Thursday, November 12, 2015
by Cody Bush, PFL Media Relations

All 11 Pioneer Football League teams will be in action during Week 11 of the college football season. Dayton's first opportunity to clinch the PFL's automatic qualifying spot – 1 p.m., Saturday, against Marist – in the Division I Football Championship will be available on Time Warner Sports Channel in select regional markets.

Fans will be able to catch a glimpse of all five games involving PFL squads on their computer or digital device through live video offerings, available on various school and league live video platforms, as noted in the table below.

Week 11 Game Capsules

San Diego at Davidson, Noon
San Diego makes its second cross-country trek in three weeks when it travels to North Carolina for a meeting with Davidson. The Toreros kept the pressure on league-leading Dayton by holding on for a home victory against Campbell last week. The Wildcats return home after suffering a road loss at Jacksonville. San Diego leaned on its defense and special teams in the win as the offense was held to 332 yards, its third-lowest total this season. Defensive end Jonathan Petersen had 2½ tackles for loss and two sacks to pace a Torero defensive unit that finished with nine tackles for loss and three sacks. Petersen had a sack and fumble forced that set San Diego up at the Campbell 35-yard line and led to a touchdown late in the second quarter. Kicker Daniel McManus did the rest, hitting a 50-yard field goal on the next San Diego possession for a 23-21 halftime lead. Davidson returns home after a 12-point outing at Jacksonville in Week 10. Wide receiver William Morris caught his seventh touchdown pass of 2015 and reached the 600-yard mark for the season and passed the 3,000-career yard mark. He became just the sixth PFL receiver to record 3,000 career receiving yards. Kicker Trevor Smith added two field goals to the tally, hitting from 22 and a season-long 43 yards and now has made four consecutive field goals.

Drake at Butler, 1 p.m.
The 23rd edition of the PFL’s “Bulldog Battle” takes place in Indianapolis when Drake travels to Butler. It will be the 25th meeting all-time between the two foes, Drake holding a 16-7-1 advantage. Drake returns to action after its off week following a Week 9 triple-overtime loss at Morehead State. Butler snapped a two-game losing streak with its home win against Valparaiso last week and has a 4-0 record at the Butler Bowl this season. Drake’s 35-point effort at Morehead State in Week 9 was its second-highest offensive output of the year, but was not enough. DU surrendered more than 21 points for the seventh time in nine games, falling to 2-5 in those contests. Junior running back Conley Wilkins had a career-high 201 yards on 31 carries in the loss and now has 746 rushing yards this season. Butler needed just 310 offensive yards to pick up its win last week as its average starting field position was its own 42-yard line. Quarterback Matt Shiltz made the most of the short fields he was given, running for two touchdowns and passing for two more in the win. Meanwhile, the BU defense returned two interceptions for touchdowns, Isaak Newhouse and Jordan Massey each posting 14-yard interception returns.

Jacksonville at Campbell, 1 p.m.
Jacksonville heads up Interstate 95 this weekend to face Campbell. The Dolphins bounced back from consecutive road losses, downing Davidson at home. The Camels gave San Diego a battle until falling short in its fourth loss by four points or less this season. Jacksonville has had to work with quarterback by committee in its last two outings. Starter Kade Bell threw eight passes in the first quarter before leaving following a sack late in the period. Backup Rylan Wells came on and performed admirably, completing 18-of-24 passes for 318 yards and four touchdowns. He now has completed 69 percent (29-of-42) of his passes for 572 yards (19.7 yards per completion) and six touchdowns in two weeks off the bench. Campbell had San Diego on the ropes as it converted its two interceptions – one each by Jack Ryan and Chris Beaty – for a 14-7 lead after the first quarter. But the Camels scored just 13 points the game’s remainder and saw a potential game-winning drive thwarted by an interception at the San Diego 2-yard line with 1:05 left. Still, wide receiver Aaron Blockman caught five passes for a career-high 115 yards in the win, the third-most receiving yards by a Camels receiver in program history.

Marist at Dayton, 1 p.m.
Marist has the opportunity to play spoiler in Week 10 when it hosts league-leader Dayton. The Red Foxes bring a four-game win streak into the matchup with the offense posting a season-high 49 points in a win against Stetson last week. The Flyers have been a come-back team this season, posting their sixth win when trailing at halftime – this time victimizing Morehead State. While Marist scored a season-high 49 points, its defense had the highlight-reel day with 16 tackles for loss, including eight sacks – it is tied for most tackles for loss in a single game by a PFL team this season (Drake vs. Stetson). Wide receiver Matt Tralli caught a school-record three touchdowns in the win after entering the week with only one touchdown reception this season. Dayton turned the signal calling over to Alex Jeske on its seventh drive of the season and has had little reason to regret the move as the redshirt freshman has led Dayton to a 9-0 record. He completed 9-of-14 passes on third down for six conversions and a score at Morehead State. Safety Danny Leach’s second two-interception outing of the season was a big factor in keeping Dayton unbeaten in Week 10, his four interceptions are sixth in the PFL this season, despite playing in just six games this season.

Morehead State at Valparaiso, 2 p.m.
If recent history is a guide, Morehead State’s trip to Valparaiso will be an entertaining one. The two teams have combined to average nearly 74 points per game (Morehead State averaging 48 points to Valparaiso’s 26) since 2010, including last season’s 48-47 MSU victory that required a touchdown in the final seconds to determine the result. This year, both teams enter the contest following a loss. Morehead State fell at home to league-leading Dayton while Valparaiso lost the Hoosier Helmet at Butler. Morehead State quarterback Austin Gahafer returned to action after leaving his Week 9 outing late in the fourth quarter. He completed 27-of-46 passes for 323 yards but had just one touchdown versus three interceptions – after entering the game with just six interceptions in his previous 353 pass attempts. Valparaiso played a nip-and-tuck offensive contest with Butler, being out-gained by a narrow 310-298 margin. However, the field position battle loomed large as the Crusaders average starting position was their own 17-yard line, versus the Bulldogs starting at their own 42-yard line. Running back Jake Hutson and quarterback Ryan Clarke each ran for a touchdown – the second and third rushing touchdowns of the season (out of 15) for Valparaiso.

Ave Maria at Stetson, 3 p.m.
Stetson steps out of PFL play this week as it hosts in-state NAIA foe Ave Maria. The Hatters surrendered eight sacks in its Week 10 loss at  Marist. It has been a recurring theme for Stetson this season which has allowed a league-high 35 sacks this season, including four games of four or more sacks. When quarterback Ryan Tentler got into the open field, he was a dangerous presence with four of his runs beyond the line of scrimmage resulting in gains of 10 or more yards. He finished with 226 total offensive yards (34 rushing, 192 passing) despite seven sacks and 59 yards lost on those sacks. Ave Maria will bring a 4-6 record into the matchup after a loss to NAIA No. 21 Point University last week. The Gyrenes are 2-3 on the road this season, losing their last two road excursions. Quarterback Clayton Uecker has eight touchdown tosses (out of 24 touchdowns) and 1,089 yards passing in eight games this season.