Know the Foe: Millersville enters the contest with a 1-4 record, picking up its first win of 2022 with a convincing 42-12 win over Lock Haven last week. The Marauders opened the season with losses against Saint Anselm, Gannon, nationally ranked Slippery Rock and West Chester prior to the triumph over the Bald Eagles. Offensively, Robert Footman Jr. is projected to start at quarterback for Millersville. Footman Jr. completed 5-8 passes last week for 149 yards, two touchdowns and an interception. Jaheim Morris the leading rusher, with an average of 47.2 yards per game. He posted a season best 93 yards on the ground in last week’s matchup with LHU. Defensively, linebacker Rafael Lozada ranks fifth in the conference and leads the PSAC East in tackles with 47, averaging 9.4 per game.
The Series: The Warriors hold a 44-27-1 edge against the Marauders through 72 meetings. Since 2001, the Warriors hold a commanding 16-4 edge, including last season’s 27-7 Homecoming victory at Eiler-Martin Stadium. In that contest, ESU’s defense posted eight sacks and held ‘Ville to under a 100 yards passing. Deshawn McCarthy tallied 3.5 sacks and seven tackles in a dominant performance. Offensively, Jake Cirillo found Rece Bender for a 96-yard connection, while Gunner Anglovich rushed for 139 yards to lead the Warriors.
Last Time Out: Trailing 14-0 early, ESU erased the deficit to take a second half leads at 17-14 and 20-17, but Kutztown was able to prevent the potential game-winning touchdown by ESU with a turnover-on-downs from the Golden Bears’ 10-yd line. The Warriors scored 17 unanswered points to grab the lead. Similar to the IUP game, ESU and KU would trade leads, but the Golden Bear defense was able to prevent the potential game-winning touchdown.
Fred Mitchell Award: Following an excellent first month of his redshirt junior season, the Fred Mitchell Outstanding Placekicker Award announced on Tuesday that Devin Bartholomew was recognized as a Fred Mitchell Award September Watch List. Leading NCAA Division II in field goals made per game, Bartholomew has converted 10-of-12 field goal attempts through five games this season, and has booted all 15 of his PATs successfully. The Fred Mitchell Award recognized 29 place-kickers (NCAA FCS, DII, DIII, NAIA and NJCAA) for their excellence on the football field and for continued community service during their off-season. 10 FCS, 8 Division II, 8 Division III, 2 NAIA, and 1 NJCAA were honored. He has scored the 10th most points of any player in DII this season with 51.
Taking Care of the Rock: A lot like a season ago, the Warriors have done an impressive job of avoiding turnovers offensively. The Warriors lead the league in fewest turnovers lost with five on the season in five games, while ranking second in turnovers forced with 12. As a result, ESU’s average turnover margin of +1.4 per game leads the PSAC and ranks 11th nationally.
The Menace: 2021 All-America First Team selection Deshawn McCarthy has found his stride, ranking third in the conference and 10th in NCAA DII in tackles for loss with an average of 2.0 per contest this season. He has forced a pair of fumbles in his four games this season (missed IUP game with injury), wand ranks seventh in the country and second in the PSAC with 0.5 forced fumbles per game.
By Committee: For the second consecutive game, the Warriors had at least 10 players register a catch and had three tailbacks with a rushing attempt. ESU tied a school record against Lock Haven with 11 players reeling in a pass from Matt DeLaurentis and Sean McTaggart. The Warriors hope to get back All-PSAC East tailback Gunner Anglovich back against the Marauders, after missing the Kutztown matchup with an injury.
Looking Ahead: ESU returns to Eiler-Martin Stadium against West Chester for Homecoming Weekend on Sat., Oct. 14. For a full list of Homecoming activities, visit esu.edu/homecoming.
