This Week: Notre Dame College football heads to West Liberty University for the MEC Game of the Week. The teams face off tonight, September 28 at 7:10 p.m. in West Family Stadium. The game will be broadcasted on live radio, provided through ESPN Cleveland 1540 KNR2 and live video will also be provided via the MetroNews Channel.
Records: Notre Dame College is 3-1 after a 44-13 victory against Concord. West Liberty is 2-2 after a 31-19 loss at UVa.-Wise.
Coaches Corner: Mike Jacobs is in his second year as the head coach of the NDC football program. He has an overall record of 12-3 (11-3 MEC). Roger Waialae is in his 13ths season at West Liberty. During his time at WLU, Waialae has amassed a record 73-65.
Rankings: Neither of the teams received votes in the September 25 AFCA Coaches Poll.
Series History: The Falcons have yet to lose to the Hilltoppers in a series dating back to 2013. NDC is 4-0 against WLU after a 30-14 victory in 2016.
Noting the Falcons: Notre Dame will likely be missing a key offensive weapon in
DJ Greene this week. Greene left the game against Concord early, due to an injury. Running backs
Brian Walker and
Nehemiah Brown will fill in as the No. 1 and No. 2 options, respectively. The two have combined for 100 yards on 16 carries (6.25 average) over the last two games. Quarterback
Malik Grove can also get things done on the ground with 201 yards and 4 TDs on the ground in the past two weeks. Defensively, the Falcons have held their opponents to just 190 yards rushing over that span. NDC will look to keep things rolling defensively after having its best week of 2017 against Concord (246 yards).
Noting the HIlltoppers: West Liberty heads into the week looking to stay undefeated at home. The Hilltoppers are currently 2-0 at home with wins against Urbana and Charleston, but each of those wins were three-point games (24-21, 9-6). WLU ranks second to last in the MEC in scoring offense (13 points per game) and total offense (261 yards per game) only outranking NDC's week four opponent, Concord. The team also ranks last in punting with 27.0 net yard average. The Hilltoppers play a clean game as the least penalized team in the MEC.
Road Scoring: So far this season the Falcons have given up 28 points per game, but have given up an average of 44.5 on the road. NDC lost week one at Shepherd 54-49 and won week three at W.Va. State 47-35.
Night Games: Since joining the MEC in 2013, the Falcons are 2-2 in night games. NDC lost 23-19 in its lone night game last season at Fairmont State
By the Numbers
2: Games in which
Tay Johnson has had over 100 receiving yards. Johnson caught six passes for 129 yards and a touchdown against Concord and now leads the team with 308 yards.
5: Stops
Derrick Brumfield had at or behind the line of scrimmage. Brumfield was credited with 2.5 tackles for a loss and had two more tackles at the line of scrimmage for no gain.
618: Yards the Falcons have out-rushed their oppenents. NDC has totaled 1,057 net rushing yards while holding their opponents to 439. Notre Dame averages 5.7 yards per carry compared to opponents 3.6.
