time. They are 3-1 and have won their last two in the Magnolia State. The Argos split with Mississippi College and Delta in 2016 and won both games in 2018.
ABOUT UWF
• UWF enters week five of the 2021 season at 3-0 and ranked No. 1 in the country. The Argonauts received all 30 first place votes in the last two American Football Coaches Association Top 25 poll.
• The Argos average 46.7 points per game on 470.3 yards of total offense, led by 325 yards through the air. Dating back to the national championship game in 2019, UWF has scored at least 35 points in its last four games, marking the third time they have done that in program history, tying the school record. The streak of 9-consecutive games with at least 28 points is a new record, breaking the mark set in the program's first eight games all-time.
ABOUT DELTA STATE
• Delta State enters the game with a 2-2 record and 0-1 in GSC play. The Statesmen are just a couple of plays away from being undefeated, with narrow road losses to West Georgia (28-27) and Jackson State (24-17).
• They are led on offense by QB Patrick Shegog. He has 669 passing yards and 157 rushing yards to rank sixth with 206.5 in total offense while his 826 total offensive yards rank fourth. RB Kory Gainwell ranks third in the GSC with 119.3 all-purpose yards per game, rushing for 103, seven receiving, and 367 on kick returns.
• DSU is plus three in turnover margin while leading the GSC (2nd NCAA) in turnovers gained (13). Sherrod Paige and Ty Woods lead the GSC with two interceptions apiece and the Statesmen top the league with seven picks (3rd NCAA).
SERIES HISTORY
• The series is tied 2-2, with Delta State winning the first two games in 2016 & 2017 and UWF winning in 2018 & 2019.
• In the last meeting in 2019, UWF defeated DSU, 48-3, on Homecoming at Blue Wahoos Stadium. The Argo defense held the Statesmen to 112 yards rushing - 68 in the first half and 44 in the second half - after coming in with a 217 rpg avg. and their fewest points since being shutout in 2006.
• UWF came out on top in the last game in Cleveland, with a 30-21 win in 2018. The Argos trailed 21-6 at the half and then scored 24 unanswered for their first win over the Statesmen. UWF ran for a school-record 268 yards and outgained DSU, 457-384. It is the second-largest deficit overcome in a win in program history.
SHINNICK BITES
• Pete Shinnick was hired as the first head coach in program history on Feb. 2, 2014. The 1988 Colorado graduate is 37-17 in four seasons at UWF.
• He is 140-63 in his 19th season as a head coach, with previous stops at UNC Pembroke (50-24 from 2007-13) and Azusa Pacific (53-22 from 1999-2005).
• Shinnick was named the 2019 D2Football.com Division 2 National Coach of the Year and the 2017 AFCA & D2Football.com D2 National Coach of the Year. He was also the AFCA Region 2 Coach of the Year in 2017.
• He is 13-8 all-time in the postseason - 9-3 in the Division II Playoffs and 4-5 in the NAIA Playoffs while at Azusa Pacific from 1999-2005.
D2 WINNINGEST ACTIVE COACHES
COACH RECORD
1. Bill Zwaan, West Chester 201-76
2. Tom Sawyer, Winona State 192-87
3. Keith Otterbein, Hillsdale 174-131-3
4. Lee Owens, Ashland 163-117
5. Bill Maskill, MSU Texas 159-63
6. Todd Knight, Ouachita Baptist 154-129-2
7. Todd Hoffner, Minnesota State 151-51
8. Tim Clifton, Mars Hill 144-143
9. Pete Shinnick, UWF 140-63
10. Gariin Higgins, Emporia State 135-79
* Minimum 5 years as a D2 head coach; record at 4-year schools only.
UWF IN GSC OPENERS
• This is the fifth Gulf South Conference opener for UWF and they enter with a 2-2 record. UWF lost to Valdosta State in 2016 & 2017, and defeated Shorter in 2018 & 2019.
• Saturday is the third time in five years to open league play on the road, going 1-1 in those. As you can read in the next note, UWF is 19-13 all-time in GSC regular-season games. The Argos are also 10-6 on the road with 3-1 marks in the last three seasons (1-3 in 2016).
GSC READY SINCE DAY ONE
• Even before they played a game in 2016, coaches, administrators and fans across the Gulf South Conference footprint had a feeling UWF could be a major player in the league and region really quick. In their four seasons of football, the Argonauts have won 19 GSC contests, ranking them fourth in the league.
UWF'S PRESEASON COACHES POLL VS. ACTUAL FINISH
YEAR PREDICTION ACTUAL
2016 8TH T-6TH
2017 7TH T-2ND
2018 2ND 5TH
2019 4TH 2ND
RECORD IN GSC REGULAR-SEASON
TEAM '16 '17 '18 '19 '21 TOTAL
VSU 6-2 5-3 8-0 8-0 0-0 27-5
UWA 6-2 7-1 5-3 3-5 1-0 22-11
UWG 4-4 5-3 7-1 4-4 2-0 22-12
UWF 3-5 5-3 4-4 7-1 0-0 19-13
FIT* 5-2 3-5 5-3 3-5 --- 16-15
DSU 3-5 5-3 2-6 5-3 0-1 15-18
NGU --- --- 3-4 2-6 0-0 5-10
MC 1-7 1-7 1-6 4-4 0-1 7-25
Shorter 0-8 0-8 0-8 0-8 0-1 0-33
* Fla. Tech dropped football in Spring 2020.
BIG PLAY OFFENSE
• UWF has had 18 plays of 20 yards or more, including eight in week one against McNeese State. A total of 16 have been through the air and two on the ground.
• UWF currently ranks 16th in the country with 470.0 yards of total offense per game and sixth with 82 first downs. The Argos had 30 three weeks ago against SW Baptist, one shy of tying the school record.
UWF LEADS COUNTRY IN 3RD DOWN PERCENTAGE
• One of the many recipies for success is UWF's efficiency on 3rd down, where the Argos lead the country with a 69 pct. conversion rate.
• The Argos are 20-for-29 on the season, making 6-of-10 at McNeese, 8-of-10 against SW Baptist and 6-of-9 at Texas A&M Commerce.
• UWF has been especially stout in the first quarter, making 5-of-6 attempts.
UWF BACKFIELD: NO VISITORS ALLOWED
• Through three games, UWF's starters have not allowed a QB sack. The one sack that was credited to an opponent came late in the SW Baptist game when Wyatt Eget took a knee after dropping back to pass.
• Additionally, UWF has only allowed three tackles for loss for a combined six yards.
• Delta State has a GSC-leading 13 sacks and 10.8 tackles for loss per game (2nd nationally).
REED-ICULOUS START
• Sophomore Austin Reed took over as the starting quarterback in the second game of 2019 and led UWF to it's first national title, throwing for 4,000 yards and 40 TDs while amassing a 13-1 record as a starter. Those numbers earned the St. Augustine, Florida native National and GSC Freshman of the Year.
• But the awards only tell part of the story. To say he got better as the season went along would be a huge understatement. In UWF's first nine games, he threw for 2,001 yards and 19 TD, before exploding for identical numbers of 2,088 yards and 21 TD in the final six games.
• In the national championship, he shattered both the UWF and NCAA Championship single-game records with 523 passing yards and tied both organization marks with six passing TD. He was 33-of-54 on the day with his completions tying the finals mark and his attempts setting a new top effort. He had 399 yards by halftime to break the previous yardage mark of 361 which had stood since 2002.
• Through three games in 2021, he ranks 12th nationally with 303.7 passing yards per game and 11th with 16.0 yards per completion. His 10 passing TDs rank 21st.
• Reed and Shepherd's Tyson Bagnet are the only two players nationally to rank in the top 15 in passing yards per game, passing efficiency and points responsible per game.
• In the week two win over SW Baptist, he set a UWF record with a 210.72 passer rating, completing 20-of-26 passes for 257 yards while playing into the first drive of the third quarter.
• As a senior at St. Augustine HS in 2017, Reed was the Florida Class 6A Player of the Year after throwing for 2,925 yards and 34 TD.
REED'S LAST 9 GAMES
OPPONENT YARDS TD QBR
West Alabama 443 5 209.52
at Wingate 165 3 122.15
at Valdosta State 298 1 138.74
at Lenoir-Rhyne 360 3 164.28
at Ferris State 299 3 115.95
vs. Minn. State 523 6 175.95
at McNeese State 380 4 172.56
SW Baptist 257 4 210.72
at A&M Commerce 274 2 148.8
9-Game Totals/Avg. 2,999 31 ---
340.6 3.6
JOHNSON SETS TD MARK
• Senior RB Anthony Johnson, Jr. had three rushing touchdowns on five carries (8 yards) against SW Baptist in week two, tying his own single-game record set at Valdosta State in the 2019 NCAA Playoffs. The final score against the Bearcats pushed his career TD number to 16, moving him past Quentin Randolph (2016-19) into first place all-time at UWF.
• He ranks second in UWF rushing history with 333 carries and 1,405 yards. Chris Schwarz compiled 413 rushes for 1,992 yards from 2016-18.
DURDEN'S DEBUT
• Junior WR David Durden had one of the most impressive debut performances in UWF history in the opener at McNeese, catching six passes for 172 yards and one TD, while running once for a 6-yard TD. He returned two kicks for 14 yards apiece. He has since raised his season totals to 13 receptions for 291 yards and 22.4 yards per catch.
DURDEN IN THE NCAA RANKINGS
CATEGORY RK. STAT
All Purpose Yards/Gm 43 128.0
Receiving Yards 73 291
Rec. Yards/Gm 29 97.0
Points Scored 42 30
Scoring/Gm 20 10.0
• The Midville, Ga. native transferred to UWF prior to the 2020 academic year from Mercer, where he had 1,054 receiving yards and 971 return yards on 37 returns (26.2 ypr) in two seasons. He earned FCS Freshman All-America honors in 2018.
• Durden was a 20th Round draft pick by the Red Sox in the 2017 MLB Draft and played in 30 games for the GCL Red Sox.
COATES' CAREER DAY LEADS TO GSC POW
• Senior WR Rodney Coates had a career day against Southwest Baptists, totaling 126 yards on nine catches with two touchdowns. His scoring catches went for seven and six yards, and he averaged 14.0 yards per catch as he was named the GSC Offensive Co-Player of the Week.
• The senior from Grove Hill, Alabama enters this week with season totals of 194 yards on 13 receptions and three touchdowns.
ARCHIE, BRELAND NAMED GSC DEFENSIVE & FRESHMAN POW
• Two Saturdays ago at Texas A&M Commerce, the UWF defense put on a dominant second-half performance in helping the No. 1 ranked Argonauts to a top-15 road victory over the Lions, 35-17. On Monday, two members of that unit – Trent Archie and Will Breland – were named the Defensive and Freshman Players of the Week, respectively, by the GSC.
• Archie led the way with a game-high nine tackles and two quarterback sacks, while Breland continued his strong rookie start to the year, totaling a season-high four stops off the bench.
• Archie, who was an All-State player in 2014 at Baker H.S. in Mobile, has 16 tackles in 2021 and is the UWF's all-time leader with 269 in four seasons of play. Breland was a two-time All-State selection in 2018 and 2019 at UMS-Wright in Mobile and has seven tackles and a sack in three games.
• The UWF defense was stout all game long but was especially strong in the second half. In addition to limiting A&M Commerce to 231 yards of total offense on the night, they sacked Jaiave Magalei five times and forced two turnovers in the fourth quarter.
• The Argos now rank 62nd nationally in scoring defense at 22.3 points per game, 51st in total defense, allowing 327 yards per game and ninth in sacks per game with 4.0.
ARGOS HAVE FORCED TURNOVERS IN 50 OF 55 GAMES
• The UWF defense forced a school-record six turnovers twice last season at West Georgia and at Ferris State. Those big plays were part of the 15-consecutive games with a turnover. Sadly, the streak ended in week one when they failed to get a turnover at McNeese State... But never fear because a new streak started with a special teams turnover against SW Baptist and then a fumble and interception at Texas A&M-Commerce.
• Further inspection shows the Argonauts have gotten at least one turnover in 50 of their 55 all-time games. UWF is 36-12 when getting a turnover and 2-5 when unable to force a sudden change.
• The turnover prize for UWF is a navy blue Turnover Shield and was created by Defensive Coordinator Darian Dulin prior to the 2018 campaign. The round wooden disk has a large UWF logo on a navy blue background. The shield, which is a replica of what Jason and the Argonauts may have used in mythological times, is then signed in silver marker by the player(s) who had a hand in creating the turnover. New for 2021 is a metal trash can that is struck with a wooden sword in celebration.
UWF AMONG THE BEST AT FORCING TURNOVERS
• UWF is one of the best teams in the country at forcing turnovers. In fact, the Argonauts are one of just three teams nationally to rank in the top 20 each of the last three seasons in turnovers gained, joining CSU Pueblo and Winona State.
• Since 2017, UWF has 95 turnovers gained in 44 contests, averaging 2.2 per game.
TURNOVERS GAINED SINCE 2017
4-YR
School '21 '19 '18 '17 TOTAL
CSU Pueblo 7 39 45 30 121
Winona St. 3 29 28 37 97
UWF 3 37 25 30 95
Bowie St. 9 35 23 28 95
Len.-Rhyne 6 31 38 16 91
Edinboro 5 22 31 30 88
ARGOS' ROAD SUCCESS CONTINUES YEAR AFTER YEAR
• UWF went 7-2 on the road in 2019. The seven wins tied for the highest total in Division 2 with Minnesota State's 7-0 mark.
• Following the Texas A&M Commerce win, the Argonauts are now 23-9 all-time on the road in their fifth season of play, including an 8-1 mark in 2017 when they tied Harding for the most road victories in the country.
• After a 2-4 road mark in the 2016 inaugural season, UWF has had a winning record away from home each year - 8-1, 4-2, 7-2 and 1-0.
UWF STRONG AT HOME... ESPECIALLY AT NIGHT
• UWF has enjoyed a winning record in three of its four seasons, amassing a 12-7 home mark overall. The Argonauts have been especially successful in night games (5 pm kickoff or later), going 10-2.
• After the 5-0 home record in 2019 and the 63-14 win over Southwest Baptist at Pen Air Field two weeks ago, UWF has the eighth-longest active streak in Division 2.
UWF VS. RANKED TEAMS
• Including last Saturday's game against Commerce, UWF has played 21 of 55 games against ranked foes - that's 38.2 percent of its history.
• By week 2 of their third season (2018), #10 Midwestern State was the eighth-consecutive contest against a ranked opponent for UWF. It was also the tenth in a stretch of 12 games for the Argonauts.
• Additionally, UWF had played 12 games (out of 28 up to that point) against teams ranked in the top 25 - meaning that 43 percent of the program's games in its history had been against ranked opponents.
• After the win over No. 21/13 Texas A&M Commerce, the Argonauts improved to 13-8 all-time against ranked teams and have a record 6-game winning streak.
UWF ALL-TIME vs. NATIONALLY
RANKED PROGRAMS
2016
16 Florida Tech W, 42-39
3 at North Alabama L, 3-51
2017
21/20 Delta State L, 25-28
25/23 at West Alabama L, 18-35
24/18 at West Georgia W, 34-29
16/18 at Wingate (NCAA) W, 31-0
24/25 at West Georgia (NCAA) W, 17-14
17/17 at West Ala. (NCAA) W, 28-21
3/1 at Indiana (Pa.) (NCAA) W, 27-17
8/8 vs. A&M-Commerce (NCAA) L, 27-37
2018
22/rv Carson-Newman W, 19-9
10/7 at Midwestern State L, 17-38
4/4 West Georgia L, 7-27
7/7 Valdosta State L, 21-48
2019
1/1 at Valdosta State L, 21-26
16/17 at WIngate (NCAA) W, 38-17
1/1 at Valdosta State (NCAA) W, 38-35
6/6 at Lenoir-Rhyne (NCAA) W, 43-38
2/2 at Ferris State (NCAA) W, 28-14
4/3 vs. Minn. State (NCAA) W, 48-40
2021
21/13 at Texas A&M Commerce W, 35-17
* Rankings are AFCA/D2FB
Overall: 13-8 Postseason: 9-1
Home: 2-3 Road: 10-4 Neutral: 1-1
115 PLAYERS IN CAMP, 11 W/ BACHELOR'S DEGREE
• UWF currently has 115 student-athletes on its roster entering the opening week of play. Since the program started filling out the roster in the Spring of 2015, the maturation levels have continued to rise throughout the program.
SENIORS/
GRADUATES JUNIORS
2016 5 14
2017 16 15
2018 27 40
2019 30 30
2021 26 24
• UWF has 11 football student-athletes who have received their bachelor's degree, making them one of 15 D2 programs with double-digit graduates. That continues a trend for the Argo- naut program, as they have averaged just over 10 graduates on the fall roster in their 5-year history. They led D2 with 11 playing graduates in 2018.
FRESH FACES WITH COLLEGE EXPERIENCE
• Since the end of the 2019 national championship season, UWF added 34 transfers – 14 from FBS schools, 9 from FCS level, 3 from other Division 2 programs & 8 from junior colleges. 18 of those are among the 2-deep this week with seven each on offense and defense, and four among the specialists.
THE ORIGINAL ARGOS
• Due to a variety of factors, UWF has two student-athletes that have been with the program since the practice season of 2015 - Trent Archie and Rodney Coates.
• Two additional Argos have been around since the inaugural season of 2016 - Ka'Ron Ashley and Marcus Clayton.
UWF PICKED FIRST IN GSC PRESEASON POLL, RECORD 10 ARGOS NAMED PRESEASON ALL-CONF.
• UWF was picked first in a vote of Gulf South Conference coaches in the 2021 GSC Preseason Football Poll that was announced in August.
• UWF earned five of the seven possible first place votes and totaled 47 polling points. Valdosta State had the remaining
three first place votes and was picked second with 45 points. Delta State, West Alabama, West Georgia and Mississippi College were bunched together in third through sixth, respectively. North Greenville and Shorter were at the bot- tom of the poll.
• UWF had a league-high nine student-athletes selected to 10 positions on the preseason all-conference team.
• On offense, five Argonauts were chosen, led by quarterback Austin Reed, wide receiver Rodney Coates, tight end Jacure' Jackson, and offensive linemen Jacob Bruce and Mike Dilla. The defensive representatives are Matthew Gotel on the line, Trent Archie at nickel back, and defensive backs D'Anthony Bell and Marcus Clayton. Jackson was also voted on special teams to the blocking team position.
2021 GSC PRESEASON COACHES POLL
Pl. School – Points
1. WEST FLORIDA (5) 47
2. Valdosta State (3) 45
3. Delta State 33
4. West Alabama 30
5. West Georgia 26
6. Mississippi College 22
7. North Greenville 14
8. Shorter 7
* First place votes in parenthesis
