INDIANA, Pa. - The 15th-ranked Crimson Hawks return to football and open their 2021 season Saturday against 18th-ranked Kutztown at George P. Miller Stadium. Kickoff has been set for 2 p.m. 

The long wait is over as IUP will play its first game in 659 days after the pandemic forced the cancellation of the 2020 season. The 2019 season saw the Crimson Hawks finish 10-2 overall and make their 19th all-time appearance in the NCAA Division II playoffs. There will be a lot of turnover with just 10 starters and 25 letterwinners returning while more than 40 freshman-eligible players dot the roster. 

Kutztown opened its season last Saturday, defeating Assumption 19-0 at home. KU totaled 418 yards on offense and gave up just seven first downs and 139 yards defensively in a decisive victory. The Golden Bears have been one of the most successful teams in the PSAC of late, boasting a 29-7 overall record since 2017 with two NCAA playoff appearances.

QUICK NOTES / STORYLINES
• The game marks the end of a long wait for the IUP football program as the Crimson Hawks hit the field for the first time since the 2019 NCAA playoffs. It will be 659 days since IUP's last game, a heartbreaking 31-27 loss to Shepherd at home. 
• Like so many teams around the country, IUP will feature plenty of new faces this year, including the 2021 and 2020 recruiting classes, and 2019 freshmen who redshirted their first year on campus. At the start of fall camp, IUP's 82-man roster was made up of 28 upperclassmen and 54 freshman and sophomore eligible players.
• IUP returns 10 starters from the 2019 team, highlighted by preseason All-Americans in R-Jr. WR Duane Brown, Sr. OL Josh Dauberman, and R-Sr. CB Nazir Streater. 
• Like most positions, IUP's fall camp included a quarterback battle with incoming transfer Harry Woodbery and R-Soph. Javon Davis. The latter saw action as a true freshman in 2018, going 11-23 with 171 yards and 3 TDs. Woodbery played in 27 games with 12 starts over three seasons at Eastern Illinois, throwing for 3,637 yards and 26 TDs.
• IUP's first two-deep features 13 redshirt or true freshmen, including three starters on the defensive side in DE Tyrone Fowler, SS Jaheim Howard, and FS Charles Ingram.
• IUP has won 19 of its last 22 season openers dating back to 1998. The program has an all-time record of 53-33-3 (.612) in its first game of a new season.
• This is the first meeting between these two programs since Kutztown rallied for a 34-33 win at Miller Stadium in the 2015 opener. IUP gained 497 yards on the afternoon but missed two second half extra points. 
• IUP has dominated the series with a 9-2-1 record all-time against Kutztown, with both KU wins coming in back-to-back seasons (2014, 2015). This is the first ever meeting with both teams ranked in the top 25. 
• The Crimson Hawks opened the season ranked No. 17 in the AFCA Coaches Top 25 and climbed two spots to No. 15 despite being idle last week. IUP is also ranked No. 20 by D2Football.com. 

NOTEBOOK

COACH TORTORELLA HEADS INTO YEAR FOUR AT THE HELM
Coach Tortorella heads into his fourth season as the head coach after reaching 30 wins faster than any other coach in IUP history, hitting the mark in 35 games. Through his first three seasons, Tortorella carries a 31-6 (.838) overall record with a pair of NCAA playoff berths, regional, PSAC and division titles, and a 5-2 record against ranked opponents. The .838 win percentage is the seventh-best mark of any Division II team - and best of any PSAC program - during that time. It also gives Tortorella the third-best win percentage among active Division II coaches with three or more years of experience.

IUP IN SEASON OPENERS
IUP is 53-33-3 (.612) all-time in season openers. The Crimson Hawks had a streak of nine straight season-opening wins from 2006-14, which ended with a 34-33 loss to Kutztown in 2015. But they've still won 19 of their last 22 openers dating back to 1998. IUP has opened a season at home 13 times since 2000, going 11-2 in those games, including a 24-13 win over New Haven in 2019.

IUP vs. THE PSAC EAST
Since 2006, IUP is 35-9 (.795) against teams from the PSAC East, including a recent run of 11 straight victories between the 2015 and 2018 seasons. The Crimson Hawks went 3-1 against East teams in 2019, including blowouts of Millersville (54-0), Lock Haven (77-14), and Shippensburg (54-24), before a NCAA playoff loss to Shepherd (31-27). 

CRIMSON HAWKS PICKED SECOND IN PSAC WEST
IUP was picked to finish second in the PSAC Western Division by the coaches when the league announced its preseason polls in early August. Slippery Rock was the favorite to repeat with four of the eight first place votes. IUP received three first place votes and Cal U received the final one and was voted third. 

TODAY'S MATCHUP A BATTLE OF TOP-25 TEAMS
For the first time in the history of this series, both teams enter with a spot in the top 25 rankings. IUP opened the year ranked 17th in the AFCA Coaches' Poll, moving up two spots to No. 15 after sitting idle last week. The Hawks are also ranked No. 20 in the D2Football Media Poll. Kutztown enters the weekend ranked No. 18 in the coaches poll and No. 16 in the media poll. 

IUP WILL HAVE A NEW QUARTERBACK IN 2021
After the success of graduate transfer QB Quinton Maxwell in 2019, the Crimson Hawks will be looking for a new quarterback in 2021. R-Soph. Javon Davis, who has been with the program since 2018, battled with graduate transfer Harry Woodbery through fall camp. Woodbery came to IUP this summer after spending the last three seasons at FCS Eastern Illinois. He played in 27 games with 12 starts for the Panthers, throwing for 3,636 yards and 26 touchdowns to 19 interceptions. Davis saw action as a true freshman backup to Lenny Williams in 2018, throwing for 171 yards and 3 TDs in three games of mop-up duty. 

IUP OFFENSE LOOKS FOR ANOTHER STANDOUT SEASON
Under the direction of offensive coordinator Tate Gregory, the IUP offense saw a change in philosophy in 2019 that helped the Crimson Hawks put up some of the best numbers in program history. IUP set program records for passing yards (3,621), passing yards per game (301.8), and passing touchdowns (41), while also putting up 44.2 points per game, which is second all-time. Woodbery and/or Davis look to lead a similar offensive output in 2021 with several running backs, receivers, and tight ends looking to make contributions. 

WR DUANE BROWN COMING OFF ONE OF BEST SEASONS IN PROGRAM HISTORY
Jr. WR Duane Brown exploded onto the scene in his first year as a receiver in 2019, earning all-conference and all-region honors. An all-around threat, he tied for 7th in Division II with 19 total touchdowns (13 rec, 6 rush), and led IUp with 937 receiving yards and 19.9 yards per catch. Brown also finished 8th in the nation with a 14.7 punt return average. 

DEEP RUNNING BACK GROUP AGAIN THE STRENGTH OF IUP OFFENSE
The Crimson Hawks boast a talented running back group led by Sr. RB Justice Evans. Evans enters the year ranked 12th in IUP history with 2,443 career rushing yards, including a 2017 freshman season of 1,011. A big play threat, his career 6.1 yards per carry average is the most by any IUP player with at least 1,800 career rushing yards. Joining him in the backfield are R-Sr. Malik Anderson (All-PSAC in 2019), So. Adam Houser (269 yards, 3 TDs), and R-Fr. Dayjure Stewart (2019 Illinois State signee). 

PRESEASON ALL-AMERICA JOSH DAUBERMAN HEADLINES OFFENSIVE LINE
Sr. OL Josh Dauberman returns for his fourth year boasting a wealth of experience. The right guard 33 career games under his belt with 25 starts, earning all-conference honors twice in addition to all-region honors in 2019. He landed on preseason All-America lists for both Lindy's and D2Football.com and was voted to IUP's All-Decade Team of the 2010s. Also returning is R-Jr. Darrell Davis (22 games, 8 starts) at left tackle and R-Jr. John Robinson (15 games, 6 starts) at left guard. 

CB NAZIR STREATER RETURNS AS MAIN SECONDARY THREAT
R-Sr. CB Nazir Streater is IUP's lone returning All-American selection from the 2019 season after finishing with 63 tackles, 6.0 TFLs, 6 interceptions, and 11 passes broken up. He rightfully earned presason All-America selection and despite playing just one season at IUP during the decade, was named to the program's 2010s All-Decade Team. Including his time at LIU Post, Streater has 13 interceptions and 21 pass breakups in 31 games. 

DEFENSIVE LINE BRINGS IMPROVED DEPTH IN 2021
Boasting standout freshmen and a couple of transfers, the IUP defensive line boasts increased depth heading into 2021. The headliner is Jr. NG Dajour Fisher, who earned all-conference honors as a first-year starter in 2019 with 10.0 TFLs and 7.5 sacks. Back from injury is R-Jr. DT Raunya Mitchell, with R-Jr. NG Ayyub Dail and R-Jr. DT Gregory Moore II, a Stetson transfer, adding to the depth in the middle. On the outside, Jr. DE Will Mayr returns after posting 26 tackles, 3.0 TFLs and a sack in 2019. R-Jr. DE Vaughn Wallace had 5.0 sacks at Clarion two seasons ago while a pair of true freshmen - Tyrone Fowler and Maurice Feazell - will look to make a big splash in their first seasons. 

ANOTHER KELLY FAMILY MEMBER LOOKS TO PAY HUGE DIVIDENDS
R-Jr. LB Connor Kelly, younger brother of former IUP WR Zac Kelly and nephew to Pro Football Hall of Fame QB jim Kelly, is in his first season at IUP after transferring from Edinoro prior to fall 2020. Kelly played in 19 games with six starts in two seasons (2017-18) at Edinboro, tallying 76 tackles, 16.0 TFLs, and 5.0 sacks.