Game:                Hillsdale (MI) College                               0-2 (0-1 GLIAC)   
                            at Malone University                                  0-2 (0-1 GLIAC)
Date:                  Saturday, September 21, 2013
Kickoff:               2:00 p.m. EDT at Fawcett Stadium
Broadcasts:      ESPN 990 AM, www.espn990.com
                            1:40 p.m. EDT pre-game (Clint Scroggs – play-by-play, Larry Ridgeway – color)
Live Video:        http://www.malonepioneers.com/showcase
Live Stats:         http://livestats.prestosports.com/malone/
Tickets:             $6.00 adults; $3.00 students/senior citizens; children 12 and under are free (Save $ with a season ticket!)

Special Events At This Weekend's Game
-BellStores Kickoff Classic
-TWI Extravaganza
-Parents/Family Weekend
-Italo's Pizza Alumni Day

Pioneer Nights at Chick-fil-a: Meet the Pioneer football team, coaches and cheerleaders on Friday nights prior to home games.  This Friday (Sept. 20), the Malone quarterbacks, kickers, and tight ends will be at Chick-fil-a on Dressler road from 6 to 7pm.  Click here for more info.

Series:             
The Pioneers fell on the road to Hillsdale 27-10 last fall in the first-ever meeting between the two teams.

Coaches:   
Malone – Eric Hehman is in his fourth season as the Pioneers' head coach and has tallied an 8-25 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.
Hillsdale – Keith Otterbein, now in his 12th season as the head coach of the Chargers, has compiled a 72-54 record at Hillsdale.  Over the past four years, he has guided the program to two NCAA playoff appearances (2009 & 2010) and a GLIAC regular-season title (2011).  Before becoming the Chargers' head coach, Otterbein spent nine years as the head coach at Ferris State (MI) University and five years as an assistant at NCAA Division I Ball State (IN) University.

Last Season's Records: Malone 1-9 (1-9 GLIAC), Hillsdale 7-4 (7-3 GLIAC)

Malone Notes – The Pioneers fell on the road to Saginaw Valley State (MI) University in their GLIAC opener last Saturday by a final score of 59-20…The Cardinals, who were ranked 22nd in the Division II preseason national poll, took control early on, scoring touchdowns on six of their first eight possessions…Despite the sizable early deficit, Malone put together a pair of lengthy second-half touchdown drives and ended the night with 230 rushing yards… After rushing for 204 yards in week one at Notre Dame College, the Pioneers have now posted back-to-back games with at least 200 rushing yards for the first time since early in the 2010 campaign…Malone's average of 217 yards on the ground per game ranks fourth among the GLIAC's 15 teams…The Pioneer offense has scored touchdowns on all five of its trip inside the red zone this year…Malone enters Saturday's game with an all-time record of 12-8 in home openers.

Malone players to watch - RB Bryce Pratt posted 153 rushing yards and a touchdown last week vs. Saginaw… Pratt, who had rushed for 120 yards in his Malone debut against Notre Dame College in week one, is the first Pioneer to rush for 100 or more yards in back-to-back games since 2009 (Joseph Peters)…Pratt is currently ranked fourth in the GLIAC with an average of 136.5 rushing yards per game…QBs Brandyn Eckhart & Will Szpor could both see time under center on Saturday…Last week, Eckhart picked up 66 rushing yards and a TD on 16 carries…On the season, Szpor has thrown for 161 yards with one TD and one interception…DB Lepear Smith ran back a kickoff 100 yards for a TD last week against SVSU…The highlight-reel play marked the fifth special teams touchdown of Smith's career (his four previous special teams TDs came on three blocked punt returns and one fumbled kickoff return) and it also set a new Pioneer record for the longest kickoff return in program history, breaking the previous mark of 99 yards that was registered by Justin McLean in 2011…Smith also posted three tackles and an interception vs. the Cardinals…DB Demarco Donaldson has notched 22 tackles and forced two fumbles in 2013.

Hillsdale Notes – The Chargers opened the year with a hard-fought 22-19 home loss to California (PA) University before falling on the road to Ohio Dominican University last Saturday by a final tally of 37-20… Hillsdale had tied last week's contest at 14-14 early in the second half before ODU managed to pull away by scoring 16 quick points over a two-minute stretch late in the third quarter…The Chargers have placed an emphasis on their ground game in recent years, but the Hillsdale passing attack has taken a more prominent role in the offense this fall as the squad has averaged 309 yards through the air in its first two games of 2013…Despite the increase in passing, Hillsdale has not abandoned the run, still averaging 105.5 yards on the ground per outing…The Charger defense has forced four turnovers in two games (two fumble recoveries, two interceptions) while yielding 29.5 points per contest, the sixth-best average in the conference.

Hillsdale players to watch - The Chargers lost a number of key cogs on the offensive side of the ball from a year ago, including RB Joe Glendening (the program's all-time leading rusher), QB Anthony Mifsud and HB  Cam White…Stepping in to help fill the void this season is senior QB Sam Landry…the left-hander has completed 42 of his 72 pass attempts for 614 yards with four touchdowns and no interceptions…WRs Evan Sassack and Evan Bach have been Landry's favorite targets thus far, each having caught two TD passes apiece…In all, Sassack has pulled in nine catches for 108 yards on the season while Bach has snagged eight passes for 151 yards…RB Isaac Spence has posted 73 rushing yards and a TD on 23 carries in the Chargers' first two games…Although he did not play in week two vs. ODU, RB Bennett Lewis carried the ball 10 times for 52 yards in Hillsdale's opener against California…LB Brett Pasche, a two-time All-GLIAC First Team selection, has been a stalwart in the Chargers' defense once again, leading the team in tackles (25) and tackles for a loss (2)…LB Steven Embry has also made an impact, forcing two fumbles and making 17 tackles.

2013 Rosters
Malone  |  Hillsdale

2013 Statistics
Malone  |  Hillsdale