Game Day Central
IUP Crimson Hawks (0-0, 0-0 PSAC West) 
vs. Kutztown Golden Bears (0-1, 0-0 PSAC East)
Saturday, September 12, 2015 | 4:00 p.m.
George P. Miller Stadium @ Frank Cignetti Field | Indiana, Pa.

Watch: BackLight TV | backlighttv.com 
Listen: WQMU 92.5 FM | u92radio.com 
Live Stats: IUPathletics.com | Fan Stats | Media Stats

THE GAME
The Crimson Hawks kick off their 2015 season on Saturday when they host Kutztown on the turf at Frank Cignetti Field. Kickoff is set for 4 PM. IUP will look to extend its streak of nine consecutive season-opening victories while also hoping to avenge the early season 44-7 loss at Kutztown a year ago. The Golden Bears are looking for their first win of the season after opening with a 41-37 home loss last Saturday to Assumption. Kutztown totaled 545 yards on offense, but gave up 34 second half points while only scoring 14 in the loss. 

The game will be broadcast on WQMU 92.5 FM with the voice of IUP Athletics, Jack Benedict, calling the action. It's the annual IUP Athletic Hall of Fame Game as the school inducts 14 new members that day.

NOTEBOOK
THE DAWN OF A NEW OFFENSIVE ERA
2015 marks a new era for the IUP offense as the Crimson Hawks have switched to an up-tempo spread set. New OC Marty Higgins joined the coaching staff this summer from Upper Iowa University, bringing with him an offensive philosophy that averaged 34.5 points and 461 yards in 11 games last season. It will be the first time since the 1970s that IUP will not run an "I" formation or pro set. 

OFFENSIVE COORDINATOR - MARTY HIGGINS
Higgins spent the 2013 and 2014 seasons as UIU's offensive coordinator and quarterback coach, helping the Peacocks score 680 points in 22 games (31.0 ppg). UIU boasted five All-Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC) players last season, including QB Cole Jaeschke (304.5 pyds/game); RB Chris Smith (127.1 ryds/game); and WR Derek Giesking (9.3 rec/game). 

IUP IN SEASON OPENERS
IUP is 49-32-3 all-time in season openers. The Crimson Hawks have won nine straight openers and 15 of the last 17 season openers, with the two losses coming in 2005 to Millersville (28-6) and 2002 at Findlay (31-10). IUP has opened up with a fellow PSAC opponent nine times since 1993, going 8-1 in those games, including a 54-9 win over Kutztown in 1993. Click on the PDF above for more information.

CIGNETTI IN SEASON OPENERS
IUP HC Curt Cignetti is 4-0 in season openers with the Crimson Hawks, outscoring opponents by an average score of 33-14.5 in wins over East Stroudsburg (2011), Southern Connecticut State (2012 & 2013) and Saint Augustine's (2014). In his 31-year coaching career, Cignetti is 23-9 in season openers, going 19-9 as an assistant at Pitt, Davidson, Rice, Temple, NC State and Alabama from 1983-2010. Ironically, Cignetti's last season opening loss came in the same year as IUP's - in 2005, Cignetti and NC State lost to #7 Virginia Tech 20-16 while IUP lost to Millersville 28-6. 

IUP vs. THE PSAC EAST
Since 2006, IUP is 24-6 (.800) against teams from the PSAC East. The Crimson Hawks did hold a seven-game win streak that began with their 34-7 at West Chester in 2011 and ended with the 44-7 loss at Kutztown last season. IUP is 5-1 against Millersville, 4-0 against East Stroudsburg and Cheyney, and 3-1 against West Chester. 

IUP is 25-5 UNDER CURT CIGNETTI WHEN A RUNNING BACK REACHES 100 YARDS
In his four seasons as head coach, Cignetti has a 25-5 record when an IUP running back rushes for at least 100 yards in a game. There are two running backs on the 2015 roster who have 100-yard games to their credit: So. Luigi Lista-Brinza (McKees Rocks, Pa. /Central Catholic) with five and So. Chris Temple (Malvern, Pa. /Great Valley) with one. In Cignetti's four years, De'Antwan "Rocket" Williams had 12 100-yard games and Harvie Tuck had six. 

YOUTH MOVEMENT
With a different recruiting style over the last two offseasons, the Crimson Hawks go into 2015 with a very young roster of 88 players. Included in those 88 are: 36 freshmen, 26 sophomores, 16 juniors, and 10 seniors/graduate students. 11 sophomores saw playing time as true freshmen last year, combining for 41 total starts during the season. 

IUP AT HOME IN MILLER STADIUM
Since 1986, IUP has a 138-30-1 (.829) overall record at George P. Miller Stadium. In those 29 seasons, IUP posted a perfect 7-0 home record six times and had 25 consecutive wins between 1989 and 1992. 11 times IUP has hosted an NCAA playoff game at Miller Stadium, boasting a 9-2 mark in those games. 

EIGHT TRANSFERS JOIN CRIMSON HAWKS IN 2015
IUP welcomed eight transfers this year, including R-Fr. QB Lenny Williams (McKees Rocks, Pa./Sto-Rox) from Temple, R-Fr. WR Kyler Diehl (Loysburg, Pa./North Bedford) from Penn State, and R-So. RB Drew Harris (Exton, Pa./Downingtown East) from UMass. The Crimson Hawks also have transfers from the Division II and Division III levels and a pair from junior colleges. 

THE NEW DRESS CODE
The Crimson Hawks will take the field in 2015 with brand new Nike uniforms. The "Air Attack" uniforms are made of Nike Dri-FIT fabric and include crimson home and white away jerseys, with the gray pants. IUP will also wear a new matte gray helmet with the familiar IUP football logo on the side. 

MARYLAND - THE OLD LINE STATE
70 of IUP's 89 players hail from Pennsylvania, but the state with the second most players on the roster is Maryland with eight. Three of those players are from Frederick, Md., including Fr. WR Isiah Mims (Frederick, Md./Oakdale) and Fr. LB Drew Yarborough (Frederick, Md./Oakdale) from Oakdale HS and Fr. DL Casey Alvarado (Frederick, Md./Lingapore) from Lingapore HS. 

IUP IS ONE OF YOUNGEST TEAMS AT QB IN THE PSAC
The Crimson Hawks have one of the youngest quarterback units in the PSAC, with two true freshmen and a redshirt freshman listed among the four total players. Only Gr. QB Chase Haslett (Clayton, Mo./Clayton) has played a collegiate game, with 11 games played and 10 starts in his first year at IUP in 2014. Click on the PDF above for more information.

THE QB RACE
Fall camp included a quarterback competition, with Haslett and transfer R-Fr. QB Lenny Williams (McKees Rocks, Pa./Sto-Rox) both seeing snaps with the 1st team during scrimmages. Haslett is the incumbent with 11 games played, 2,178 yards and 16 touchdowns in 2014. Williams joined the Crimson Hawks this summer after transferring from Temple, where he redshirted during his only year on campus. 

THE CHASE IS ON
Haslett played in all 11 games, starting 10, in his first season after transferring from Illinois, averaging 198.0 passing yards per game. He completed 60.4 pct of his passes, which is tied for 5th in program single season history, and threw for 359 yards against Cal and 361 against Slippery Rock. Click on the PDF above for more information.

THE LENNY EFFECT
Williams makes his return to Western Pennsylvania, as he was a four-year starting quarterback at Sto-Rox HS in McKees Rocks. A three-star member of Temple's 2014 recruiting class, Williams finished his HS career has the WPIAL's all-time leading passer with 8,509 yards and 102 touchdowns, while also rushing for nearly 3,000 yards. As a junior, Williams was a Fab 22 selection, WPIAL Co-Offensive Player of the Year, and the 2012 Big 7 Conference Player of the Year. 

RUNNING BACK STABLE
Even with the change in offensive philosophy, the Crimson Hawks will again have a very deep backfield in 2015. Returning is So. RB Luigi Lista-Brinza (McKees Rocks, Pa. /Central Catholic), who led IUP with 846 yards and 10 touchdowns as a true freshman. So. RB Chris Temple (Malvern, Pa. /Great Valley) saw his playing time increase as the season went on, finishing with 444 yards and two touchdowns. Adding depth this year will be R-So. RB Drew Harris (Exton, Pa./Downingtown East) and R-Fr. RB Shannon Jackson (Fairview, Pa. /Fairview). 

HEY, IT'S LUIGI!
Lista-Brinza was one of the top freshman backs in Division II last year, averaging 76.9 rushing yards per game and earned 2nd team All-PSAC West honors. He totaled 100 all-purpose yards six times in his first seven games, with the Crimson Hawks going 5-1 in those games. Click on the PDF above for more information.

TEMPLE RUN 2
Temple finished last season strong, averaging 96.3 yards over the final three games. He ran for a season-high 114 yards and a touchdown on 20 carries against Clarion, and added 93 yards on 19 carries in his first career start against West Chester. 

YOUTHFUL WIDEOUTS
Of the 14 wide receivers on the Crimson Hawks' 2015 roster, 11 carry freshman or sophomore eligibility. The two-deep is expected to be made up almost entirely of underclassmen, led by So. WR Walt Pegues (Philadelphia, Pa. /Central). 

WALT'S WORLD
Pegues is IUP's leading returning receiver, as he snagged 45 passes for 607 yards and four touchdowns as a true freshman. He came into his own over the final four games of the season, totaling 25 receptions for 402 yards and three scores. He posted two 100-yard games, highlighted by his 13-catch, 193-yard performance against Gannon. The 13 receptions are tied for 4th in IUP history while the yardage is 8th. 

PEGUES IS AN ALL-PURPOSE THREAT
Not only did Pegues excel as a receiver, but he led the Crimson Hawks with 1,466 all-purpose yards last year. Pegues added 56 rushing yards, 213 punt return yards and 590 kickoff return yards, and averaged 133.3 all-purpose yards per game. Three times he totaled more than 200 all-purpose yards, including a season-high 282 at Gannon. Click on the PDF above for more information.

HOLD THAT LINE
Like many other positional groups, the offensive line is very young, with nine redshirt or true freshmen among the 16 total players. The most seasoned member of the line is R-Sr. OL Jorge Vicioso (Passaic, N.J./Passaic), who has 23 games and 21 starts under his belt. He's expected to return to his familiar right tackle spot this year. Jr. OL Ethan Cooper (Steelton, Pa. /Central Dauphin East) has played in 17 games and has 14 starts in two seasons, and has seen time at both left guard and left tackle during fall camp. The six returners have a combined 73 games played and 48 starts.

LINEBACKERS
The Crimson Hawks welcome back a seasoned linebacking corps in 2015. Three players - R-Sr. Dorian Lane (Pittsburgh, Pa. /Woodland Hills), R-Jr. Kevin Clarke (West Mifflin, Pa. /West Mifflin) and Jr. Myles Catlin (Pittsburgh, Pa. /Obama) - have combined for 69 games played and 27 starts. They have each produced during their time on the field, combining for 325 tackles and 31.5 TFLs. Click on the PDF above for more information.

KEVIN CLARKE NAMED PRESEASON ALL-AMERICAN
Clarke was named a first team preseason All-American by D2Football.com after posting 117 total tackles as a first-year starter in 2014. That number led the PSAC West as he earned first team all-conference honors. He had five double-figure tackle games, including a season-high 21 against Slippery Rock. Click on the PDF above for more information.
 
KARON GIBSON HIGHLIGHTS THE DEFENSIVE LINE
Sr. DL Karon Gibson (Sicklerville, N.J./Woodbury) returns after starting in all 11 games at nose guard in 2014, his first season at IUP. Gibson led all defensive linemen and finished third on the team with 54 total tackles and 8.0 TFLs. He also led the Crimson Hawks with 6.0 sacks, forced a fumble and recovered another. 

MATT MOWAD LOOKS TO CONTINUE STRONG FINISH TO 2014
After moving over from tight end to the defensive line last spring, R-So. DE Matt Mowad played in 11 games in 2014, including three starts. His first career start came against Slippery Rock, as he posted a season-high 10 tackles, including six solo, with a sack. He totaled 20 tackles in games against SRU, Clarion and Gannon, before an injury forced him out of the season finale against West Chester. Mowad finished the year with 39 tackles, 9.5 TFLs, and 4.0 sacks. 

ALL-REGION SAFETY ERIC WILLIAMS RETURNS 
The defensive secondary is highlighted by the return of R-Sr. SS Eric Williams (Yardley, Pa./Pennsbury). An all-region selection in 2013, Williams led the PSAC and tied for eighth in Division II with six interceptions while also totaling 48 tackles. The Pitt transfer played in 16 games in two seasons with the Panthers, including 11 starts as an outside linebacker in 2012. 

IUP HAS INCREDIBLE DEPTH IN THE SECONDARY
With the loss of Williams and R-So. CB Jay Watkins (Chester, Pa. /Hyde School) last season, multiple true freshmen saw playing time. With the return of both players, the Crimson Hawks now boast a deep secondary unit that includes seven players who have combined for 70 career starts. Click on the PDF above for more information.

KICKING PROWESS
In addition to the return of Sr. P Matt Spegal (Bethel Park, Pa. /Bethel Park), the Crimson Hawks welcome a pair of special teams transfers in Jr. PK Ryan Stewart (Indiana, Pa./Indiana) from Grove City and Jr. P Jordan Spangler (Johnstown, Pa./Bishop McCort) from Mercyhurst. The trio has combined for 67 games played, with Spegal punting in 25 with the Crimson Hawks. Spegal enters this season tied for fourth all-time in program history with a 38.8 punting average. Spangler earned 2nd team All-PSAC West honors last year with the Lakers and Stewart scored 56 points in two seasons at Grove City. 

PEGUES COULD BE ONE OF THE MOST DANGEROUS RETURN MEN IN THE NATION
Last year as a freshman, Pegues earned first team All-PSAC West honors as a kick returner. He averaged 24.6 yards on 24 kickoff returns and a school-record 19.4 yards on 11 punt returns. His most exciting play came against Seton Hill on Homecoming, taking back a punt 96 yards untouched for a touchdown. It was the longest punt return and fourth longest play in IUP history.