GAME INFORMATION
Saturday, Sept. 21 • 12 pm CT
Ferry Field at Cardinal Stadium
Ann Arbor, Michigan

Series History
Overall: St. Francis leads 5-2.
First: St. Francis 55, at Concordia 3 (9/3/11)
Last: At Concordia 30, St. Francis 7 (9/21/19)
Streak: Concordia has won each of the previous two games in the all-time series.

The Two Coaches
USF: Joe Curry
Alma Mater: USF 2001
Career: 66-60 (13th year)
at USF: 66-60 (13th year)

CU: Joshua Schumacher
Alma Mater: Concordia Chicago, 2007
Career: 55-21 (8th year)
At Concordia: 55-21 (8th year)


TOP STORYLINES
• Saturday's contest between the Saints and Concordia will be their first since 2019 and their eighth meeting overall.  St. Francis won the first five affairs with the Cardinals having won the last two matchups. 

• Scott Tumilty needs just 31 yards on kickoff returns to become the career leader in Saints' history, eclipsing the 1,754-yard mark of Eliot Allen set between 2010-13.  Tumilty currently ranks first in the nation in punt return average (25.8) and second on kickoff returns (40.7).
 
• USF's scoring offense ranks second in the nation at 58.0 points per game.  Over the first two weeks of the campaign, the Saints scored on eight straight possessions against Waldorf University and seven in a row versus Lawrence Tech.

• Trey Sayers has made his presence felt in each of his first two games as a Saint, authoring both an interception and a forced fumble in each contest.  He also leads the team in tackles with 15.


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 66 victories and second in winning percentage (.524).  Gillespie maintains the top spot in winning percentage at .593.

ABOUT CONCORDIA: The Cardinals came into the season among others receiving votes in the NAIA Preseason Coaches' Poll after going 7-3 one year ago and closing out the campaign with a 21-10 upset of NAIA No. 3 Indiana Wesleyan University.  They have started out 1-2, but nearly had some raters looking back their way after nearly upsetting NAIA No. 6 Marian University (Ind.) before dropping a 34-31 see-saw affair this past Saturday.  First-year starter Colby Kohmescher leads the offensive unit from behind center.  The senior has completed just over 47 percent of his passes (35-of-74) for 402 yards with five touchdowns against one interception.  Where Concordia really excels is in the backfield, where the one-two punch of veterans Brandon Stewart and James Carpenter reside.  Stewart averages 84.3 yards per game and 7.9 yards per carry, while Carpenter sits at 55.3 and 10.4.  As a unit, the Cardinals rank fourth in the nation at 6.4 yards per carry.  Wayne State University transfer Te'Avion Warren is the main threat through the air, having caught 11 passes for 187 yards with one score.  The Cardinal offense is a perfect 9-for-9 scoring inside the red zone with five touchdowns.  Defensively, five of the top six tacklers are returning starters topped by linebacker Chase Maynard's 31 stops. Fellow linebacker Liam Karry follows with 25 tackles, while safety Gabe Whitmore is one back at 24.  Karry also has three of the team's seven sacks.  Safety Ethan Burrows has the Cardinals' two interceptions.  In all, on both sides of the ball, nine of 11 starters are upperclassmen.  Concordia also has a solid core of special teams players, including punter Dean Mason, who is averaging 40.2 yards per attempt with eight inside the 20-yard line.  Kicker Caiden Thomas has yet to miss a field goal attempt in his two seasons – he is 5-for-5 – with his long being 44 yards.  Return man Seeger DeGayner is also back after averaging 32.6 yards per kickoff return last fall.  This time around, he is at 19.3 on eight returns.  Over its first three games of the year, the Cardinals have averaged 399.0 yards per contest offensively, but have given nearly all of those yards back defensively at 397.7.      

ABOUT THE SERIES: The seven-year-old rivalry is renewed in 2024 following a five-year layoff.  The Saints claimed each of the first five games in the series beginning in 2011.  Concordia, however, has collected the last two contests, including a 30-7 victory the last time the two teams met back on Sept. 21, 2019.  With the exception of St. Francis' 21 points in a 24-21 setback in 2016, the losing team in the series has never scored more than 14 points.  The Saints averaged 51.7 points per game in the first three meetings of the series, but have only totaled 40 in the last three combined.

BACK IN THE MIX: After being among others receiving votes in the first NAIA Coaches' Poll last week, the Saints gained entry into the Top 25 right at that spot with 20 votes this week.  St. Francis is one of four MSFA teams in the grouping.  Marian (No. 5), Indiana Wesleyan (No. 7) and Saint Xavier University (No. 11) are the others.

A SCORING FRENZY: That is what it has been for USF's offense, which ranks second in the nation with its 58.0 points-per-game average over its first two contests.  In Week 1, the Saints scored touchdowns on each of their first eight possessions and set a program record with 70 points, while in Week 2 they waited until the midpoint of the contest before going on a run of seven straight scoring possessions (6 TDs, 1 FG).  St. Francis has also outscored the opposition 61-7 in the first half this season.

SECOND-BEST HERE, AS WELL: The 116 points scored over the two-game span are the most since USF totaled 119 in back-to-back wins against Olivet Nazarene University (69-3) and Iowa Wesleyan College (50-28) in 2011. 

PLENTY TO GO AROUND: Nine different Saints have already authored touchdowns this season.

11 AND COUNTING: USF has scored each of the 11 times it has gotten into the red zone this season with ten being touchdowns.

LEADING THE ATTACK: Leading the offensive charge for the Saints is senior Sam Tumilty, who boasts the second-best passing efficiency rating in the NAIA at 234.4 and sits 12th with his 66.7 percent completion reading.  Besides completing 24 of his 36 pass attempts for 483 yards and six touchdowns, he also leads the team in rushing (186 yards) and ground touchdowns (four).  Total that up and you get an average of 334.5 total yards of offense per game. 

THE ONE-TWO ATTACK: Tumilty is averaging 6.9 yards per carry, while Gavin Day is at 7.1, leading to the Saints having the ninth-best rushing attack in the nation at 235.5 yards per game.  The team's nine rushing touchdowns also rank seventh in the NAIA.

GAVIN'S DAY: Day, a runningback, had his best game as a Saint last Saturday, producing his first 100-yard rushing game and recording his first receiving touchdown.  The redshirt sophomore ran the ball 12 times for 108 yards with another two receptions for 18 yards.  Coming into the contest, his previous-best single-game output was 42 yards, which he hit on just one carry in the second quarter against Lawrence Tech.

THEY CAN PLAY AIR BALL, TOO: Offensive coordinator Matt McCarthy's passing game is averaging 12.3 yards per attempt and 19.2 yards per catch, which both place third in the nation.  Leading that charge is wide receiver Dezzion Jordan, who ranks first in the NAIA in yards per catch at 30.7.  The senior has six catches for 184 yards with a pair of scores.  Joey Tumilty, who missed last week's game, has caught 8 passes for 151 yards.

HAPPY HOLIDAY: Latorius Holiday collected his first touchdown as a Saint with his 63-yard catch and run in the fourth quarter.  It also marked the second-longest passing play of the season for USF.

IF THAT'S NOT ENOUGH …: Opposing teams also have to deal with USF's special teams unit, in particular Scott Tumilty.  The senior ranks first in the nation in punt return average (25.8) and second on kickoff returns (40.7).  As a team, the Saints are also first in the NAIA on kickoff returns (36.5 ypr) and fourth on punt returns (25.6).  Tumilty needs just 31 yards to become the all-time leader for career kick return yards.  His 1,724 ranks behind just Eliot Allen, who totaled 1,754 yards from 2010-2013.  Tumilty already holds the mark for career punt return yards at 800.

THAT'S A BIG GAP: USF's offense is averaging 476.0 yards per contest (13th in the NAIA), while its defense is permitting just 189.5. 

BACK-TO-BACK: The Saints earned their second Mid-States Football Association (MSFA) Midwest League Defensive Player of the Week award when safety Trey Sayers garnered the distinction on Monday.  The senior followed Nick Franciskovich, who won it in Week 1.  For the second game in a row, Sayers intercepted a pass and forced a fumble to lead USF's defense.  He was also credited with six tackles, including five of the solo variety.  That gives him a team-best 15 stops on the campaign.

BANAS GOES BANANAS: Redshirt sophomore defensive back Ryan Banas authored a team- and career-high nine tackles against Lawrence Tech.  His previous high was one tackle last fall.

HALF AND HALF: Of linebacker Karsen Hansen's 12 tackles this season, six have gone for loss, including two sacks.

OTHER NOTES: USF's defense limited Lawrence Tech to just 37 yards on 26 plays in the second half last week … The Saints had their streak of 55 consecutive kicking PATs dating back to the end of the 2022 season snapped in the third quarter on a Lawrence Tech block.   

FOR THE RECORD: The Saints are 174-228 all time, 145-169 in day games and 64-126 on the road.