This Week: Notre Dame College football takes on Concord University during the 2017 Homecoming weekend. The teams face off at 12 p.m. on Saturday, September 23 on Mueller Field. The game will be broadcasted on live radio, provided through ESPN Cleveland 1540 KNR2.
Records: Notre Dame College is 2-1 after a 47-35 win at West Virginia State last week. Concord is 1-2 after a 7-0 home victory against UVa-Wise in week three.
Coaches Corner: Mike Jacobs is in his second year as the head coach of the NDC football program. He has an overall record of 11-3 (10-3 MEC). Paul Price is also in his second season as a head coach. During his time as the leader of the Concord program, he has gone 3-11.
Rankings: Neither of the teams received votes in the September 18 AFCA Coaches Poll.
Series History: The Falcons and Mountain Lions are currently tied 2-2 in a series dating back to 2013. Notre Dame has won the match-up each of the past two years by a slim margin. NDC won 23-21 in 2015 and 14-10 in 2016.
Noting the Falcons: Notre Dame has kept things interesting in 2017 so far, being out-gained offensively in each of its first three games. Despite a monster ground game last week, led by junior DJ Green who had a school-record 286 yards, the Yellow Jackets ammassed 19 more yards of total offense (490-471). The Falcons have gone with what's working in their first three games, with a balanced attack in week one, a quarterback-reliant game in week two and a run-heavy offense in week three.
Noting the Mountain Lions: Concord currently ranks last in the MEC in points per game (8.3), but also ranks first in scoring defense (16.7). Over the last two weeks, the Mountain Lions have scored just seven points, coming in a 7-0 shutout against UVa-Wise after being shutout 27-0 at Charleston. CU ranks last in passing offense (94.3 yards per game) while NDC ranks last in pass defense (383.7). Concord's strong defense is anchored by its ability to create turnovers with five fumble recoveries and five interceptions in just three games.
MEC POW: For their performances last week, NDC's
DJ Greene and CU's Jeremiah Johnson and Garrett Lee were all named MEC Players of the Week. Greene rushed for 286 yards and 4 TDs while Johnson recorded two crucial interceptions (one in the end zone and one returned for the lone touchdown in the game) and Lee punted nine times, landing five inside the 20-yard line.
By the Numbers
1: Interception caught by redshirt freshman
Jeffrey Thomas against WVSU. It was the first interception of the season for the NDC defense. Thomas also leads the team with 19 total tackles this season.
2: Sacks recorded by senior defensive lineman and team captain
Claudy Mathieu against WVSU. Mathieu now has 3.5 tackles for a loss in 2017.
51: Net rushing yards from running back
Brian Walker in week three. Walker ran the ball just eight times and scored a touchdown.
