PITTSBURG -- The Pittsburg State University football team will travel to St. Joseph, Mo., Saturday (Oct. 23) to battle MIAA rival Missouri Western State University. Kickoff is set for 4 p.m. (CDT) at Spratt Memorial Stadium.

Pitt State enters Saturday's action with a 5-2 record. The Gorillas posted a 59-7 home victory over Lincoln University last Saturday (Oct. 16) at Carnie Smith Stadium.

The lopsided victory snapped a string of three games – a pair of wins over Emporia State University (30-28) and Missouri Southern State University (20-16) and a one-point loss to No. 2 Northwest Missouri State University (20-19) – in which the final score was decided by four points or less.

Missouri Western is 3-4 on the season entering Saturday's action. The Griffons snapped a three-game losing streak with a 57-24 home win over Northeastern State University last Saturday. Western is 3-1 at home this season and 0-3 away from Spratt Memorial Stadium.

The Coaches
Brian Wright is in his second season as head coach at Pittsburg State.

He was hired as the program's 15th all-time head coach on December 7, 2019. Wright led the Gorillas to a 2-2 record during the abbreviated 2020 season; and he has compiled a 7-4 overall mark. He has an 11-4 record as a collegiate head coach.

Wright came to Pitt State after serving the previous four seasons as offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach at the University of Toledo.

In his four seasons with the Rockets, Wright helped guide offenses that have been among the best in the Mid-American Conference while boasting four NFL draft picks.

Prior to coming to Toledo, Wright coached at Florida Atlantic for four seasons as the Owls' offensive coordinator. He stepped in as interim head coach for the final four games of the 2013 season, leading the Owls to four consecutive victories and bowl eligibility (6-6) for the first time since 2008.

Prior to his stint at Florida Atlantic, Wright spent two seasons at Montana State as the offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach.

Before heading west to Montana State, Wright served nine years at perennial FCS power Youngstown State.

Wright joined the Penguins' staff in 2001 as quarterbacks coach, also working as offensive coordinator from 2005-09. He began his collegiate coaching career at Walsh (Ohio) University as a graduate assistant in 1995-96.

After a year as a graduate assistant at YSU in which the Penguins won the NCAA Division I-AA national title, Wright returned to Walsh in 1998 and served until 2000.

Saturday's action will mark Wright's second match-up against Western. He is 1-0 against the Griffons after securing a 20-7 victory at St. Joseph, Mo., last year.

Matt Williamson is in his fifth season directing his alma mater. Williamson (MWSU, '96) previously served as an assistant coach at Western from 2000-07. He has a 22-21-0 (.512) career coaching record. This will be his fourth meeting vs. Pitt State. He is 1-3 against the Gorillas.

The Pitt State-Western Series
This will be the 47th all-time meeting between the Gorillas and Griffons in a series that dates back to the 1970 season. Pitt State holds a 34-12 (.733) advantage in the series, including six straight road wins and an 18-6 record against MWSU at St. Joseph.

Last year, Pitt State capitalized on a stifling defensive performance as the Gorillas scored a 20-7 road win over MWSU on Nov. 7 at Spratt Memorial Stadium.
The Gorillas jumped out to a 10-0 lead in the contest and did not allow any offensive points scored by the Griffons.

Quarterback Mak Sexton tossed a 20-yard touchdown pass to running back Drew Winn on the opening drive of the game and he added a 17-yard scoring toss to wide receiver Jalen Martin early in the third quarter. Placekicker Jaden Snyder added field goals of 41 and 23 yards to compete the Gorillas scoring.

The Pitt State defense limited MWSU to 180 yards of total offense and just 43 net rushing yards. The Gorillas recorded a pair of drive stopping interceptions and also partially blocked a punt that played a key role in field possession.

Sexton finished the game 18 of 32 passing for 141 yards.

All-Time Winningest Programs
Pittsburg State is the all-time winningest NCAA Division II football program. The Gorillas, who are playing in their 114th season of intercollegiate competition, have compiled a 726-357-48 overall record, winning 66.3 percent of their 1,131 all-time games.

Pittsburg State is one of just seven NCAA Division II institutions to have recorded 600 all-time victories and the Gorillas became just the 33rd program – the first Division II institution – across all levels of college football to reach the 700-win plateau. The Gorillas rank 30th among all college football programs in all-time victories.

Tuskegee is second on the Division II all-time list with 699 victories, followed by Hillsdale (651), Carson-Newman (643) and Central Oklahoma (642).

MWSU has a 300-250-9 (.545) record in 52 seasons of intercollegiate play.

Gorillas on the Road
Historically, Pitt State has posted a solid record in road games. The Gorillas have posted a 105-34-1 (.754) record in its last 140 road games (including post-season play) dating back to the start of the 1994 season. The Gorillas are 41-11 (.788) in their last 52 road games dating back to Oct. 23, 2010.

PSU's Regular Season Success
Pitt State has won 309 of its last 376 regular season games, posting a phenomenal 309-65-2 (.824) mark during the past 36 seasons (1985-2021). PSU is 163-27-1 at home, 142-29-1 on the road and 4-9-0 at neutral sites in the regular season during that span.

Scouting the Gorillas
Redshirt sophomore quarterback Mak Sexton has completed 114 of 183 passes (.623) for 1,593 yards (227.6 ypg) and 13 touchdown on the season. He currently ranks fifth in the MIAA in passing yards.

Sexton (6-1, 206) had a hand in all five Pitt State touchdowns against No. 13 Central Missouri on Sept. 2 and earned MIAA Player of the Week honors from that game. The Leander, Texas, native posted his second career 300-yard game last week when he passed for 309 yards and two scores against Emporia State.

Sexton, who has an 8-4 record in 12 career starts for the Gorillas, has completed 322 of 551 passes (.584) for 4,296 yards and 34 touchdowns in 22 career games. He currently ranks seventh all-time in Pitt State history in career passing yards and career passing touchdowns.

Junior defensive end Keiondre Hall posted a pair of quarterback sacks in the Gorillas victory over Lincoln last Saturday (Oct. 16).

The Columbia, Mo., native has made 11 tackles (seven solo) on the season with 4.0 tackles-for-loss and 2.0 quarterback sacks. For his career, Hall (6-4, 245) has made 35 tackles (20 solo) with 14.5 tackles-for-loss and 8.5 quarterback sacks.