GAMEDAY CENTRAL
No. 22/NR IUP Crimson Hawks (6-2, 3-2 PSAC West)
vs. Seton Hill Griffins (1-7, 1-4 PSAC West)
Saturday, October 27, 2018 | Noon
Frank Cignetti Field at George P. Miller Stadium | Indiana, Pa.
*Rankings reflect AFCA/D2Football Top 25 Polls

Watch: IUPAthletics.com | IUP-TV Sports
Listen: WQMU 92.5 FM | u92radio.com
Listen (smartphone): U92 Sports App
Live Stats: IUPStats.com | StatBroadcast
Live Updates: Twitter | @IUPfootball

IUP Game Notes (PDF)

THE GAME
The 22nd-ranked Crimson Hawks return home and look to extend their win streak when they host Seton Hill Saturday at George P. Miller Stadium. Kickoff with the Griffins is set for noon. IUP has rebounded from tough losses with back-to-back wins over Clarion (24-23) and Gannon (43-34) to improve to 6-2 overall and 3-2 in divisional play. Seton Hill has had a rough season at 1-7 overall, getting its lone win two weeks ago against Mercyhurst (34-33) before falling on the road to Edinboro (56-12) last week. 

The game will be broadcast on WQMU 92.5 FM with the voice of IUP Athletics, Jack Benedict, calling the action. You can also listen on u92radio.com and on the u92radio app on your smartphone. IUP-TV Sports will stream video at IUPAthletics.com/watch. 

STORYLINES
• The history between these two schools only dates back to 2013 when Seton Hill joined the PSAC; IUP has won all five contests by a combined score of 228-91
• In the last four meetings with Seton Hill, IUP has a +9 turnover margin with 11 interceptions and 2 fumble recoveries
• This season IUP has forced just 12 turnovers - 6 turnovers and 6 fumbles - in eight games; Seton Hill has turned the ball over 19 times, tossing 11 interceptions
• The IUP pass defense will be tested this week as Seton Hill is 4th in the PSAC and 17th in Division II with 294.4 aerial yards per game; IUP is giving up 208.0 passing yards per game
• Seton Hill receiver Ardell Brown leads the PSAC with 63 catches, 1000 yards and 8 touchdowns; he's had a season-high 12 catches twice this year
• The IUP offense has struggled this year, but might have turned a corner after hitting season-highs of 516 total yards and 284 rushing yards last week at Gannon; Seton Hill has one of the worst defenses in the country, allowing more than 40 points and nearly 500 yards per game
• IUP has rushed for 964 yards (321/game) and 16 TDs in its last three meetings with Seton Hill; The Griffins gave up 328 yards to Walter Fletcher last week
• QB Lenny Williams Jr. is 3-0 with 731 total yards and 6 total TDs in his career against Seton Hill; He ran for a PSAC QB record 205 yards at SHU in 2015
• The Seton Hill defense is last in the PSAC giving up 7.2 yards per play, including four plays of at least 69 yards (long 73); The Griffins have also given up a 96-yard kickoff return

NOTEBOOK

CRIMSON HAWKS LEFT OUT OF FIRST REGIONAL RANKING RELEASE
Despite a 6-2 overall record, the Crimson Hawks did not make the top 10 of this week's Super Region One rankings released by the NCAA Monday afternoon. Six schools in the region have an undefeated record and make up the top six spots in the ranking, which also includes two one-loss and two two-loss teams. Three PSAC teams are ranked: Kutztown at No. 2, West Chester at No. 6 and Slippery Rock at No. 9. The top seven teams make up the Super Region One bracket. 

IUP HAS BEEN RANKED IN TOP 25 FOR 36 STRAIGHT POLL RELEASES
After the week eight win at Gannon, the Crimson Hawks moved up one spot to No. 22 in the latest AFCA Coaches' Top 25. It marks the 36th straight week that IUP has been ranked in the coaches' top 25, the third longest streak in program history trailing 81 straight (1987-95) and 59 straight (2000-04). The D2Football Media dropped the Crimson Hawks out of its top 25 this week. 

COACH TORTORELLA's HEAD COACHING CAREER OFF TO GREAT START
Despite the recent losses, Coach Tortorella has still put together a great start to his head coaching career with an 19-3 record through his first 22 games. It's the best mark of any IUP coach in their first 22 career games with the program. Tortorella also had the best debut season of any coach at 13-1 in 2017. 

COACH TORTORELLA IS 5-0 AGAINST TOP 25 TEAMS
In just his second season leading the IUP program, Coach Tortorella already has five wins in as many chances against opponents ranked in the top 25. That includes a pair of Ashland, and last year's wins over California (Pa.), Slippery Rock, and Assumption in the playoffs. 

CRIMSON HAWKS HAVE WON 21 OF LAST 23 HOME GAMES
With the Crimson Hawks' 24-23 comeback win over Clarion in week seven, they now have 21 wins in their last 23 games played at Miller Stadium dating back to September 2015. The two losses during that span came to Slippery Rock (30-27) this year and West Florida (27-17) in last year's national semifinal. In the last 23 games, IUP is outscoring opponents 848-393 at home, or an average of 36.9 to 17.1.

IUP IS PSAC WEST's WINNINGEST TEAM SINCE 2011
Since 2011, IUP has the most overall wins and conference wins of any team in the PSAC West. The program owns an overall record of 70-19 (.787) along with a conference record of 41-13 (.759) during that span, with four PSAC West shared or outright regular season titles and a pair of conference championships. 

IUP COMING OFF BIGGEST OFFENSIVE OUTPUT OF THE SEASON
In last week's 43-34 win at Gannon, the Crimson Hawks rolled up season-highs in total yards (516), rushing yards (284), first downs (27), and time of possession (34:02). It was the third 40-point outing of the season and the most points since week three's win at Lock Haven (59).

CRIMSON HAWKS IN YEAR FOUR OF SPREAD OFFENSE
Since moving to a spread offense in 2015, the Crimson Hawks have been a dominant force with the ability to move the ball and score on the ground or through the air. Last year was one of the best passing seasons in school history with 31 touchdowns, while 2016's 48 rushing TDs was a record, and 2015's 293.6 rushing yards per game broke a school mark. 

QB LENNY WILLIAMS OWNS FIVE IUP CAREER RECORDS, COULD BREAK SEVERAL MORE
R-Sr. QB Lenny Williams Jr. already owns five career IUP records, including the total touchdown (pass & rush) mark of 101 which is broke earlier this season. He's on pace to possibly break Brian Eyerman's passing yards record of 8409, and could threaten his passing TD mark of 84 depending on how many more games the Crimson Hawks play this year. 

NO OTHER QB IN IUP HISTORY COMPARES TO WILLIAMS
Williams set the stage for a fantastic career when he rushed for 1,229 yards and 12 touchdowns as a freshman in 2015, helping IUP to the NCAA playoffs. He grew into more of a passer as a sophomore before an injury ended his season, but not before he totaled over 2,400 yards with 26 touchdowns in just nine games. Last year he had one of the best passing seasons in IUP history (2789 yards, 31 TDs), and this year he looks to break several passing records and move into the top five at IUP in rushing yards and TDs.

WILLIAMS IS 3-0 AGAINST SETON HILL, INCLUDING BREAKOUT GAME DURING FRESHMAN SEASON
The Crimson Hawks are 3-0 against Seton Hill with Williams at QB, with the most notable win coming during his 2015 freshman season. That's marked as Williams' breakout game in an IUP uniform, breaking the PSAC record for rushing yards by a quarterback with 205 in a 47-10 win in Greensburg. Williams is completing 67 percent of his passes with 4 touchdowns and 1 interception in three games. 

IUP IS 50-9 SINCE 2011 WHEN A PLAYER RUSHES FOR 100 YARDS
So. RB Justice Evans and Williams each hit the 100-yard mark last week with 140 and 120 yards, respectively, in IUP's 43-34 win at Gannon. It was the first time this year the Crimson Hawks had a 100-yard rusher as they ran for a season-high 284 yards. Since the start of the 2011 season, IUP has had at least one player rush for 100 yards in 59 of its 90 games played, going 50-9 in those contests. 

TEMPLE LOOKS TO MOVE UP THE RECORD BOOKS IN FINAL SEASON
R-Sr. RB Chris Temple returned to the field in 2018 after missing all of last year with an injury. One of the best running backs in program history, he's 2nd to the great Michael Mann with 38 career rushing touchdowns, and 7th at IUP with 2,638 rushing yards. With 39 total TDs, he's close to moving past Jai Hill (41) for 2nd in that category and is also looking to break into the top five in rushing yards. 

DOM MCNEIL ONE OF TOP DEEP THREATS IN PSAC
Jr. WR Dom McNeil is among the PSAC leaders with a 19.4 yards per catch average, 600 receiving yards, 75.0 receiving yards per game and 5 receiving TDs. He has a team-best 9 receptions of 20 yards or more this season and three touchdowns of more than 20 yards.

MILES WILLIAMSON MAKING THE MOST OF HIS OPPORTUNITIES
R-Sr. WR Miles Williams has just 4 receptions this year, but he's been highly efficient as 3 of those have gone for touchdowns. The biggest catch of his career came in week seven's comeback win over Clarion, catching the game-winning 27-yard scoring grab with 3:54 to play. He also had TD receptions against Millersville and Lock Haven. 

SEVEN-MAN LINEMAN ROTATION HAS OVER 150 GAMES OF EXPERIENCE
The Crimson Hawks annually have an experienced line under the tutelage of Coach Campolo. This year is no different, the IUP's seven-man rotation boasting 156 career games with 122 starts under their belts. Each player has at least four starts and are made up of one freshman, one sophomore, three juniors, a senior and a grad student. Jr. C Jeff Arnold leads the way with 33 career starts while Sr. LT Joe Peterson has played in 34 games with 32 starts. 

CRIMSON HAWKS 3-0 WHEN THEY WIN TURNOVER MARGIN, 1-2 WHEN THEY DO NOT
IUP has struggled with turnover margin in its last three games with a combined -7 margin, turning it over 12 times while forcing 5 turnovers defensively. The Crimson Hawks were +5 with just two turnovers during their 4-0 start. Since 2015, they are a combined 26-3 when winning the turnover battle. 

SECOND HALF DEFENSE PROPELLED CRIMSON HAWKS TO LAST TWO WINS
The IUP defense has come up with huge second performances in its last two comeback wins, giving up a total of 10 points and 189 yards on 60 plays (3.2 avg) against Clarion and Gannon. In the previous six games, IUP gave up 49 total points an an average of 200 yards per game in the second half.

IUP IS 12-1 SINCE 2015 WHEN THE DEFENSE SCORES; JUST 1 DEFENSIVE TD THIS YEAR
For the last three years the Crimson Hawks have been one of the national leaders in defensive touchdowns, totaling 14 from 2015-17. This year IUP has just one score from the defense, an 80-yard interception return by R-Jr. CB JR Stevens against Millersville in week two. Since 2015, IUP is 12-1 when the defensive scores. 

CRIMSON HAWKS AMONG NATIONAL LEADERS WITH 25 SACKS
With the help of a great start to the season, IUP is tied for 12th in Division II with 25.0 sacks through eight games (3.13/game). After just one combined sack vs. Cal and Slippery Rock, the Crimson Hawks returned to their old ways with 6 combined sacks in wins over Clarion and Gannon. 

EASTERLING AND TILLMAN AMONG NATIONAL LEADERS IN SACKS
Most of IUP's sack total can be attributed to its defensive ends: Sr. Deandre Easterling and Jr. Dondrea Tillman. Tillman is tied for 5th in Division II with 8.5 sacks this season while Easterling is in the top 25 with 6.5. Easterling has at least one sack in five games this year while Tillman has three multi-sack performances. For his career, Easterling is unofficially 5th in IUP history with 42.5 TFLs and 6th with 26.5 sacks. 

LLOYD, AMENDOLA STARTING TO MAKE THEIR PRESENCE FELT
After a quiet first couple weeks of the season, junior linebackers Damon Lloyd and Nick Amendola have started to ramp up their production. Lloyd has 58 tackles over the last five games while Amendola has 54, combining for six double-digit tackle performances during that span. Lloyd leads the PSAC with 75 tackles while Amendola is 6th with 65.

QASHAH CARTER AMONG NATIONAL LEADERS IN KICKOFF RETURNS
Fr. WR Qashah Carter has made his mark in the return game as he's among the national leaders in kickoff return average (30.0, 12th) and kickoff return yards (600, 10th). He had IUP's first kick return touchdown since 2012 with a 95-yard score at Cal and also posted an 89-yard return against Millersville.