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clarion football gameday 2024: week 5 at IUP

Clarion Football Gameday: Week 5 at #25 IUP

Clarion Golden Eagles (2-2, 0-0 PSAC West) at #25 IUP Crimson Hawks (3-0, 0-0 PSAC West)
Saturday, September 28 // 4:00 PM
Indiana, Pa. // Miller Stadium

Quick Notes
  • The Golden Eagles wrap up their three-game road swing and also open up PSAC West play on Saturday when they face off against IUP on Saturday, Sept. 28 at Miller Stadium.
  • This will be the 94th meeting all-time between the Golden Eagles and the Crimson Hawks, with IUP owning a 66-24-3 advantage in the all-time series. It is one of two of the longest continuously-played rivalries in Clarion history.
  • A defensive battle between Clarion and Shepherd was ultimately decided by turnovers and big plays, as the Rams beat the Golden Eagles 27-9 at Ram Stadium last week.
  • Quarterback Anthony Guercio leads the PSAC in total touchdowns (6) and total offense (313.3 ypg) and is tied for second place in the conference in passing touchdowns (4) after last week's effort against the Rams.
  • Wide receiver Trevon Tate ranks second in the PSAC in receiving yards (115.5) and receptions (6.8), and his 17.1 yards per catch average is first among PSAC players with 20 or more receptions.
  • The Golden Eagles rank sixth in the PSAC overall and third in the PSAC West in rushing yards per game, averaging 151.5 yards on the ground so far.
  • The Clarion defense ranks sixth in the PSAC and second in the West division in total defense, allowing 298.0 yards per game through four contests.
  • The Golden Eagles rank second in the PSAC in opponent third-down conversion, limiting opponents to just a 29.0 conversion rate on the pivotal down.
  • Defensive end Jake Tarburton leads with 5.5 sacks and 8.5 tackles for loss through four games, with his sacks total already a career-high.
  • As a team, the Golden Eagles rank third in the PSAC with 11 total sacks, and they have also recorded 22.0 tackles for loss through four games. 
  • Punter Hunter Robertson leads the PSAC in punts over 50 yards and ranks second in punts landed inside the 20-yard line. He also boasts the longest punt in the PSAC so far this season.
  • Clarion's defense has allowed only 10 opponent red zone trips in the first four games, and just four total touchdowns from inside the 20-yard line as well.

Series History

  • This will be the 94th meeting all-time between Clarion and IUP, with the Crimson Hawks owning a 66-24-3 advantage in the series. The series dates back to the 1927 season, with IUP winning 51-0 in the initial game between the PSAC West rivals.
  • The Crimson Hawks have won 12 straight meetings between the teams dating back to the 2011 season, including six straight in Indiana.
  • Clarion's last win in the series came on the road at IUP, a 21-14 victory on Oct. 16, 2010. Alfonso Hoggard went off for 179 yards, including touchdown runs of 49 and 69 yards in the fourth quarter, to seal the victory. Nick Sipes recorded 10 tackles, a sack, a fumble recovery and an interception.
  • In last year's meeting between the two teams, the Crimson Hawks pulled away late in the second half in winning 39-27 at Memorial Stadium. Ty Hurst and Anthony Guercio each threw touchdown passes, while Legend Davis and Johnny Hutton each recorded interceptions. Hutton also broke up three passes.

Scouting the Crimson Hawks

  • IUP was predicted to finish third in the PSAC West division in 2024, receiving one first-place vote in the preseason coaches' poll. The Crimson Hawks posted their 13th consecutive winning season in 2023 with a 6-5 record, including a 3-4 record in the West.
  • The Crimson Hawks enter this weekend's action ranked 25th in the AFCA coaches' poll. They have compiled a 3-0 record to date with wins over Ashland, Lock Haven and Millersville.
  • IUP is coming off a 42-14 road win over the Marauders, a game the Crimson Hawks led 35-0 halfway through the third quarter despite trailing Millersville in every other offensive category. Kaleb Monaco and JD Younger both ran for two touchdowns.
  • Crimson Hawks head coach Paul Tortorella, the 2022 PSAC West Coach of the Year, is now 57-16 in Indiana, including a 32-10 mark against his divisional opponents. 
  • IUP features two PSAC all-conference transfers heavily, with Monaco (Bloomsburg) and Garrett Cox (Millersville) joining the team in 2024.

Last Week

A defensive battle between Clarion and Shepherd was ultimately decided by turnovers and big plays, as the Rams beat the Golden Eagles 27-9 at Ram Stadium.. The Golden Eagles trailed by just five points with 1:05 remaining, but a pair of big defensive plays by the Rams down the stretch extended the lead and sealed Clarion's fate.

The final score did not indicate the level of competitiveness between the two teams, as both defense came ready and willing to work on Saturday. The Rams' defense limited Clarion to 283 yards of offense, while the Golden Eagles permitted 370 yards to Shepherd. Few of those yards came easy to Shepherd, though, as Clarion punched out two fumbles in the first half and held the Rams to 15 first downs, just one more than the Golden Eagles recorded during the game.

Anthony Guercio finished 20-of-42 with 222 passing yards and two interceptions, including a 53-yard pass to Ray Jackson. He also had 39 net yards rushing and one score. Trevon Tate came up just shy of his fourth straight 100-yard receiving game, catching nine passes for 94 yards. Freshman Luke Shaffer had a strong day, finishing with 11 tackles and 1.0 TFL, while Jake Tarburton had a pair of sacks. Ryan Stahl provided defensive splash as well with three tackles, 2.0 TFL and one sack.


Guercio's Historic Day...

Quarterback Anthony Guercio got it done with his arm and his legs against Millersville on August 29, and in the process had a day that stands out in recent Golden Eagle history:

  • Guercio threw for two touchdowns and ran for two touchdowns against the Marauders, making him the first Golden Eagle to accomplish that feat since Connor Simmons did it on Sept. 24, 2016 against Millersville. Simmons did it twice in his career, as did Ben Fiscus, making them the only other Golden Eagle quarterbacks since to ever complete the feat.
  • Guercio thew for 215 yards and rushed for 106 yards on the ground, making him the first Clarion quarterback to hit 200 yards passing and 100 yards rushing in one game since Fiscus did it against East Stroudsburg on Sept. 29, 2012.
  • Through examination of records back to the 1984 season, no other Golden Eagle quarterback has thrown for 200 yards and two touchdowns, and also ran for 100 yards and two touchdowns, in the same game.

...and the Momentum Continues

Anthony Guercio followed up his historic day against Millersville with more standout performances, including a big offensive day against Shippensburg on Sept. 14. He threw for a career-high 334 yards and a touchdown while also rushing for 98 yards and two more scores. Here are some quick notes about that performance:

  • Guercio became the first Golden Eagle quarterback to break the 300-yard passing mark since Sept. 18, 2021, when Taylor Eggers threw for 329 yards and four touchdowns against Shippensburg at home;
  • Guercio's 334 passing yards were the most for a Golden Eagles quarterback since Connor Simmons threw for 372 yards in a win over Slippery Rock on Oct. 29, 2016;
  • Guercio's 432 yards of total offense against the Red Raiders ranks as the best single-game total in the PSAC this year, and his 321 yard effort against Millersville on Aug. 29 ranks as second-best.

The Brass Tacks on Guercio

  • Anthony Guercio now leads the PSAC in total offense with an average of 313.3 yards per game, 30 yards per game better than Lock Haven's Jackson Ostrowsky.
  • Guercio leads the conference with six total touchdowns, all rushing, and he is the PSAC's leading scorer with 36 points this year.
  • Guercio is fifth in the PSAC in rushing with an average of 83.3 yards per game on the ground, a number that also leads all quarterbacks in the conference.

A Familiar Face That Looks Better in Blue

One of the key transfers coming to the Clarion offense is wide receiver Trevon Tate, a senior that played the previous three seasons at Mercyhurst. Tate was a veteran of 25 games in the Green and White, totaling 55 catches for  648 yards and five touchdowns as a Laker.

  • Tate recorded eight catches for 143 yards against Shippensburg on Sept. 14, making him the first Golden Eagles receiver to record three straight games with 100 or more receiving yards. The last to do it was Kevin Genevro in 2016, when he finished the season in triple-digits against Slippery Rock, Gannon and West Chester at home.
  • In a records search back through the 1999 season, no other Golden Eagle player has started a season with three consecutive 100-yard receiving games;
  • Tate just missed out on extending his streak to four games, finishing with nine catches for 94 yards against Shepherd on Sept. 21.
  • Tate ranks second in the PSAC in receiving yards per game (115.5) and receptions (6.8). He is also averaging 117.5 all-purpose yards per game, the third-best average in the PSAC.

Tough Nut to Crack

Through four weeks of the season, the Golden Eagles defense has had moments where they have looked difficult to crack;

  • After allowing seven points to Millersville on Aug. 29 and nine points to Lincoln on Sept. 5, Clarion limited opponents to single-digits in scoring in back-to-back games for the first time since 2018, when the Golden Eagles beat Lincoln 44-7 and Gannon 14-9 in consecutive games;
  • Clarion's defense has recorded 11 quarterback sacks, 12 quarterback hurries and 16.0 tackles for loss through three games.
  • The Golden Eagles defense has forced opponents into more third downs than any other team in the league (62), and opponent third down conversion rate is 29.0 percent, the second-lowest mark in the conference.
  • Conversely, the Golden Eagles have allowed opponents just 15.5 first downs per game, the third-lowest average in the PSAC West through the first four weeks. 

Disruptive Force

Defensive end Jake Tarburton has built off his all-conference season in 2023 to start quickly in 2024, ranking among the conference's most disruptive defensive linemen:

  • Tarburton ranks first in the PSAC with 5.5 sacks this season, and is second with an average of 1.38 sacks per game;
  • He leads the PSAC in tackles for loss with 8.5 in four games, an average of 2.13 TFL per game and 2.5 TFL more than Gannon's Trey Baker;
  • The Golden Eagles rank third in the PSAC with 11 sacks through four games this year.

Big Day Offensively vs. Shippensburg

The Golden Eagles had their best day in terms of total offensive yardage in nearly a decade on Sept. 14. Clarion totaled 551 yards of total offense against the Red Raiders, their best output since putting up a school record 676 yards of total offense against Seton Hill on Oct. 17, 2015, a span of 82 games. It had been almost five years since the last time the Golden Eagles had cracked the 500-yard mark; that last came on Sept. 28, 2019 at Gannon.


Next Week

Clarion returns to Memorial Stadium for Homecoming festivities when they host California (PA) on Saturday, October 5. Kickoff is set for 2 p.m.

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