Monday, November 25, 2013
by Cody Bush, PFL Media Relations

PFL WEEK 14 HIGHLIGHTS
BUTLER BOWL TO HOST CHAMPIONSHIP OPENER | Butler will mark a number of firsts when it hosts Tennessee State in Saturday’s Division I Football Championship opener. Of course, the Bulldogs will be the first PFL squad to play in the tournament. However, they also will be the first PFL team to host a tournament contest. In addition, Butler and Tennessee State will square off for the first time on the gridiron.

AHEAD IN WEEK 14
DIVISION I FOOTBALL CHAMPIONSHIP
First Round: Saturday, Nov. 30
Tennessee State [19/17] at Butler [RV/RV], 1 p.m. (ESPN3)
Location: Indianapolis, Ind. (Butler Bowl)
Series: First meeting
Notably: Butler, which won a share of the PFL title for the second consecutive year, becomes the first Pioneer Football League champion to appear in the Division I Football Championship after winning the league’s tiebreaker. The Bulldogs will host OVC at-large selection Tennessee State in a 1 p.m., Saturday contest at the Butler Bowl.
     Butler’s defense has been one of the nation’s best at generating takeaways this season, ranking seventh nationally with 30 takeaways this season. The Bulldogs plus-0.9 turnover margin also ranks 10th nationally. Senior defensive back Sean Grady has a team-best four interceptions and is one of nine players to record an interception this season.
     Offensively, Butler is led by senior quarterback Matt Lancaster who has averaged 239.9 passing yards per game and 276.4 total offensive yards per game. He has thrown 19 touchdown passes and run for 12 touchdowns. Meanwhile, senior running back Trae Heeter leads the Bulldogs running game as the only PFL rusher to average 100-plus yards per game, finishing the season with 1,311 yards (109.2 ypg) and 13 touchdowns.
     Tennessee State finished second in the OVC race with a 6-2 conference mark and a 9-3 overall mark. The Tigers defense has been its hallmark in 2013, ranking sixth among FCS teams in pass efficiency defense (101.41 rating), ninth nationally in rushing defense (104.8 yards per game) and sixth in scoring defense (16.8 ppg).
Winner Advances: No. 2 national seed Eastern Illinois, the OVC regular-season champion, will host the second round contest.

BUTLER IN DIVISION I FOOTBALL CHAMPIONSHIP
BUTLER BOWL TO HOST CHAMPIONSHIP OPENER | Butler will mark a number of firsts when it hosts Tennessee State in Saturday’s Division I Football Championship opener. Of course, the Bulldogs will be the first PFL squad to play in the tournament. However, they also will be the first PFL team to host a tournament contest. In addition, Butler and Tennessee will square off for the first time on the gridiron.

BULLDOGS 2ND POSTSEASON APPEARANCE | Saturday will be Butler’s second postseason appearance since joining the FCS ranks in 1993. The Bulldogs will be making their first postseason appearance since 2009 when they appeared in and defeated Central Connecticut State in the Gridiron Classic – a postseason event between the Northeast Conference and Pioneer Football League champions.

THE ROAD TO FRISCO | For the first time, the PFL regular-season champion received 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 selected eight national seeds, which receive a first-round bye. The remaining 16 teams were placed into the bracket’s first round spots with an emphasis on geographical proximity.

BULLDOGS BACK-TO-BACK | With its win at Morehead State, Nov. 16, Butler clinched a share of its second consecutive PFL title. It was the Bulldogs fourth title all-time, including a share of the 2012 crown. Butler opened the PFL season with four straight wins and concluded the season with three straight wins.

BUTLER TAKEAWAYS | Butler’s defense has been one of the nation’s best at generating takeaways this season, ranking seventh nationally with 30 takeaways this season, thanks to 15 fumble recoveries (sixth in the FCS). The Bulldogs also rank 10th nationally with a plus-0.9 turnover margin that leads the PFL.

BULLDOGS THROUGH THE AIR | Senior quarterback Matt Lancaster will lead the Bulldogs offensive unit in Saturday’s game after ending the regular season ranked 20th nationally in passing yardage (239.9 ypg) and 27th in passing efficiency (142.5 rating). His favorite target this season has been Brendan Shannon, who ranks eighth in the FCS in receptions per game (7.1 pg) and 11th in receiving yards per game (97.8 ypg).

BUTLER ON THE GROUND | Lancaster also is part of a potent Butler ground attack. Senior running back Trae Heeter leads the ground effort after posting 1,306 rushing yards during the regular season, his 108.8 yards per game ranking 15th nationally. Lancaster added 683 rushing yards in the regular season and ranked 97th overall and 12th among FCS quarterbacks with 62.1 yards per game.

NEWS AND NOTES FROM AROUND THE PFL
PFL AWARDS WEEK STARTS NEXT MONDAY | The Pioneer Football League will begin announcing its awards next Monday. The league’s major award winners will be announced that day followed by the 21st All-PFL Teams, Tuesday. The Academic All-PFL team will round out the awards, Wednesday.

MARIST’S FIRST TITLE | Marist wrapped up its 2013 campaign with five consecutive wins and that was enough to help it claim a share of its first-ever PFL title. The Red Foxes earned their first championship in their fifth season as a member of the PFL.

SAN DIEGO VACATES 2013 PFL SEASON | Prior to Week 12’s action, the University of San Diego announced that its football team would voluntarily vacate the 2013 PFL season, including any potential regular-season title and automatic qualifying bid.

MARIST’S FEDE ADDED TO BUCHANAN WATCH LIST | Marist defensive end Terrence Fede was one of three defensive players named to The Sports Network’s Buck Buchanan Award Watch List, Nov. 15. He is one of just two players in the FCS who has recorded double-digit sacks this season. Montana State’s Brad Daly, a Buchanan Award candidate, is the other. Fede also is second in the nation with 1.2 sacks per game, and has recorded at least half a sack in eight of his 10 games. Fede also is second in the country in tackles for loss behind Daly.

SAN DIEGO’S MILLS NAMED TO PAYTON WATCH LIST | San Diego quarterback Mason Mills was one of three quarterbacks named to The Sports Network’s Payton Award Watch List, Nov. 12. The Sports Network added Southeastern Louisiana’s Bryan Bennett, Princeton’s Quinn Epperly along with Mills to the now 20-man watch list.

MILLS PASSES 11,000-YARD MARK | San Diego quarterback Mason Mills became the second quarterback to record 11,000 yards in PFL history. He finished his career with 11,104 career passing yards and will finish second on the PFL career passing yardage chart behind Jacksonville’s Josh McGregor (11,230 yards).

DAYTON’S DOWD TIES FCS MARK | Dayton defensive end Pat Dowd tied a nine-year old FCS record with six quarterback sacks in Dayton’s 36-10 loss at Drake, in Week 11. His effort equaled the FCS mark set by Southeastern Louisiana’s Damien Huren in 2004. He was named the PFL’s Defensive Player of the Week and was selected the National Defensive Performer of the Week by the College Football Performance Awards.

SAN DIEGO AIR CONTROL | San Diego and senior quarterback Mason Mills were a model of passing efficiency this season. With Mills leading the passing attack, the Toreros ended the regular season ranked ninth nationally in completion percentage (a PFL best 66.3 percent) and eighth in passing offense (323.9 yards per game). Those numbers helped San Diego post a team pass efficiency rating of 169.10 that ranks second nationally behind only Eastern Washington (185.25). Individually, Mills ranked among the nation’s top 15 in passing touchdowns (35, 3rd), passing efficiency (168.1, 5th), passing yards per game (314.8, 7th) and completion percentage (66.0, 13th).

RED FOXES ON THE HUNT | Marist’s defense was on the hunt for sacks during the 2013 campaign, finding the opposition’s quarterback 32 times. The Red Foxes 3.27 sacks per game average led the PFL and ranked fifth nationally. They were led by senior defensive end Terrence Fede who led the nation and the PFL with 1.2 sacks per game.

BEARS CONTROL THE GROUND | Mercer was one of the nation’s best teams when it comes to controlling the ground. The Bears defense ranked 13th nationally during the regular season, holding opponents to 117.3 yards per game. On the other side of the ball, the Mercer offense rolled up 277.9 yards per game, a rate that was second best in the country.

MERCER UNBLEMISHED AT HOME | Mercer finished the first year of its return to football with an 8-0 at University Stadium. The Bears were one of 14 FCS teams with an unbeaten mark in their home facility during the regular season. However, they are the only team teams with an 8-0 mark at home prior to the FCS playoffs.

NO SHUTTING OUT DAYTON | Dayton ended the 2013 with one of the more remarkable streaks in college football still alive, finishing 2013 with a NCAA record streak of 419 games without suffering a shutout intact. The last team to blank Dayton was Marshall by a 9-0 score on Oct. 16, 1976. San Diego owns the PFL’s second longest such streak at 147 games.