Monday, August 25, 2014 AHEAD IN WEEK 1Thursday, Aug. 28Charlotte at Campbell, 7 p.m. Valparaiso at Western Illinois [RV/–], 7 p.m. [ESPN3] Saturday, Aug. 30Morehead State at Richmond [20/24], 6 p.m. Marist at Sacred Heart [RV/RV], 6 p.m. Jacksonville [—/RV] at Southeastern Louisiana [3/3], 6:30 p.m. Stetson at Warner, 7 p.m. College of Faith at Davidson, 7 p.m. Grand View at Drake, 7 p.m. Off Week: Butler, Dayton, San Diego [RV/—] NEWS AND NOTES FROM AROUND THE PFLNEW SIGNAL CALLERS ABOUND | New quarterbacks will be at the helm of six of the PFL’s 11 programs in 2014. Butler, Campbell, Davidson, Marist, San Diego and Valparaiso will each be under new leadership on the field. Dayton and Drake each return a senior under center with Will Bardo and Andy Rice, respectively. Morehead State (Austin Gahafer) and Stetson (Ryan Tentler) each used a freshman quarterback in 2013 that returns for their sophomore campaigns in 2014. Jacksonville junior Kade Bell rounds out the list of returning quarterbacks. WELCOME NEW HEAD COACHES | Two new faces will join the PFL’s head coaching fraternity in 2014 with Rick Fox taking over duties at Drake while Dave Cecchini grabs the reins at Valparaiso. Fox was as an assistant coach for six seasons under former head coach Chris Creighton, who took the head coaching position at Eastern Michigan. Cecchini became Valparaiso’s 17th head coach after four seasons as the offensive coordinator at Lehigh. MERCER, SAN DIEGO CARRY WIN STREAKS INTO 2014 | Marist and San Diego each ended their 2013 campaign with multi-game win streaks, which they will carry over into the start of 2014. Mercer will put its five-game win streak – second longest in FCS behind North Dakota State – on the line in a Week 1 matchup against Sacred Heart. San Diego will wait until Week 2 to put its four-game win streak on the line when it hosts Western New Mexico. PFL TIEBREAKER MODIFIED | The PFL automatic qualifier tiebreaker was modified during the league’s August president’s council meeting. In 2014, the league will no longer use computer rankings to determine its automatic qualifier. Instead, the league will use a “Strength of Victory” and “Strength of Schedule” – both based on conference games only – to help determine its representative in the FCS Championship. The complete PFL tiebreaker is available online at pioneer-football.org/tiebreaker. PFL ADDS SIXTH MAJOR AWARD | In addition to the change in the league’s tiebreaker procedure, the league’s presidents voted to add a Scholar-Athlete of the Year Award to its postseason accolades. The Scholar-Athlete of the Year will be selected as part of the league’s Academic All-PFL squad voting in November. THREE PFL ATHLETES NOMINATED FOR 2014 ALLSTATE AFCA GOOD WORKS TEAM | Three PFL student-athletes – Davidson’s Dan Casey, Drake’s John Hugunin and Marist’s James Holodnak – were among a 182 nominees for the 2014 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. NO ADDITIONAL SANCTIONS IN SAN DIEGO REVIEW | The PFL concluded its review of a matter involving the San Diego Football program. The league has ruled no additional sanctions will be imposed on the San Diego football team beyond its voluntary removal from the 2013 conference championship. PFL’S 22ND CAMPAIGN | The 2014 season marks the 22nd year for the Pioneer Football League – the nation’s only non-scholarship, football-only NCAA Football Championship Subdivision conference. The league boasts 11 members in 2014 with the departure of Mercer after its first season. |
News Categories
|