GAME DAY CENTRAL
No. 19 West Chester (1-0, 0-0 PSAC East) at Gannon (1-0, 0-0 PSAC West)

• When: Saturday, Sept. 14, 2019
• Where: Erie, Pa.
• Stadium: McConnell Family Stadium (2,500)
• Kickoff: Noon
• Live Radio: Jet Radio (1400 AM and 96.7 FM)
• Live Audio: Click Here
• Live Video (FREE): Click Here
• Video also available through Roku, Apple TV, Amazon Fire and Android TV by searching for "PSAC" on the app interfaces on any of the compatible devices, then downloading the free app and filtering to Gannon.
• Live Stats: Click Here

• General Admission Tickets: $5 adults / $3 Non-Gannon students / $3 Senior Citizens
• All Gannon students, staff and faculty are admitted free of charge by showing their school ID
• Parking: Free on-street parking. Parking in the lot directly in front of the stadium is by permit only. Violators will be towed.
• Directions: To McConnell Family Stadium I GPS Address: 430 Sassafras Street, Erie, PA 16507

• Game Notes: Gannon Notes
• League Overview: PSAC Game Notes | D2Football.com Columnists
• Coach Rzyczycki Weekly Radio Show (Courtesy Sports Radio 1330 The Fan - Erie, Pa.): Click Here

• All-Time Series: West Chester leads 3-0
• First Meeting: Sept. 8, 2012 - West Chester 21, Gannon 17
• Last Meeting: Sept. 8, 2018 - No. 23 West Chester 31, Gannon 7
• Series Notes: Saturday's meeting will complete the second home-and-home crossover series between the Knights and Rams since Gannon joined the PSAC.

• Gannon: Roster | Schedule | Statistics
• West Chester: Roster | Schedule | Statistics | Record Book

• Gannon won its season opener against Southern Connecticut for the fifth time in the past six years. The defense buckled down late, stopping the Owls on four straight plays from inside the 10 to preserve a 14-7 victory.
• Safety A.J. Satcher (Buffalo, N.Y./Canisius) pulled in the PSAC West Defensive Athlete of the Week award for his efforts against SCSU. The senior made seven stops, with an interception and three pass breakups. 
• West Chester, the defending PSAC champions, had to hold on in its opener against Bentley, securing a win despite five turnovers. The Golden Rams took their only lead with 23 seconds left in the game.

• The Gannon roster features 50 true or redshirt freshmen, and not all are sitting back and waiting for an opportunity. Twelve from that group saw action in the season-opening win over Southern Connecticut, and another six true sophomores got time.
• Southern Connecticut was able to move the ball, but the Owls were consistently frustrated at the end of their drives. The Gannon defense held SCSU to just 20 percent on its red zone trips, with a missed field goal, and interception and two drives ending on downs.
• Since joining the PSAC prior to the 2008 season, the Golden Knights have put together an impressive 10-2 record against teams from outside the league. That includes a pair of 5-1 records over that span against both Lake Erie and Southern Connecticut.
• For the second straight season, Gannon has to face an early-season gauntlet with back-to-back games against West Chester and Kutztown. Those two went a combined 19-1 in the regular season last year, and neither has finished lower than third in the East or 7-4 overall since 2015.
• The duo of Andrew Berger (Altoona, Pa./Bishop Guilfoyle) and Jay Bullock (Garfield Heights, Ohio/University School) will anchor the defensive line in 2019, with both coming off of all-conference seasons a year ago. The defensive ends should provide a steadying influence on the young defense, with Berger starting 32 games in his first three seasons and Bullock appearing in all 22 in his first two.
• Head coach Brad Rzyczycki gave himself an extra task this season, adding defensive coordinator responsibilities. He will be calling the defensive sets for the first time since the 2011 season. His five years as DC at Gannon before taking over as head coach coincided with four of the five best scoring defenses in the past 15 years.
• The offensive line should be a point of strength for the Knights, who brought back 60 career starts between center Mac Chambers (Washington, Pa./Trinity) and guards Aaron Britton (Washington, Pa./Trinity) and Kiley Smith Jr. (Manassas, Va./Stonewall Jackson) Left Tackle Marcel Deya (Gainesville, Va./Stonewall Jackson) transferred in from Division I Fordham after playing in nine games over the past two years, and right tackle Ben Fuhrman (Erie, Pa./Cathedral Prep) is in his third year of the program.

• West Chester blitzed through the 2018 regular season, going 10-0 and winning the PSAC championship game. The Golden Rams' season came to an end with a 35-28 loss to New Haven in the NCAA first round.
• The Rams earned a victory over Bentley last week in their season opener despite losing a lopsided turnover battle 5-0. WCU was outgained 336-306.
• A stout defense boosted the Rams in 2018. They finished the year eighth in the country in total defense (259.4 yards per game), led Division II in sacks (4.55 per game), and were eighth in interceptions (8).
• All-America safety Jarey Elder returns after picking off seven passes in 2018.

• Gannon will hit the road to face off with Kutztown in its second PSAC crossover contest of the season on Sept. 21.