Fort Hays State (3-5, 2-4 MIAA) at
(RV) Central Missouri (5-3, 4-2 MIAA)
Saturday, October 31 – 1 p.m.
Warrensburg, Mo. – Walton Stadium (Kennedy Field)
 
The Tigers play at Central Missouri on Saturday afternoon (Oct. 31). Kickoff is set for 1 p.m. at Walton Stadium in Warrensburg. The Tigers enter at 3-5 overall and 2-4 in the MIAA, while the Mules are 5-3 overall and 4-2 in the MIAA.

HOW TO WATCH
All remaining games on Fort Hays State's regular season schedule will be available on The MIAA Network. Subscriptions to the network are as follows…
 
All-Access Pass: $140 (all sports, all events on The MIAA Network in 2026-27)
Monthly Pass: $35 (all events on the network within a calendar month from time of subscription)
Individual Broadcast Pass: $15
 
SERIES HISTORY
UCM leads 12-9
Last Meeting: UCM won 28-24 in Hays (11/1/26)
FHSU Record in Hays: 6-6
FHSU Record in Warrensburg: 3-6
 
Fort Hays State and Central Missouri meet for the 22nd time on Saturday. Central Missouri leads the all-time series 12-9. The teams have split the last six meetings. The last win for FHSU in Warrensburg occurred back in 2021 by a score of 21-17. UCM won last year's meeting in Hays by a score of 28-24 and won the last meeting between the teams in Warrensburg back in 2023.

WEEKLY PRESS CONFERENCE
Head Coach Chris Brown talked about the upcoming game with Central Missouri. Linebacker Ethan Shaw and offensive lineman Jacob Mattice also fielded questions. Watch video below courtesy of Hays Post Sports.  



WEEKLY TIGER TALK
Head Coach Chris Brown and safety Michael Polley join Voice of the Tigers Gerard Wellbrock on the October 26, 2026 edition of the show.



BOTH TEAMS RECEIVE RECOGNITION IN AFCA POLL THIS YEAR
Fort Hays State opened the 2026 season receiving votes in the AFCA Top 25 Poll. The Tigers were briefly in the Top 25 at No. 25, but then fell back into the receiving votes section for a few weeks. Central Missouri is similar in that it made a brief appearance in the Top 25 at No. 24 on October 5 after a 4-1 start to the season, but fell back to the receiving votes section of the poll for the last three weeks.

MULES WIN LAST YEAR'S MEETING IN HAYS
Fort Hays State held a 10-0 lead at halftime in last year's meeting with Central Missouri, but the Mules outscored the Tigers 28-14 in the second half to escape Hays with a four-point win. FHSU led 24-7 with 1:30 to go in the third quarter, but UCM would scre three-straight touchdowns to move in front. The first of the three happened with 23 seconds remaining in the third quarter, then they scored at the 10:37 and 0:50 marks of the fourth quarter. FHSU advanced the ball to the UCM 47, but a deep throw to the endzone was picked off as time expired.
 
LAST TIME IN WARRENSBURG
Central Missouri ran away with the last meeting with Fort Hays State in Warrensburg during the 2023 season. The Tigers led 21-14 at the end of the first quarter, then 28-24 at halftime, but the Mules outscored the Tigers 23-0 in the second half to win by 19. UCM produced 531 yards of total offense in that game compared to 360 for FHSU.
 
SECOND-BEST RUSHING OFFENSE VS. BEST PASSING OFFENSE
Fort Hays State currently ranks 2nd in the MIAA in rushing offense at 162.3 yards per game. Central Missouri has the best passing offense in the conference at 366.1 yards per game.
 
BROWN INCHING CLOSER TO 100
Fort Hays State head coach Chris Brown is only two wins shy of 100 for his career, now in his 15th season leading the Tigers. Brown's 98 wins are 16th most among active NCAA Division II football head coaches.

BROWN VS. THE MULES
FHSU Head Coach Chris Brown holds a record of 7-7 against Central Missouri. Brown holds a record of 2-4 against the Mules in Warrensburg. He has a record of 4-2 head-to-head against Josh Lamberson, which includes a 2-2 record while he has coached UCM and a 2-0 record when Lamberson was coaching Nebraska-Kearney.
 
ESTABLISH THE RUN
Fort Hays State is averaging 162.3 rushing yards through 8 games this season, which ranks 2nd in the MIAA. AG Floyd leads FHSU and ranks 4th in the MIAA for rushing average at 78.9 yards per game. LaAngelo Bell adds 48.3 per game, which ranks 11th in the MIAA. Quarterback Major Cantrell averages 33.1 yards rushing yards per game.
 
ALL-AMERICAN ON THE DEFENSIVE FRONT
Gaven Haselhorst is the lone All-America performer returning for FHSU in 2026. Last year, he was a unanimous All-MIAA First Team selection before garnering D2CCA All-Super Region 4 First Team honors and then All-America Honorable Mention selections by Don Hansen Football Committee and D2Football.com. Haselhorst has the most career tackles of any returner on the Tiger defense with 139, while also being the active career leader in tackles for loss (32) and sacks (14).
 
CANTRELL LEADING THE OFFENSE
Major Cantrell is currently averaging 274.1 total yards of offense per game, which ranks 21st nationally and 3rd in the MIAA. He is averaging 241.0 passing yards per game and 33.1 rushing yards per game. He has thrown for at least 200 yards in 5 of 7 games (157 is his season low) and rushed for at least 50 yards in 2 contests this season. His season high for passing was 318 yards at Missouri Western and his season high for rushing was 95 yards against CSU Pueblo.
 
ROBINSON-WAYNE AND DOOLEY TOP RECEIVING THREATS
Keyshawn Dooley is the team leader in receptions this season with 38 and ranks second on the team in receiving yards with 460. He had a career-high 175 receiving yards at Missouri Western. Ayden Robinson-Wayne leads the team with 464 yards and he has two 100+ yard receiving games this season. Robinson-Wayne ranks 3rd in the MIAA in receiving yards per game (77.3) and leads the MIAA in yards per reception (22.1). He ranks 9th in NCAA Division II for yards per reception.
 
CHEWING UP CLOCK
The Tigers have an average of 33:48 on time of possession this season, which leads the MIAA and ranks 5th in NCAA Division II. South Dakota Mines is the national leader at 34:21. FHSU has possessed the ball over 35 minutes 5 contests this season, but 28 or less in 2 of its 5 losses.
 
TIGERS RANK 2ND IN MIAA FOR INTERCEPTIONS
Fort Hays State ranks 2nd in the MIAA for interceptions this season with 11. The Tigers had a season-high 4 interceptions in their win over Pittsburg State. FHSU ranks 16th nationally in interceptions. UT-Permian Basin leads NCAA Division II with 17.
 
MCBRIDE RANKED SECOND NATIONALLY IN INTERCEPTIONS
Cornerback Matthew McBride's 5 interceptions ranks 2nd nationally along with two other players. Teammate Eli Moulton is tied for 18th nationally with 3. Zyking Patillo of Fayetteville State is the national leader with 6. McBride's 5 interceptions are the most by a Tiger since Doyin Jibowu had 5 in 2017. The most by a Tiger under Chris Brown was 6 by Raheeme Dumas in 2016.
 
BEST IN MIAA ON 4TH DOWN 
Fort Hays State is 9-of-13 on 4th down conversions this season, a conversion percentage of 69.2. The Tigers currently rank 15th in NCAA Division II and lead the MIAA in 4th down conversion percentage.
 
FLOYD STRONG IN SEVERAL OFFENSIVE CATEGORIES
AG Floyd is putting together a strong season at running back. He currently ranks 4th in the MIAA and 40th nationally in rushing yards per game (78.9), but ranks high nationally in several other categories...
Rushing Touchdowns - 11 (11th NCAA D2 / 2nd MIAA)
Scoring - 8.3 ppg (28th NCAA D2 / 3rd MIAA)
Total Points - 66 (24th NCAA D2 / 2nd MIAA)
Total Touchdowns - 11 (16th NCAA D2 / 2nd MIAA)
 
LIGHT ON PENALTIES
Fort Hays State currently ranks 3rd in the MIAA and 19th in NCAA Division II for fewest penalties with 39 for the season. Missouri Southern and Northwest Missouri State are tied for the fewest, each with 33. The Tigers rank 17th nationally in fewest penalties per game (4.88).
 
MOST FIRST DOWNS IN A GAME SINCE 2023
Fort Hays State posted its most first downs in a game since the 2023 season in last week's contest with Washburn. The Tigers had 30 first downs against the Ichabods. The last time FHSU had 30 in a game was October 7, 2023 against Missouri Southern.
 
TIGERS GO WITHOUT PENALTY FOR FIRST TIME IN THEIR NCAA DIVISION II HISTORY
In last week's contest with Washburn, the Tigers did not commit a penalty. It is the first time that ever happened in the team's NCAA Division II history. Game-by-game penalty data at FHSU goes back to 1984 and FHSU never went without a penalty all the way back to that season as well.
 
WHEN THE TIGERS SCORE 30 UNDER BROWN
Fort Hays State is 66-6 under head coach Chris Brown when reaching 30 points in a game. The Tigers went 2-0 last season and 3-0 so far this season when reaching 30 points in a game. They now have a streak of 11-straight wins when scoring 30.
 
REACHING 200 RUSHING YARDS IN A GAME UNDER BROWN
The Tigers have a record of 45-2 since the start of 2013 when rushing for over 200 yards in a game. They had 211 in the season opener at Angelo State, 207 against Pittsburg State, and a season-high 220 against Missouri Southern. The last time the Tigers rushed for over 300 yards in a game was November 2, 2024 with 331 at Emporia State on the way to a 36-7 win. The Hornets were ranked No. 11 in the nation by the AFCA in that meeting.
 
BROWN HOLDS FHSU COACHING WINS AND TENURE RECORD
Chris Brown is in his 15th year guiding the Tigers and owns the FHSU Football coaching wins record with an overall mark of 98-68. He has 43 more wins than previous record holder Bob Cortese. Brown is also the longest tenured head coach in program history as he passed Wayne McConnell for the longest stint in history last year. Brown currently ranks 16^th among active NCAA Division II coaches in career wins.

ABOUT THE MULES:

• Last week the Mules fell in a high-scoring battle at Emporia State by a score of 58-38.
• All of UCM's losses this season were to ranked teams (CSU Pueblo, Northwest Missouri State, and Emporia State).
• Head coach Josh Lamberson is in his fifth year leading the Mules. He has a record of 34-21 at UCM.
• Central Missouri quarterback Jordan Pachot averages 344.4 passing yards per game, which leads the MIAA and ranks 2^nd nationally.
• Marcus Williams leads UCM in tackles with 66 and sacks with 3.5.