Williamsburg, KY – The Patriots football program will faceoff against #24 Lindsey Wilson College at home Saturday afternoon. UC enters the weekend 3-2 and looks for their first win over an MSC opponent this season while the Blue Raiders come into the contest 3-1 and 1-0 in conference play.
Cumberlands has not defeated Lindsey Wilson in over a decade, with their last victory coming back in October of 2013. They hold an 2-8 overall record against LWC; however both of their wins did come in Williamsburg on the Patriots home turf.
Keep Up the Intensity
Head Coach Shan Housekeeper and the Pats came out strong in their most recent game against Bethel, where they took a 10-7 lead into the half, but ended up falling 28-17. This week, Coach Housekeeper talked about his team's performance saying, "Our guys continue to take steps forward … the next step is being able to keep that focus and urgency throughout an entire 60 minutes, especially against good teams."
Take Away Their Strengths
Lindsey Wilson come into the week averaging over 350 yards of offense a game with 228.8 coming from the rush, ranking ninth in the NAIA in rushing yards per game. The Patriot defense has given up just 110 rushing yards per game due to a strong push up front from the defensive line along with consistent tackling from the linebacker core.
"For us as a program we have to able to take away their strengths … We must be very sound in our run fits and not give up the edge," said Coach Housekeeper on defending the run against the Blue Raiders this weekend.
Hunter Zirkle leads the defense with six tackles for loss and three sacks while Solomon Dupree has added 3.5 tackled for loss. Adam Caudle has the team-lead in total tackles with 28 while adding 4.5 TFL to his stat sheet as well.
Favorable Situations
The Patriots offense has averaged over 31 points a game, and rank in the top-25 in rushing yards per game (186.4). JB Carlisle and Trent Davis have handled much of the workload in the backfield this season. They will have a tough matchup this week, as LWC lead the nation in rushing defense, giving up just under 24 rushing yards a game so far this season. Coach Housekeeper talked about his team's success when they put themselves in favorable situations saying, "We've found success when we are ahead of the chains after nice runs and get in favorable, short yardage down and distances."
The Pats have found success on fourth down when in a favorable position. They are a perfect seven for seven when going for it on fourth down, which has been very key in continuing drives and controlling the possession. UC also leads the NAIA in redzone scoring, as they have finished their drives with points all 19 times that they have reached the redzone.
Lindsey Wilson has been susceptible to giving up yards and points through the air so far this season, allowing 253.5 passing yards per game. Trace Thompson and Drew Gregg split time at the QB position a week ago, combining for 188 yards and two touchdowns. Wide receiver Adam Foulk had a breakout game, catching eight passes for 64 yards and a TD as well. UC will look to build off these performances this weekend.
Kickoff is set for 2:30 PM at James H. Taylor, II Stadium in Williamsburg, KY on Saturday. Cumberlands will look to stay perfect at home, and earn their first win over Lindsey Wilson since 2013. Click here for the livestream and here for live stats.
For the latest and most up-to-date information on University of the Cumberlands Athletics. Please visit www.cumberlandspatriots.com. Follow us on Twitter- @UC_Patriots and @UCPatsGameday, Instagram- @UCPatriots, TikTok- @ucpatriots, YouTube- Cumberlands Patriots, and Facebook by searching University of the Cumberlands Athletics.
