GAME INFORMATION
Saturday, October 25 • 1 pm CT
Millenium Field
Streamwood, Illinois

Series History
Overall: St. Francis leads 5-0.
First: at St. Francis 34, Judson 0 (10/16/2021)
Last: at St. Francis 63, Judson 12 (10/26/24)
Streak: St. Francis has won all five games in the series.

The Two Coaches
USF: Joe Curry
Alma Mater: USF 2001
Career: 73-67 (14th year)
at USF: 73-67 (14th year)

JU: Shawn Flynn
Alma Mater: Judson 1989
Career: 0-7 (1st year)
At Judson: 0-7 (1st year)

TOP STORYLINES
• The Saints have won each of the previous five meetings and have outscored the Eagles by an average margin of 47.0-10.8.

• Judson relies primarily on the pass with receiver Grant Alexander being the main threat.  He ranks ninth in the nation in receptions (44), tenth in yards (672) and 14th in yards per game (96.0).
 
• USF's version of Alexander is Ryan Little, who has had no less than four catches and 70 yards in five of six contests.  He sits 20th in the NAIA in yards receiving per game at 89.7.
 
• Michael Hackman continued his pick artistry with his fifth interception of the season last week, which is one theft behind the nation's leaders.
 
• Two numbers that pop out on the Judson stat sheet are the 32 sacks that the Eagles have absorbed and that opponents have only punted a combined 11 times.
 

GAME NOTES

THE HEAD COACHES
Joe Curry (St. Francis) is in his 14th season as the Saints' head coach, which makes him the longest-serving coach in school history.  He is also the winningest coach in the history of the program with 73 victories and second in winning percentage (.521, 73-67).  Program founder Gordie Gillespie maintains the top spot in winning percentage at .593.

Shawn Flynn (Judson) is currently in his first season at the helm of the Judson program.  The 1989 two-sport Eagle alum got his start in football coaching at the high school level, serving at four different programs out in Colorado before taking over at JU.

ABOUT JUDSON
The Eagles enter Week 8 still seeking their first victory of the season.  The issue has come on the defensive side of the ball, where Judson has allowed an average of 57.7 points per game and no fewer than 53 points over its previous five contests.  The defense has also allowed an average of 304.6 yards per game on the ground and another 251.9 through the air for a total of 556.5 yards per contest.  Senior linebacker Avrian Gilbert headlines the defensive unit with his team-leading numbers in total tackles (65), tackles for loss (seven) and sacks (three).  Three other Eagles boast at least 40 tackles, including safeties Nick Curry and Ridley Joseph.  The majority of the defensive unit is upperclassmen, but three of the four underclassmen play along the front line.  Offensively, the Eagles rely on their passing game, which averages 257.9 yards per contest to rank 25th in the nation.  Junior quarterback Marcus Freeman has handled the majority of the snaps and has completed nearly 62 percent of his attempts (121-of-197) with eight touchdowns opposite six interceptions.  Five different receivers have caught at least 17 passes, headlined by senior X receiver Grant Alexander, who boasts 44 receptions (ninth in the nation) for 672 yards (10th) for an average of 96.0 yards per game (14th).  He also has six TD receptions, which ranks him 16th in the NAIA.  Another man to keep an eye on is sophomore Zachary McGee, who is efficient with his 17 grabs, five of which have gone for touchdowns.  On the ground, the Eagles have been held to just 43.6 yards per contest.  A lot of that has to do with the Eagle quarterbacks being sacked 32 times on the season for 168 yards.  Sophomores Harrison Hannah and Tyler Johnson are the main two ballcarriers.  On special teams, Judson has had three different players return at least ten kickoffs with McGee leading the pack with his 21.1 average.  On the punt return side, the Eagles have had only five attempts off 11 opponent punts.  Freshman Oscar Ortiz handles kicking responsibilities, while another rookie, Pat Cleary, is the punt man.  Cleary has been a bright spot for the Eagles with his 41.9 average ranking sixth-best in the nation and his 14 punts inside the 20-yard line placing him seventh in the NAIA.  The other positive is that when the Eagles do get into the red zone, they do score, having been successful all but one of their 15 times.  Like the Saints, Judson has been hurt by the fumble, doing so 14 times and losing possession on seven occasions.         

ABOUT THE SERIES
St. Francis has won each of the previous five meetings in the series, which started in 2021.  The Saints have scored no less than 34 points in each of those contests and have averaged 47.0 points per game in the all-time series.

THE ROAD SHOW
Saturday's date marks the beginning of a stretch of three road games among the final four contests to close out the campaign.  The Saints are still seeking their first road win of 2025 having dropped each of their previous two affairs to Siena Heights and Indiana Wesleyan.  

SHOOTING BLANKS
The Saints were shutout for the first time in five years last Saturday.  Coincidentally, Saint Xavier was the opponent to do it the last time, too.  It came in the last game of the 2020 COVID season on April 10, 2021.  That contest also served as the lowest scoring game in USF history, a 7-0 loss for the Saints.  Saturday's game was the third-lowest scoring affair in school history.

A BAD DAY ALL AROUND FOR THE OFFENSE
USF finished with season-low numbers in first downs (12), total yards (229) and rushing yards (29).  The latter came on 17 carries after entering the contest as the nation's 19th-best rushing offense with 191.0 yards per game.

STOP!  WHO GOES THERE?
Saint Xavier was denied three scoring opportunities deep in St. Francis territory on the afternoon.  Xavier Gary started the three-interception day with his pick at the USF one-yard line in the opening quarter.  That was followed by Michael Hackman's interception in the back of the end zone in the second quarter.  Karsen Hansen joined in on the fun in the third quarter with his first pick of the campaign inside the red zone.

HACKMAN HAPPENING
Hackman continued having an eye for the ball with his fifth interception of the season last week out of the ten total by USF's defense.  That kept him in the thick of the national race for the NAIA lead.  He currently sits behind a pair of other players, who have six picks on the year.  In the four games that USF has secured an interception, Hackman has had at least one of those. 

MULTIPLE PICKS
Saturday marked the third time this season that the Saints had multiple interceptions in the same game.  The high-water mark was their four picks against Madonna University in Week 4.  The team also had two interceptions in Week 1 against Taylor.  For the season, their ten put them in the No. 12 spot in the nation.

RYAN UPRISING
Another strong performance from Ryan Little kept the junior wide receiver among the Top 20 in the nation on the year.  He totaled seven catches for 70 yards to put his average at 89.7 yards per game, which ranks him exactly in the No. 20 position.  The junior has no less than four catches in five of six contests this season and has totaled at least 70 yards the same number of times.  Little has also helped the Saints rank 13th in the NAIA in yards per catch at 14.5 yards per reception.

RIDING HIGHS
Linebacker Karsen Hansen and nickel back Nathen Choute both produced career efforts last Saturday.  Hansen authored a team-high 15 tackles for his third double-digit tackle effort of the campaign.  His previous high-water mark was his 13 stops versus Judson back in 2023.  Choute posted 13 tackles versus Saint Xavier.  His only other double-figure tackle game came last year, where he totaled ten stops against Olivet Nazarene.

SPOT STARS
Gaining additional playing time due to injuries across the defensive front line, Niko Frcek and Isaac Johnson both answered the call.  Frcek tied for the third-most tackles in the game with his career-high eight stops, while Johnson totaled four tackles.  Of those four, three went for loss, including a pair of sacks.  He also caused one fumble.

THANKFUL THIRD
USF's best scoring quarter this season has been just after halftime when the Saints have outperformed the opposition by a 52-26 count.  St. Francis has been outscored in each of the other three quarters with the opposition having its best success in the second (59-44).

RED ZONE READINGS
The Saints are also faring well when they do get the ball in the red zone, scoring touchdowns on 15 of their 20 attempts with the 75 percent efficiency rate ranking 15th in the nation.

FOUR SCORE AND 40 YEARS AGO
This is the 40th season of football at St. Francis with the inaugural campaign coming in 1986.  The Saints went 6-4 that first year.  

FOR THE RECORD
The Saints are 181-235 all time, 152-176 in day games and 87-129 on the road.