SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS – The University of the Incarnate Word football team returns home on Saturday at 7 p.m. against Lone Star Conference rival #25 West Texas A&M at Benson Stadium.  All civil servants will be admitted to the game free of charge.

The Cardinals (1-2, 0-1) are coming off a tough 34-24 loss to Eastern New Mexico at the Lone Star Football Festival last Friday at Cowboys Stadium.  The Buffs (2-1, 1-0) won their matchup with then #14 Texas A&M-Kingsville, 40-10 at the same event.

The Cardinals pass defense has been strong this season giving up only 135.3 yards per game, 12^th in the nation.  They face a stiff challenge against a Buffalo offense that is passing for over 400 yards per game.  This will be the toughest test of the season for the UIW secondary that is led by Second Team all-Lone Star Conference safeties Chaz Pavliska (Floresville/Floresville HS) and Devin Haywood (San Antonio/Roosevelt HS) and cornerback Devan Avery (Converse/Wagner HS).

West Texas A&M quarterback Dustin Vaughn is averaging 352.3 yards passing per game with a 179.7 efficiency rating.  He has tossed 11 touchdowns against one interception.  He top targets are Torrence Allen, Nathan Slaughter and Lance Ratliff who have combined for 46 catches and over 800 yards.

The Cardinal offense will look to senior running back Trent Rios (Spring Branch/Smithson Valley HS) to lead the way.  He rushed for over 100 yards last week, the seventh time in his career.  He leads the team with three touchdowns.  Quarterback Zach Rhodes (New Braunfels/New Braunfels HS) is completing 60 percent of his passes for 169.7 yards per game.  He also rushed for 128 yards on eight carries last week.

The game will be on KKYX 680 AM with Gabe Farias and Shawn Morris on the call.  It will be live streamed at http://client.stretchinternet.com/client/uiw.portal#.  Live stats are available at http://www.sidearmstats.com/incarnateword/football/scoreboard.aspx.
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