2023 UMHB football schedule released

BELTON- The 2023 UMHB football schedule is out, and amongst other notables, is highlighted by a late-season trip west to Abilene.

The Cru will be on the road for perhaps the conference’s biggest rivalry game of the year, facing longtime challenger Hardin-Simmons at Shelton Stadium in Abilene on Oct. 28. The kickoff time is set for 1 p.m. CT.

Though it is considered unusual to have ASC games between two teams played at the same location in consecutive seasons, it has happened before. In 2018 and 2019, HSU traveled to Belton for the regular season meeting between the rivals. UMHB was 2-0 in those contests. The Cru has also won the last two games played in Abilene, including a 50-20 victory last season.

Traveling to HSU for the second year in a row comes in addition to a trip to Brownwood for the second straight season as well, facing Howard Payne in the regular season finale at 1 p.m. on Nov. 11.

Last year’s meeting between the Cru and Yellow Jackets included some controversy, as HPU scored late on a touchdown that many felt should have been ruled a UMHB interception. Anthony Avila put the Cru ahead in the final seconds, with a 44-yard field goal that won the contest, 27-24.

The conference schedule as a whole features three home games and four road games, with an uneven number of football-playing programs in the ASC this season. With Southwestern’s departure for the Southern Athletic Association, the league is down to eight opponents, who play a round-robin schedule.

As previously reported, UMHB’s 2023 season begins in Wisconsin, facing UW-River Falls on Week 1. That is followed by a trip south to Trinity (TX), a program that UMHB faced in both the 2021 and 2022 D-III playoffs. That contest, played in San Antonio, will be Trinity’s home opener. The Crusaders will wait a week later for their home opener, hosting UW-Whitewater in Belton on Sept. 16. Kickoff time is scheduled for 12 p.m. CT.

The ASC portion of the schedule begins on Sept. 23, with UMHB hosting McMurry on homecoming. The complete schedule, with dates, is below.