Nate Mikell at Charleston
Mike Gallagher

Football Bob Shreve, Assistant Director of Athletics Media Relations

Game Preview: Golden Knights Host Millersville in Home Opener

MILLERSVILLE MARAUDERS (1-0, 0-0 PSAC East) at GANNON GOLDEN KNIGHTS (0-1, 0-0 PSAC West)
DATE: Saturday, September 9, 2023
KICKOFF: 12 noon
STADIUM: McConnell Family Stadium l Erie, Pa.
 
LIVE COVERAGE: Live Video l Live Stats l Live Audio
 
GAME NOTES: Click Here
 
RADIO: 90.5 WERG FM – Listen to all the exciting action of Gannon football with Sean Amicucci providing the play-by-play.
 
ERIE, Pa. – Gannon makes its 2023 debut at McConnell Family Stadium on Saturday, September 9 with the first of three PSAC crossover games. The Golden Knights host Millersville at 12 noon, and next week head to West Chester on Saturday, September 16 before opening PSAC West action on Saturday, September 23 against Clarion. It will also be Homecoming Weekend.

The Golden Knights opened the season on the road last week with a Thursday night game at Charleston (W.Va.). Trailing at the half by a 3-0 margin, they grabbed a 6-3 lead on a pair of Eric Scarpino (Waterford, Pa./Fort LeBoeuf) field goals in the third quarter. A Charleston score made it 9-6 after three quarters but Nate Mikell (Summerfield, Fla./Wildwood) threw his first career touchdown pass covering 14 yards to Ke'John Batiste (Covington, La./Covington) with 5:28 remaining for a 13-9 advantage. Charleston struck right back less than two minutes later for the winning score, then tacked on an insurance score with just under two minutes remaining as Gannon fell 22-13.

Millersville kicked off the campaign the same night and came away with a 33-7 win over visiting Saint Anselm. The Marauders led just 12-7 at the half but dominated play in the second half while limiting Saint Anselm to 207 yards and recording four sacks. Millersville won its first season opener since 2019 and the 33 points were the most scored in a season opener since 2014. It was Millersville's first win in a season opener at home since 2012.

Gannon was picked to finish fourth in the PSAC West in the coaches preseason poll while Millersville was fifth in the Eastern Division.
   
SERIES RECORD
Gannon leads 4-1
After Millersville claimed the first meeting with Gannon in 2010 by a 29-26 score the Golden Knights have won the last four meetings. The two met for the first time since 2017 a year ago with Gannon capturing a 16-10 victory at Biemesderfer Stadium.

Last Meeting:  Sept. 10, 2022 – Gannon 16, at Millersville 10
Gannon moved to 2-0 for the first time since 2016 with a hard-earned 16-10 win at Millersville. The Golden Knights had to overcome a pair of first-half turnovers and a slew of penalties in their first road contest of the season but rode another impressive defensive effort and two special teams plays to the win. Melvin Blanks (Pittsburgh, Pa./North Hills) ran for 135 yards and scored on a six-yard run while Kory Curtis (Cape Coral, Fla./Island Coast) threw a 10-yard TD pass to Johnny Freeman (Philadelphia, Pa./St. Joseph's Prep). It was a day for the defense, however. They limited Millersville to 157 total yards, including just 22 on the ground, with five sacks. A blocked punt by Matt Wiitanen (Renton, Wash./Pioneer) accounted for a safety and the first two points of the game.

HEAD COACH
Gannon head coach Erik Raeburn is in his 23rd season as a head coach and picked up his 150th career win with last year's triumph over Charleston. Now in his fourth year at Gannon, he owns a 14-13 ledger in charge of the Golden Knights and is 157-75 overall. He has had head coaching stops at Coe, Wabash, Savannah State, and Gannon. A year ago he led Gannon to an 8-3 record, the 11th time he has guided a team to eight-or-more wins.
 
NOTING THE KNIGHTS
Gannon opened the 2023 season under the lights on Thursday, August 31 in Charleston, W.Va. The Golden Knights played Charleston for the second straight season and traveled to the Mountaineer state for the first time since 2002 when they defeated West Virginia State 35-21. The Golden Eagles spoiled Gannon's evening with a pair of touchdowns in the final five minutes to hand the Golden Knights a 22-13 setback. It snapped a two-game winning streak in season openers.
For the second year in row Gannon enters the season picked fourth in the PSAC West in the PSAC Coaches Preseason Poll. Gannon, Indiana (Pa.) and Slippery Rock shared first place a year ago with 6-1 records. IUP is the preseason favorite with six first place votes and Slippery Rock was second with a pair of votes. California (Pa.) is third. After the Golden Knights, Edinboro rounded out the top five, followed by Seton Hill, Clarion and Mercyhurst. Shepherd received five first place votes in the Eastern Division to gain the top spot, with Kutztown second (2 votes) and West Chester third (1 vote).

Save for a couple late breakdowns the Gannon defense turned in a stellar effort at Charleston. The Golden Knight defenders limited the Golden Eagles to 243 total yards, including just 46 yards rushing on 30 attempts. Defensive back Kam Snell (Owings Mills, Md./Good Counsel) and linebacker Zharell Walker (Severn, Md./Meade) each recorded their first career interceptions. Walker led the way with seven tackles. Fellow linebacker Hayden McDonald (Tigard, Ore./Tigard) added six tackles, with 1.5 TFL and a sack.

With the departure of record-setting quarterback Kory Curtis (Cape Coral, Fla./Island Coast) head coach Erik Rae-burn had an open competition for the starting signalcaller. Redshirt sophomore Nate Mikell (Summerfield, Fla./Wildwood) emerged as the winner. Like Curtis a native of Florida, Mikell had a solid debut as the starter. He completed 25-of-44 passes for 208 yards with a 14-yard touchdown pass to Ke'John Batiste (Covington, La./Covington) that gave Gannon a 13-9 lead with 5:28 remain-ing. It was the first career TD pass for Mikell.  The 208 yards are the most by a Gan-non quarterback making his first start since Liam Nadler threw for 420 yards in his debut against Lake Erie in 2012. Mikell also led Gannon with 43 yards rushing. He redshirted in 2022 and saw brief action in four games as the backup quarterback in 2021, completing 2-of-4 passes for 22 yards.

Redshirt senior placekicker Eric Scarpino (Waterford, Pa./Fort LeBoeuf) gave Gannon a 6-3 lead in the third quarter with field goals of 27 and 35 yards. It's the first time a Gannon kicker made two-or-more field goals since last year's Clarion game (9/24/22) when Scarpino made two. He now has made 19 career field goals to move into sixth place in career field goals made, and his 25 attempts also rank sixth.

SCOUTING MILLERSVILLE
Millersville opened the 2023 campaign with a 33-7 win over Saint Anselm last Thursday at Biemesderfer Stadium. It marked the first season-opening win since 2019 for a team that was picked to finish fifth in the PSAC East in the coaches preseason poll. Head coach JC Morgan is in his fifth year and led the Marauders to a 5-6 finish. Dating back to last year Millersville has now won four of its last five games. The Marauders limited Saint Anselm to 207 total yards, pulling away in the second half after leading 12-7 at intermission. The 33 points were the most in a season opener since 2014 … the Ville invades McConnell Family Stadium riding a three-game winning streak dating back to last year. The winning ways have coincided with the insertion of Robert Footman Jr. at quarterback. The sophomore earned the starting role midway through the 2022 season. He is a dual threat, throwing for 154 yards and 2 TDs while completing 12-of-26 passes against Saint Anselm, and adding 64 yards and two more scores on 11 rushes … redshirt freshman Jaquan Howard led the Marauders with 110 yards rushing on 20 carries. Mekhi Alexander was the leading receiver with five catches for 71 yards, including a 32-yard TD reception. A year ago Alexander led Millersville with 34 catches for 494 yards and 3 TDs … linebacker Garrett Cox was named the PSAC East Defensive Athlete of the Week following the Saint Anselm game. An All-PSAC East first team selection a year ago, the redshirt junior recorded a game-high 13 tackles, including 3.5 TFL and a sack. He added a pass breakup and a forced fumble … Cox spearheaded a defensive effort which saw the Marauders limit Saint Anselm to seven points and 207 total yards. The Hawks were held to 16 yards on the ground.  Cox finished second on the team in tackles with 73 with 12 TFL, five sacks and five passes broken up … punter Zac Banta set a single-season Millersville record for average (41.1 yards). He averaged 36.0 yards on seven punts against Saint Anselm.
 
UP NEXT
Gannon heads across state to southeastern Pennsylvania for a second straight PSAC crossover contest, playing at West Chester on Saturday, September 16. Kickoff at Farrell Stadium is set for 12 noon. A year ago the Golden Rams rallied from a 23-17 halftime deficit to hand Gannon its first loss of the season, 29-23, at McConnell Family Stadium. WCU has won all five meetings in the all-time series with Gannon. They were picked to finish third in the PSAC East.
 
 
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Players Mentioned

Melvin Blanks

#2 Melvin Blanks

RB
6' 1"
Senior
Business
Kory Curtis

#7 Kory Curtis

QB
6' 4"
Redshirt Junior
Matt Wiitanen

#2 Matt Wiitanen

DB
6' 0"
Redshirt Senior
Ke

#1 Ke'John Batiste

WR
6' 3"
Redshirt Senior
Johnny Freeman

#18 Johnny Freeman

TE
6' 1"
Redshirt Senior
Hayden McDonald

#4 Hayden McDonald

LB
6' 2"
Redshirt Junior
Nate Mikell

#6 Nate Mikell

QB
6' 4"
Redshirt Sophomore
Eric Scarpino

#94 Eric Scarpino

PK
5' 9"
Redshirt Senior
Mechanical Engineering
Kam Snell

#1 Kam Snell

DB
5' 11"
Redshirt Junior
Zharell Walker

#0 Zharell Walker

LB
5' 11"
Senior

Players Mentioned

Melvin Blanks

#2 Melvin Blanks

6' 1"
Senior
Business
RB
Kory Curtis

#7 Kory Curtis

6' 4"
Redshirt Junior
QB
Matt Wiitanen

#2 Matt Wiitanen

6' 0"
Redshirt Senior
DB
Ke

#1 Ke'John Batiste

6' 3"
Redshirt Senior
WR
Johnny Freeman

#18 Johnny Freeman

6' 1"
Redshirt Senior
TE
Hayden McDonald

#4 Hayden McDonald

6' 2"
Redshirt Junior
LB
Nate Mikell

#6 Nate Mikell

6' 4"
Redshirt Sophomore
QB
Eric Scarpino

#94 Eric Scarpino

5' 9"
Redshirt Senior
Mechanical Engineering
PK
Kam Snell

#1 Kam Snell

5' 11"
Redshirt Junior
DB
Zharell Walker

#0 Zharell Walker

5' 11"
Senior
LB