PORTALES, N.M. – The Eastern New Mexico football team welcomes Central Washington University to Greyhound Stadium to kick off the 2021 season. The Hounds return to the field for the first time since 2019 as the 2020 season was canceled due to COVID-19 restrictions.

Fans are encouraged to get to the game early to enjoy tailgating, the Dawg Walk, and performances by the Greyhound Sound Marching Band leading up to the start of the contest at 6 p.m.

ON THE AIR
All games will be broadcast on 105.9 KSEL-FM and KSELCountry.com with Donald “Doc” Elder calling the action. Games will also be broadcast on 106.5 KEND in Roswell and Artesia.

All games will be streamed online through the Lone Star Conference Digital Network. All games are broadcast on a pay-per-view webcast.

STORY LINES
The Hounds enter the 2021 season under first year head coach Tye Hiatt after finishing 8-4 overall during the 2019 season and placing fifth in the conference after going 4-4 in league play.

Eastern will look to build upon a defense that held opponents to the fourth-fewest yards in the league at 360.3 yards per game.

The Lone Star Conference looks a little different this year with the departure of Tarleton, that went 8-0 in conference play in 2019.

GROUND AND POUND
The Hounds will look to stay near the top of the nation in rushing offense during the 2021 season. In 2019, the Hounds ranked second in NCAA Division II after averaging 348.4 yards per game.

The Hounds have finished in the top five in rushing offense in Division II for six consecutive seasons, which includes the 2018 campaign where ENMU posted the top rushing attack in the nation at 352.7 yards per contest.

OFFENSIVE OUTPUT
The 2019 Greyhound offense finished second in the nation in rushing offense (348.4 yards per game).

Helping pave the way for the number two rushing attack in the nation was Vili Fisiiahi who led a dominant offensive line that constantly created running lanes for Paul Terry and the rest of the Hounds ball carriers. Fisiiahi was a pivotal piece of an Eastern offense that led the nation in average time of possession (35 mins/game) and ranked fourth in the country in fourth down conversion rate (71.9 percent). The Honolulu native helped the squad break the school record for rushing yards in a season, finishing with 4,184 yards on the ground. The Greyhounds also broke the LSC record for rushing attempts in a season with a total of 770 attempts.

IT’S ALL ACADEMIC
On top of being one of the top performing schools in the conference, the Eastern New Mexico football team has been the top program in the Lone Star Conference academically, posting the highest GPA of all football programs in the league in seven of the last eight years.

THE HOUNDS AT HOME
The Hounds finished the 2019 season with a 3-2 record at home under previous head coach Kelley Lee.

Eastern New Mexico holds a 14-8 overall record at Al Whitehead Field in Greyhound Stadium since opening in 2016.

KEEPING THEM UNDER 20
The Hounds have been unstoppable when limiting opponents to 20 or fewer points in 2019, as Eastern went 3-0 last season when holding the opposition to 20 or less.

Eastern now holds an 11-0 record over the competition when holding them to 20 points or less in the last three seasons.