At this point in the college football season, teams are starting to establish identities. The same goes for players, and the PSAC West is turning into a running league.
Three of the top five rushers in the PSAC come from the West and all three are at the top of the leader board.
Slippery Rock’s Shamar Greene remains atop the list, averaging 147.8 yards per game with 887 overall — even after a bad week. Gannon’s Brock Jones is nipping at his heels, though, with 855 overall (142.5 per game). IUP freshman standout Luigi Lista-Brinza ranks third, well behind with 582 yards through six games (97.0 per game). The three of them each have at least eight touchdowns with Greene and Lista-Brinza having nine.
Cal has two rushers in the league’s Top 10, a pretty impressive feat. Nick Grissom has 426 yards and four scores while Terrell Roberson has 405 yards and nine TDs.
Both Slippery Rock and Gannon suffered defeats this week, with SRU’s coming at the hands of Cal. Roberson and Grissom both flexed their muscles in the win, each scoring while Grissom tallied 121 yards on the ground. Greene, however, was held to just 55 yards, the second week in a row he hasn’t rushed for 100 yards and the first time he hasn’t found the end zone all season.
Cal also has the West’s top passer in James Harris. He’s thrown for 1,749 yards and 13 touchdowns with just three interceptions for a 153.8 passer rating. His top two receivers are the only two from the West in the Top 5 in receiving. Garry Brown has 35 catches for 577 yards and four TDs while Kowan Scott has 27 catches for 542 yards and six TDs. Each are averaging over 16 yards per catch.
PSAC West players of the week went to Mercyhurst’s Brendan Boylan (446 passing yards, 4 TDs) and Cal’s Jawan Turner (nine tackles, six solo stops, 1.5 tackles for loss and interception).
If you’re wondering about the D2 rankings, Slippery Rock has dropped out. Cal, Slippery Rock and IUP were all listed as receiving votes in the AFCA Top 25 poll this week.
In the standings, Cal sits atop the West with a 4-1 league record and 5-1 overall record. From there it goes IUP (5-1, 4-1), SRU (5-1, 4-1). Gannon (4-2, 3-2), Mercyhurst (2-4, 2-3), Clarion (2-4, 2-3), Edinboro (1-5, 1-4) and Seton Hill (1-5, 1-4).
Photo: Gannon Athletics
