INDIANA, Pa. - The 25th-ranked Crimson Hawks return home with some momentum as they welcome Gannon to Indiana for Homecoming on Saturday. Kickoff at George P. Miller Stadium is set for 2 p.m.

IUP hit the road for the first time last week, returning from Erie with a 48-13 win over Mercyhurst in the division opener, improving to 2-1 overall. The Hawks scored early and they scored fast, including a punt block touchdown 1:39 into the game and two scoring drives that combined for nine plays and 4:47 of game clock. QB Harry Woodbery tossed 4 touchdowns and ran for 1 more while the defense forced 4 turnovers and tallied a pair of sacks in the win. 

Gannon is 2-2 overall and is also coming off a divisional win with a 56-21 home victory over Clarion last week. The Golden Knights scored 42 first half points and totaled 437 offensive yards, while also forcing 4 turnovers including a 99-yard fumble recovery for a score. 

QUICK NOTES / STORYLINES
• IUP is now 3-1 under HC Paul Tortorella in games after regular season losses. The Crimson Hawks also ran their September record under Tortorella (2017-present) to 16-2 after last week's win.
• This is the second straight game against an Erie school that joined the PSAC in 2008. The Crimson Hawks are 9-3 all-time against Gannon, including a 6-1 record in games played at Miller Stadium. IUP has won five straight in the series by an average score of 39-15.
• The Crimson Hawks are a combined 20-5 against Erie schools Mercyhurst and Gannon since 2008, including 11-2 at home. 
• IUP is 10-2 in October games under Tortorella dating back to 2017. Both losses came to Slippery Rock (2018, 2019). 
• Last week's win gave IUP a 19-3 record against PSAC West foes since 2017. Those losses - Slippery Rock and Cal in 2018, Slippery Rock in 2019.
• Despite a win, the Hawks dropped a spot to No. 25 in the AFCA Coaches' Top 25 this week. IUP is tied with rival Cal U (4-0) at that spot. 
• After giving up an average of 516 yards and 31 points in the first two games, the IUP defense rebounded by allowing 259 total yards and 13 points last week in Erie. 
• The Hawks have forced 8 turnovers this year (2.7/game), including 4 last week. Gannon has only given the ball up 3 times in four games - 1 fumble, 2 interceptions.
• Grad transfer QB Harry Woodbery made his IUP debut last week in spectacular fashion, totaling 5 TDs - including 4 in the first half- to lead the Hawks to the win at Mercyhurst. The starter out of camp, he had been sidelined due to COVID-19 protocols.
• The Gannon defense ranks 13th in the PSAC giving up 271.5 passing yards per game. Over the last three games (Shepherd, Bloomsburg, Clarion), QBs have thrown for 9 TDs against the Golden Knights.
• IUP ran for a season-high 182 yards last week, averaging 5.9 yards per carry. Fr. RB Dayjure Stewart had 98 yards on 18 carries. 
• The Golden Knights are also near the bottom of the PSAC in run defense, allowing 173.5 yards per game with 8 TDs on the ground. 

NOTEBOOK

HAWKS REBOUNDED FROM SEPTEMBER LOSS
The Crimson Hawks took care of business last Saturday, easily defeating Mercyhurst 48-13. The win came after the week two loss to No. 11 Shepherd at home, as IUP successfully rebounded from only its seventh September loss since 2011. 

COACH TORTORELLA THROUGH 40 GAMES
Last week at Mercyhurst marked Coach Tortorella's 40th game as head coach of the Crimson Hawks. Through his 3-plus seasons at the helm, he owns a record of 33-7 (.825), including a 19-3 (.864) mark against PSAC West schools. He reached 30 wins faster than any other IUP coach (35 games), and has two NCAA playoff berths (2017, 2019), division, PSAC, and regional titles (2017), and a 6-3 record against top-25 opponents. 

IUP EXTENDS PSAC WEST OPENER STREAK, SUCCESS IN DIVISION
IUP has had incredible success in PSAC West openers going back to 1983, winning 36 of those 38 games, after last week's 48-13 win at Mercyhurst. The Hawks are on a current streak of nine straight PSAC West-opening wins dating back to 2012 and boasted a 26-game streak from 1983-2006. Since 2011, IUP is 52-14 (.788) against PSAC opponents, the second best mark in the division behind Slippery Rock's 53-13.

CRIMSON HAWKS IN THE NATIONAL RANKINGS
Despite its 48-13 win at Mercyhurst on Saturday, the Crimson Hawks dropped a spot in the rankings to No. 25 in the AFCA Coaches' Top 25. IUP is actually tied with rival Cal U (4-0) for that 25th spot. IUP completely fell out of the D2Football.com Media Top 25 last week and as of Wednesday a new poll had not yet been released. Dating back to the 2016 season, IUP has been nationally-ranked in 52 of 56 possible national ranking releases, including 36 straight weeks from 2016-18.

IUP OFFENSE BRINGS MOMENTUM INTO GANNON MEETING
The IUP offense is coming off its best outing of the season, despite totaling only 328 yards in the 48-13 victory. Five of its 11 drives started in Mercyhurst territory with six ending in touchdowns, plus the Hawks averaged a season-best 6.4 yards on its 53 offensive plays. IUP enters this week 7th in the PSAC in scoring (32.7 points) and 10th in total offense (319.0 yards) per game, but leads the nation by scoring on 100 percent (12-12) of its red zone trips. IUP is averaging 42.0 points against Gannon in the last four meetings.

WOODBERY HAS BREAKOUT PERFORMANCE IN IUP DEBUT
Grad transfer QB Harry Woodbery took his first snaps in an IUP uniform last Saturday, finishing with 5 total touchdowns (4 pass, 1 rush) in the 48-13 win over Mercyhurst. Woodbery, who won the starting job out of camp but didn't play the first two weeks due to COVID-19 protocols, completed 15-22 passes for 146 yards and 4 TDs without an interception or a sack. He also rushed for a 1-yard score in the second quarter to help give him 4 TDs in IUP's first five offensive drives of the game. In the first two games, Soph. QB Javon Davis omplet 66.7 percent of his passes (40-60) for 456 yards, 4 TDs and 0 INTs. He's been in the system since 2018, backing up All-American QB Lenny Williams before redshirting in 2019.

IUP OFFENSE SPREADING THE WEALTH IN PASS GAME
Through three games this season, nine different Crimson Hawks have caught at least 1 pass while five players have at least 1 receiving touchdown. The main targets so far have been Jr. WR Duane Brown and Sr. WR Irvin Charles, who have 24 receptions, 349 yards, 4 TDs and two 100-yard games between them. Brown leads the team with 13 receptions in two games while Charles' 176 yards and 3 TDs are team-bests. Fr. WR Hilton Ridley has 2 TDs in the last two weeks and TEs Grant Smith and Cam Suman each caught a touchdown against Mercyhurst. 

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 has 36 career games under his belt with 28 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. The starting line has remained the same through three weeks and features R-Jr. Darrell Davis (25 games, 11 starts) at left tackle, R-Jr. John Robinson (18 games, 9 starts) at left guard, Jr. Collin Pietropola (14 games, 4 starts) at center, and R-Jr. McLean Djouha (12 games, 3 starts) at right tackle.

CRIMSON HAWKS 23-1 SINCE 2011 WHEN THE DEFENSE SCORES
Jr. DT Raunya Mitchell scored the defense's first touchdown of the season when he picked off a tipped pass and rumbled 21 yards for a score to give IUP a 29-19 lead with 6:30 left on Saturday. The Crimson Hawks have 28 defensive touchdowns since 2011 and boast a 23-1 record during that time when the defense puts points on the board. 

CRIMSON HAWKS AMONG BEST IN PSAC, NATION IN FORCING TURNOVERS
Through three games the IUP defense has forced 8 turnovers, tallying 6 interceptions and a pair of fumble recoveries. IUP leads the PSAC with those 6 picks with the 2.7 turnovers forced per game also ranking first in the conference. The Crimson Hawks' 8 forced turnovers is tied for 25th in Division II, and is third amongst teams having only played three games. 

NEWCOMERS LEADING DEFENSIVE EFFORT
Through three games, IUP's top seven tacklers are all newcomers - either freshmen or transfers. Gr. LB Malachi Newell leads the team with 23 tackles and 2 forced fumbles, Fr. FS Charles Ingram is 2nd with 17 tackles, Fr. DE Maurice Feazel has a team-best 3.0 TFLs, Jr. DE Vaughn Wallace has 2.5 sacks, and Fr. SS Jaheim Howard leads with 2 interceptions.

GRUBBS AMONG NATIONAL LEADERS IN PUNTING
Soph. P Dylan Grubbs has been a standout on the IUP special teams this year, currently ranking 2nd in Division II with a 45.4 average on 13 punts. Five of his punts have gone for 50+ yards with 4 downed inside the 20. Grubbs earned PSAC West and national Special Teams Player of the Week honors after IUP's 29-26 win over Kutztown.