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KICKOFF
• The Central Missouri Mules look to rebound from their season-opening loss to Missouri Western when they travel to Maryville, Mo. on Saturday night for a showdown with third-ranked Northwest Missouri.
• The game is set for a 6 p.m. kickoff at Bearcat Stadium with the Mules Tailgate Show beginning at 4:40 p.m.
• The Mules are coming off a 26-23 loss to the Griffons, while the Bearcats beat No. 22 Saginaw Valley State 45-24 in their season-opener last Thursday night.

QUICK HITS
• The Mules take on a top-10 ranked opponent for the second straight week. Last week the Mules dropped their season-opener 26-23 to No. 6 Missouri Western.
• The Mules will play the toughest first two games of any team in the nation facing two teams ranked in the top six of the AFCA Poll.
• The Bearcats are 1-0 this year and are coming off a 2012 season, in which they went 10-3 overall and 8-2 in league play. Northwest Missouri qualified for the NCAA-II Playoffs before falling to Minnesota State, 38-35, in the second round.
• UCM will play 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 is the 93rd meeting all-time between Central Missouri and Northwest Missouri with the Bearcats holding a 55-35-2 advantage.
• The Mules snapped a nine-game losing streak in the series last year with a 31-21 win in Warrensburg in week two.
• UCM is 1-3 against Northwest Missouri during the Jim Svoboda era, while the Bearcats are 1-1 against the Mules under third year head coach Adam Dorrel.

LAST TIME VS NORTHWEST MISSOURI
• The Mules struck first on a 62-yard touchdown pass from Colter Smith to LaVance Taylor midway through the first quarter.
• The Bearcats tied the game on a James Franklin one-yard run, but the Mules would score 24 unanswered points to open up a 31-7 advantage near the end of the third quarter.
• Northwest Missouri scored two touchdowns in the fourth quarter to pull within 10, but the Mules snapped a nine-game losing streak to the Bearcats with the win.
• UCM racked up 421 yards of total offense, including 301 yards through the air and four touchdowns from Smith.
• The Bearcats had 415 yards of offense, including 335 from the arm of Trevor Adams.
• Anthony Kirkwood had three receptions for 24 yards and two touchdowns. Nine different UCM receivers caught passes.
• The Mule defense held Northwest Missouri to 80 yards rushing and just 2.3 yards per carry.
• The win over the then-No. 3 Bearcats was the highest ranked team UCM has ever beaten at Walton Stadium.

ABOUT NORTHWEST MISSOURI
• The Bearcats come into the game ranked No. 3 in the nation after a 45-24 season-opening win over then-No. 22 Saginaw Valley State last Thursday.
• Northwest Missouri was 10-3 a season ago and advanced to the second round of the NCAA-II Playoffs.
• NWMSU is 22-6 under third year head coach Adam Dorrel.
• The Bearcats racked up 514 yards of total offense in the season-opening win over Saginaw Valley State. Northwest Missouri rushed for 181 yards and threw for 333.
• Trevor Adams was 15 of 20 for 285 yards and a touchdown, while Billy Creason gained 55 yards on 14 carries with a touchdown. Robert Burton carried 10 times for 51 yards and two scores.
• Clint Utter had four catches for 160 yards and a touchdown.
• Defensively, the Bearcats came up with an interception, two fumble recoveries, and three sacks. One of the fumbles was returned 70 yards for a touchdown by MIAA Defensive Player of the Week Brandon Dixon.

MULES IN MIAA PLAY
• The Mules are 20-9 in MIAA play under Jim Svoboda after dropping their season-opener 26-23 to Missouri Western last week.
• 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 12-5 at home under Jim Svoboda, after the loss to Missouri Western last Thursday.
• The Mules have lost two straight games at home for the first time since 2011.
• The Mules averaged 33.8 points per game at home last year and gave up just 17.8 per outing.
• The Mules are 217-179-13 as they begin their 83rd season playing home games at Walton Stadium/Kennedy Field.

THE MULES ON THE ROAD
• The Mules are 13-6 in road games during the Jim Svoboda era after going  2-3 on the road last season.
• UCM averaged 23.8 points per game on the road last year, while giving up 26.4 points per contest.

THE MULES VS. RANKED OPPONENTS
• The Mules are 5-7 against ranked competition during the Jim Svoboda era following a 26-23 season-opening loss to No. 6 Missouri Western.
• UCM's last win over a top 5-ranked opponent was a 31-21 win over No. 3 Northwest Missouri on Sept. 8.
• 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 22-3 during the Jim Svoboda era when leading at halftime, but 0-1 this season after falling to Missouri Western after leading at the half.
• UCM was 6-2 when leading at halftime last year.
• On the flip side, the Mules are just 2-9 under Svoboda when trailing at halftime.

21 AND UP
• UCM is 24-5 under Jim Svoboda when scoring at least 21 points after falling 26-23 to Missouri Western in last week's season-opener.
• The Mules are just 5-4 in their last nine games when scoring 21 or more points.

A UCM WIN WOULD...
• Give the Mules a 1-1 overall and MIAA record on the year.
• Give UCM two straight wins over Northwest Missouri for the first time since the 1993-94 seasons.
• Give the Mules their first win in Maryville since a 52-24 win during the 2003 season.
• Give the Mules a 2-3 record against the Bearcats during the Jim Svoboda era.

A UCM LOSS WOULD...
• Give the Mules an 0-2 record for the first time since 1991.
• Drop UCM to 0-2 in MIAA play for the first time since 2006.
• Give the Bearcats 10 wins in the last 11 meetings between the two schools
• Give the Mules a 1-4 record against Northwest Missouri under Svoboda.

MULES FOOTBALL HISTORY
• In the 118th season of UCM Football the Mules have compiled a 520-495-51 (.512) record in 1,066 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 career record of 25-12 (.676) in his fourth season leading the Mules.
• Svoboda's .676 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 63 school offensive records in Svoboda's first three seasons and 20 MIAA offensive records.
• 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 123 catches for 1,465 yards with eight touchdowns.

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 will sit 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 return home to host Lindenwood on Saturday, Sept. 21. Kickoff on Family Weekend is set for 1:30 p.m. at Walton Stadium/Kennedy Field.
• After hosting Lindenwood, UCM will hit the road for two straight weeks. A non-conference matchup with Truman State on Sept. 28 and a trip to Joplin on Oct. 5 to take on Missouri Southern.