ODESSA, Texas — The UTPB Falcons football team made program history on Sunday night, earning the first playoff appearance in the team's history.
This comes on the heels of the first conference title in team history, as the Falcons topped the Central Washington University Wildcats 42-14 on Saturday, winning the Lone Star Conference outright in the de facto conference championship game.
UTPB now makes the NCAA Division II Championship tournament bracket, as one of 28 teams that will compete to make the national championship game, which will be played in December.
The Falcons will be the #3 seed in the bracket's fourth region, hosting Bemidji State at Midland's Astound Broadband Stadium on Saturday, Nov. 18 at 1 p.m. (CST).
The program has soared to new heights under first-year head coach Kris McCullough, who UT Permian Basin hired away from East Central University in Ada, OK. last December.
The Falcons have followed the leadership of McCullough, and the steady hand of Senior Quarterback Kenny Hrncir, who transferred to UTPB from East Central this offseason.
Defensively, Senior Hayden Kelly, who has been on the team for several seasons, also serves as a captain and leads a unit that shut out Central Washington in the second half on Saturday.
Bemidji State is located in Minnesota, and despite not having home-field advantage in the first round, they will have the experience edge over the Falcons, having made multiple postseason appearances in past years.
Tickets for Saturday's game can be found on the University of Texas Permian Basin's athletics website.