District College Football Preview for November 7th

By: HSSN Staff
Wednesday, November 4, 2015 | 10:43 PM

The first week of November sees a ton of early games. The PSAC West ends it’s schedule with four games. In the PAC, a battle for the top spot in Cleveland as both Thomas More and Case Western are unbeaten.

Here are previews of ALL THE GAMES. 

Edinboro(0-9) at Seton Hill(2-7)   Noon
The Fighting Scots are 0-6 in the West Division. Darren Massey is second in the PSAC with 73 catches but only has 5 touchdowns.

Edinboro is the least penalized team in the PSAC at 53 yards per game.

The Griffins are 1-5, with their only win coming at home vs. Slippery Rock. QB Christian Strong was held to 163 passing yards in last week’s loss to Mercyhurst. That is 120 plus yards below his average of 284. Strong has fired 15 td passes, but also 14 interceptions.

Mercyhurst(5-4) at California(6-3)   1pm
The Lakers are 2-4 in the division. Backup QB Zack Emerick(Penn-Trafford) was named PSAC West Division Offensive Athlete of the Week for his play in a win over Seton Hill last week. The junior threw for 311 yards and a career high 4 touchdowns in the victory.

Junior RB Richie Sanders was named Special Teams Athlete of the Week for his 50 yard punt return for a score.

Tevin Stewart leads the PSAC with 5 interceptions. Dorian Stevens is right behind with 4 picks.

The Vulcans are 4-2 in the West. Cal cannot win the West Division, with losses to SRU and IUP. However,   the Vulcans are 9th in the Super Region 1 rankings, the top 6 make the D-II playoffs.

Junior DB Jordan Bowman was named PSAC Defensive Athlete of the Week with 7 tackles and an interception in last week’s win over Gannon. Bowman and Aaron Terry are tied for the team lead in interceptions with 4 each. The defense forced 6 turnovers and posted 7 sacks, leading to the win. 

QB James Harris moved into 3rd place on the Cal all-time passing list with 6,734 yards, the senior has thrown 49 career td passes. Sophomore RB James Franklin has scored 13 td’s this year, he has ran for 693 yards. Garry Brown and Kowan Scott continue to be a 1-2 receiving pair for Harris, with 50 and 38 catches.

The Vulcans won last week despite 18 penalties. Cal leads the PSAC at 101 penalty yards per game.

IUP(6-2) at Gannon(6-3)   1pm
The Crimson Hawks are 5-1 in the West, tied with SRU but lose the tiebreaker to the Rock. A win plus a Slippery Rock loss gives the Crimson Hawks the West crown. IUP is ranked 6th in Super Region 1.

IUP comes off a 28-14 win over Clarion last week. QB Lenny Williams(Sto-Rox) ran for 134 yards, he leads the team with 847 rushing yards. The offense is 2nd in the conference in time of possession at 32:14 per game.

The Golden Knights are 3-3 in the West for a disappointing season. Gannon was picked to win the Westin the preseason coaches poll.

Brock Jones leads the offense with 971 rushing yards and 16 touchdowns. Liam Nadler has 20 td passes with 4 interceptions. Jesstin Hamm has 14 td’s. . 

Joshua Wiechelt leads the PSAC with 92 tackles. Mike Zanders has 4 interceptions.

Slippery Rock(8-1) at Clarion(7-2)    1pm
The Rock is 5-1 in the division. SRU clinches the division with a win. The Rock moved up 3 spots to #10 in the AFCA coaches poll, the only PSAC team to be ranked. SRU is ranked 4th in Super Region 1 and 10th overall in the D2football.com poll.

Slippery Rock could have 2 1,000 yard rushers. Shamar Greene(west Mifflin) has 902 yards, while Julian Durden(Montour) has 718. Durden has 15 touchdowns and Greene 10.

The Rock leads the PSAC in scoring offense at 45 points and defense at 19 points per game.

Marcus Martin(West Mifflin) and Cody Conway(Gateway) lead the Rock defense with 7 and 5 sacks each. Derrick Fulmore(West Mifflin) has 4 interceptions.

The Golden Eagles are 4-2 in the division, having dropped 2 straight after a 7-0 overall start. Clarion needs a win, a IUP loss and a Cal loss to qualify for the PSAC State Title game. The Golden Eagles are 10th in the Super Region 1 rankings.

Delrece Williams(Steel Valley) leads the team with 856 rushing yards. QB Connor Simmons averages 311 yards passing per game, he has 28 touchdowns. Matt Lehman(Burrell) leads the team with 55 catches and 13 touchdowns.

Chicago(6-2) at Carnegie Mellon(5-3)   Noon
The Maroons come off a 31-0 win over Sewanee. Burke Moser threw 3 td passes, 2 to Sam Coleman. Coleman also returned the second half kickoff 87 yards for a score.

DE Brett Khoury was named PAC Defensive Player of the Week. The junior posted 3 sacks and a fumble recovery in last week’s win at Thiel. Khoury leads D-III with 13.5 sacks this year. CMU is plus 13 in turnovers this season. 

Sophomore RB Sam Benger leads the PAC at 1,453 rushing yards and 15 td’s. QB Andrew Hearon has thrown for 1,353 yards and 15 scores.

CMU leads 20-7, however Chicago has won the last 2 games.

Thomas More(9-0) at Case Western Reserve(7-1)    1pm
It’s a battle for the PAC title, the Saints are 7-0 and the Spartans 6-0. The game features the top defenses in the PAC as Thomas More allows only 13 points per game, Case Western 13. 

Thomas More is ranked 12th in both the AFCA and D3football.com polls. The Saints are averaging 52 points per game. The Saints are 44-48 in the red zone this year, with 40 touchdowns. 

CT Tarrent leads the Saints with 935 rushing yards , he has 11 td’s. Goose Cohorn has 49 catches for 1,078 yards and 12 touchdowns.

Case Western moved up to #18 in the D3football.com rankings. The Spartans lead the PAC in time of possession at 33:34 per contest. CWU also is plus 13 in turnovers this season.

QB Rob Cuda is 8th in D-III with 25 passing touchdowns. WR Bryan Erb has 11 td’s in 48 catches. Brendan Lynch(Freeport) has 39 grabs.

Thomas More has won the only meeting between the teams.

Geneva92-6) at Saint Vincent(3-5)   1pm
The Golden Tornadoes are 1-5 in the PAC and have lost 5 straight games. Geneva was without the services of leading rusher Dylan Jones(Laurel) last week due to injury. Freshman Javid Ellis started at QB last week and is expected to get the call this week as well. WR Nick Cook leads the GT’s with 34 catches.

The Bearcats are 2-4 in the PAC and have dropped 3 straight games. Saint Vincent is last in the PAC at holding the ball, averaging only 26:40 in time of possession.

Damon Black leads the Bearcats with 7 touchdowns. QB Tyler Donahue leads in rushing at 590 yards, he has thrown for 580 yards and 7 touchdowns. Shavonta Craft(Jeanette) has 5 touchdowns.

Geneva leads the series 12-4-1 and has won 9 straight meetings.

Westminster(6-2) at Grove City(0-8)   1:30pm
This game features the most penalized team in Westminster at 98 yards per game and the least penalized in Grove City at 37 yards per game.

The Titans are 5-1 in the PAC, their best finish in years. Westminster has won 4 straight games and is assured of the Titans first winning season in 13 years.

Dominque McKinley(Greensburg Salem) has 932 rushing yards to lead the Titans.

The Wolverines are 0-6 in the PAC and are minus 17 in turnovers this year. 

Junior QB Caleb Jakiel(Moon) threw for a program record 428 yards last week. Josh Peach leads the Wolverines with 40 catches.

Westminster leads the series 51-36-8.

Thiel(1-7) at W & J(6-2)   1:30pm
The Tomcats are 0-6 in the PAC, having dropped 7 straight.

QB Ryan Radke has thrown for 1,121 yards and 6 scores, he has also ran for 391 yards and 5 td’s. Alex Horvatits leads Thiel with 33 catches.

The Presidents are 4-2 in the PAC and are out of the conference race.

RB Ryan Ruffing(Thomas Jefferson) is 3rd in the PAC with 948 rushing yards and 17 touchdowns. QB Pete Coughlin(USC) has thrown for 2,290 yards to lead the PAC with 17 touchdowns and 7 interceptions. The big targets for Coughlin are Daniel Lis(Char-Houston) with 51 catches, Eric Scott(Imani Christian) has 40 and Jesse Zubik(Avonworth) at 39 grabs.

W & J leads the series 44-22-1 and is looking for their 10th straight win.

Saint Francis(4-3) at Central Connecticut(4-5)   Noon
The Red Flash are 2-1 in the NEC. Saint Francis leads the NEC in scoring offense at 31 points per game. The Red Flash also lead the conference in red zone offense at 28-29 with 18 touchdowns.

Marcus Bagley leads the Red Flash with 450 rushing yards. Zach Drayer has 11 td passes.

The Blue Devils are tied for the NEC lead at 3-1.

Cameron Nash leads CCSU with 459 rushing yards.

Freshman Dwight Lomax was named NEC Special Teams Player of the Week after a punt block for a touchdown in a win over Robert Morris.

Duquesne(6-3) at Sacred Heart(4-4)   Noon
The Dukes are tied for the NEC lead at 3-1. Duquesne leads the NEC in scoring defense at 16 points per game.

RB Rafiq Douglas was named NEC Offensive player of the Week for the second week in a row. Douglas ran for 191 yards and 3 touchdowns in a 35-17 win over Wagner. Douglas has 730 yards rushing this year. QB Dillon Buechel(Montour) has thrown 15 touchdown passes. Chris King has 53 catches, Wayne Capers(Char Valley0 has 34.

Senior DT Zack Zidian was named Defensive Player of the Week with 14 tackles and a fumble recovery. 

QB RJ Noel leads the Pioneers with 1,907 passing yards. He has 13 touchdowns and 7 interceptions. Tyler Dube leads the NEC with 55 catches and 935 yards. 

East Tennessee State(1-7) at Robert Morris(2-6)   Noon
The Bucs defeated Warner last week 42-9  for their first win. Jajuan Stinson ran for 115 yards and 2 touchdowns. ETSU lost to Saint Francis 58-9 earlier this year.

WR Kyle Buss was named NEC Rookie of the Week for his 8 catch 160 yard performance in a loss to Central Connecticut. RB Cole Blake leads RMU in rushing with 444 yards.

Turnovers have plagued the Colonials this year. QB Matthew Barr has thrown 11 interceptions.