November 13th, 2023 5:00pm
The PSAC Regular Season is now over and the Kutztown Golden Bears (9-2, 7-0 PSAC East) are the 2023 PSAC Champions. Kutztown beat Slippery Rock (10-1, 7-0 PSAC West) 31-7 on Saturday. The Golden Bears Defense, which is number one in the PSAC, only allowing an average of 14 points per game, was lights out in shutting down the Rock’s number one offense in the PSAC, averaging 42.5 points scored per game. Kutztown’s running back Darryl Davis-McNeil was named the Player of the Game. He rushed for 146 yards and had two touchdowns for the Golden Bears. The season isn’t over for either of these teams. Joining the previously mentioned teams of Kutztown and Slippery Rock in the NCAA Division II playoffs will be East Stroudsburg (9-2, 5-2 PSAC East) and Shepherd (9-2, 5-2 PSAC East). I will have more about the Super Region Playoffs later this week.
Taking a final look back at all the games played by PSAC teams during the 2023 regular season, I predicted the winners in 71 out of 91 (78%) of the games. I was four for eight in Week Eleven. That said, here are the PSAC Final Standings for 2023, the scores from Week Eleven (Crossover Week with the PSAC West at the PSAC East), the Week Eleven PSAC Athletes of the Week, and some of the statistical leaders from this past season to wrap things up:
PSAC EAST FINAL STANDINGS
Kutztown (9-2, 7-0 PSAC East) – Beat Slippery Rock 31-7 (PSAC Champions)
East Stroudsburg (9-2, 5-2 PSAC East) – Beat California (PA) 37-30
Shepherd (9-2, 5-2 PSAC East) – Beat Mercyhurst 49-25
West Chester (6-5, 3-4 PSAC East) – Beat Clarion 34-7
Lock Haven (5-6, 3-4 PSAC East) – Lost to Edinboro 36-30
Shippensburg (3-8, 2-5 PSAC East) – Beat Gannon 17-10
Bloomsburg (3-8, 2-5 PSAC East) – Lost to IUP 31-0
Millersville (3-8, 1-6 PSAC East) – Lost to Seton Hill 30-10
PSAC WEST FINAL STANDINGS
Slippery Rock (10-1, 7-0 PSAC West) – Lost to Kutztown 31-7
California (PA) (7-3, 6-1 PSAC West) – Lost to East Stroudsburg 37-30
Gannon (5-6, 5-2 PSAC West) – Lost to Shippensburg 17-10
Seton Hill (6-5, 4-3 PSAC West) – Beat Millersville 30-10
IUP (6-5, 3-4 PSAC West) – Beat Bloomsburg 31-0
Edinboro (3-8, 1-6 PSAC West) – Beat Lock Haven 36-30
Clarion (2-9, 1-6 PSAC West) – Lost to West Chester 34-7
Mercyhurst (2-9, 1-6 PSAC West) – Lost to Shepherd 49-25
WEEK ELEVEN PSAC EAST ATHLETES OF THE WEEK
Offense – Darryl Davis-McNeil (Running Back – Kutztown)
Defense – Mike Brewer (Defensive Back – Shippensburg)
Special Teams – Devin Bartholomew (Kicker – East Stroudsburg)
WEEK ELEVEN PSAC WEST ATHLETES OF THE WEEK
Offense – Brian Trobel (Running Back – Edinboro)
Defense – Drew DiNunzio -Biss (Linebacker – IUP)
Special Teams – Reed Martin (Punter – Edinboro)
PSAC 2023 REGULAR SEASON STATISTICAL LEADERS
Offense
Team Offense – Slippery Rock - 42.5 points scored per game.
Passing – Brayden Long (Slippery Rock) 278.3 yards per game / 3,061 total yards / 168.9 Efficiency Rating / 33 touchdown passes
Rushing – Chris Collier (Lock Haven) 126.6 yards per game / 1,393 total yards
Receiving – Kyle Sheets (Slippery Rock) 93.5 yards per game / 1,028 yards / 15 touchdowns
Defense
Team Defense – Kutztown - 14.0 points allowed per game.
Tackles – Garrett Cox (Millersville) 114
Tackles For Loss – Garrett Cox (Millersville) 16.5
Sacks – Ben Weaver (Seton Hill) 10
Interceptions – Kam Snell (Gannon), Demetri Whitehead (Seton Hill), and Josh Stokes (Slippery Rock) all with 5.
Forced Fumbles – Cody Romano (Lock Haven) 3
Special Teams
Field Goals – Eric Scarpino (Gannon) 94.1% / 16 out of 17 made.
Punting – Nate Millard (Kutztown) 44.1 yards per punt.
Kickoff Returns – Miles Greer (Shepherd) 32.8 yards per return average.
Punt Returns – Miles Greer (Shepherd) 16.9 yards per return average.