Gannon Golden Knights (0-5, 0-2 PSAC West) at Clarion Golden Eagles (3-2, 1-1 PSAC West)
Saturday, October 10 // 2:00 PM
Clarion, Pa. // Al Jacks Field at Memorial Stadium
 
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Quick Notes
 

• Clarion will welcome Gannon to Al Jacks Field at Memorial Stadium to punctuate the Autumn Leaf Festival, taking on the Golden Knights in a 2 p.m. kickoff on Homecoming.
• This will be the 18th meeting between the two teams, with Gannon owning a slight 9-8 edge in the all-time series. Clarion snapped a five-game losing streak to the Golden Knights with a win last year in Erie, beating them 48-46.
• The Golden Eagles rallied from a 14-point fourth quarter deficit but lost on the final play of the game last week, dropping a 38-35 decision to Lock Haven on the road.
• Clarion enters the weekend ranked second in Super Region 1 in total offense (433.4 ypg) and third in scoring offense (38.0 ppg).
• Quarterback Jase Ferguson leads Super Region 1 and ranks 13th in Division II in passing yards per game (275.0), and ranks sixth in the nation in total offense (323.0 ypg).
• The Golden Eagles have five players with two or more touchdown receptions - Austin VanHuss (3), Davon Jones (2), Ja'Tawn Williams (2), Collin Willard (2), and Tsirell Curry (2). No other team in the PSAC has more than four.
• The Golden Eagle offense has produced an explosive play on 22.2 percent of their passing plays this year, going for 15 or more yards on 35 of their 158 attempts.
• Of Clarion's 100 first downs this year, 62 have come on first or second down; by comparison, they have run just 63 plays on third down all season.
• Safety Najhir Kibidor ranks second in the PSAC with three interceptions this year, including a pair of picks in Week 5 against Lock Haven.

 
Series History

• This will be the 18th meeting between the Golden Eagles and the Golden Knights, with Gannon owning a 9-8 record over Clarion in the all-time series. The rivalry dates back to the 2008 season.
• Clarion won six of the first nine meetings between the teams but since then Gannon has controlled the series, winning six of the last eight contests.
• The last three meetings between the Golden Eagles and Golden Knights have been decided by a single possession, with Gannon coming out on top in two of those games and the Golden Eagles in the most recent. In 2023 Clarion led 20-7 at the halftime break but the Golden Knights scored 20 unanswered points in the second half, including a go-ahead touchdown  early in the fourth quarter en route to a 27-20 win. In 2024 the Golden Eagles trailed by six points with 2:23 remaining but could not finish the drive, falling 34-28.
• Last year the Golden Eagles snapped a five-game losing streak to the Golden Knights last year when they beat them 48-46 at McConnell Family Stadium. Both teams recorded more than 500 yards of offense, with the Golden Eagles combining for 180 yards rushing, and Andrew Kurtas kicked the game-winning field goal with four seconds left.

 
Scouting the Golden Knights

• Gannon was predicted to finish eighth in the PSAC West division in 2026, one year after finishing seventh in the West with a 1-10 overall record and a 1-5 record in divisional play.
• To this point in the season the Golden Knights are still seeking their first win, entering the weekend with an 0-5 overall record and an 0-2 mark in PSAC West play.
• The Golden Knights lost their first two PSAC West games of the year, including to one opponent common to Clarion, Lock Haven. The Bald Eagles beat Gannon 24-14 in the PSAC West opener, holding off a late comeback attempt.
• The Golden Knights started the season with former Clarion signal caller Ty Hurst at quarterback, though he has missed the last several games due to injury. Hurst has completed 47 of 61 passes for 658 yards, seven touchdowns and three interceptions in his three games played. Donell Mason has pulled down 18 passes for 278 yards, and is tied with Chazz Corley for the team lead with four touchdown receptions apiece.
• Gannon's defense has forced just two turnovers this year, both fumbles; they have not intercepted a pass in 2026.

 
Last Week

• The Golden Eagles erased a 14-point deficit to tie the game in the final minutes, but Lock Haven kicked a game-winning field goal as time expired, as Clarion fell 38-35 to the Bald Eagles at Hubert Jack Stadium. Both teams took turns building leads of multiple touchdowns before watching them wither away, with Clarion opening the game with a 21-7 advantage before the Bald Eagles scored 28 unanswered points to make it 35-21 with under 10 minutes to play.
• Jase Ferguson led two quick scoring drives down the stretch, one culminating in an Avante George rushing touchdown and the other in a Ferguson scoring run, with the latter coming after Najhir Kibidor picked off LHU on fourth down to give Clarion the ball back.
• Ferguson completed 20 of 43 passes for 348 yards, one touchdown and one interception, with the majority of those yards going to Austin VanHuss. He exploded for his best stat line of the year, pulling down seven passes for 185 yards and a score. Davon Jones, meanwhile, had seven catches for 74 yards. Ferguson was the team's leading rusher with 46 yards on the ground and three rushing touchdowns.
• Defensively, Najhir Kibidor had a big day in the secondary, intercepting two passes and breaking up another. Cameron Thomas added a pick of his own to make three for the day, and the veteran safety also had 10 tackles.

 
VanHuss's Sophomore Season Breakout

• Over the last several games, Austin VanHuss has turned into one of the deadliest weapons in the Golden Eagles' passing arsenal.
• After logging no receptions in the first game of the year, VanHuss has recorded 17 catches for 343 yards and three touchdowns in the last four games. That includes the best game of his career to date, when he recorded seven receptions for 185 yards and a touchdown against Lock Haven in Week 4.
• Since 2016, only two other Golden Eagle receivers have logged as many as 185 receiving yards in a game: Quinn Zinobile (2021 vs. Shippensburg - 202) and Kevin Genevro (2016 vs. Slippery Rock - 199).

 
More on Ferguson

• Jase Ferguson leads Super Region I and is 13th in NCAA Division II in passing yards with an average of 275.0  yards per game, and his 11 touchdown passes are fifth in the PSAC.
• In another nod to Clarion's big play ability, Ferguson is first in the PSAC and second in the region in passing yards per completion at 16.37, a mark that ranks 10th in NCAA Division II. His 9.23 passing yards per attempt are fifth in the region and third in the PSAC, behind Slippery Rock's DaOne Owens and Kutztown's Judd Novak.
• Finally, Ferguson ranks first in Super Region 1 and sixth in NCAA Division II in total offense at 323.0 yards per game. He's second in the PSAC and Region and 10th in the nation in points responsible for, with an average of 20.4 points per game.

 
Triple Downfield Threats

• The Clarion offense thrives on explosive plays, particularly in the passing game, with three different Golden Eagle receivers averaging better than 18 yards per reception.
• The pairing of Tsirell Curry and Austin VanHuss are tied for fourth in the PSAC with an average of 20.2 yards per reception, and receiver Ja'Tawn Williams is not far behind at 18.5 yards per reception. All three of those players have recorded 16 or more catches, making them the only three players in the PSAC with 16 or more catches and a yards per reception average greater than 18 yards.

 
The Offense As a Whole

• Clarion ranks second in the PSAC and third in Super Region 1 with an average of 433.4 yards of total offense per game.
• The Golden Eagles' scoring offense ranks third in the PSAC and Super Region 1 in scoring offense at 38.0 points per game. They have eclipsed the 30-point mark in four of their five games this season, and rank 17th in the nation in scoring offense.
• The passing game has been driving the bus: Clarion ranks first in Super Region 1 and 16th in NCAA Division II with an average of 285.6 passing yards per game. The Golden Eagles lead the region and are 14th in Division II in yards per completion (16.23)

 
Pair of Picks for Kibidor

• Against Lock Haven in Week 5, the Golden Eagle defense recorded three interceptions, with two of those picks coming to safety Najhir Kibidor.
• Kibidor is the first Golden Eagle to record two interceptions in a game since Deshaun Blackwell logged two against Millersville in 2024.
• Clarion has now had two games this year with three or more interceptions, the first time they've done that as a team in one season since 2018.

 
Next Week

• The Golden Eagles will stay home for the second straight week when they welcome California (PA) to Memorial Stadium on Saturday, October 17. Kickoff is set for noon.
• Clarion will try to snap a 19-game losing streak to the Vulcans that dates back to the 2005 season. Last year the Golden Eagles lost on the final play of the game, with Cal scoring on a desperation play after Clarion led late.