CLINTON, S.C. (SESN) — One week removed from their best offensive showing of the Steve Englehart era, the Presbyterian College football team looks to win back-to-back outings for the second time this season when the Dayton Flyers come to town.
Kickoff at Bailey Memorial Stadium is scheduled for 1:00 PM, denoting the 10th consecutive weekend of football for PC. The Pioneer Football League tussle will be aired live on ESPN+, with Gabriel Schray and former Blue Hose quarterback Tim Webb on the call.
Coach Englehart’s crew cast away recent misfortunes in a trip to Stetson last Saturday, stomping on the Hatters 42-14 thanks to five first-half touchdowns and well over 600 yards of total offense.
Presbyterian will aim for their second conference victory in as many weeks while also scouting for a second straight W over Dayton, having beaten the Flyers in 2023 with an overtime walk-off field goal (20-17).
Tomorrow’s matchup will serve as “Decades Day”, sponsored by Founders Federal Credit Union. PC invites alumni from all decades to join in for a special reunion. Don’t miss this opportunity to reconnect, relive old memories, and participate in faith-based events and activities.
GAMEDAY CENTRAL
WHO: Presbyterian (3-6, 1-4) vs. Dayton (5-2, 3-1)
WHERE: Bailey Memorial Stadium (Clinton, S.C.)
WHEN: Saturday, November 2 | 1:00 PM
ADMISSION: Football Tickets
GAMEDAY PROTOCOL: Bailey Memorial Stadium Policies & Map
FLIP CARDS: Sponsored by Founders Federal Credit Union
CLEAR BAG POLICY: Handbag Code
FOLLOW THE ACTION
WATCH: ESPN+ (Gabriel Schray & Tim Webb)
LIVE STATS: StatBroadcast
TWITTER / X: @BlueHoseFB
GAME NOTES: Presbyterian Notes | Dayton Notes | PFL Weekly Report
OPPONENT PROFILE
• Still in the hunt for the PFL regular season championship after beginning the 2024 slate with a 5-1 record, Dayton was dealt a surprising defeat last weekend in a 14-6 setback against Morehead State.
• The Flyers were held out of the end zone for the entire game in the stunner (which was a home game for the Flyers), settling only for two field goals in the 3rd period.
• Led by head coach Trevor Andrews in his second season, Dayton’s strength is undoubtedly their defense, a unit that leads the nation in total yardage allowed (231 yards per game) and opponents’ first downs (11 per game).
• Dayton is allowing only 13 points per matchup this year, giving up exactly 14 in all of their conference bouts.
• Prior to the Morehead loss, the Flyers ended on the right side of two straight low-scoring affairs. They squeaked out a 16-14 W over Davidson in Ohio and followed that up with a one-score decision at Butler, breaking a 14-all tie on a 33-yard touchdown pass with 11 seconds on the clock.
OFFENSIVE ONSLAUGHT
• The Blue Hose shook the monkey off their back last weekend following three straight narrow defeats, letting out their frustrations with an offensive performance that ranks among the best that PC has ever put together since turning Division I in the late 2000’s.
• Presby put up 35 points in the opening half while never punting during that stretch, notching five consecutive touchdowns en route to a 42-14 whipping at Stetson.
• Coach Englehart’s gang collected 663 yards of total offense as they tore apart the Hatters, the third-most in a single game of any Pioneer Football League team this season.
• PC had never recorded that many yards from scrimmage when going up against a D-I opponent, surpassing 650 yards five previous times (vs. St. Andrews, Pikeville, Bluefield, North Greenville, and Chowan).
• The garnet and blue averaged eight yards per play in the Stetson dissection, their second-ever PFL victory as the road team.
RUSHING RAMPAGE
• The focal point of PC’s beatdown in DeLand was the rushing attack, a group that gathered a staggering 329 yards on the ground. All of Presbyterian’s five TD’s in the first half were designed runs from four different ball-carriers.
• Those 329 rushing yards are the most that PC has ever gained against a D-I school (third-most since 2007). Saturday was the third time in Blue Hose history with five rushing touchdowns in one outing, last happening 10 years ago versus Bluefield.
• Antonio Wright and Quante Jennings were a dynamic duo in the Sunshine State, both posting the same numbers with 106 rushing yards apiece. It’s the first time that two PC teammates each went for at least 100 yards in the same game since 2014.
KIBBY = KING
• Sitting just 200 yards away from becoming PC’s all-time D-I record holder (and still with one more full season of eligibility left), junior Dominic Kibby accomplished another Blue Hose milestone during the Stetson win.
• He snared a 94-yard touchdown in the 3rd quarter, not only the longest passing play from scrimmage in PC’s Division I history, but also the play where Kibby gained his 15th career receiving TD to break the school record.
• On track for his third straight All-PFL honor, Kibby broke his own PC record on that play after scoring a 93-yard touchdown at Butler last season.
• Thus, he is now responsible for the two longest passing plays in Presbyterian history.
• The official number that Kibby needs to break the D-I era career record is 206 yards. When Dayton last visited Bailey Memorial Stadium in 2022 (Kibby’s rookie year), he published a career-high 212 yards and scored three times, a performance that earned him the FCS National Freshman of the Week award.
HURST ON JERRY RICE AWARD WATCH LIST
• Redshirt freshman quarterback Collin Hurst has been recognized on the 2024 Jerry Rice Award Watch List, awaiting its 14th recipient at the conclusion of the season. The annual honor, presented by Stats Perform and FedEx Ground, is given to “the most outstanding freshman player in the Football Championship Subdivision.”
• This is the second consecutive season that a PC player has been summoned to the Jerry Rice Award Watch List, following in the footsteps of then-rookie kicker Mack Mikko last year.
• Hurst is one of six QB’s to make the cut for consideration of the esteemed award, and one of only two players in the Pioneer Football League to be mentioned (alongside Dayton signal-caller Drew VanVleet).
• Created in 2011 and named after legendary Hall of Fame wide receiver Jerry Rice – who attended Mississippi Valley State University – the award is voted on by a national panel of more than 40 sports information and media relations directors, broadcasters, writers, and other various dignitaries.
• Notable past honorees of the Jerry Rice Award include future NFL stars Cooper Kupp (Eastern Washington, 2013), current Heisman contender Cam Ward of the Miami Hurricanes (then at UIW in 2020), and starting QB for the Colorado Buffaloes, Shedeur Sanders (then at Jackson State in 2021).
AROUND THE PFL
• Can Drake and St. Thomas avoid falling to “trap week” ahead of their pivotal Week 11 Pioneer Football League matchup? The Tommies face the tougher test in Week 10 as they travel to a Morehead State squad riding back-to-back wins into third place in the league standings. Meanwhile, the Bulldogs have to rouse from a Week 9 bye and host a Marist team seeking its first win of 2024.
• Drake brings a 15-game PFL win streak into its off week after escaping at Presbyterian last week to extend the streak. After several upsets in Week 8, the Bulldogs’ conference win streak is now the FCS’ longest. The Bulldogs’ last conference loss was on Oct. 22, 2022, when they dropped a 48-14 decision to Davidson as part of a then-season-opening eight-game losing streak. Since snapping that streak, Drake is 16-5 overall.
• St. Thomas is one of two FCS teams with an eight-game conference win streak—the second-longest such streak in the FCS.
• The PFL leads all FCS conferences with 28 blocked kicks in 84 games played during 2024. Dayton leads the league and all FCS squads with seven blocked kicks this season, while Presbyterian has three blocks to its credit, 13th-most in the FCS.
• The PFL is tied for third among FCS leagues with eight pick-sixes in 2024, trailing the Southern Conference (10) and the OVC/Big South (9). San Diego has returned four of their seven interceptions for TDs, with Davidson (2), Butler (1), and St. Thomas (1) claiming the others.
FOLLOW THE ACTION
WATCH: ESPN+ (Gabriel Schray & Tim Webb)
LIVE STATS: StatBroadcast
TWITTER / X: @BlueHoseFB
GAME NOTES: Presbyterian Notes | Dayton Notes | PFL Weekly Report
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