NEWS

 

GAME INFORMATION
WEEK: 8
DATE: Oct. 22, 2022
TIME: 2:00 PM (ET)
LOCATION: Des Moines, Iowa
STADIUM: Drake Stadium

DAVIDSON WILDCATS
2022 Record: 5-2 (3-1 PFL)
2021 Record: 8-3 (7-1 PFL)
Head Coach: Scott Abell
Davidson Record: 31-17, 5th year
Career Record: 70-41, 11th year

DRAKE BULLDOGS
2022 Record: 0-7 (0-4 PFL)
2021 Record: 2-8 (1-6 PFL)
Head Coach: Todd Stepsis
Drake Record: 10-23, 4th year
Career Record: Same

INSIDE THE SERIES
Meetings: 11
Series Record: Drake leads, 9-2
First Meeting: Drake W, 58-17 (10/1/05)
Last Meeting: Davidson W, 45-14 (11/20/21)
Streak: W1
In Davidson: Davidson trails, 4-2
In Des Moines: Drake leads, 5-0
Abell vs. Drake: 1-1

1ST AND 10
· Davidson bounced back last weekend with a 28-26 win over Morehead State to move to 5-2 overall and 3-1 in Pioneer Football League action.
· Highlighting Saturday’s win over the Eagles were Wildcat running backs Dylan Sparks and Coy Williams surpassing the 2,000-yard career rushing mark.
· Sparks (2,071) and Williams (2,001) rank fifth and sixth on Davidson’s all-time rushing list, respectively.
· The Wildcats, who lead the nation in rushing offense at 378.4 yards per game, ran for 467 against the Eagles, marking the fourth time this season they’ve gone over 400 yards on the ground in a game.
· Davidson is one of just two (Jackson State) FCS programs ranked in the Top-15 nationally in both total offense (9th) and total defense (13th).
· Saturday’s contest will be the 12th all-time meeting between the PFL foes with Drake leading the series, 9-2, including a 5-0 mark against the ‘Cats in Des Moines.
· Davidson since 11-6 in conference road games since Head Coach Scott Abell took over in 2018.

SCOUTING THE BULLDOGS
· Drake enters Saturday’s matchup 0-7 overall and 0-4 in league play following a 26-14 loss at St. Thomas last weekend.
· The Bulldogs come in averaging 301.4 yards of total offense per game.
· Drake ranks 19th in all of the FCS in fewest penalties per game (4.57) and 11th in fewest penalty yards per game (38.71).
· The Bulldogs have scored 14 or fewer points in a game six times this season.

OFFENSIVE NOTES
· In addition to leading the country in rushing offense (378.4 ypg), Davidson ranks among FCS leaders in total offense (473.9/9th) and scoring offense (34.4/19th).
· Three different Wildcats have rushed for over 450 yards on the season — Coy Williams (480), Jayden Waddell (469) and Dylan Sparks (459), while three others have gained 200-plus on the ground.
· Williams leads the team and PFL with seven rushing touchdowns.
· Sparks (2,071) and Williams (2,001) rank fifth and sixth on Davidson’s all-time rushing list, respectively.
· Mark McCurdy is Davidson’s top receiver with 14 catches for 164 yards and three touchdowns. The junior slot receiver also has 271 yards on the ground and three rushing touchdowns.
· Quarterback Jayden Waddell has completed 58.3 percent of his passing attempts, thrown five touchdown passes and rushed for three more.
· In all, 10 different players have scored offensive touchdowns for Davidson through seven contests.

DEFENSIVE NOTES
· Davidson has been just as impressive on the defensive side of the ball, ranking among FCS leaders in total defense (296.1/13th), passing yards allowed (168.1/7th) and scoring defense (19.3/21st).
· The Wildcats have recorded 10 interceptions this season, including two each from Jordan Burrell and John Tessmann.
· Daniel Carter leads the way in tackles with 42, while Julian Rawlins has a team-high 2.5 sacks and five tackles for a loss.
· Kaedon Jenkins also has three tackles for a loss and a team-high 11 pass break ups.

SPECIAL TEAMS NOTES
· Highlighted by a pair of TJ Magee kickoff returns for a touchdown, Davidson is fifth nationally in kickoff returns (28.0).
· Caden Bonoffski is a perfect 4-for-4 on field goal attempts and 31-of-33 on extra point tries.
· Aaron Maione is averaging 11.67 yards per punt return.
· Kaedon Jenkins blocked a Morehead State field goal attempt on the opening drive in Saturday’s victory over the Eagles.