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QUICK HITS FOR PSAC TEAMS, WEEK 1:
CLARION- Quarterback Anthony Guercio thew for 215 yards and rushed for 106 yards on the ground, making him the first Clarion quarterback to hit 200 yards passing and 100 yards rushing in one game since Fiscus did it against East Stroudsburg on Sept. 29, 2012.
BLOOMSBURG- Bloomsburg finished the year 3-8 in 2023 in head coach Frank Sheptock’s fourth season at the helm. The Huskies defeated Clarion 21-7 on the road for the first win of the season and then put together back-to-back wins over Shepherd (14-10) and Millersville (34-31) at the end of the year.
SHEPHERD- The Rams return their top tacklers in senior linebacker Harold O’Neal (37 solos, 34 assists for 71 total tackles) and junior linebacker JT Kouame-Yao (36 solos, 35 assists for 71 total tackles).
MILLERSVILLE- Jaheim Morris led Millersville with 53 yards rushing on 11 carries, but more than half of the yards came on one 28-yard run, and it resulted in Millersville’s only first down of the third quarter.
SETON HILL- Jake Cruz threw for 238 yards and a touchdown. Todd Phillips had three catches for 94 yards. Ethan Fame had four catches for 93 yards and a touchdown. Ky’Ron Craggette added 95 yards on the ground and one touchdown. Demetri Whitehead led the defense with seven tackles.
EAST STROUDSBURG- The East Stroudsburg University football team’s defense forced three turnovers while the offense rushed for 206 yards in a 24-12 victory in front of a lively season-opening crowd at Edinboro’s Sox Harrison Stadium last Thursday night.
GANNON- Senior Dylan Wilson started the last ten games at right tackle after transferring from Walsh and versatile Eyvar Robles, a graduate student, has started 15 games as a Golden Knight. While the offensive line is considered the strength on the offensive side of the ball, the defense will lean on an experienced and talented linebacking corps.
IUP- IUP welcomes back six All-PSAC selections from 2023, headlined by three-time all-conference selection DB Darius Bruce. RB Dayjure Stewart, OL Chad Layton, OL Gerald Comedy and WR/RS Cyair Clark (return specialist) return on the offensive side of the ball. Bruce and DB Kalen Frazier are back in the IUP secondary. Hilton Ridley (1,480 Rec Yds, 16 TD) returns to anchor the receiving group as a 2022 All-PSAC selection with DB Jaheim Howard also back defensively.
KUTZTOWN- Coming off most historic season in program history with a program-record 12 wins (12-3 overall) and first ever NCAA DII semifinal appearance, winning its second PSAC title in the last three seasons.
SHIPPENSBURG- The Raider defense ranked No. 1 in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) in terms of yardage allowed last season. It held the opposition to 10 points or less on four occasions in 2023, including in each of their three victories.
CALIFORNIA (PA)- The Vulcans posted a 19th-consecutive winning season in 2023, the longest active streak in the PSAC. Cal finished the year with a 7-3 overall record with all three losses being on the road to NCAA Playoff teams. The Vulcans also earned their most wins in PSAC West play last season since the 2016 campaign.
WEST CHESTER- West Chester returns one of the top place-kickers in the conference and the region in Sean Henry. Doubling as the punter and kickoff specialist, Henry handles all kicking responsibilities in games. He was perfect on 37 PATs a year ago and made all six field goal attempts under 30 yards.
SLIPPERY ROCK- SRU returns PSAC West and Super Region One Offensive Athlete of the Year Brayden Long at QB. Long was a Harlon Hill finalist last year and finished fifth in the national voting for the Harlon Hill. He was also named the PSAC Male Scholar-Athlete of the Year.
LOCK HAVEN- In his second season at The Haven (2023), Dan Mulrooney led the Bald Eagles on a remarkable turnaround, as Lock Haven finished the season with five wins, marking the first five-win season since 1982.
EDINBORO- Wilfredo Diaz was all over the field for the Scots making 22 total tackles with seven solo stops and a pass breakup. The last time a PSAC player recorded at least that number was Millersville’s Sean Dugan (21 tackles during the 2017 season) and Diaz’ 22 equals the most by a PSAC player since Brian Bingnear made 22 stops for Kutztown on Nov. 10, 2007.
Week 1 Matchups:
THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 5
Lincoln (Pa.) at Clarion, 6 PM
Fairmont State at Bloomsburg, 6 PM
Shepherd at Southern Connecticut, 6 PM
Millersville at Frostburg, 7 PM
Ohio Dominican at Seton Hill, 7 PM
East Stroudsburg at Pace, 7 PM
Northwood at Gannon, 7 PM
IUP at Ashland, 7 PM
Assumption at Kutztown, 7:30 PM
SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 7
Shippensburg at American International, 12 PM
California (Pa.) at Charleston (W. Va.), 12 PM
Bentley at West Chester, 12 PM
New Haven at Slippery Rock, 1 PM
Lock Haven at Glenville State, 1 PM
Edinboro at Robert Morris University, 6 PM