It’s hard to believe that after this week we will already be beyond mid season. It goes so fast…It’s also hard to believe that we’re five weeks into the season and only one PSAC team (Slippery Rock) is ranked. And they’re only ranked in one poll. But its hard to make good arguments for having more teams ranked. It's competitive for the top 25 right now. We have one 5-0 team, two 4-1 and one 3-1. Everyone else has 2 or more losses. Clarion certainly deserves some recognition but are clearly suffering from lack of brand identity and from the strength of schedule. But all they have to do is keep on winning. Rankings and recognition take care of themselves when you win lots of games. They have many more opportunities coming up to earn more respect. Likewise, many other teams can play their way back into the rankings before the season ends.

Let’s see who will keep it on the right track this weekend.

Gannon (3-2, 0-2) at Mercyhurst (3-2, 0-2) 12:00

Last week: Both teams fell apart for the second straight week. Gannon was soundly whipped by a determined Slippery Rock team. The game was tied at 14 at the halftime break but Gannon was outscored 27-0 in the second half. After the break, the Knights had only 2 drives of more than 15 yards. The longest was 39 yards and that was the final possession of the game…Mercyhurst scored midway through the 3rd quarter to cut Clarion’s lead to just three points, but the Lakers then allowed 17 unanswered to the Golden Eagles.

A couple of weeks ago it looked like this would be a game for first place in the PSAC West…or at least a share of it. It could have been a fight for a spot in the national rankings, and a key mid-season matchup that would impact regional playoff rankings. Oh, and that would have been on top of it being a fierce rivalry game. The rivalry part remains but all other listed scenarios are lost causes. It is conceivable that a two loss team could still win the West, after all, it happened last year. But I think a repeat of that is very unlikely. But let’s just say it could happen. That means the winner of this game still has life. The loser will fall to .500 overall and 0-3 in the division, which means better luck next year. So while we don’t have first place on the line in this rivalry matchup, we do have two teams playing for their lives, and that should make it a lot of fun.

I believe that Gannon has the more talented team, but I also believe that hasn’t proven to mean much for the Knights this year. Gannon was the preseason pick to win the West, but let’s face it, they’re a middle of the pack team and the numbers prove it. They’re 8th in scoring offense, 9th in scoring defense, 10th in total offense, 7th in total defense, 9th in rushing offense, 7th in rushing defense, 7th in passing offense and 9th passing defense. They are mediocre across the board. They’ve also lost three in a row to Mercyhurst and you could argue that they were a better team in each of those years.

If Gannon is going to reverse their fortunes, against the Lakers it has to start with establishing the run. The Knights have not been able to do that consistently this year and it has hurt them significantly. Teams have had mixed results against the Lakers. IUP, Bloom and West Chester all averaged more than 4.5 yards per carry against the Hurst, but Clarion’s rushing effort was totally shut down last week. Gannon has the talent to run the ball and I think they have to get 200 yards on the ground to win this game.

They will also have to play very good pass defense. Mercyhurst has been struggling to run the ball and I think we’ll see them rely on their passing game. When they don’t turn the ball over, they have a very efficient passing attack. If the Lakers can make big plays with FJ Williams, who is second in the PSAC with 31 receptions, they’ll point some points on the board.

Mercyhurst has had the upper hand in recent years, but I do think Gannon is a better team and it’s time for them to step up and get it done on the field. If they don’t, this season will quickly become a major disappointment.

Gannon 31 Mercyhurst 30

Kutztown (3-2, 2-0) at West Chester (3-2, 2-0) 1:00

Last week: Kutztown had their best team rushing performance in nearly 20 years with an even 400 yards on 57 carries. Kodi Reed established a new school record for career touchdown receptions with this 24th…West Chester was tied with Lock Haven at halftime but outscored the home team 24-0 in the second half. The Rams defense held Lock Haven to just 1 of 13 on third down and allowed the Eagles to hold the ball for only 24:20.

With identical records heading into this game, this is a battle to stay in first place. Its safe to assume that Bloomsburg (at Millersville) will hold a share of first place for another week but the winner of this game will cut the current three-way tie down to two. The next two weeks are huge for Kutztown. They have West Chester and Bloomsburg in consecutive games, which is a grind, but it means the Bears have a path to first place in the East. If they want to win the East they need to beat Bloom and West Chester.

It’s a tough match up to call. West Chester and Kutztown are the only two teams in the PSAC that are rushing and passing for more than 200 yards per game so they are both well balanced. Kutztown may be a little more experienced at the skill positions but West Chester’s backfield combo of Jarel Elder and Brandon Monk is one of the most talented around, and both are multi-threat players that could cause fits for Kutztown.

West Chester has the stronger defense but they’re going to face possibly the most experienced and talented offense they’ve seen so far (other than Lenoir-Rhyne, but they are a completely different kind of team). The Bears’ Chad Barton has started every game at quarterback and is currently second in the PSAC in passing efficiency and pass completion percentage. Disrupting his rhythm will be critical for West Chester. The same is true for Kutztown. Pat Moriarty has been good for the Golden Rams but he’s still learning and is still only a 51% passer.

I’ll give a slight edge to West Chester for being at home but they will have to run the ball and play very good defense to win. I won’t be shocked if this one goes the other way.

West Chester 37 Kutztown 35

East Stroudsburg (2-3, 1-1) at Cheyney (0-5, 0-2) 1:00

Last week: East Stroudsburg put up offensive numbers that normally take 3 games to accumulate. Unfortunately, they gave up a 27 point lead. Twice…Cheyney was rather helpless on both sides of the ball in a 63-0 loss at Bloomsburg.

Not much to say here. Just look at the numbers ESU put up against Ship – even if you just look at regulation. Then look at the numbers that a struggling Bloomsburg offense put up against Cheyney. The game as at Cheyney and with the recent rain in the northeast, the field could be worse than usual. That might slow the game down a little bit but not enough to make a meaningful difference.

East Stroudsburg 66 Cheyney 13

Lock Haven (0-5, 0-2) at Shippensburg (3-2, 1-1) 1:00

Last week: Lock Haven scored on their first two possessions, but that was it for the day. After the first five minutes of the game, their longest drive was just 31 yards. They were also guilty of 15 penalties for 155 yards…Shippensburg battled back from 27-0 and later, 41-14 to come away with a remarkable 5 overtime win at East Stroudsburg.

Lock Haven just can’t seem to put 60 minutes together. In each of their five games so far, they’ve been competitive in one half and have shown some talent that could eventually become a solid team. But they haven’t put a complete game together. That’s going to be a problem because this week they’re facing a Shippensburg team that put in way more than 60 minutes to beat East Stroudsburg.

Ship hasn’t been consistent enough on offense, but they have a lot of playmakers. Ryan Zapoticky’s performance and leadership in the 5OT thriller is going to do wonders for him as an individual and as the leader of the offense. He made a lot of plays that contributed to that win and faced many high pressure situations. That experience is invaluable. As long as Ship isn't physically beaten up and worn out, I think the excitement of that win will lead to a great week of practice and will probably also lead to a really long day for Lock Haven.

The Bald Eagles give the ball away far too frequently and giving this hot Ship offense extra possessions will be the worst thing they can do. The momentum from last week is going to pump the Raiders up for a return to Seth Grove. I think this will be a big win for the Raiders.

Shippensburg 52 Lock Haven 16

California (4-1, 2-0) at #25 Slippery Rock (4-1, 1-1) 2:00

Last week: California spotted Seton Hill a 21-3 lead by halftime but came back to outscore the Griffins 35-13 in the second half. It was a needed performance for a team that had struggled in the second half all season …Slippery Rock came out of the locker determined to own the second half in their road game at Gannon. Mission accomplished. Rock controlled the clock, the ball and the scoreboard with a 27-0 run through quarters two and three.

With a loss already on the board in divisional play, every game from here to the end of the season is critical for Slippery Rock. California is unblemished in the division but with as tight as this race is, there isn’t much room for error. This is certainly a big meeting and with head to head competition being a primary tie breaker among teams with identical records, this is a win both teams really need to have.

The teams have one common opponent so far, that being Seton Hill. I think everyone knows what happened two weeks ago in Greensburg. California was able to do what the Rock couldn’t which is outlast the Griffins and make one more play than they did. Seton Hill made several big plays in the passing game, which is what really propelled them into position to win. Slippery Rock bounced back very nicely with a fine performance against Gannon’s offense. That should be a confidence boost heading into this meeting with Cal.

The Rock shut down Gannon’s rushing attack, allowing just 58 yards. They also sacked Gannon’s Liam Nadler 7 times. That looks more like the dominant defensive front that I expected to see this season. If they can back that up with a similar performance this week, I think they get the win. Cal isn't a particularly strong running team and Rock is tops in the PSAC at defending the run (65 yards per game) so I think for Cal, the game is in the hands of James Harris.

Harris is definitely capable. The senior is second in the PSAC with a 162.5 passing efficiency rating and is first in yards per completion (17.06). He’s got very talented targets to work with in Gary Brown (22-429-4) and Kowan Scott (18-446-3).

If Cal can make big plays in the passing game, they’ll have a strong chance. But I think Rock is a little stronger on defense and will get the job done at home.

Slippery Rock 27 California 21

Clarion (5-0, 2-0) at Edinboro (0-5, 0-2) 2:00

Last week: Clarion continued to impress with a fine 41-27 win over Mercyhurst. The Eagles ran for only 51 yards, but Connor Simmons passed for more than 400 for the second time this year…Edinboro outscored IUP 21-14 in the second half, but that was after spotting the Crimson Hawks a 28-0 lead. Boro had only 225 yards of offense and turned the ball over three times.

At the start of the season, I anticipated this would be a battle for seventh place in the West division. I expected both to go winless in the division, aside from this game. That may still be the case for Edinboro, but certainly not for Clarion. The Golden Eagles are the lone unbeaten team in the PSAC and they’ve already notched a pair of divisional victories.

Edinboro, on the other hand…well, they’re just not there. They don’t have the talent. They compete and they play hard but they just aren’t very good right now. The offense has made some gains in the last couple of games. They’ve gotten a little better at passing the ball with first year starter Jake Sisson (95-160-1041, 8TD, 10INT). The problem is that they can’t run the ball very well, which is nothing new, but in the past they’ve been able to rely on more production from passing the ball. This year, everything is a struggle.

Edinboro may surprise someone this year if they continue to play hard, but I can’t see Clarion throwing their momentum away with a loss to Edinboro.

Clarion 37 Edinboro 20

IUP (3-1, 2-0) at Seton Hill (2-3, 1-1) 3:00

Last week: With starting running back Luigi Lista-Brinza sitting out to nurse an injury, IUP turned the ball over to Chris Temple. Temple responded with a record setting 6 rushing touchdowns. IUP scored 21 points in the first nine minutes and never got a serious challenge from visiting Fighting Scots…For the third week in a row, Seton Hill came oh so close to a major upset of a traditional PSAC power. The Griffins made numerous big plays in opening up a 21-3 halftime lead over Cal, but the Vulcans responded with a big second half to stole victory from the visiting Griffins.

IUP has rather quietly and methodically won three in a row and started the divisional schedule with a 2-0 record. By contrast, Seton Hill has been pounding doors, beating on the windows and shaking the ground to announce their presence as a contender. The Griffins have had an impressive three week stretch that included a massive upset of a ranked Slippery Rock team and a pair of near misses at West Chester and California. Seton Hill has another shot at an attention-earning upset this weekend.

This is an interesting match up. Seton Hill can’t run the ball very well and IUP is only allowing 71 yards per game, so don’t expect much out of the Griffins on the ground. Throwing the ball down field is what they do well and surprisingly, IUP has been a little vulnerable in that department on defense. The Crimson Hawks are 4th in the PSAC in pass defense efficiency (their 11 interceptions help that) but are just 11th in the PSAC in passing yards allowed per game. Kutztown and Mercyhurst both passed for well over 300 yards against IUP and Seton Hill is putting up more yards than both of them. The Griffins thrive on big plays, but so does IUP’s defense (5 INTs returned for TD this year) so it’s going to be a good match up.

IUP has a strong, physical offense that should be able to establish the run. Slippery Rock’s game with SHU went awry in part because they did not run the ball consistently. IUP’s running game has been strong and I think they will be more committed to it. The early part of the game will be very telling. If IUP can establish the run early, I think they will stick with it and grind out a win. If they struggle with it, and if they get drawn into a shootout, Seton Hill is more equipped for that style of game.

Seton Hill is hot team right now, but I think IUP will win the line of scrimmage. I'll start the Over / Under on Seton Hill passing attempts at 62.

IUP 34 Seton Hill 28

Bloomsburg (3-2, 2-0) at Millersville (0-5, 0-2) 4:00

Last week: Bloomsburg’s offense needed a good day and they got it with a 63-0 win over helpless Cheyney. The Huskies scored on 9 of 11 possessions and only allowed 69 total yards to the Wolves…Millersville found some life late in the game but never seriously challenged the host Kutztown Bears. The Marauders defense couldn’t stop a dominant rushing performance by the Bears.

Bloomsburg’s offense started the year slowly, but they have been getting better each week. Cheyney is certainly not a measuring stick game, but the Huskies needed to perform well and put points on the board when they had opportunities. They were able to do it consistently and this week should offer another opportunity to improve. Millerville’s offense is downright horrible. Head coach Greg Breibach has an offensive background but in three seasons his teams have consistently been among the worst in the nation. I don’t foresee them making any progress this week against a tough Bloomsburg defense that is first in the PSAC in scoring and total defense. Bloom's defense should give their offense plenty of chances to score.

Shutouts aren’t easy to get, regardless of the competition, but the Huskies may get two in a row. But I’ll give a score to the Ville for being at home.

Bloomsburg 45 Millersville 7

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