The Lone Star Conference begins the 2008 season this week with six games on Thursday night and five more contests on Saturday.  All 11 games are non-conference tilts, including a pair of Top 25 match-ups.
    Headlining the action Thursday night is No. 10 West Texas A&M at No. 23 Mesa State, while No. 8 Abilene Christian plays at No. 3 Northwest Missouri State on Saturday in the nation's first Top 10 game at any level.

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Three LSC teams ranked in AFCA preseason poll
Three LSC teams - No. 8 ACU, No. 10 WTAMU, and No. 18 Texas A&M-Commerce - were ranked in the 2008 preseason American Football Coaches Association Division II Coaches' Poll.  Tarleton State, Southeastern Oklahoma and Midwestern State each received votes in the poll as well.
    
Rule changes for 2008
The NCAA approved several rule changes for the 2008 season.  The biggest change involves the play clock, which will have both 40 and 25-second settings.  After a dead ball - when a runner is down in the field of play or out of bounds, a fumble out of bounds, backward pass out of bounds and after an incomplete pass - the play clock will reset to 40 seconds and will start immediately, much like the NFL. When a runner goes out of bounds, the game clock will initially stop, as is the case currently. However, except in the last two minutes of each half, the game clock will now start on a signal from the referee, rather than on the snap.  And after a first down the game clock will stop but the play clock will go to 40 seconds and will start counting down.  The 25-second clock will be used when the clock stops on a change of possession or after a penalty, timeouts, measurements, injuries, etc.
    The NCAA banned the horse-collar tackle, simplified chop blocking rules and eliminated the 5-yard face mask penalty for incidental contact, now it will be called as a 15-yard penalty or no foul at all.
    When a kickoff goes out of bounds, the receiving team may accept the ball at the 40-yard line instead of the 35. 
    A yardage penalty (5 yards for first and second offense, 15 yards thereafter) for sideline control was instituted.

Preseason picks
Texas A&M-Commerce is favored to win the LSC North Division title, according to the annual preseason poll, after being part of a five-way tie at the top last season.
    The Lions received first-place votes on eight of the 16 ballots cast by LSC coaches, sports information directors and various media representatives.
    A&M-C, which finished 5-6 last season, totaled 82 points in the poll to finish ahead of Southeastern Oklahoma.  SOSU, who has won or shared the division title for the last four years, earned four first-place votes and 71 points.
    Southwestern Oklahoma (58) and Central Oklahoma (47) each received two first-place nods to finish third and fourth, respectively.  Northeastern State (43) and East Central (35) rounded out the poll.
    Abilene Christian is narrowly favored to win the LSC South Division in 2008, according to the annual preseason poll.
    ACU, who posted a 10-3 mark in 2007, earned first-place votes on eight of the 18 ballots to finish with 113 total points just in front of West Texas A&M's 111-point tally in the poll of LSC head coaches, sports information directors and various media representatives.
    Both ACU and WTAMU advanced to the semifinals of the NCAA Division II playoffs last season.  The Buffaloes, three-time defending LSC South Division and LSC overall champion, received the most first-place votes (10).
    Tarleton State, 9-2 overall last year, finished third with 91 points, Midwestern State was fourth 75, Texas A&M-Kingsville fifth 49, Angelo State sixth 43 and Eastern New Mexico seventh 22.