District College Football Preview for Saturday, October 5th

By: Bruce Markey
Thursday, October 3, 2013 | 9:33 PM

As the calendar turned to October, Week 6 of the college football season brings Crossover Week in the PSAC as East meets West. Conference play heads up in the NEC and PAC with three games right here on the Network.

Here are previews of ALL the games, recaps will be posted Sunday morning.

Slippery Rock (3-1) at Kutztown (0-4)   1:05pm on WLER 97.7-FM and msasports.net
Slippery Rock defeated Mercyhurst 58-34 last week to get back on the winning track.

WR John Schademan had 229 receiving yards, a single game record in the win. Schademan has over 100 yards in all four games this season. The senior is fourth in the conference with seven touchdowns. 

QB Nigel Barksdale threw for 439 yards and two scores last week. Barksdale is averaging 364 yards per game, good for the top spot in the PSAC and fifth in D-II. His 14 touchdown passes also leads the PSAC and is fourth in the nation.

RB Teddy Blakeman accounted for five touchdowns last week, he ran for three scores, caught a td pass and tossed one to Schademan on a halfback pass. The IUP transfer has five touchdowns this season.

The Rock has scored 194 points this season, the most after four games in school history. The offense ranks eighth in D-II at 554 yards per game. 

DB Austin Miele leads the team with 33 tackles, the former Mars standout has 6.5 tackles for loss this season.

Kutztown fell 22-21 to then #17 West Chester last week.

WR Brett Fox had a career high 13 catches for 190 yards and a touchdown.

Freshman QB Alec Werner leads the PSAC with 137 completions and is second with 1,378 passing yards, setting up a battle between the top two quarterbacks in the PSAC.

WR Alex Tonnies leads the conference with 47 catches.

LB Sam Dixon-Dougan is second in the PSAC with 42 tackles.

The Golden Bears are now home for three of the next four games.

Slippery Rock leads the series 8-2 but Kutztown has won the last two meetings, including the 2011 PSAC State Title Game.

Geneva (3-1) at Thomas More (3-0)   1:30pm on WBVP 1230-AM and msasports.net
This matchup is a battle for the top spot in the PAC, both teams are 2-0 in PAC play. It is also a meeting of the top scoring offense in Geneva at 45 points per game and Thomas More on defense, allowing just 9 points.

The Golden Tornadoes fell to Carnegie Mellon in double overtime last week 41-34.

QB Brian Hayward threw for 404 yards in the loss. He has thrown for 1,335 yards this season with eight touchdowns and one interception. 

RB/TE/QB Rocco Colavecchia is also tied for the lead in D-III with 11 touchdowns.

RB Dylan Jones is third in the conference in rushing at 84 yards per game.

WR Lemuel Fuller is second in the PAC with 40 catches.

LB Tim Martin has four interceptions this season to lead the PAC.

The Saints defeated Waynesburg 49-28 last week.

RB Donmonique Hayden ran for 212 yards on 24 carries with three touchdowns in the victory. Hayden was named PAC Offensive Player of the Week for his effort. He leads the PAC at 182 yards rushing per game.

QB Jensen Gebhardt threw for 212 yards and three touchdowns in the win. Gebhardt has thrown for eight touchdowns this season.

WR Goose Cohorn had five catches for 112 yards and a td, he also threw a td pass.

DB Kyle Fuller had 7 tackles and an interception which he took 75 yards for a touchdown. He was named PAC Defensive Player of the Week.

The series is tied at three, Geneva won last season 50-48 in triple overtime at Reeves Field.

W & J (3-1) at Bethany (1-3)   7pm on WJPA 1450-AM and msasports.net
W & J leads this series 69-20 and has won 30 consecutive meetings.

The Presidents are 2-0 in the PAC, they are in a three way tie with Geneva and Thomas More.

Freshman Pete Coughlin got the start at quarterback for an injured Matt Bliss and led the Presidents to a 32-19 win over Thiel, throwing for 169 yards and a touchdown. The former Upper St. Clair star also ran for 54 yards and a score.

RB Dion Wiegand is tied for the lead in D-III with 11 touchdowns, he ran for 99 yards last week. Wiegand is second in the PAC in rushing at 114 yards per game.

WR Alex Baroffio is fourth in D-III with an average of 214 all-purpose yards per game.

The W & J defense forced three turnovers last week, Shane Smith returned a fumble 47 yards for a score.

Bethany is now 1-1 in the PAC after a 34-31 victory over Grove City. Channan Scott picked off Brian Pell in the final minute to save the win.

WR Eric Blinn, formerly of Western Beaver, has 46 catches this season for 613 yards, which leads D-III.

QB Matt Grimard also leads D-III in passing yards with 1,347.

West Liberty (2-2) at Duquesne (1-2)  12:10pm
The D-II Hilltoppers come off a 20-3 loss to Concord last week. They are 2-1 in the new Mountain East Conference after the death of the WVIAC.

QB Dylan LeGarde has thrown for just 530 yards with one touchdown, he has been intercepted four times. West Liberty does not have a rushing touchdown this season, in fact the Hilltoppers only have one offensive touchdown all season, from WR Dylan Potts.

Duquesne had the week off after falling at Youngstown State 59-17, the Dukes come off a second bye week of the season. QB Dillon Buechel leads the NEC at 322 yards passing per game with five touchdowns and just one interception. WR Gianni Carter also leads the NEC with an average of 122 yards per game. 

Robert Morris (2-2) at Monmouth (2-3)   1pm
RMU defeated VMI 37-31 in double overtime last week. Paul Jones threw for 321 yards and two touchdowns, becoming the first Colonials quarterback to throw for 300 yards in almost a decade. Jones is second in the NEC with 201 yards passing per game, he has eight touchdowns and five interceptions. WR Duane Mitchell has 16 catches for 248 yards and two touchdowns.

Antwan Eddie was named NEC Special Teams Player of the Week, he broke an 88 yard punt return in the second quarter for a score to give RMU a 14-7 lead. 

The Hawks have won two straight, coming off a 37-14 win over Columbia. Monmouth has a 1-2 rushing attack of Julian Hayes with 540 yards and KB Asante at 396 yards, both have scored three times. QB Brandon Hill has thrown for 1,011 yards with six touchdowns but he has also tossed six interceptions.

Saint Francis (1-3) at Central Connecticut State (1-4)  1pm
Kyle Harbridge was named the NEC Offensive Player of the Week after he racked up 291 yards on 29 carries and three touchdowns in a upset bid of #17 Fordham last week. Saint Francis had a 20-17 third quarter lead on a Harbridge 71 yard run, but the Rams scored the final 21 points for the win.

The Blue Devils fell 42-7 at Rhode Island last week. CCSU turned the ball over six times and their only score came on a Rob Holloman 73 yard kickoff return.

The game features the two top rushers in the NEC, Harbridge is among the FCS leaders at 188 yards per game and eight touchdowns. Holloman is averaging 108 yards per game, he is second in the conference.

Bloomsburg (4-0) at Gannon (3-1)   Noon
Bloomsburg defeated Lock Haven 56-10 last week. RB Franklyn Quiteh ran for 205 yards and three touchdowns, putting him over six thousand yards for his career and 13th place all time in D-II history. Quiteh leads D-II in rushing average, scoring and rushing touchdowns. QB Tim Kelly threw for just 184 yards but had 4 touchdown passes. The Huskies are ranked 9th this week in the AFCA poll, up from #11.

QB Liam Nadler was named PSAC Western Division Offensive Athlete of the Week for his work in a 45-25 win over Clarion. Nadler was 22 of 26 for 291 yards and five touchdowns. RB Jansen Jones went over 100 yards for the third time in four games this season. Gannon is 2-0 in the West Division for the first time since joining the PSAC in 2008. Justin Caliste had his 4th punt return for a touchdown in his young career, the 90 yard return is the longest in school history.

California (3-1) at West Chester (4-0)   1pm
Cal fell last week to IUP 20-7 and was held without an offensive touchdown. DB Dewey McDonald returned an interception 80 yards for a touchdown, it was the third Pick 6 in as many weeks for the Vulcans.

Cal fell out of the D2football.com poll, the Vulcans were ranked 25th last week. The Vulcans need to find a way to run the ball, they were held to under 100 yards rushing for the third time this season. The Cal defense is second in the PSAC at 14 points per game, the offense is in an unfamiliar place, 11th in the conference.

LB Ronell Williams was named PSAC Eastern Division Defensive Athlete of the Week. Williams made 15 tackles in a 22-21 win over Kutztown on Saturday night.

West Chester is 4-0 for the first times since starting the season 8-0 in 1974. QB Sean McCartney threw for 383 yards on 25-42 last week. The Rams are ranked 17th this week in the AFCA poll, up two spots.

Cheney (0-4) at Mercyhurst (1-3)   1pm
The Wolves allowed 430 yards passing in a 40-6 loss to East Stroudsburg last week. RB Marcus Jones averages 62 yards per game and has run for two scores.

The Lakers fell to Slippery Rock 58-34 last week. DB Colin Kimball returned an interception 58 yards for a touchdown, it was his fourth pick this season and second for a score. RB Brandon Brown-Dukes has ran for an average of 119 yards per game, good for fourth in the PSAC.

Seton Hill (0-4) at Shippensburg (2-2)   1pm
The Griffins fell last week to Edinboro 43-7 for their 17th straight loss. Tim Johnson returned a fumble 23 yards for the only Seton Hill score. Seton Hill has been outscored 176-43 this season.

QB Zach Zulli was named PSAC Eastern Division Offensive Athlete of the Week. Zulli threw for 353 yards and five touchdowns last week, becoming the fourth quarterback in PSAC history to throw 100 touchdown passes. Zulli has thrown just 28 interceptions in that same period.

The Red Raiders had seven sacks last week, the first time since 2011, also against Millersville. 

Lock Haven (2-2) at Edinboro (2-2)   2pm
Lock Haven led on the first play of the game but fell 56-10 to  then #11 Bloomsburg last week. RB Branden Brader needs just 4 yards to move into fourth place on the all time Bald Eagle rushing list.

The Fighting Scots defeated Seton Hill 43-7 last week. QB Jon Girvin came off the bench and threw for two touchdowns. QB Cody Harris is still out of the lineup after being injured three weeks ago.

Millersville (0-4) at IUP (4-0)    2pm

Millersville has lost eight straight games, falling to Shippensburg last week.

DB Terrill Holloway was named PSAC Western Division Defensive Athlete of the Week for his three interception performance against Cal last week in the Coal Bowl. Holloway had two of his three picks in the end zone, IUP picked off five passes on the day in a 20-7 victory.

RB De’Antwan Williams ran for 167 yards and 2 touchdowns on 38 carries. IUP has won 10 straight regular season games. The Crimson Hawks are ranked 7th this week in the AFCA D-II top 25.

Clarion (3-1) at East Stroudsburg (3-1)   6:05pm
Clarion fell to Gannon 45-25 last week for their first loss of the season. QB Darrelle Carson started his second straight game, filling in for Ben Fiscus, and threw for 215 yards and 2 touchdowns. RB Bobby Thomas ran for 80 yards on 10 carries.

ESU defeated Cheyney 40-6, QB Matt Soltes threw for 387 yards and 3 scores, all to TE Steven Jones. Soltes also ran for a score. The Warriors are plus 9 in the turnover department this season.

Carnegie Mellon (2-2) at Saint Vincent (0-4)   1pm
CMU defeated Geneva 41-34 in double overtime last week.Max Reinertsen scored both the tying and winning touchdowns for the Tartans.

The Tartans have five different backs that have rushed for 100 yards overall this season. QB Rob Kalkstein has thrown for 623 yards and four touchdowns, he also has four interceptions. Tim Swanson and Tim Kitka are the main targets, with 13 and 10 catches respectively.

Saint Vincent has now lost 14 straight games, after falling to Westminster 28-21 last week. The Bearcats were trailing late as the Titans were driving, Renny LaRue-Holloman made 10 tackles and recovered two fumbles, one that was pitched back to Dan Wirkowski for a 95 yard touchdown return.

Saint Vincent leads the all-time series 4-3-1, but the teams have not met since 1962.

Thiel (0-4) at Waynesburg (3-1)   1:30pm
The Tomcats are 0-2 in the PAC. Thiel fell 32-19 to W & J. Josh Potter ran for 93 yards on 18 carries and a touchdown. Potter also threw a td pass, he is fourth in the conference in rushing at 81 yards per game. 

Waynesburg is 1-1 after a 49-28 loss to Thomas More. QB Carter Hill was 34-52 for 334 yards with three touchdowns and an interception.

The Yellow Jackets lead the series 26-8-1 and have won the last seven meetings.

Westminster (1-2) at Grove City (2-2)   2pm
The Titans won 28-21 at Saint Vincent last week. Freshman K Justin Dahl was named PAC Special Teams Player of the Week, hitting his first two NCAA field goal attempts and converting both PAT kicks.

The victory ended a five game losing streak for Westminster. Dak Britt threw for 328 yards, becoming the first Titan QB to go over 300 yards passing since 2008. Britt is averaging 282 yards passing, good for fourth in the conference. WR Colin Wallace had eight catches for a career high 165 yards.

Grove City fell 34-31 to Bethany last week, the Wolverines have now dropped two straight.