Complete Game Notes
ATHENS, W. Va. - After going 1-1 to start the season against non-conference opponents, the Concord University football team will begin its defense of its 2011 West Virginia Intercollegiate Athletic Conference title Saturday when it hosts WVIAC rival Charleston at Callaghan Stadium.
Concord will look to rebound from a close 30-22 loss suffered last week against Winston-Salem State University, which is now ranked fifth in the nation according to the AFCA.
A win over Charleston would be CU's third consecutive victory over the Golden Eagles. Last season, Concord defeated UC 38-15.
MOUNTAIN LION FACTS
-Since the 2001 season, Concord is 5-5 in its first WVIAC games of the season, three of those victories have come against Charleston (2011, 2004, 2003).
-The Mountain Lions have won their last four conference games overall and
-Concord has won 12 of its last 16 WVIAC contests and eight of its last 10 conference home games.
-The Mountain Lions will look to extend its winning streak at home against WVIAC opponents to five games.
-Concord has began the season 2-1 just two times (2010, 09) in the last 10 seasons.
SCOUTING CONCORD
The Mountain Lions come into the Charleston game with the third ranked defense and fourth ranked offense in the conference. Concord's defense has allowed 137.5 passing yards and 209 rushing yards per game. CU is currently 23rd in the nation in pass defense.
Leading the way for Concord on the defensive side of the ball has been junior linebacker
Jake Lilly, who has made a team-high 22 tackles and a WVIAC best two interceptions. Sophomore safety
Davon Marion is second on the team in tackles with 17 while having also picked one pass off, forced a fumble, recovered a fumble and scored one touchdown.
Defensive linemen
Silas Agyemang and
Spenser Jordan have combined for 26 tackles, 9.5 tackles for a loss and two sacks.
Concord's offense has been spearheaded by the receiving duo of seniors
Ansel Ponder and
Randall Hawkins. Ponder has totaled 14 catches, 186 yards receiving and two touchdowns while Hawkins has 16 receptions and 151 yards receiving. Leading the offense has been senior quarterback
Zack Grossi, who has thrown for 507 yards and three touchdowns.
Junior running backs
Chris Rodriguez and
Andrew Gondor have split carries at running back this season. Rodriguez has run for 115 yards on 18 attempts and Gondor has accumulated 25 yards on 16 rushes.
Senior punter
Brad Cox and freshman kicker
Andy Ellington have been outstanding on special teams. Cox has averaged 43.8 yards per punt while placing four balls inside the 20. Ellington is 1-for-1 in field goals tries and 5-for-5 in extra point attempts.
WEEK 2 RECAP
The Concord University football team cut a 16-point deficit in half, but it wasn't quite enough to knock off eighth-ranked Winston-Salem State in the 30-22 loss.
The Mountain Lions fell behind 23-7 at the start of the fourth quarter, but made a frantic comeback attempt to pull to within eight points (30-22) before being stopped by Winston-Salem State.
Ponder had 117 receiving yards and Lilly made a game-high 13 tackles.
DYNAMIC DUO
Ansel Ponder and
Randall Hawkins have made quite the pair as Concord's top-two wide receivers. The pair has combined for 30 receptions, 337 yards and two touchdowns.
TACKLES IN BUNCHES
Including his 13-tackle game vs. Winston-Salem last week,
Jake Lilly has now registered at least nine tackles in a game in 11 of 12 contests dating back to the start of the 2011 season.
FIVE TO WATCH ON DEFENSE
Jake Lilly is almost a lock for at least 10 tackles a game. Lilly has also developed into a playmaker on the ball having recorded two interceptions and two pass break-ups in addition to his impressive tackle numbers.
Silas Agyemang had one of the best games of his career last week against Winston-Salem State. Agyemang totaled a career-high eight tackles and three tackles for a loss to go with
one sack.
Davon Marion continues to get back into his old form after another solid effort against Winston-Salem (seven tackles and one pass break-up).
Kevin Elliott proved that Marion isn't the only safety on the Concord football team that is capable creating turnovers. Elliott registered his first career interception last week against Winston-Salem.
In his first season as a starter for Concord, linebacker
Jimmy Keating has made 10 tackles and made one tackle for a loss.
FIVE TO WATCH ON OFFENSE
Ansel Ponder is settling in quite nicely as Concord's big play threat. In addition to scoring touchdowns in consecutive games for the Mountain Lions, Ponder has also went over the 100-yard mark twice and owns two of the top four longest plays by the Concord offense this season.
Randall Hawkins continues to be a human magnet for the football. The senior pulled in six more catches against Winston-Salem State.
After a quiet game to start the season,
Ryan Stewart exploded for a six-catch, 59-yard game that included one touchdown against Winston-Salem State.
Chris Rodriguez is averaging 6.4 yards per carry and is Concord's leading rusher on the year with 115 yards on the ground.
Andrew Gondor has big play potential and is a threat to break a big run every time he touches the ball.
SCOUTING CHARLESTON
Charleston comes into Concord on a roll, having won its first two game of the season by a combined score of 77-30 (44-26 vs. Shaw and 33-14 vs. St. Joseph's).
The Golden Bears rank second in the WVIAC in both total offense and total defense. Their explosive running attack averages 319 yards per game, the best average in the conference and the fifth-highest average in the nation. Charleston has trailed its opponents for a grand total of 5:01 so far this season.
Charleston is coached by Pat Kirkland, who is in his second season at UC. Including his two victories this season, Kirkland has a record of 9-4 at Charleston. The Golden Bears received on vote in the latest American Football Coaches Association's top-25 poll.
FIVE TO WATCH ON DEFENSE
Linebacker Matt Kelly leads the Charleston defense with 13 tackles over the last two games. In their latest win against St. Joseph's, Kelly had four tackles.
Defensive Lineman Jeff Green recorded team-highs of nine tackles and three tackles for a loss in UC's week two victory.
DB Ahmed Shakoor has one fumble recovery and ranks second on the team in tackles (12).
DB Trei Kelly has Charleston's only interception this season. He also has two pass break-ups.
Puma Nuredini changes field position like few others as a punter. Five of Nuredini seven punts have landed inside the 20 this year.
FIVE TO WATCH ON OFFENSE
Running back Jordan Roberts is arguably the best running back in the WVIAC. So far this season, Roberts has already ran for 323 yards and two touchdowns. Through two games, Roberts ranks seventh in the nation in rushing.
Wide receiver Shaq Williams is a big play threat. Williams has scored two touchdowns and gained 135 yards on five receptions. It should be noted that 99 of those yards came in one
play.
Quarterback's John Knox and Maruice Leak have combined to throw for 300 yards and four touchdowns on 17 completions this season. Most importantly for Charleston's offense has been the number of interceptions thrown by the duo, zero.
Puma Nuredini will be a factor offensively as well. The do-it-all kicker/punter is 4-5 this season in field goal attempts including two successful field goal attempts from more than 40 yards.
Saturday's kickoff is scheduled for 1 p.m.
