District College Football Preview for October 24th

By: HSSN Staff
Wednesday, October 21, 2015 | 4:26 PM

A big Steel City matchup in Moon Township highlights this week’s preview. Clarion looks to go to 8-0, while IUP and SRU meet in Slippery Rock in a huge PSAC West game.

In the PAC, W & J travels to Cleveland to meet Case Western Reserve to try and get back into the conference title picture.

Here are previews of ALL the games.

Saint Francis(3-2) at Bryant(3-3)   1pm
This game will feature the top 3 running backs in the NEC. Senior Ricardo McCray leads the NEC at 102 yards per game for Bryant while senioe Khari Dickson averages 99 per game. Sophomore Marcus Bagley  averages 78 yards for the Red Flash, giving Saint Francis a 1-2 punch in the backfield.

The Red Flash are 1-0 in the NEC. Saint Francis is perfect in the red zone this season on 22 trips, with 15 touchdowns.

LB Max Ma’afala-Maiava was named NEC Defensive Player of the Week, making 5 tackles and forcing a fumble in a win over Wagner. Freshman Louie Gartner was named NEC Rookie of the Week with 2 tackles and a key sack.

The Red Flash are averaging 85 yards in penalties per game, last in the conference.

The Bulldogs are 1-1 in conference coming off a 38-17 win over Duquesne last week. QB Dalton Easton threw for 330 yards and 4 scores in the win, he was named co NEC Offensive Player of the Week. Easton leads the NEC at 256 passing yards per game. The junior has thrown for 12 touchdowns. 

Duquesne at Robert Morris   6pm
Both teams are 1-1 in the NEC.

Duquesne is 22-25 in the red zone this year with 15 touchdowns. The Dukes have a powerfull rushing attack with Rafiq Douglas at 367 yards, K Claridy at 364 and PJ Fulmore(CWNC) at 361. QB Dillon Buechel(Montour) has thrown for 222 yards per game with 12 td’s. Jr Chris King leads the conference with 48 catches. Wayne Capers(Char Valley) has 31 catches and 4 touchdowns.

The Dukes lead the NEC in scoring defense at 17 points per game. Duquesne is also tied for the lead in turnover margin at plus 6. Trenton Coles(Clarton) leads the Dukes with 2 picks.

Robert Morris is 10-14 in red zone offense but has only scored 6 touchdowns. WR Kyle Buss leads the offense with 25 catches. Cole Blake has rushed for 296 yards, while Rameses Owens has gained 281. The Colonials have used 4 quarterbacks this season. The quartet has combined for 10 interceptions with only 3 touchdowns.  

JR Richards leads the NEC with 3 interceptions.

Clarion(7-0) at California(4-3)   3:30pm
Clarion moved into the AFCA top 25 for the first time in school history at #25 this week.

The Golden Eagles are off to their best start since 1983, when they last won the PSAC title. A win this week would match the 1977 squad, which finished 9-0-1 and also won PSAC gold. The Golden Eagles are 4-0 in the division, they have not been 5-0 since 1996 when Clarion went 11-3 and advanced to the NCAA semifinals.

Clarion defeated Seton Hill 44-29 last week. RB Delrece Williams(Steel Valley) was named PSAC West Offensive Athlete of the Week for his performance. The sophomore ran 25 times for 201 yards and a score, he added 8 catches for 108 yards. Williams is 5th in rushing at 106 yards per game. QB Connor Simmons threw for 4 more touchdowns, he has 25 on the year. WR Matt Lehman(Burrell) leads the PSAC with 13 td catches.  Clarion leads the PSAC at 33:01 in time of possession.

Cal has dropped back to back division games for the first time since 2006. The Vulcans are 2-2 in the West. IUP ran for 388 yards against the Cal defense. WR Garry Brown posted his third 100 yard receiving day this season and eighth of his career. Sophomore RB John Franklin is the only player in the PSAC to have a rushing td in every game this year. The Vulcans are 15th in the conference in time of possession.
QB James Harris is 5th in passing in the PSAC 276 yards per game, with 12 touchdowns and 9 interceptions.

Sophomore P Luke Smorey(Baldwin) was named PSAC West Division Special Teams Player of the Week. Smorey averaged 59.5 yards per punt in some tough wind conditions, including an 80 yard punt in the third quarter. He also converted a fake punt into a first down with a 16 yard run.

Gannon(5-2) at Seton Hill(2-5)   4pm
The Golden Knights are coming off a 49-42 win over Edinboro last Thursday. Gannon is 2-2 in the West after being picked as the pre-season West champ by the league coaches.

Senior RB Brock Jones ran for 134 yards and 4 touchdowns in the win, he also caught a td pass. Jones now has 13 100 yard games in his career. Jones is 4th in the PSAC at 109 yards per game. QB Liam Nadler threw for 321 yards, the 15th time he has passed for 300 or more. Nadler is 4th in the PSAC at 281 passing yards per game, he has 18 touchdowns with 3 interceptions.

The Griffins have lost 3 straight games since beating SRU in the opening week of divisional play. Seton Hill is 1-3 in the West. QB Christian Strong threw 2 td passes in the loss, he has 12 on the year but 11 interceptions. Strong is 3rd in the PSAC in passing at 319 yards per game. .

IUP(5-1) at Slippery Rock(6-1)   6pm
The Crimson Hawks are tied with Clarion at 4-0 in the West. IUP defeated Cal 20-15 last week to claim the Coal Bowl trophy. Sophomore RB Chris Temple ran for 255 yards and 3 scores. Temple leads the conference at 155 yards rushing per game.

Slippery Rock is 3-1 in the West. SRU moved up 5 spots to #15 in the AFCA coaches poll.

The Rock offense leads the PSAC at 45 points per game. RB Shamar Greene(West Mifflin) ran for over 100 yards for the 4th time this season. Greene has 2,814 career rushing yards, moving him past former Pittsburgh Steeler Chuck Sanders into 9th place on the SRU top 10. The senior is 3rd in rushing in the conference at 121 yards per game. Julian Durden(Montour) is 2nd in the PSAC with 12 touchdowns.

Sophomore DE Marcus Martin(West Mifflin) was named PSAC Defensive Athlete of the Week. Martin had 10 tackles and 2 sacks in last week’s win over Mercyhurst. The defense is 2nd in the conference at 17 points allowed.

Geneva(2-4) at Bethany(2-5)   1pm
The Golden Tornadoes are 1-3 in conference play and have lost 3 straight. Dylan Jones(Laurel) leads the team with 258 rushing yards. QB Aaron Channing has thrown for 1,009 yards with 8 touchdowns. Devin Kelosky(Riverside) leads with 21 catches. 

Geneva’s defense posted 6 sacks in last week’s loss. Jimmy Quinlan averages 11.5 tackles per game. 

The Bison are 1-4 in the PAC. RB Jalen Holmes(New Castle) posted a career high last week with 180 yards rushing and 2 scores. The junior is 5th in the PAC at 113 yards rushing per game.

WR Eric Blinn(Western Beaver) adds to his PAC career leading numbers with 11 catches and 146 yards. The senior caught 3 touchdowns. Blinn has 67 catches on the year with 9 scores.

Bethany is tied for last in the Pac at minus 13 turnovers for the year.

Geneva leads the series 30-11-1 and has won 2 straight.  

Saint Vincent(3-3) at Carnegie Mellon(3-3)   1pm
It’s a matchup of two opportunistic teams in the PAC. Saint Vincent is plus 7 while CMU is plus 6 in turnover ratio.

The Bearcats are 2-2 in the PAC. Saint Vincent is 10th in the PAC at 91 penalty yards per game. The Bearcats are also last in time of possession at 27:48 per game. 

QB Tyler Donahue leads the Bearcats in rushing at 505 yards, he has also thrown for 540 yards with 7 touchdowns. Damon Black has 22 catches this year, 5 for touchdowns.

The Tartans are 3-2 in the PAC after a 44-0 win at Grove City. It was the first shutout win for CMU since 2007.

RB Sam Benger leads D-III with 1,174 rushing yards. CMU is 19-22 in the red zone with 17 touchdowns.  QB Andrew Hearon has thrown for 1,000 yards with 10 touchdowns. John Prather has made 25 catches.

Saint Vincent leads the series 5-4-1 and won last year’s meeting.

Thomas More(7-0) at Grove City(0-6)   1:30pm
The Saints are 5-0 in the PAC. Thomas More is ranked 11th in the AFCA and D3football.com polls this week. The Saints lead the PAC in scoring offense at 51 points per game and are 34-38 in the red zone with 30 touchdowns. RB CT Tarrant is second in rushing at 124 yards per game, he needs 127 yards to hit 1 thousand for the season.

Senior DB Trey Wells was named PAC Defensive Player of the Week with 2 interceptions in last week’s 42-28 win over Saint Vincent. Thomas More also leads the PAC in scoring defense 13 points per game. 

The Wolverines are 0-4 in the PAC. Josh Peach grabbed 9 passes in last week’s loss. The senior is 4th in the PAC in receptions per game. The Wolverines are 12-21 in the red zone with 10 touchdowns, last in the PAC.

CB Cobie Pratt leads the defense with 3 interceptions. Grove City has only committed 23 penalties all season, they lead the PAC. The Wolverines are tied for last in the conference at a minus 13 turnover ratio.  

Thomas More leads the series 9-1 and has won 7 straight games. 

Thiel(1-5) at Waynesburg(2-5)   1:30pm
The Tomcats are 0-4 in the PAC and come off the bye week. Thiel is last in the PAC in both scoring offense and defense at 15 and 47 points per game. But the Tomcats lead the league in time of possession at 34:33 per game. 

QB Ryan Radke leads the Tomcats in both rushing and passing at 243 yards and 743 yards. The Tomcats have played 5 quarterbacks this year. Alex Horvatits has 23 catches, 2 for scores.

The Yellow Jackets are 1-4 in conference play. Senior RB Jerry Lawman averages 97 yards rushing per game, he leads Waynesburg with 7 touchdowns. QB Jake Doughterty has thrown for 1,228 yards and 12 touchdowns. Kevin Barnes has 34 catches and 5 touchdowns.

Waynesburg has won 9 straight games between the two teams and leads the series 28-8-1.

W & J(5-1) at Case Western Reserve(5-1)   6pm
The Presidents are 3-1 in the PAC. W & J is ranked 15th in the D3football.com poll and #17 in the AFCA top 25. W & J averages 45 points per game, second in the PAC.

RB Ryan Ruffing(ThomasJefferson) was named PAC Offensive Player of the Week. The senior ran for 116 yards and 3 scores in last week’s 66-42 win over Bethany. Ruffing has posted 100 yards in 14 games over the last 2 seasons. He is 4th in the PAC in rushing at 115 yards per game.

QB Pete Coughlin(Upper St Clair) leads the PAC at 261 passing yards per game. W & J has 3 receivers in the top 10 in the PAC. Daniel Lis(Char-Houston) has 40 catches, Eric Scott with 31 and Jesse Zubik(Avonworth) with 24.

The defense had 4 interceptions and blocked a punt in the win.

The Spartans are 5-0 in the PAC and tied with Thomas More. Case Western averages 40 points per game, third in the PAC. The Spartans are also plus 8 in turnover margin, also best in conference.

QB Rob Cuda has thrown 18 touchdowns this season without an interception. Bryan Erb and Brendan Lynch(Freeport) are tied for the team lead with 30 catches. Zach Medved(West Allegheny)P has 13 receptions and a score for the Spartans.

K Ben Carniol was named PAC Special Teams Player of the Week for his 2 field goals in a 2907 win over Geneva.

W & J leads the series 10-7 and has won 2 straight.