Lions host Eastern New Mexico in 2011 home finale

Ten seniors from A&M-Commerce will make their final appearance on the Memorial Stadium turf this weekend as the Lions host Eastern New Mexico in a Lone Star Conference battle at 6 p.m. Saturday.

The senior football players will be recognized prior to the game, during which the Lions (0-8, 0-6 LSC) will try to grasp that elusive first win of the season. A&M-Commerce will also look to snap a two-game losing streak to the Greyhounds (2-7, 1-5 LSC), who hold a 13-11 lead in the all-time series against the Lions.

The Lions are coming off a 40-28 loss at 19^th-ranked Abilene Christian, a game that saw junior quarterback J.J. Harp set a single-game school record for completions (36). Harp finished with 297 yards and a pair of touchdowns on 36-of-59 passing, but was picked off three times.

ACU built an early 30-point lead that essentially buried the Lions, but several players turned in solid personal efforts despite the loss. Kevin Bevans set career-highs in receptions (10) and yards (100), and Taylor Fore moved into fourth on the all-time receptions list, catching six passes to give the senior 118 for his career.

Saturday's game will also pit Harp against his former team for the first time since his departure from ENMU. As a sophomore in 2009, Harp was a finalist for the Harlon Hill Award – given to the top player in NCAA Division II – after setting school records and leading the NCAA in total offense. Harp finished that season with 4,373 yards passing and set Division II records in single-game attempts (94), completions (64), and passing yards (695).

Harp has struggled to produce similar numbers at A&M-Commerce – 1,266 yards, 7 TDs, 9 INTs in five games – but his replacement at Eastern New Mexico has had quite a bit of success and heads into Saturday's game as the LSC leader in passing. ENMU junior Wesley Wood leads the Greyhound offense with 2,440 yards and 21 touchdowns passing while completing 65 percent (262-of-401) of his passes.

The Greyhounds enter Memorial Stadium as losers of four consecutive games, with their last win coming Oct. 1 against Angelo State. Eastern New Mexico has allowed an average of 52.5 points during its four-game slide, while scoring just 21.3. However, the Lions have seen their offensive output decline at home, scoring 33 points in their first home game, but dipping down to 22 and eventually falling to just 14 points in their last home game, a 45-14 homecoming loss to Angelo State on Oct. 22.