GAME INFORMATION
Saturday, Oct. 5 • 12 pm CT
O'Laughlin Stadium
Adrian, Michigan

Series History
Overall: Siena Heights leads 4-2.
First: St. Francis 17, at Siena Heights 13 (11/2/13)
Last: at St. Francis 19, Siena Heights 14 (9/24/22)
Streak: St. Francis has a one-game winning streak.

The Two Coaches
USF: Joe Curry
Alma Mater: USF 2001
Career: 67-61 (13th year)
at USF: 67-61 (13th year)

SHU: Matt Kohn
Alma Mater: University of Indianapolis, 2005
Career: 44-35 (9th year)
At Siena Heights: 44-35 (9th year)

TOP STORYLINES
• Saturday's game represents the seventh meeting between the two teams with the winner needing just 19 points or less in four of the contests to prevail.

• Siena Heights and St. Francis rank No. 1 and 2 on the NAIA leader board in total punt return yards at 269 and 237 yards, respectively.  USF's mark has come on just ten returns, putting the Saints as the third-best team in the nation from an average standpoint (23.7).     
 
• Siena Heights comes into the game averaging 3.4 turnovers per contest with 11 fumbles lost and being intercepted six times.
 
• SHU running back Brendan Haisenlader accounts for 100.6 of the team's 110.8 yards per game on the ground.
 
• The record watch is out for Scott Tumilty, who needs just 12 yards to become the program's all-time leader in career kickoff return yards.

GAME NOTES

THE HEAD COACH: Joe Curry is in his 13th season as the Saints' head coach, which makes him the longest-serving coach in school history.  He has surpassed program founder Gordie Gillespie, who served as the head coach for eight seasons, and his own coach, Mike Slovick.  Slovick directed the program from 1994 through 2004.  Curry is also the winningest coach in the program with 67 victories and second in winning percentage (.523).  Gillespie maintains the top spot in winning percentage at .593.

ABOUT SIENA HEIGHTS: Siena Heights is off to a rare slow start under ninth-year head coach Matt Kohn.  In each of his previous eight years as the Saints' mentor, the team has never had a losing season, going 43-31.  SHU snapped a season-opening four-game skid last week with a 52-7 win over Defiance College (Ohio).  Don't let the 1-4 record fool you, though.  The Saints have had perhaps one of the toughest early-season schedules in the nation, going up against the likes of Taylor University (Ind.), Marian University (Ind.) and University of Saint Francis (Ind.), who are a combined 11-2 to start the year.  Offensively, Siena Heights is averaging 22.6 points per contest and 297.6 yards per game.  Broken down, that averages out to 186.8 yards per game through the air and 110.8 on the ground.  What has hurt the Saints the most this season is their number of turnovers with 11 fumbles lost and six interceptions.  As a team, they are a minus-five in the takeaway department.  An interesting stat is that SHU has looked to convert on fourth down 14 times, or an average of nearly three times per contest.  Senior Elijah Taylor runs the Siena Heights offense and has completed 63 of his 132 attempts (47.7 pct.) for 846 yards with seven touchdowns opposite four interceptions.  He likes to spread the ball around to his receivers with no less than four Saints having caught at least nine balls.  Credell Prather tops the group by a small margin with his 14 receptions for 217 yards and a pair of touchdowns.  The key to stopping the Saints' rushing game is grounding Brendan Haisenleder, something that has not been done this year.  A 5-9, 200-lb. redshirt freshman, he has carried the ball 98 times (7th-most in the NAIA) for 503 yards (9th), or an average of 110.6 yards per game (all but 10.2 yards of the team's average).  That ranks him 19th in the nation.  Haisenleder is also one of three freshmen and four underclassmen to start on offense.  Linebackers Clarke Hamilton and Tanner Rubinstein represent the core of the Siena Heights defense with the latter being a redshirt sophomore.  He leads the team with 45 stops, three more than Hamilton at 42, who has a team-best 9.5 tackles per loss.  On special teams, the Saints boast the top squad in the NAIA in punt return total yardage at 269 yards on 21 returns.  Bailey Jackson has all but one of those returns (20-247, 12.3 avg.).  On kickoff returns, Chris Coleman has nine of the 19 returns for 201 yards, or an average of 22.3 yards per return.  Siena Heights is also strong as a punting unit, with Isaac Roop's 40.4 average rating 15th-best in the NAIA.  David Medvedik has handled kicking responsibilities, having converted 12-of-13 PATs and 2-of-5 field goals with a long of 30 yards.             

ABOUT THE SERIES: Saturday's contest will represent the seventh all-time meeting between the two schools with St. Francis having bookended their two victories in the first game of the series in 2013 (17-13) and the last time they met in 2022 (19-14).  A safety followed by a 78-yard kickoff return by Scott Tumilty early in the third quarter of the latter game turned the tide for USF in the 2022 contest.  That and the fact that the Saints held Siena Heights to just 49 yards in the second half.  For the most part, the series has been low scoring with the winning team only needing 19 points or less in four of the games.  Only once in their previous six meetings in the series has USF scored more than a pair of touchdowns.  That was the 2018 contest when St. Francis lost 38-27.

IN AND OUT: After gaining a spot in the Top 25 NAIA Coaches' Poll each of the previous two weeks, the Saints slipped out of that positioning following last week's setback to No. 6 Indiana Wesleyan University.

ALSO BEING HALTED: The 38-3 loss snapped the Saints' season-opening three-game winning streak and four straight successes dating back to the end of last season.  Entering play last week, USF was looking to go 4-0 to start a campaign for just the third time in school history, including the second in a row.

WHAT, NO TOUCHDOWNS?: Saturday's loss marked the first time in 33 games dating back to the end of the 2020 season that the Saints were kept out of the end zone.  The previous time came during the COVID-shortened campaign when USF fell 7-0 to Saint Xavier University on April 10, 2021.  USF also failed to score in the red zone for the first time this year, missing on a pair of field goals.  Up until Saturday, the Saints were a perfect 17-for-17 with 15 touchdowns.

STILL RANKING AMONG THE NATION'S BEST: Despite being held to just the three points past week, the Saints are still averaging 40.8 points per game, which places them 16th in the nation.  USF is averaging 421.3 yards per game overall, split between its 239.5 passing yard average and its 181.8 yards per game on the ground.  St. Francis' 14 rushing touchdowns also rank seven in the nation, while its red zone touchdown percentage of 79 percent (15 in 19 chances) is 11th in the nation.

DEFENSE, DEFENSE: Defensive coordinator Thomas Miller's unit is only allowing 131.0 yards per game passing, which ranks ninth in the nation.  It has also been aided by seven interceptions (12th-most in the NAIA), which gives the Saints a plus-seven rating in the takeaway department.

OFF TO THE RACES: As a team, St. Francis ranks third in punt return average (23.7) and ninth on kickoff returns (27.7).  Each of those numbers have a lot to do with Scott Tumilty, who averages an NAIA-best 23.4 yards per punt return, or 7.0 yards per return more than his next-closest challenger.  On kickoff returns, he is at a 35.3-yard clip.

WILL SATURDAY BE THE DAY?: Scott Tumilty inched closer to becoming the program's all-time leader for career kickoff return yards with his 19-yard return against Indiana Wesleyan.  The graduate student now needs just 12 yards to move into the No. 1 spot.  His 1,743 yards rank behind only Eliot Allen, who totaled 1,754 yards from 2010-2013.  Tumilty already holds the mark for career punt return yards at 832.

OFF BY ONE: Both Scott Tumilty and Dezzion Jordan fall one play short of qualifying for other national rankings.  Scott is one kickoff return short of ranking tied for third with his average on kickoff returns.  Jordan is one reception shy in order for his 24.6 yards per catch to rank fifth in the nation.

OTHERS IN THE SPOTLIGHT: Sam and Joey Tumilty and Gavin Day hit the minimum marks to find their names among the nation's best.  Joey Tumilty ranks tied for fifth with his 7.7 catches per game and eighth with his 112.7 yards receiving per contest.  Day is 16th with his 6.7 yards per carry, while Sam Tumilty is 17th in passer efficiency rating (160.5) and 19th in completion percentage (62.7 pct.).  Sam Tumilty is also averaging 6.3 yards per carry.

IT'S UP AND IT'S GOOD: Adrian Guerrero's third field goal of the season was the longest of his career at 42 yards.  

CAREER DAYS: Defensively, both cornerback Matthew Perry and linebacker Allan Richards had career days with their 11 stops each against Indiana Wesleyan.  That puts Perry tied for the top spot in tackles on the season with Trey Sayers.  Each have 31.  Richards is third at 22.  Scott Tumilty led the team in tackles on Saturday with a season-high 13 stops.

A SLIGHT DERAILMENT: Despite getting into Indiana Wesleyan territory five times in the first half, USF – the third-highest scoring offense in the nation – could muster just the three points.  In the second half, the Saints were held to a mere 60 yards on 27 plays, leading them to fall 251 yards below their season average, finishing with just 233 yards.  One week prior, they had a season-high 500 yards of offense.  Of their seven second-half drives, five went three plays or less, while the other two were six plays.  USF was just 2-of-15 on third-down plays.  Sacked just two times on the season heading into last Saturday's game, USF quarterbacks were dropped five times by Indiana Wesleyan, which also forced three fumbles and authored its fifth interception return for a touchdown this season.

OTHER NUMBERS: Opponents have converted at a 58.8 percentage rate on fourth down (10-of-17) against the Saints this year. 

FOR THE RECORD: St. Francis is 175-229 all time, 146-170 in day games and 84-127 on the road.