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KICKOFF
• The Central Missouri Mules look to get back in the win column when they battle 10th-ranked Pittsburg State on Saturday afternoon. Kickoff at Walton Stadium/Kennedy Field is set for 1:30 p.m.
• The Mules are coming off a 21-14 loss at Missouri Southern last Saturday night. UCM fell behind 21-7 at halftime and saw their fourth quarter rally come up short.
• With Saturday's game kicking off at 1:30 p.m., the Mules Tailgate Show on the new 44,000-watt 98.5 The Bar, 1450 KOKO and warrensburgradio.com will begin at 12:10 p.m.
• The Gorillas are coming off a 28-20 win over Division I FCS Abilene Christian last Saturday in Pittsburg.

QUICK HITS
• The Mules are looking to get back to .500 overall and within a game of .500 in the MIAA when they take on 10th-ranked Pittsburg State on Saturday afternoon at Walton Stadium/Kennedy Field.
• The Mules played the toughest first two games of any team in the nation facing two teams ranked in the top six of the AFCA Poll.
• The Gorillas are 5-0 overall this season and 4-0 in MIAA play.
• UCM is playing a 10-game schedule again in 2013, but only nine conference games. This is the fourth straight season that the Mules only have five regular season home games.
• Central Missouri went 6-4 last season finishing in seventh place in the MIAA standings. It was the sixth straight winning season for Mules Football and the 14th in the last 15 seasons.

SERIES HISTORY
• This will be the 51st meeting between Central Missouri and Pittsburg State. The Gorillas hold a 40-8-2 lead in the all-time series.
• The Gorillas rallied for a 30-21 win over the Mules last year in Pittsburg.
• PSU has won two straight games in the series and five of the last seven meetings overall.
• Pittsburg State is averaging 34.0 points per game during the current two-game streak, while the Mules are averaging 19.0 points per game.
• In the three meetings under the current head coaches, PSU holds a 2-1 lead. The Gorillas are averaging 29.3 points per game, while UCM is averaging 25.0 per contest.

LAST TIME VS PITTSBURG STATE
• Pittsburg State scored the final 13 points of the game to claim a 30-21 win over the Mules on Oct. 6, 2012 in Pittsburg. UCM had taken a 21-17 lead on the first play of the fourth quarter.
• Colter Smith was 16-of-32 for 256 yards and added two rushing touchdowns in the game.
• LaVance Taylor had 16 carries for 69 yards and a 15-yard touchdown run.
• Ronrei Lloyd had eight catches for 123 yards, while Ralph Watson hauled in three passes for 88 yards, including a 59-yarder on third and 10 from the UCM two yard line.
• Patrick Lewis had 10 tackles and forced fumble and moved into 10th place on UCM's all-time tackles list.
• Ricky Spratley had four tackles, a sack, a fumble recovery and an interception.
• The Mules were hurt by penalties, accumulating nine for 69 yards.
• UCM was out-gained 539-324 by Pittsburg State.

ABOUT THE GORILLAS
• Pittsburg State enters the contest at 5-0 overall, 4-0 in MIAA play and ranked No. 10 in the AFCA Top 25 Coaches Poll.
• The Gorillas are coming off a 28-20 win over Division I FCS foe Abilene Christian on Saturday afternoon in Pittsburg.
• PSU leads the MIAA in scoring offense (51.2 ppg) and total offense and ranks third in the league in scoring (19.0 ppg) and total defense.
• Quarterback Anthony Abenoja is completing nearly 70 percent of his passes for 274.0 yards per game and has thrown 14 touchdown passes and just two interceptions.
• John Brown has 27 receptions for 551 yards, 20.4 yards per catch, and seven touchdowns. He is also averaging 12.3 yards per punt return and 62.0 yards per kick return with a kickoff return for a touchdown.
• Jeff Seybold leads the PSU ground game averaging 119.4 yards per game. He's rushed 81 times for 597 yards and 11 touchdowns. As a unit, Pitt State has scored 18 rushing touchdowns and given up just six.
• Defensively, Nate Dreiling leads the team with 47 tackles. He has 3.5 tackles for loss, one sack and two pass break ups.
• Tyler Disney is second on the team with 32 tackles and leads the team with 7.0 tackles for loss and also has three quarterback sacks and three fumble recoveries.
• The PSU defense has 33 tackles for loss, 12 sacks, four interceptions, 25 pass break ups and eight fumble recoveries.

MULES IN MIAA PLAY
• The Mules are 1-3 in MIAA play this season and 21-11 in conference action under Jim Svoboda after falling at Missouri Southern 21-14 last Saturday night.
• The Mules are just 2-5 in their last seven conference games.
• The Mules' 14 combined conference wins in 2010 and 2011 were the most by a UCM head coach in their first two seasons.

THE MULES AT HOME
• Central Missouri is 13-5 at home under Jim Svoboda and 1-1 this season following the 47-28 win over Lindenwood on Sept. 21.
• The Mules are averaging 35.0 points per game at home this season and giving up 27 points per contest.
• The Mules are 218-179-13 in their 83rd season playing home games at Walton Stadium/Kennedy Field.

THE MULES ON THE ROAD
• The Mules are 1-2 on the road this year and 14-8 in road games during the Jim Svoboda era following their 21-14 loss to Missouri Southern in Joplin on Saturday, October 5.
• The Mules were 2-3 on the road last season and are now 3-5 in their last eight road games.

THE MULES VS. RANKED OPPONENTS
• The Mules are 5-8 against ranked competition during the Jim Svoboda era following the 28-24 loss at No. 3 Northwest Missouri on Sept. 14.
• Central Missouri is 1-4 in the last five games against ranked opponents.
• UCM's last win over a top 5-ranked opponent was a 31-21 win over No. 3 Northwest Missouri on Sept. 8, 2012.
• UCM's last win over a top 10-ranked opponent was a 39-21 win at No. 6 Washburn to close out the 2011 regular season.

LEADING AT THE HALF
• The Mules are 23-4 during the Jim Svoboda era when leading at halftime and 1-2 this season after beating Truman on Saturday, Sept. 28.
• UCM was 6-2 when leading at halftime last year.
• On the flip side, the Mules are just 3-10 under Svoboda when trailing at halftime.

21 AND UP
• UCM is 26-6 under Jim Svoboda when scoring at least 21 points after beating Truman State 44-23 on September 28 in Kirksville.
• The Mules are averaging 34.5 points per game this season. When scoring 30 or more points UCM is 2-0 this year and 26-1 during the Svoboda era.

MULES IN THE FOURTH QUARTER
• The Mules have outscored their opponents 59-27 in the fourth quarter this season, including 45-7 the past three weeks.
• The Gorillas, while outscoring opponents 256-95 this season, have been outscored 47-35 in the fourth quarter.

RED ZONE IS THE MULE ZONE
• The Mules are thriving in the red zone both on offense and defense. Central Missouri leads the MIAA in red zone offense and red zone defense.
• UCM is 18 of 19 (94.7%) offensively in the red zone, scoring 15 touchdowns and kicking three field goals.
• Defensively, the Mules have given up points on 13 of 21 (61.9%) opponent trips to the red zone.
• The Gorillas aren't far behind in the red zone categories either. PSU ranks fourth in red zone offense and second, behind UCM, in red zone defense.

A UCM WIN WOULD...
• Give the Mules a 3-3 overall record and a 2-3 MIAA record on the season.
• Snap a two-game skid against the Gorillas and be just the fifth win against PSU since 1960
• Pull UCM to within 40-9-2 in the all-time series.

A UCM LOSS WOULD...
• Drop the Mules to 2-4 on the season, including 1-4 in conference play.
• Be the third straight to the Gorillas and the sixth in the last eight years.
• Extend PSU's lead in the all-time series to 41-8-2.

MULES FOOTBALL HISTORY
• In the 118th season of UCM Football the Mules have compiled a 522-497-51 (.512) record in 1,070 total games.
• The Mules have won 10 or more games three times in the history of the program and have posted 11 seasons of eight or more wins.
• UCM won a school-record 11 games in Jim Svoboda's first season in 2010.
• UCM has won or shared eight MIAA championships in school history with the last coming in 2003.
• The Mules have qualified for the postseason seven times in their history, including two trips to the NCAA-II Playoffs, the last coming in 2010.

SVOBODA LEADING THE WAY
• Central Missouri head coach Jim Svoboda has a record of 27-14 (.659) in his fourth season leading the Mules.
• Svoboda's .659 winning percentage is the fourth highest for a UCM coach.
• UCM posted the second most wins in a two-year span in school history in Svoboda's first two seasons.
• The Mules appeared in the postseason in each of Svoboda's first two seasons. UCM made the NCAA-II Playoffs in year one under Svoboda and earned a bid to the Kanza Bowl in his second season. It is just the second time in school history that Mules Football has made back-to-back postseason appearances.
• UCM hosted the first ever playoff game in school history and won the school's first two playoff games in Svoboda's first season in 2010.
• The Mules have set or tied 64 school offensive records and 20 MIAA offensive records during Svoboda's tenure.
• The Mules became the first team in NCAA-II history to have a 5,000-yard passer (Eric Czerniewski) and a 1,000-yard rusher (Anthony Stewart) in the same season when they accomplished that feat in 2010.

MULES IN THE PROS
• There is one former Mule currently on an NFL roster. Tight end Delanie Walker is in his eighth season in the league and his first with the Tennessee Titans. Walker signed a four-year deal with the Titans in the offseason after playing in Super Bowl XLVII last season with San Francisco. In his career, Walker has 139 catches for 1,621 yards with 10 touchdowns, including 16 catches for 156 yards and two touchdowns this season.

A TRADITION OF EXCELLENCE IN ATHLETICS
• Central Missouri has won a combined 193 MIAA regular-season conference championships in 14 league sports to lead all schools.
• Last season, UCM captured three MIAA regular season titles and one tournament championship.
• Since 1983, the tenure of Athletic Director Jerry Hughes, UCM has won or shared 139 MIAA championships, more than any other league school.
• Central Missouri has won five national championships since 1980 (men's and women's basketball in 1984, baseball in 1994 and 2003, and women's bowling in 2003) and seven national championships overall.

A TRADITION OF EXCELLENCE IN THE CLASSROOM
• The 550 Central Missouri student-athletes received 375 Academic Awards from the MIAA office for the 2012-13 academic year.
• 305 UCM student-athletes were named to the MIAA Academic Honor Roll with a 3.0 GPA or higher.
• 37 UCM student-athletes were named MIAA Scholar Athletes with at least a 3.5 GPA and having earned all-MIAA honors in their respective sport.
• 33 UCM student-athletes were named MIAA Academic Excellence Award winners with a 4.0 GPA.
• UCM had eight student-athletes earn Academic All-America honors in their respective sports, including Brent Vogel being named the Capital One/CoSIDA Academic All-American of the Year for Men's Track & Field.

MULES FOOTBALL ON THE AIR
• Central Missouri football is broadcast live on 1450 KOKO/98.5 "The Bar", and on the internet at warrensburgradio.com. The broadcast team of Shawn Jones (play-by-play), Bill Turnage (color commentary) and Greg Hassler (sideline) will have all the UCM action. The Mules Tailgate show begins 80 minutes prior to kickoff.
• The Bob Showers of Ameritas Investment Corp. Jim Svoboda Mules Football Radio Show, Live from Traditions Restaurant airs on Monday nights at 6:30 p.m. on 98.5 The Bar and 1450 KOKO as well as online at warrensburgradio.com. The show is broadcast live on the patio at Traditions Restaurant at the Audrey J. Walton Clubhouse at Keth Memorial Golf Course.
• The Central Missouri Sportspage is your weekly one-hour look at UCM athletics each Thursday night at 7 p.m. on KMOS-TV. Senior Associate Athletic Director Shawn Jones sits down with Mules head coach Jim Svoboda to discuss the previous week's game as well as weekly spotlights of Mules football players.

LIVE VIDEO STREAMING
• Live video coverage for all Central Missouri home and away MIAA games will be available through the America One Sports Network on a pay-per-view basis. The cost is $8 per game, $30 for a 30-day pass or $69.95 for an all-season pass for UCM football. Fans can access webcasts through the America One Sports link on the UCM Athletics homepage or by going to AmericaOneSports.com.

UP NEXT
• The Mules head back out on the road traveling to Edmond, Okla. to take on Central Oklahoma on Saturday, Oct. 19 at 1 p.m. This will be the Mules' first ever trip to UCO.