2021 Season Preview I: Schedule Preview
The last time we saw the Argos on the field it was December 21st, 2019 in McKinney, Texas. The Argos took down Minnesota State, Mankato in the Division II National Championship 48-40. The Fall 2020 Division II Football season was cancelled due to COVID-19, and while some teams played abbreviated Spring seasons in 2021, there was no national champion declared for the 2020-21 season making your Argos the defending Division II National Champions.
With the 2021 season rapidly approaching, lets take a quick look at the 2021 football schedule. We will take a look at the returning roster in 2021 Season Previews II and III, and as the season approaches On Cannon Green will take closer looks at each individual opponent and what to expect this fall.
September 4th at McNeese State (ESPN+)
McNeese State, an FCS program, was 3-4 in the spring of 2021. They return starting QB Cody Orgeron, son of LSU Head Coach Ed, a Senior. This will be UWF’s first game playing up against an established FCS opponent. UWF had previously faced the University of North Alabama in 2018, in their transition season from D2 to FCS, a 24-19 UWF win.
September 11th Southwest Baptist (FLOSPORTS) at Pen Air Field
UWF takes on Southwest Baptist in the home opener for 2021. SBU played a three game, Great Lakes Valley Conference season in the spring, going 1-2. In 2019 the Bearcats were 3-8 and 1-6 in GLVC play. This will be the first time the Argonauts host a home game on campus at UWF’s Pen Air Field in program history.
September 18th at Texas A&M-Commerce
TAMU-Commerce will be the biggest challenge of the early season. Before missing 2020, the perennial power Lions went 11-2 in 2019 making it to the third round of the playoffs before falling to MSU, Makato. UWF previously met TAMU-Commerce in the 2017 Division II National Championship game, falling 37-27.
September 25th Fort Lauderdale (FLOSPORTS)
The Eagles are a new program playing in a non-NCAA league, the NCCAA, after making the transition from a club sport.
October 2nd at Delta State
Opening weekend of GSC play for the Argos. The Statesmen are coming off a 2019 where they went 6-4, 5-3 in GSC play, and failed to make the playoffs. This had been a close series in the first three outings, but UWF beat Delta State 48-3 in Pensacola. UWF leads 3-1 all time.
October 9th at North Greenville
Game 2 of a conference road trip, the Agros head to Tigerville to take on a Crusaders team that was 3-7, 2-6 in GSC last season. UWF is 2-0 against NGU since their transition into the GSC, winning a tight one in 17-14 in Pensacola in 2019.
October 16th West Georgia (FLOSPORTS)
Homecoming 2021 has fierce conference rival Wolves coming to Pensacola. UWG was 6-5, 4-4 in GSC in 2019, but that was an atypically down year for a team that had won at least 9 games 4 of the last 6 seasons. UWF is 3-2 against UWG in their brief history, with the road team winning each game. The Argos beat a ranked UWG team twice during their unprecedented November 2017 run including a 17-14 playoff win.
October 23rd Shorter (FLOSPORTS)
The Hawks, typically a conference bottom dweller, may have a slight leg up in the GSC this fall since they played a 4 game Spring season, going 2-2. UWF beat Shorter in their 2019 meeting 42-14, part of a 1-10, 0-8 in GSC campaign. The Argos have beaten the Hawks each of their first four meetings by at least 13 points.
October 30th at Mississippi College
MC lost their only game this spring to Tarleton State and went 5-5, 4-4 in GSC in 2019. The Choctaws are another GSC foe that the Argos are currently undefeated against since starting the program in 2016, including a 27-21 overtime thriller in 2019.
November 6th at West Alabama
West Alabama had a successful spring season beating Savannah State and Limestone, after a 6-5, 3-5 GSC 2019 campaign. UWF is 2-3 against UWA in their including a 48-37 win in their last meeting.
November 13th Valdosta State (FLOSPORTS)
Season closes out in Pensacola against conference top dog Valdosta State, a team that has had the upper hand on the Argos. UWF is 1-4 against the Blazers, but the win was a big one. The Argo’s upset then #1 VSU at home in the second round of the 2019 playoffs. The Blazers were 10-1 in 2019, and riding a 24 game winning streak before being sent home by U Dubb.
The 11 game slate is tough, with the Argos likely to face at least three teams that will be ranked in the Division II presesason top 25 rankings and five of the top 50 teams in the country. The opener against McNeese State should give and immediate measure of what UWF is bringing back to the table after a long layoff, playing a division up against a team with an established senior starter at QB. Then the Argos follow that up two weeks later playing against a typically strong TAMU-Commerce team in Texas. The Argos will get two home games (UWG, VSU) and two away games (TAMU-Commerce, UWA) in what project to be their most important games of the season. The October trip to Delta State could end up being a sneaky hard matchup, the Argos have played two tight games in Cleveland in 2016 and 2018 and Delta State bring back their top two running backs and two of their top three wide receivers from the 2019 season.
One major change to the schedule is the lack of in-state rival Florida Tech. In 2020 amid budget cuts FIT eliminated their football program, what this means for the foreseeable future is the Argos will hold the Coastal Classic trophy, and an all time record of 3-1 in the suspended rivalry. Florida Tech was the only other D2 football program in the state of Florida, which solidifies UWF’s position as the premier destination in state for D2 bound football prospects and transfers.
As for television programming, all of the Argos’ 5 home games are currently scheduled to be televised through FLOSPORTS, and the season opener against McNeese State will be streamed on ESPN+. I expect the TAMU-Commerce game gets picked up as the season approaches, that’ll be as big of a D2 game as is played that week. We will also likely get at least one GSC game of the week, which have typically been picked up by ESPN3/ESPN+. After GSC media days next week, we will likely know more about the remaining 5 gams, I personally expect they’ll all be available somewhere on the internet.
