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CONWAY, Ark. _ The University of Central Arkansas Bears return home Saturday for Homecoming and will face an unfamiliar foe at 4 p.m. Saturday on "The Stripes" at First Security Field at Estes Stadium.

Fresh off a 38-14 road victory over Jacksonville State last weekend in Jacksonville, Ala., the Bears will host the Texas Wesleyan Rams, an NAIA program from Fort Worth, Texas. It will be the first meeting between the programs.

"We're definitely excited to be back home and playing on "The Stripes," said UCA head coach Nathan Brown. "We've played three of our last four games on the road so to get back in Conway is going to feel good. And especially for a week like Homecoming Week and all that surrounds it.'

TWU, which plays in the Sooner Athletic Conference, is 6-2 on the season, with all games being conference games. The Rams are averaging 46.5 points per game and allowing 29 points per game. TWU is coming off a 69-18 victory over Texas College, and a 56-39 win over Louisiana College, both at home.

The Bears evened their record at 4-4 last Saturday with a thorough victory over the Gamecocks. UCA got a pair of defensive touchdowns on pick sixes from junior safety Christian Cain (87 yards) and senior linebacker Trenton Dunn (51 yards), and added three offensive touchdowns. 

Junior quarterback Breylin Smith connected with senior tight end Sam Camargo from 13 yards out for the games first score, and went in from 1 yard out himself for a 14-0 lead. Junior kicker Hayden Ray made a 22-yard field goal early in the fourth quarter and freshman Darius Hale added a 3-yard touchdown in the same period.

Hale had his second consecutive 100-yard rushing game with 125 yards on 25 carries. Junior receiver Lujuan Winningham caught seven passes for 73 yards, while sophomore Tyler Hudson added six receptions for 80 yards. Smith completed 22 of 35 for 229 yards.

"Obviously coming off a big win on the road helps with momentum, gives us somewhat of a streak which we haven't had to this point this year,' said Brown. "So we're in a good spot right now as a program. We've fought our way back to .500 now, which we haven't been able to do all year. You start the year off 0-2 and you're scratching your way to get back on top of things. 

"It's taken a minute and our guys have trusted the process and worked hard to get to this point. I couldn't be more pleased with the outcome on Saturday. It was a good win. You don't go into Jacksonville State very often and win, much less win in that capacity, running away with the game. Probably our closest to a complete game with offense, defense and special teams that we've played all year. And that's encouraging.'

The last NAIA opponent the Bears faced was Bacone College in 2012, with UCA winning 70-3 at Estes Stadium. 

"Texas Wesleyan has a very, very explosive offense at their level of football,' Brown said. "They are averaging over 40 points a game, they have a very capable quarterback, he's why they're good on offense. And they've got nothing to lose. They're going to come up here and throw their best shot at us. We've got to stay motivated, get our kids fired up, and hopefully Homecoming week helps that, back on "The Stripes" helps that.

"And just the opportunity to compete again for another week and get to win No. 5 and get above .500 for the first time this season ought to be motivation enough in itself. So we're looking forward to the opportunity.' 

The Bears will be playing their 92nd Homecoming game and have a 63-27-1 record in those games. UCA has won 17 of the past 18 Homecoming games, including last year's 52-10 victory over Missouri Western.

UCA plays its final home game of the regular season next Saturday, hosting Stephen F. Austin at 4 p.m. for Senior Day.