• The second-ranked UWF football team was awarded its third bid in five seasons of play to the NCAA Division 2 Playoffs on Sunday. The Argonauts were placed as the No. 3 seed in Super Region 2 and will play host to unseeded (but almost certainly #6) and SAC Champion Newberry. Kickoff is at 1 p.m. CST at Blue Wahoos Stadium in Pensacola. It is UWF's first-ever home playoff game after eight on the road and two neutral site appearances in the national championship game.
FOUR DOWNS WITH UWF
• UWF's offense ranks in the top 25 nationally in scoring offense (2nd, 45.9), passing offense (7th, 331.2), total offense (4th, 497.4), first downs per game (12th, 25.4), third-down conversion (19th, 47.8%), tackles for loss allowed (1st, 1.3) and sacks allowed (6th, 0.7 per game).
• On defense, UWF ranks among the top 50 in rushing defense (39th, 115.2) and sacks (21st, 3.0).
• While Newberry is not ranked, they are receiving vote this week. Five of the seven teams in Super Region 2 are in the top 25, with Newberry and Lenoir-Rhyne receiving votes. The Argos are 4-1 against ranked teams this year and 15-9 all-time against ranked teams.
• UWF is 44-18 all-time for a .710 winning pct. That would rank third among active Division 2 programs but UWF does not have the minimum 20 seasons of competition for inclusion - check back with us in 2037.
HERE ARE SOME MORE QUICK HITTERS ON THE ARGOS
• The Argos average 25.4 first downs per game which is second in the GSC and 12th nationally.
• UWF has had at least one passing TD in 44-consecutive games & 59 out of 62 all-time games.
• The Argos defense has not allowed an offensive TD in 7 of the last 10 quarters.
• UWF won a school-record 11-consecutive games prior to the loss to then-No. 12 West Georgia last month. The 30-26 loss also ended UWF's home winning streak at a school-record six.
• UWF went 9-of-16 on 3rd Down last week against Valdosta State. The Argos were also 1-of-2 on 4th Down to move to 6-of-12 on the year.
ABOUT UWF
• UWF enters the first week of playoffs at 9-1 and ranked No. 2 in both polls and No. 3 in the NCAA Super Region 2 bracket.
• The Argos average 45.9 points per game (3rd nationally) on 479.4 yards of total offense, led by 331.2 yards through the air. Dating back to the national championship game in 2019, UWF has scored at least 35 points in 10 of its last 11 games, including a school-record six-consecutive prior to the UWG game.
SERIES HISTORY
• UWF and Newberry have never met on the football field.
• UWF is 3-0 against South Atlantic Conference teams, having defeated Wingate in the 2017 & 2019 NCAA First Round and Lenoir-Rhyne in the 2019 Regional Final.
• The only UWF team to face Newberry in head-to-head competition was the men's golf program. UWF defeated the Wolves 4-1 in the Medal Match Play Quarterfinals of the 2017 NCAA Championships in Kissimmee, Fla.
UWF POSTSEASON 101
• UWF is making its third appearance in the NCAA Division 2 Playoffs, with previous showings in 2017 & 2019.
• UWF is 9-1 in postseason play.
• The Argonauts went 4-1 in 2017 and lost to Texas A&M Commerce in the national championship game. UWF became the fasted startup to reach the postseason in NCAA history.
• Two years later, they turned in arguably the greatest postseason run of all time on their way to the national title. UWF defeated four undefeated teams and three number 1 seeds - both for the first time in NCAA D2 history. UWF's title in its fourth season of play matched Georgia Southern in 1985 as the fastest to win a title since starting a program - 4 years.
UWF SECURES LEAGUE TITLE NO. 107
• With last week's 61-42 win over Valdosta State, UWF won a share of the 2021 Gulf South Conference Championship. That marks the 107th conference title in school history across all 15 sports.
• A day later, the men's soccer team won the 108th crown. The women's volleyball team is hosting the GSC Tournament and in the semifinals on Saturday, with a potential advancement into Sunday's championship on the line.
UWF IS THE D2 LEADER IN POSTSEASON WINNING PCT.
• Following the 2019 run to the national championship, UWF over the top spot in the NCAA Division 2 Record Book as the winningest postseason team in the division's history with a minimum of 10 games. The Argos are 9-1 with a .900 winning pct.
NCAA DIVISION 2 CHAMPIONSHIP
HIGHEST WINNING PCT.
SCHOOL RECORD PCT.
WEST FLORIDA 9-1 .900
Northwest Mo. State 50-18 .735
North Dakota State 30-12 .714
Grand Valley State 35-15 .700
Valdosta State 26-13 .667
Mississippi College 8-4 .667
North Alabama 35-18 .660
*Minimum 10 Games Played
GSC IN THE POSTSEASON
• In the last four postseasons, seven different GSC teams have made the NCAA Playoffs.
• A GSC school has won a D2 best 12 national championships, with UWF claiming the most recent one in 2019. The GSC has put a team in the national title game each of the last four years, with three different schools in the first three years - North Alabama in 2016, UWF in 2017 & 2019 and Valdosta State in 2018 - marking the first time in D2 history that three different teams from the same conference made the title game in consecutive seasons.
• A GSC school has won the NCAA Division II Super Region 2, formerly the Southeast Region, crown 16 times in the last 18 seasons.
• Since Division II went to regionalization in 1990, a GSC school has advanced to the national semifinals 23 times in 30 seasons.
SHINNICK BITES
• Pete Shinnick was hired as the first head coach in program history on Feb. 2, 2014. The 1988 Colorado graduate is 43-18 in four seasons at UWF.
• He is 145-64 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 204-78
2. Tom Sawyer, Winona State 194-90
3. Keith Otterbein, Hillsdale 177-133-3
4. Lee Owens, Ashland 164-120
5. Bill Maskill, MSU Texas 161-66
6. Todd Knight, Ouachita Baptist 158-130-2
7. Todd Hoffner, Minnesota State 154-53
8. Tim Clifton, Mars Hill 149-143
9. Pete Shinnick, UWF 145-64
10. Garin Higgins, Emporia State 138-81
* Minimum 5 years as a D2 head coach; record at 4-year schools only.
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-plus seasons of football, the Argonauts have won 21 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
2021 1ST T-1ST
RECORD IN GSC REGULAR-SEASON
TEAM '16 '17 '18 '19 '21 TOTAL
VSU 6-2 5-3 8-0 8-0 6-1 33-6
UWF 3-5 5-3 4-4 7-1 6-1 25-14
UWA 6-2 7-1 5-3 3-5 4-3 25-14
UWG 4-4 5-3 7-1 4-4 5-2 25-14
FIT* 5-2 3-5 5-3 3-5 --- 16-15
DSU 3-5 5-3 2-6 5-3 3-4 18-21
NGU --- --- 3-4 2-6 2-5 7-15
MC 1-7 1-7 1-6 4-4 2-5 9-29
Shorter 0-8 0-8 0-8 0-8 0-7 0-39
* Fla. Tech dropped football in Spring 2020.
BIG PLAY OFFENSE
• UWF has had 65 plays of 20 yards or more, including season-highs of 13 at Delta State, 11 against Shorter and 9 last week at West Alabama. A total of 42 have been through the air, nine on the ground, eight kick returns, three punt returns and three interceptions.
• David Durden leads the team with 11 big plays. Rodney Coates has 10 and Ka'Ron Ashley has nine.
• The Argos average 25.5 first downs per game, with a season-high 30 against SW Baptist, one shy of tying the school record.
ARGOS #1 NATIONALLY IN YARDS PER PLAY
• UWF's offense has always leaned towards the big play and 2021 is no exception. The Argonauts are the most exciting team in the country, averaging 8.14 yds per play, which ranks first in the country and is on pace to set a new school record.
• Three times this season, UWF has set the single-game record for yards per play, putting up 8.3 at McNeese before 9.3 against Shorter and a monster number of 10.9 at MC.
YARDS PER PLAY NATIONAL LEADERS
Team Yds/Play
1. West Florida 8.14
2. Shepherd 8.01
3. Valdosta State 7.51
4. Nebraska Kearney 7.19
5. Ferris State 7.12
QUICK STRIKE OFFENSE
• Along the lines of the previous note, when you average 8.14 yards per play, you are going to move the ball towards the end zone in a short amount of time. Two weeks ago, UWF's nine scoring drives averaged a season-best 1:53 per possession.
Scoring Avg Time per
Game Drives Scoring Drive
McNeese 6 2:30
Southwest Baptist 9 2:55
A&M Commerce 5 3:06
Delta State 6 2:08
North Greenville 7 3:07
West Georgia 4 2:26
Shorter 7 2:22
Mississippi College 9 1:53
West Alabama 7 2:53
Valdosta State 10 2:49
Season Totals 70 2:37
• UWF has averaged 2:37 on its 70 offensive scoring drives this season. The Argos have scored in under 2:00 33 times - or half of their offensive scores, with nine of those in less than a minute.
UWF BACKFIELD: NO VISITORS ALLOWED
• This season UWF has allowed just six QB sacks for 50 total yards, But further inspection shows the starters have allowed just four QB sacks. The other sacks have come with backups and on backup QB Wyatt Eget.
• Additionally, UWF has only allowed 11 other tackles for loss for a combined 36 yards. The 1.30 TFL allowed leads the country. Emporia State and Harding are tied for second at 2.73.
