Monday, August 26, 2013
by Cody Bush, PFL Media Relations

AHEAD IN WEEK 1

Thursday, August 29
Pikeville (Ky.) at Morehead State, 7 p.m.
Location: Morehead, Ky. (Jayne Stadium)
Series: First Meeting
Notably: The Rob Tenyer Era gets underway as Morehead State hosts in-state and NAIA opponent Pikeville.

Grand View at Drake [RV/—], 7 p.m.
Location: Des Moines, Iowa (Drake Stadium)
Series: DRA leads, 3-0    Streak: DRA, three wins
Notably: Drake has scored 28 points in each of the last two meetings between the intracity squads, separated by only four miles.

Dayton at Youngstown State [RV/24], 7:30 p.m.
Location: Youngstown, Ohio (Stambaugh Stadium)
Series: DAY leads, 9-0    Streak: DAY, nine wins
Notably: First meeting between two teams since 1977 when Flyers head coach Rick Chamberlin was a player.

Jacksonville at Delaware [RV/RV], 7:30 p.m.
Location: Newark, Del. (Delaware Stadium)
Series: First Meeting
Notably: Thursday’s meeting is only the 2nd time since 2000 CAA and PFL teams have squared off (James Madison def. Morehead State in 2010).

Valparaiso at North Dakota, 8 p.m.
Location: Fargo, N.D. (Fargodome)
Series: VAL leads, 1-0    Streak: VAL, one win
Notably: Valparaiso and North Dakota will meet on the gridiron for the first time since their only meeting in 1920, a 20-10 Crusader victory.

Saturday, August 31
Campbell at Charlotte, Noon
Location: Charlotte, N.C. (McColl-Richardson Field)
Series: First Meeting
Notably: Mike Minter begins his tenure as head coach as Campbell will help launch the Charlotte football program’s inaugural season.

Reinhardt at Mercer, 6 p.m.
Location: Macon, Ga. (Moye Complex)
Series: First Meeting
Notably: Football returns to the Mercer campus for the first time since  1941 when it hosts in-state and NAIA foe Reinhardt.

Sacred Heart at Marist, 6 p.m.
Location: Poughkeepsie, N.Y. (Tenney Stadium)
Series: Tied, 5-5    Streak: MAR, one win
Notably: In the last meeting between the two squads Marist won, 20-7, in quarterback Chuckie Looney’s first career start back in 2011.

Butler [RV/—] at South Dakota State [6/7], 7 p.m.
Location: Brookings, S.D. (Coughlin-Alumni Stadium)
Series: First Meeting
Notably: PFL owns two victories against MVFC squads, the last occuring when Drake won at Illinois State to start the 2007 season.

San Diego [RV/RV] at Cal Poly [14/11], 7 p.m.
Location: San Luis Obispo, Calif. (Spanos Stadium)
Series: CPU leads 2-0    Streak: CPU, two wins
Notably: San Diego and Cal Poly meet for the second consecutive season, Cal Poly won a 41-14 decision to open the 2012 campaign.

Warner at Stetson, 7 p.m.
Location: DeLand, Fla. (Spec Martin Stadium)
Series: First Meeting
Notably: Stetson football plays its first football game since 1956 when it hosts in-state and NAIA foe Warner.

Off Week: Davidson

All times Eastern.
FCS rankings in brackets following school’s name: [Sports Network Poll/FCS Coaches Poll]

LEAGUE NOTES

PFL’s 21ST CAMPAIGN | The upcoming 2013 season marks the 21st year for the Pioneer Football League – the nation’s only non-scholarship, football-only NCAA Football Championship Subdivision conference. The league expands to 12 members for the upcoming campaign, Mercer and Stetson restarting their football programs and joining the league.
TOREROS STREAKING TO START 2013 | San Diego ended 2012 with six consecutive victories, using the streak to clinch a share of the PFL title. That six-game win streak will be the third longest in FCS entering 2013, behind only defending national champion North Dakota State (nine wins) and Arkansas-Pine Bluff (seven wins). Dayton and Drake will each begin the season with two-game win streaks.
THE ROAD TO FRISCO | For the first time, the PFL regular-season champion will receive an automatic bid into the Division I Football Championship. The championship will expand to 24 teams this season with 11 automatic bids and 13 at-large berths. The football selection committee will select eight national seeds, which will receive a first-round bye. The remaining 16 teams will be placed into the bracket’s first round spots with an emphasis on geographical proximity.
NEW FACES ABOUND | One half of the league’s teams will have a first-year head coach at the helm in 2013. Obviously, first-year programs Mercer (Bobby Lamb) and Stetson (Roger Hughes) will be under the guidance of first-year head coaches. In addition, Campbell (Mike Minter), Davidson (Paul Nichols), Morehead State (Rob Tenyer) and San Diego (Dale Lindsey) will start the campaign under new leadership.
FIVE PFL ATHLETES NOMINATED FOR 2013 ALLSTATE AFCA GOOD WORKS TEAM | Five PFL student-athletes – Butler’s Matt Lancaster, Campbell’s Michael Rudisill, Davidson’s Weston Hawkins, Marist’s Max Jacques and San Diego’s Thomas Cobb – were among a record 150 nominees for the 2013 Allstate AFCA Good Works Team®, which recognizes the selfless contributions to volunteerism and community service made by college football student-athletes across the nation. Two 11-member teams will be selected, one composed players competing in the NCAA® Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) and the other is a combined team representing the NCAA® Football Championship Subdivision (FCS), Divisions II, III, and the NAIA.
2012 PFL PLAYERS OF THE YEAR RETURN | Three of the PFL’s Players of the Year will return for the 2013 campaign. Butler quarterback Matt Lancaster returns after earning PFL Offensive Player of the Year honors after finishing 2012 responsible for an average of 16.18 points per game – ranking ninth among FCS quarterbacks. Valparaiso running back Jake Hutson posted 1,102 all-purpose yards en route to PFL Freshman Offensive Player of the Year honors. Butler defensive lineman Kyle Annis was named the league’s Freshman Defensive Player of the Year after a 42-tackle campaign last season.
PRESEASON ALL-PFL TEAM | The Pioneer Football League’s coaches preseason All-PFL team named 28 student-athletes for 29 positions. Butler and Jacksonville each had six players earn preseason accolades.
ALL-PFL HONOREES RETURN | Twenty-six members of the 2012 All-PFL squads return to their teams in 2012, including 13 first-team selections and 13 second-team honorees. Marist defensive lineman Terrence Fede returns after earning first-team All-PFL honors in both 2011 and 2012. In addition, Butler returns a league-leading four first-team All-PFL selections from last season.
SAN DIEGO PICKED TO WIN PFL | San Diego received five of a possible 12 first-place votes and 111 points narrowly earning the nod as the PFL’s preseason favorite. Butler was ranked second by one point after receiving four first-place votes. Drake and Jacksonville were picked to finish tied for third with 99 points, receiving one and two first-place votes, respectively. Dayton (85 points) was picked to finish fifth followed by Marist (67) which rounded out the poll’s top half. Morehead State (7th, 65 points), Campbell (8th, 49), Davidson (9th, 42) and Valparaiso (10th, 32) occupy the poll’s next four spots followed by newcomers Mercer (11th, 20) and Stetson (12th, 13).