Clarion Golden Eagles (2-4, 1-2 PSAC West) at Mercyhurst Lakers (2-4, 0-3 PSAC West)
Saturday, October 15 // 6 p.m. // Erie, Pa. // Saxon Stadium

MEDIA COVERAGE

Streaming Video: All PSAC member institutions stream football games free of charge on the PSAC Sports Digital Network. Games are available on the web, and fans can download the PSAC Sports Digital Network App on the following: 

• Mobile: App Store (iOS), Google Play (Android), Amazon Fire
• Streaming: Amazon Fire, Android TV, Apple TV, Roku

Live Stats: Mercyhurst will provide live stats for the game through their athletic website.

The Kickoff    
The Golden Eagles continue their two-game road stretch with another challenging contest on the road, as Clarion heads to Erie to take on the Mercyhurst Lakers at Saxon Stadium. Kickoff is set for 6 p.m.

Series History

• This will be the 14th meeting between the Golden Eagles and the Lakers, with Merychurst owning a 9-4 advantage in the all-time series that dates back to 2008. The Lakers have been particularly effective at home, owning a 5-1 record against the Golden Eagles in games played in Erie.
• The teams split the first two meetings all-time, with Mercyhurst winning 41-7 in the 2008 season and the Golden Eagles defeating them 29-25 in 2009. In the latter, Clarion scored 22 points in the fourth quarter, rallying from a 19-7 deficit.
• Mercyhurst won the last meeting between the two teams, defeating Clarion 38-20 at Memorial Stadium on Oct. 30, 2021. The teams were scoreless after the first quarter and were tied 14-14 with 3:19 left in the second quarter, but the Lakers outscored the Golden Eagles 24-6 the rest of the way.
• The Golden Eagles won three out of four meetings from 2013-16, including their only win of the series to come in Erie. Clarion defeated Mercyhurst 35-34 on Sept. 24, 2016, coming back from a 21-7 halftime deficit as well sa a 28-21 fourth quarter hole. Delrece Williams tied the game at 28 with a touchdown run and Connor Simmons put Clarion ahead with a run of his own with 6:08 remaining.
• The last game played in Erie was a low-scoring affair, as the Lakers held on for a 14-7 win on Nov. 3, 2018. Clarion quarterback Tanner Jones rushed for a three-yard touchdown to open the scoring, but Mercyhurst scored twice in the first half to take a 14-7 lead. It stayed that way for the remainder as neither team lit up the scoreboard in the second half. 

About the Opponent

• Mercyhurst was predicted to finish seventh in the PSAC West division in 2022, one spot ahead of where Clarion was picked to finish by the league's coaches. 
• Through six weeks of action, the Lakers own an overall record of 2-4 and a conference record of 0-3. They are one of two teams in the West division - Seton Hill is the other - without a conference win so far.
• After winning against Alderson Broaddus (45-28) and Lock Haven (49-7) to start the season, the Lakers have lost four straight games, including three tight divisional contests against IUP, Edinboro and Slippery Rock. 
• In their most recent game, the Lakers rallied from a 17-0 deficit to pull within one score of nationally-ranked Slippery Rock, but the Rock shut them down for the remainder in winning 31-17.
• Running back David Alize ranks seventh in the PSAC with an average of 74.2 rushing yards per game but Dustin Shoaf has been the bell cow for the Lakers, with the latter carrying 90 times for 344 yards- and punching in seven touchdowns. 
• The Lakers boast the sixth-highest scoring offense in the conference with an average of 28.5 points per game.
• On defense, Marquis Mauney is tied for the PSAC lead with three interceptions on the season, while Camden White is tied for 10th in the league with four sacks.

Last Week

• The Golden Eagle football team took advantage of key Seton Hill miscues and turned them into points, with Clarion routing the Griffins 40-13 at Offutt Field on Oct. 8.
• Clarion scored at least once in all three phases of the game, including two special teams touchdowns and a safety. The Golden Eagles got out to a quick lead and limited the Griffins' ability to come back, holding them to one score late in each half. Neither team moved the ball particularly well, but Clarion excelled in the other facets to snatch the win.
• Quarterback Zach Benedek scored three total touchdowns on the afternoon, rushing for one and catching two on passes from receiver Corahn Alleyne. The first came on the Golden Eagles' opening drive of the game and gave them a 7-0 lead. Benedek scored on a fake field goal to make it 21-0, and caught a 20-yard touchdown pass in the second half to increase the lead to 28-6.
• The game broke wide open for the Golden Eagles late in the first quarter on a combined effort by the special teams. Connor Lyczek blocked a Seton Hill field goal attempt and Legend Davis returned it 67 yards for a touchdown to make it 14-0.
• Khalil Owens finished with 101 rushing/receiving yards and a touchdown. Defensively, Shane Kemper had a team-high 10 tackles, while Jordan Villafane had five tackles and an interception. 

Meet the New Boss

• Raymond Monica, a two-time American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) Region 1 Coach of the Year and two-time Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) East Coach of the Year with more than 30 years of experience at the college level, became the 14th coach in Golden Eagle history on Feb. 17, 2022.
• Before coming to Clarion, Monica was an assistant coach at Southeastern Louisiana from 2019-21, including a one-year stint as the defensive coordinator in 2021. The Lions made the Division I Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) playoffs in 2019 and 2021, winning their first round game in both of those seasons. In 2021, the Lions finished 15th in the final FCS rankings of the year.
• Where Golden Eagle fans may best recognize Monica, though, would be his tenure as Kutztown's head football coach from 2006-12. He turned the Golden Bears into one of the leading programs in the conference, culminating with back-to-back appearances in the NCAA Division II Super Region One playoffs in 2010-11.

PSAC Announces Preseason Coaches Poll
The Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) announced the results of their preseason coaches poll on August 4. The Golden Eagles were predicted to finish eighth in the PSAC West division in 2022.

PSAC West Division (First Place Votes)
T1.    Slippery Rock (3)
T1.    IUP (3)
3.    California (PA) (2)
4.    Gannon
T5.    Edinboro
T5.    Seton Hill
7.    Mercyhurst
8.    Clarion

PSAC East Division (First Place Votes)

1. Shepherd (4)
2. Kutztown (4)
3. West Chester
4. Shippensburg
5. East Stroudsburg
6. Bloomsburg
7. Millersville
8. Lock Haven

Hager Brings Experience, Championship Lineage to Clarion

• Defensive coordinator Josh Hager enters his first season on the Golden Eagle staff in 2022, one year after service as the defensive coordinator at NCAA Division III Alvernia. Prior to that, he ran the defense at Missouri Southern from 2019-20, where he tutored the top two tacklers in the MIAA.
• As the defensive coordinator for Garden City Community College from 2016-18, Hager produced one of the top defensive units in the nation, and helped the Broncbusters win the 2016 NJCAA national championship.
• Among those players coached by Hager at GCCC were one national Defensive Player of the Year, two conference Defensive Players of the Year, two conference Defensive Linemen of the Year, 11 All-Americans, 41 First Team All-Conference players, and one first round draft pick in Mike Hughes (Minnesota Vikings - 2018).
• Hager is the son of legendary football coach Rocky Hager, whose career highlights include leading North Dakota State to seven NCAA Tournament appearances and two NCAA Division II championships (1988, 90).

Pioneer of "The Fly" Comes to Clarion 

• The Golden Eagle offense will be under the tutelage of veteran coach Mark Speckman, who brings more than 40 years of coaching experience to the program.
• The pioneer of the Fly offense that is widely used across high school, collegiate and professional ranks, Speckman spent the previous five seasons as the assistant head coach and running backs coach at UC Davis. He was part of the Aggies' 2018 Big Sky conference championship season.
• Speckman spent 15 seasons as a collegiate head coach, including 14 years at Willamette. He guided the team to an 82-59 record from 1997-2011, including two Northwest Conference championships, eight league title games and three NCAA Division III postseason appearances. Speckman's 2008 team finished 11-1 and ranked fourth nationally, earning him his second Northwest Conference Coach of the Year award and AFCA Division III West Region Coach of the Year acclaim.
• In addition to coaching football, Speckman has also become well-known for his motivational speaking engagements. Born without hands, he avoided drawing attention to himself as a younger athlete but has since embraced his own story to the point of earning numerous speaking appearances, including bookings at Boeing, Nike, Northwest Mutual, Patterson Dental, the Million Dollar Roundtable and other organizations.

Triple-Threat Quarterback?

• On Oct. 8 against Seton Hill, Zach Benedek added "downfield receiving threat" to his resume with a pair of touchdown receptions.
• Benedek struck on the Golden Eagles' opening drive, handing off to Corahn Alleyne on a sweep run then running toward the end zone. Alleyne connected with Benedek for a 19-yard score to give Clarion a lead.
• In the third quarter, Benedek scored on another pass - this time on a fake reverse - by catching a 20-yard lob from Alleyne to make it 28-6.
• Benedek also scored on a fake field goal, rushing 10 yards from the holder's spot to score. 
• With three touchdowns against the Griffins, Benedek became the first Golden Eagle quarterback to reach the end zone three times in one game since Connor Simmons rushed for three scores against California (Pa.) on Oct. 25, 2014.

Benedek's Nose for the End Zone

• With three touchdowns against Seton Hill on Oct. 8, Zach Benedek moved into the team lead in total touchdowns on the season.
• Benedek has now scored five total times, including three rushing touchdowns and two receiving touchdowns.
• Benedek's five total touchdowns this season rank him ninth in the PSAC and most among quarterbacks.
• The last Golden Eagle quarterback to score five or more total touchdowns in a season was Connor Simmons, who rushed for five scores during the 2014 season. 

So Did You Read Last Week's Notes?

• Prior to the Seton Hill game on Oct. 8, it was pointed out - ahem - that the Golden Eagles had blocked 10 kicks in eight games against the Griffins dating back to the teams' first meeting.
• On Oct. 8, Clarion made that 11 in nine games, when Connor Lyczek blocked a potential Seton Hill field goal in the first quarter. 
• Legend Davis scooped up the blocked kick and returned it 67 yards for a touchdown, a play that turned the tide of the game firmly in Clarion's direction.
• Heading into last week's game, the Golden Eagles had scored touchdowns on three blocked punts against the Griffins, but the Oct. 8 contest marked the first time they returned a blocked field goal for a score against Seton Hill. 

Alleyne and Hungry Look...

• More than halfway through the schedule, Corahn Alleyne has shown himself to be one of the Golden Eagles' most dangerous weapons, threatening opponents in the pass game, the run game and special teams. 
• Against Gannon on Sept. 24, Alleyne finished with 118 receiving yards, 93 rushing yards and 80 kick return yards for 291 all-purpose yards.
• His combined 211 rushing and receiving yards made him the first Golden Eagle to go over that figure in the span of 11 games.
• The last Golden Eagle to go over 100 receiving yards in a game was Terrell Ford, who did it against Mercyhurst in 2021.
• Alleyne enters this weekend's game ranked third in the PSAC and eighth in the nation in all-purpose yardage, with an average of 165.0 yards per game.

Going Long

• With a long touchdown reception and another touchdown run in the first quarter against Gannon, Corahn Alleyne authored two of Clarion's longest plays from scrimmage in the last several years in the span of just a few minutes.
• His 74-yard touchdown reception was the longest Golden Eagle pass play since Dana Jackson, Jr. caught an 81-yard pass against East Stroudsburg in the 2018 season finale, on Nov. 10 at Memorial Stadium.
• Alleyne's 65-yard rushing touchdown was the longest run for a Golden Eagle since Mylique McGriff rambled for a 79-yard gain  on Nov. 4, 2017 against Gannon. 
• To find longer scoring plays from scrimmage, you have to go back even further. The last touchdown run of more than 65 yards came on Oct. 22, 2016, when Kyle Evans rushed for a 68-yard score against IUP.
• Clarion's last receiving touchdown of more than 74 yards came  in the 2016 season finale, when Connor Simmons connected with Kevin Genevro for a 78-yard score on Nov. 12.

(Pick) Six One Way, Two Dozen the Other

• Against California (PA) on Oct. 1, Connor Lyczek stepped in front of a Wyatt Hirt pass and returned it six yards for a touchdown.
• Lyczek's score marked the Golden Eagles' first pick-six in 24 games, with the last coming from Trent Rogers against Shippensburg on Sept. 7, 2019.
• It was also Clarion's first defensive touchdown of any kind since Sept. 28, 2019, when Vaughn Wallace returned a fumble for a touchdown against Gannon.

Alexander, Schleicher Get on the Board

• For quarterback Will Alexander and wide receiver Regan Schleicher, October 1 proved to big moments in their respective collegiate careers.
• Alexander hit Schleicher for a 20-yard touchdown pass in the first quarter against California (PA), giving Clarion a 7-0 lead early in the contest.
• That was the first career touchdown pass for Alexander and the first career touchdown reception for Schleicher.

Commitment to the Ground Game

• Through six weeks of action, the Golden Eagle offense has shown a commitment to the ground game that has put them among the leaders in the conference in rushing offense.
• Clarion enters this weekend's matchup ranked fifth in the PSAC with an average of 167.0 rushing yards per game.
• The Golden Eagles rushed for 270 yards on 51 attempts against Lock Haven on Sept. 17, their best single-game rushing total since going off for 341 yards against Shippensburg on Sept. 7, 2019.

Owens and the Ground Game

• Now in his second full season with the Golden Eagles, running back Khalil Owens will try to build on the end of last year's campaign, when he became a major force toting the rock.
• Including the last four games of the 2021 season and the first six games of the 2022 season, Owens has totaled 933 rushing and receiving yards -- an average of 93.3 yards per game -- and has scored four touchdowns. 

Long Time Coming

• For Andy Martin, the Golden Eagles' Sept. 17 game at Lock Haven was a long time coming.
• Martin would have made his Clarion debut in 2020, but the COVID-19 pandemic halted those plans. In 2021 he was felled by a season-ending injury in training camp, and he missed the first two games of the 2022 season as well.
• He finally made his Golden Eagle debut against the Bald Eagles and made an immediate impact, catching a 53-yard touchdown pass from Zach Benedek in the first quarter that gave Clarion a 13-0 lead.

Winning the Turnover Battle

• Through six games, the Golden Eagles have shown the ability to take care of the football while conversely snatching it away from their opponents.
• With a +4 turnover margin, Clarion enters this weekend tied for third in the PSAC in that category.
• Coincidentally, Mercyhurst enters this weekend tied with Clarion in having a +4 turnover margin.
• Ground to a Halt
• The Clarion defense clamped down on West Liberty in Week 1, holding the Hilltoppers to just 284 total yards and one scoring drive longer than three yards.
• It was the first time the Golden Eagles held an opponent under 300 total yards of offense since restricting Lock Haven to just 264 yards on Sept. 14, 2019 in a game played at Memorial Stadium, a span of 18 games. 
• The team was exceptional in limiting damage on the ground (3.0 yards per carry) and through the air (6.8 yards per attempt), shutting down the Hilltoppers.
• Statistically, it was Clarion's best defensive effort since their 2021 effort against Millersville, when the Golden Eagles held the Marauders to 2.1 yards per rush (34 att / 70 yds), 6.25 yards per pass (10-of-20 for 125 yds) and 4.2 yards per play (54 plays, 195 yards).

Golden Eagles by the Numbers - Week 7 Edition

• The Golden Eagles' safety scored against Seton Hill on Oct. 8 was the team's first since recording one against Kutztown on Sept. 7, 2013.
• Ty Corbin enters this weekend with the second-best punt return average in the PSAC, at 14.8 yards per return on eight attempts.
• Clarion now has two players - Zach Benedek and Corahn Alleyne - who have thrown touchdown passes, rushed for a touchdown and caught a touchdown this season. 
• Mercyhurst has allowed more total first downs than any other team in the PSAC West division (125), and more than anyone in the PSAC except Lock Haven (151) and Bloomsburg (131).
• Connor Lyczek is one of only six players in the PSAC to return an interception for a touchdown this year, and one of only three PSAC West players to do so. 

Next Week

• After two weeks on the road, the Golden Eagles return to the friendly confines of Memorial Stadium when they host Edinboro on Saturday, October 22. Kickoff is set for noon.
• The oldest rivalry in the books for the Golden Eagles, this will be the 92nd all-time meeting between Clarion and Edinboro. The series with Edinboro dates back to the very first year of varsity intercollegiate football at Clarion, with the first game between the two taking place during the 1926 season.
• The Fighting Scots own a 48-40-2 edge in the all-time series, including wins in each of the last six meetings. Clarion has not won a game in the rivalry since 2015.