Game:              Notre Dame College                                             1-7 (0-7 GLIAC)   
                          at Malone University                                              1-6 (1-6 GLIAC)
Date:                 Saturday, October 27, 2012
Kickoff:             1:00 p.m. EDT at Fawcett Stadium
Broadcasts:    WNPQ 95.9 FM, www.thelight959.com
                          12:40 p.m. EDT pre-game (Clint Scroggs – play-by-play; Larry Ridgeway Commentary)
Live Video:      http://www.malonepioneers.com/showcase
Live Stats:       http://www.sidearmstats.com/malone/football
Tickets:            $6.00 adults; $3.00 students/senior citizens; children 12 and under are free

Series:              Malone defeated Notre Dame 31-23 at the Spire Institute in Geneva, Ohio last season.  The contest, held on October 29, 2011, marked the first-ever meeting between the two programs.

Coaches:   
Malone – Eric Hehman is in his third season as the Pioneers' head coach and has tallied an 8-20 record at Malone.  Prior to arriving in Canton, Hehman spent the previous five years as the head coach at NCAA Division III Greenville (IL) College where he led the Panthers to a 28-22 record and a berth in the 2009 NCCAA Victory Bowl.
Notre Dame – Adam Howard became Notre Dame's first head football coach in January of 2009.  Howard has guided NDC to an 8-22 mark since the Falcons began varsity competition in the fall of 2010 (Notre Dame posted an 8-0 record as a junior varsity program in 2009).  Howard served six years as the defensive coordinator at Baldwin-Wallace College prior to starting the Falcon program.

Coaches Show: In the eighth edition of the Coaches Show, host Clint Scroggs and coach Hehaman talk about last week's contest against Ashland University and this week's Homecoming Game vs. Notre Dame.

Last Season's Records: Malone 4-7 (N/A), Notre Dame 5-6 (N/A)

Malone Notes – The Pioneers fell at home to NCAA Div. II No. 6 Ashland University this past Saturday by a final tally of 31-7…Malone trailed by a slim 10-7 margin late in the second quarter before an Eagle TD run just prior to halftime put the visitors in front 17-7…Ashland then outscored the Pioneers 14-0 over the final two quarters to cement the win…The Pioneers rank sixth among the GLIAC's 16 schools in pass defense, giving up only 188.7 yards through the air per contest….On offense, Malone is currently ninth in the conference in time of possession, holding the ball for an average of 29:08 per game...However, the Pioneers are the GLIAC's second-most penalized team (60 penalty yards per game) and have struggled with turnovers, currently at -6 in turnover margin.

Malone players to watch:  Slot back/WR Justin McLean posted 154 all-purpose yards in Saturday's contest against Ashland with four catches for 65 yards and four kickoff returns, totaling 89 yards…On the season, McLean has registered a team-high 23 catches for 349 yards and four scores…McLean currently ranks ninth in the GLIAC with an average of 123.3 all-purpose yards per game…RB Steven Niewiedzial posted a team-high 47 rushing yards on 11 carries vs. Ashland…QB Will Szpor has completed 80 of his 154 (52%) passes for 1002 yards with six TD's and six interceptions… DB Logan Francis racked up a game-high 13 total tackles against Ashland to go with a forced fumble and a fumble recovery…On the season, Francis has posted 56 total tackles with two tackles for loss and three interceptions…DB Demarco Donaldson currently ranks second in the GLIAC with an average of 11.6 tackles per game (81 total)…Donaldson has also registered six pass break-ups, three forced fumbles and one fumble recovery …LB Antonio Scassa has posted 59 tackles with 2.5 tackles for loss and an interception…DL Frank McCormick ranks third in the conference with five sacks…Through seven games, McCormick has tallied 39 tackles, including eight tackles for loss.

Notre Dame Notes – Like the Pioneers, the Falcons are in their first year of GLIAC football competition…NDC opened the season with a 59-42 non-conference win over Mercyhurst (PA) College but has since dropped its first seven GLIAC contests, including a 45-7 defeat to Ohio Dominican University this past Saturday…Notre Dame has had success moving the football this year, averaging 29.9 points and 393.6 yards of offense per contest…The Falcons have also been effective in the red zone, notching 24 TDs and two field goals on 31 trips inside their opponents' 20-yard line...However, NDC is at -12 in turnover margin and has struggled to shut down opposing offenses, giving up an average of 455.9 total yards and 48.8 points per game

Notre Dame players to watch: RB Pedro Powell currently ranks third in the GLIAC with an average of 130.9 rushing yards per game…In all, the junior tailback has rushed for 1047 yards on 207 carries with 11 TDs…Powell has also been a weapon in the passing game with 17 catches for 132 yards and one score…QB Ray Russ has connected on 155 of his 245 (63%) pass attempts for 1605 yards with 15 touchdowns and 12 interceptions…Russ' 229.3 passing yards per game ranks as the fifth highest average in the GLIAC… RB Jack Foy has been Russ' leading target with 40 catches for 337 yards and three touchdowns…WRs Colton Wallace and Mikhail Morgan have also had a big impact…Wallace has caught 36 passes for 396 yards and nine TDs while Morgan has snagged 36 catches for 410 yards and two scores...DB Bo Grunder, a former Massillon Washington H.S. standout, leads the defense with 65 total tackles…DB Mo May follows with 63 total tackles, an interception, a fumble recovery, and a forced fumble…DB Spencer Krebs has made 61 tackles and broken up six passes…Krebs also returned an interception 51 yards for a TD in the Falcons' season opener…DL Darius James ranks fourth in the GLIAC with 4.5 sacks.

2012 Rosters:
Malone  |  Notre Dame

2012 Statistics
Malone  |  Notre Dame