The PSAC West members squared off against each other this past week. With some upsets, some teams saw some movement in the rankings. Let’s look at what’s up next for the PSAC West.
2013 Football Standings
SCHOOL CONF CPCT. OVERALL PCT. STREAK
- Gannon 3-0 1.000 4-2 0.667 W1
- IUP 2-1 0.667 5-1 0.833 L1
- Slippery Rock 2-1 0.667 5-1 0.833 W3
- California 2-1 0.667 4-2 0.667 W1
- Edinboro 1-2 0.333 3-3 0.500 L1
- Mercyhurst 1-2 0.333 3-3 0.500 W2
- Clarion 1-2 0.333 3-3 0.500 L3
- Seton Hill 0-3 0.000 0-6 0.000 L6
QUICK POPS:
– After their defeat over IUP, Slippery Rock currently holds a three-game winning streak.
– The Rock also cracked the D2football.com Top 25 poll at #24 this week. IUP fell to #25. IUP fell to #22 in the AFCA Top 25 poll and Slippery Rock hasn’t made it into the top 25 on that one.
– Jansen Jones of Gannon is 8th in D2 in rushing yards per game with 155.8.
– Johnn Schademan of Slippery Rock is 3rd in D2 in receiving yards with 138.0.
– Slippery Rock’s punter is 1st in D2 in punting, averaging 46.2 yards per punt. Clarion’s Nathan Conway is 7th with 44.0 yards per punt.
– Nigerl Barksdale of Slippery Rock is 4th in D2 in passing touchdowns with 20.
– Slippery Rock has the 9th best rushing defense in D2, allowing only 87.7 yards per game.
PSAC WEST PLAYERS OF THE WEEK:
OFFENSE: Nigel Barksdale, Slippery Rock
DEFENSE: Slippery Rock defense
GAME PREVIEWS:
Mercyhurst (3-3) at Gannon (4-2)
Rushing will be the name of the game in this PSAC West match up. Brandon Brown-Dukes is averaging 101.5 yards per game for the Lakers and Jansen Jones is among the top in D2 withh 155.8 for Gannon. Mercyhurst has scored over 50 points in their last two games, and Gannon set a school record with 7 rushing touchdowns last week. Gannon also has a quarterback in Liam Nadler who can get hot at any second. Expect a lot of offense in this one.
Edinboro (3-3) at #22 IUP (5-1)
IUP, which is coming off a loss to Slippery Rock, will look to bounce back against Edinboro. Edinboro has had a solid defense all season but Gannon was able to exploit it last week, gaining 611 yards in the game. IUP’s plethora of running backs will look to get the ground game going and keep Edinboro’s offense off the field. Edinboro will turn to their secondary to help keep the damage minimal and to pull off the upset.
Clarion (3-3) at Slippery Rock (5-1)
Since starting 3-0, Clarion has lost just as many. It won’t get any easier as they travel to take on a high-powered Rock offense. Bobby Thomas will be looking to set the tone early for the Golden Eagles on the ground as he’s averaging just over 70 rushing yards per game. The Rock will turn to Nigel Barksdale’s arm and legs to get the job done once again. Barksdale will likely link up with receiver John Schademan as he has been all season. Clarion will put the pressure on him, though, with defensive lineman Julian Hosware in hopes of getting the upset.
Cal U (4-2) at Seton Hill (0-6)
Cal U and Mike Williams will travel to take on the Griffins of Seton Hill, who are looking for their first win of the season. Williams leads the team with 30 catches for 439 yards and 4 touchdowns. Seton Hill could be without quarterback Nick Halfhill again as they look to get into the win column. Safety Dewey McDonald will look to make the backup quarterback’s day a hard one. McDonald has two interceptions for 130 yards and has defended seven passes this season.
Photo Credit: Mercyhurst Athletics
