GAMEDAY CENTRAL: Hawks, Bearcats Face Off in Missouri

Quincy University Hawks (1-1, 1-0 GLVC) at Southwest Baptist University Bearcats (1-2, 0-1 GLVC)
Sept. 26, 2015 | 2 p.m.
Bolivar, Mo. | Plaster Stadium

RADIO: ESPN 1440 WGEM-AM
LIVE STATS
WATCH ($)

Quincy Game Notes (.pdf) | Southwest Baptist Game Notes (.pdf)

LAST WEEK'S RECAP: The Hawks opened their newly-renovated home last week with a 42-37 win over Lincoln in front of 2,972 fans at QU Stadium. It was the first game since a $4 million renovation to the facility after playing at Flinn Stadium across town since 2011. The Hawks trailed 7-0 after the first possession of the game, but went on to score five touchdowns on their first six possessions to take a 35-17 lead into halftime. QU struggled down the stretch, allowing the Blue Tigers to close the gap to 42-37. The Hawks piled up 480 yards of offense and averaged 8.1 yards per play.

THE DIFFERENCE: In QU's season-opening loss at Northern Michigan, the Hawks could not get their running game going, rushing for just 69 yards. Against Lincoln, the Hawks maintained tremendous balance within the offense, rushing for 222 yards and throwing for 258 yards. Sophomore Chris Harris led the Hawks with 158 rushing yards and a touchdown, averaging 7.2 yards per carry.

TRIVIA ANSWER: After Lincoln's opening touchdown, Quincy marched down the field on a seven-play, 68-yard drive that ended with an 18-yard scamper around the right end by true freshman Darius Burse. His name will be the answer to the trivia question: Who scored the first touchdown by a Hawk at the new QU Stadium?

SUSTAINED SUCCESS: The Hawks sustained four drives of at least 60 yards last week, including two 86-yard drives that ended with touchdowns. The last of those came in the third quarter and capped the Hawks' scoring. A 49-yard run by Harris set up the Hawks inside the red zone before redshirt-senior quarterback Nick Lonergan scored on a marvelous eight-yard run in which he juked and stiff-armed one defender, spun around another and dove over the goal line for six points. Lonergan ran for 22 yards on three carries in the game.

CLICKING OFFENSE: From the first drive the QU offense was in sync, which was in sharp contrast to its early game performance at Northern Michigan. With the running game picking up 54 yards on the opening drive, the passing game opened up for Lonergan and his receivers. Lonergan was his usual efficient self, finishing 15-for-21 for 258 yards and three touchdowns, including a 65-yard strike to sophomore Kody Wood in QU's 28-point second quarter. That matched the most points scored in quarter in the Pajic era (Oct. 19, 2013 at Kentucky Wesleyan).

LONERGAN LEADING: Lonergan has long been an efficient quarterback, limiting both incompletions and interceptions. He has thrown just four picks in 348 pass attempts over 13 games since the start of the 2014 season. This year, he leads the nation in yards per pass attempt (11.2). He also ranks seventh in the nation in passing efficiency (179.5). Lonergan also finds himself on an impressive list nationally when it comes to passing yardage. He ranks seventh in Division II and 26th across all NCAA divisions in career passing yardage among active players (6,661).

SPREAD THE WEALTH, PT II: Lonergan continued to divide up his targets among the receiving corps for the second straight week. Against Lincoln, he completed passes to eight different receievers (5 WR, TE, RB, FB), led by Eric Poindexter's five catches for 89 yards and a touchdown. In the opener, Lonergan connected with nine different pass-catchers (5 WR, 2 RB, TE, FB).

BREAK IT UP: One of the keys to Quincy's defensive success against the Blue Tigers was its ability to wreak havoc at the line of scrimmage. While QU did not register a sack, the Hawks applied pressure to quarterback Owen Jordan, who was 23-for-44 on the day with an interception. The Hawks had seven pass breakups, most of which came from the line of scrimmage where linebackers T.J. Daniels and Zach Vath batted down four passes combined, with Vath adding another pass breakup in coverage.

FIRST I-N-T: Burse was not the only true freshman with a new QU Stadium "first." Cornerback Christopher Parker picked off the first pass in the new stadium in the second quarter. Four plays later, Lonergan connected with junior Eric Poindexter for a 24-yard touchdown pass that stretched Quincy's lead to 35-17.

LINEBACKER U: Daniels recorded 11 tackles in the game, including 10 in the first half. He also had three pass breakups. Vath broke up two passes and registered nine tackles, while fellow linebacker Nate Rueckemann also added nine stops. Rueckemann is the only returning starter from 2014 among the three, while Vath has experience as a fifth-year senior and Daniels is a redshirt-freshman.

PLAYING FAST: In the opener, the Hawks and Wildcats ran nearly the same number of plays (QU, 58-57), but that was a different story last week. Lincoln ran 95 offensive plays to Quincy's 59. The Hawks averaged 8.1 yards per play and held the Blue Tigers to a 5.4 output.

NATIONAL SPOTLIGHT: The Hawks, in the season of their return to QU Stadium, have been chosen by the NCAA and the American Sports Network to have their Halloween game against visiting Truman State to broadcast live on national television. Kickoff for the game will now be at 11 a.m. to accommodate the TV schedule. The game will air on select Sinclair Broadcast Group syndicates across the country and will be offered to many regional sports networks. It has the potential to be seen in 94 million homes. The game will air locally on KHQA-TV 7.

GLVCSN: The athletic communications office is pleased to announce that each home game (except Halloween) will be broadcast live on the GLVC Sports Network at QUHawks.com/watch.

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Players Mentioned

#54 T.J. Daniels: LB; 5' 11"; Redshirt Freshman

#28 Chris Harris: RB; 6' 0"; Sophomore

#5 Nick Lonergan: QB; 6' 0"; Redshirt Senior

#13 Eric Poindexter: WR; 5' 11"; Junior

#17 Nate Rueckemann: LB; 6' 1"; Redshirt Sophomore

#42 Zach Vath: LB; 6' 0"; Redshirt Senior

#25 Kody Wood: WR; 5' 10"; Sophomore

#15 Darius Burse: RB; 5' 7"; Freshman

#22 Christopher Parker: DB; 5' 8"; Freshman

Players Mentioned

#54 T.J. Daniels
: 5' 11"; Redshirt Freshman
: LB

#28 Chris Harris
: 6' 0"; Sophomore
: RB

#5 Nick Lonergan
: 6' 0"; Redshirt Senior
: QB

#13 Eric Poindexter
: 5' 11"; Junior
: WR

#17 Nate Rueckemann
: 6' 1"; Redshirt Sophomore
: LB

#42 Zach Vath
: 6' 0"; Redshirt Senior
: LB

#25 Kody Wood
: 5' 10"; Sophomore
: WR

#15 Darius Burse
: 5' 7"; Freshman
: RB

#22 Christopher Parker
: 5' 8"; Freshman
: DB