Clarion’s 2003 football team will look to rebound from a four game losing streak this Saturday, October 25, as the Golden Eagles travel to Shippensburg for a PSAC-West game. Kickoff at Seth Grove Stadium is set for 1pm

The game can be heard on WCCR-FM, 92.7 and on the internet at Redzonemedia.com with Mike Kalinowski and Dave Katis describing the action.

Clarion enters the game with a 1-6 overall record in 2003 and an 0-2 mark in the PSAC-West. The Eagles have lost four of those games by a total of 18 points. Clarion opened the season with a 31-21 loss to East Stroudsburg, then lost a 13-10 overtime decision to Millersville. Bouncing back to defeat Glenville 23-20, the Eagles lost a gut-wrenching 20-19 game against Kutztown, and lost in the final minutes to #4 ranked IUP 24-20. The Eagles then dropped a 35-17 decision at West Chester and last week lost to Edinboro 35-6. Head coach Malen Luke has a ten year record of 49-56 at Clarion and is in his 16^th year overall as a head coach with a record of 86-77. Clarion has won the PSAC-West in 1996 and 2000 under Luke, while the 1996 squad advanced to the NCAA semifinals.

Shippensburg head coach Rocky Rees is in his 14^th year at Shippensburg with an overall record of 80-70-1. He is also in his 19^th year overall as a head coach with a record of 116-85-2. The Red Raiders enter the game with a 5-2 record this season and tied for first in the PSAC-West with a 2-1 league mark. The Raiders opened the season with a 33-14 win at Shepherd and a 21-0 victory at Bloomsburg. After defeating Kutztown 35-12, the Raiders lost to West Chester 33-20, bounced back to defeat Edinboro 40-34, lost at Slippery Rock 16-14 and last week defeated Lock Haven 49-13.

In a series that dates back to 1955, Clarion leads the overall series 33-13-1. Clarion lost last year’s meeting 20-19 and the 2001 game 34-29. Clarion won a wild 56-49 contest in 2000. In the last ten years Shipp holds a 6-4 advantage over the Golden Eagles.

Clarion’s offense is getting 302.4 yards per game (#10 in PSAC) including 197.1 rushing yards (#4 in PSAC) and 105.3 passing yards (#14 in PSAC) per game.

Any of four potential signal callers could play at quarterback this Saturday. Freshman Felton Woulard, and red-shirt freshmen Brad Reifsnyder and Grant Gourley all played against Edinboro last week. Woulard leads the Eagles with 435 rushing yards on 119 carries with 2 td’s, plus has hit on 38 of 80 passes for 623 yards and 3 td’s. Reifsnyder has connected on 8 of 14 passes for 73 yards, while Gourley hit 1 of 2 against Edinboro in the final minutes. Senior Frantz Charles, who started the first game of the year, was injured, and came back in the second quarter against IUP to lead the offense, has rushed for 147 yards on 39 tries and completed 1 of 3 passes for 30 yards. He missed the last two games with a leg injury, but could return this week.

The running game will be led by halfbacks Brandon Sweeney (51 carries, 290 yards, 4 td’s; 7 catches, 65 yards, 1 td) and Glenn Lovelace (52 runs, 207 yards; 5 catches, 139 yards, 1 td) and fullback Jason Warner (53 rushes, 196 yards, 1 td).

The receiving corps has wideouts Pierre Odom (13 grabs, 236 yards, 1 td), Ron Rivage (9 catches, 171 yards) and Ed Rivers (8 receptions, 63 yards).

The Golden Eagle defense is yielding 350.6 yards per game (#10 in the PSAC) including 141.6 rushing yards (#8 in the PSAC) and 209 passing yards (#12 in PSAC) per game.

Leading the defense up front is 2002 PSAC-West Defensive "Player of the Year" Troy Bowers. The Eagle senior has 48 tackles this season and leads the PSAC in tackles for loss (18) and sacks (8). In his career he now has 192 hits, 71 tfl’s and 32 sacks.

Also playing well up front are Tim Connolly (33 stops, 8 tfl’s, 4 sacks), Ben Heisel (22 hits, 7 tfl’s, 3 sacks) and Matt Niedbala (8 stops).

The linebacking corps will be led by Jabari Weatherspoon. The talented senior leads the team with 54 tackles and also has 1 interception for a td, 5 tfl’s and 1 sack. Matt Morris has 42 stops, 4 tfl’s and 4 fumble recoveries, along with Brock Luke (10 tackles) and Dale McCall (6 jolts).

The Eagle secondary has Bo Busch (41 hits, 1 int, 4 fumbles caused) at free safety and Emil Johnson (35 jolts, 8 tfl’s, 1 int) at strong safety, with Myron Hargon (14 stops, 2 tfl’s), James Charles (19 stops, 1 int for a td) and Kerwin Cledanor (3 int’s) at the corners.

Shippensburg’s offense is very balanced this season with the Raiders getting 397 yards of total offense (#4 in PSAC) per game including 220.4 rushing yards (#3 in PSAC) and 176.6 passing yards (#8 in PSAC) per game.

Leading the offense is quarterback Rick Henshaw. The Raider sophomore has completed 81 of 155 passes for 1,185 yards and 13 td’s with only 9 int’s.

The running game will be led by fullback John Kuhn and halfbacks Andre McLaurin and Matthew Accri. Kuhn is the #3 runner in the PSAC with 902 yards and 12 td’s on 179 carries (5.0/pc). He already has the school record with 2,600 career rushing yards and is tied for the school lead with 30 rushing td’s. Accri has 188 yards on 34 rushes, while McLaurin has 185 yards and 1 td on 59 tries.

The receiving corps features wideouts Pat Ferguson (19 catches, 386 yards, 6 td’s) and Tim Devanney (10 grabs, 181 yards, 1 td), along with tight end Joel Gamble (14 catches, 152 yards, 2 td’s). McLaurin is second on the team with 16 grabs out of the backfield for 191 yards and 1 td, and Kuhn has 11 receptions for 134 yards and 1 td.

The Red Raiders rank #2 in the PSAC in total defense giving up only 256.4 yards per game including 91.7 rushing yards (#2 in PSAC) and 164.7 passing yards (#4 in PSAC) per game.

The defense is led up front by noseguard Yeboa Cobbold (19 hits, 6 tfl’s) and tackle Demetrius Roberts (5 tfl’s, 2 sacks), along with ends Gary Dunlap (24 tackles, 7 tfl’s) and Ryan Hoffman (7 tfl’s, 4 sacks).

The linebacking corps is led by Dan Walsh (52 hits, 9 tfl’s, 3 int’s) along with Dave D’Andrea (18 jolts) and Chris Leonetti (45 stops, 8 tfl’s, 2.5 sacks).

The secondary features Brent Grimes (5 int’s) and Antonio Williams (27 tackles, 2 int’s) at the corners, with Clint Inch (30 hits) at strong safety and John Andrews (31 jolts, 1 int) and free safety.

CLARION NOTES: Clarion will be on the road in three of its last four weeks... Clarion travels to Cal on November 1^st for a 7pm start, then returns home on November 8^th to host Lock Haven at 1pm on Senior Day... The season finale is November 15^th at Slippery Rock (1pm)... The next win for coach Luke will be his 50^th at Clarion ... In last year’s Ship 20-19 win at Clarion, Brian Sekel’s 18-yard td catch with 6:47 left in the game provided the margin of victory... Clarion had 307 total yards with 60 on the ground and 247 through the air ... Ship had 258 overall including 185 rushing and 73 passing ...Adam Almashy passed for 247 yards and 2 td’s... Ship’s John Kuhn gained 184 yards and 1 td on 31 carries... Three years ago at Memorial Stadium the two teams combined for a Clarion record 105-points as Clarion won a 56-49 shootout ... Clarion held what looked to be comfortable leads in the third quarter of 49-14 and 56-21, before the Raiders mounted a furious comeback... Adam Almashy stole the show two years ago completing 16 of 26 passes for 282 yards and 5 td’s, while also rushing for a td... Tab Musser led the Eagle ground attack with 93 yards... Clarion outgained Shipp in that game 576 - 391.