NEWS

 

DAVIDSON WILDCATS
2022 Record: 7-2 (5-1 PFL)
2021 Record: 8-3 (7-1 PFL)
Head Coach: Scott Abell
Davidson Record: 33-17, 5th year
Career Record: 72-41, 11th year

SAN DIEGO TOREROS
2022 Record: 3-5 (2-3 PFL)
2021 Record: 7-4 (7-1 PFL)
Head Coach: Dale Lindsey
San Diego Record: 78-29, 10th year
Career Record: Same

INSIDE THE SERIES
Meetings: 17
Series Record: San Diego leads, 13-4
First Meeting: Davidson W, 27-13 (10/14/00)
Last Meeting: Davidson W, 28-16 (9/25/21)
Streak: Davidson Won 2
In Davidson: San Diego leads, 8-1
In San Diego: San Diego leads, 5-3
Abell vs. San Diego: 2-2

1ST AND 10

• Winners of three straight and seven of its last eight, Davidson heads west this weekend to take on Pioneer Football League rival San Diego.
• Coming off a thrilling 56-48 (2OT) win over Stetson, the Wildcats enter 7-2 overall and 5-1 in conference play.
• Davidson is locked in a three-way tie for second place in the PFL standings with Butler and Dayton.
• The Wildcats hold the tiebreaker with the Bulldogs and will conclude their regular season against the Flyers on Nov. 19 at Richardson Stadium.
• St. Thomas, which is atop the league standings at 6-0, is not eligible to receive the league’s automatic berth into the FCS Playoffs.
• In addition to leading the nation in rushing offense (372.7), Davidson ranks among FCS leaders in total offense (489.9 | 6th), passing efficiency (196.2 | 2nd), scoring offense (38.3 | 10th), total defense (315.2 | 18th) and time of possession (34:38 | 4th).
• Saturday’s contest will be the 18th all-time meeting between the PFL foes.
• San Diego leads the all-time series, 13-4, however the ‘Cats have won the last two, including a 31-25 win at Torero Stadium April 3, 2021 snapping the then-ranked No. 25 Torero’s 39-game conference win streak.
• Davidson since 12-6 in conference road games since Head Coach Scott Abell took over in 2018.

SCOUTING THE TOREROS

• Picked to finish second, behind the Wildcats, in the PFL Preseason Poll, San Diego enters 3-5 overall and 2-3 in league action following a 26-23 setback at home to Butler.
• The Bulldogs’ Luka Zurak kicked a game-winning 56-yard field goal as time expired.
• San Diego ranks sixth in the PFL in total offense and fifth in total defense.
• Judd Erickson is throwing for 232.6 yards per game, which is second among PFL quarterbacks.
• The Toreros have a balanced offensive attack, rushing for 101.6 yards per game, while throwing for 252.3 and averaging just under 30 points.

UP NEXT

• Davidson will close out its regular season Saturday, Nov. 19 with a 1 p.m. “Senior Day” contest against Dayton inside Richardson Stadium.

OFFENSIVE NOTES

• In addition to leading the nation in rushing offense (372.7), Davidson ranks among FCS leaders in total offense (489.9 | 6th), passing efficiency (196.2 | 2nd), scoring offense (38.3 | 10th), total defense (315.2 | 18th) and time of possession (34:38 | 4th).
• Four different Wildcats have rushed for over 445 yards on the season — Dylan Sparks (636), Coy Williams (608), Jayden Waddell (469) and Mark McCurdy (446), while two others have gained 200-plus on the ground.
• Williams is tied for the league lead with nine rushing touchdowns.
• Sparks (2,248) and Williams (2,129) rank fifth and sixth on Davidson’s all-time rushing list, respectively.
• Mark McCurdy, who leads the team with 10 touchdowns, is Davidson’s top receiver with 15 catches for 219 yards and five scores. The junior slot receiver also has 446 yards on the ground and five 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, 15 different players have scored touchdowns for Davidson through nine contests.

DEFENSIVE NOTES

• Davidson has been just as impressive on the defensive side of the ball, ranking among FCS leaders in total defense (315.2 | 18th), passing yards allowed (195.0 | 26th) and third-down conversion defense (0.330 | 15th).
• The Wildcats have recorded 11 interceptions this season, including two each from Jordan Burrell and John Tessmann.
• Daniel Carter leads the way in tackles with 49, while Jonathan Hammond has a team-high 5.5 sacks and 8.5 tackles for a loss.
• With his two sacks last weekend versus the Hatters, Hammond moved into fifth on Davidson’s all-time sacks list. Over his last two games, he has five sacks and eight tackles for a loss.
• Kaedon Jenkins also has three tackles for a loss and a team-high 12 pass break ups. 

SPECIAL TEAMS NOTES

• Highlighted by a pair of TJ Magee kickoff returns for a touchdown, Davidson is seventh nationally in kickoff returns (25.18).
• Caden Bonoffski is a perfect 6-for-6 on field goal attempts and 43-of-46 on extra point tries.
• Aaron Maione is averaging a league-best 12.40 yards per punt return.

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