Flash Points:

• SFU Football takes on Central Connecticut State in a key NEC matchup on Saturday.
• Kickoff is set for Noon at Arute Field on NEC Front Row.
• The Red Flash is 5-3 overall and 3-1 in the NEC, while CCSU is 5-3 overall and 3-0 in conference action and is on a five-game win streak.
• SFU is coming off a 36-7 win over Robert Morris.
• Saint Francis' defense is ranked fourth in the FCS in scoring, allowing only 12.9 points per game.

SFU Notes | CCSU Notes | SFU Two-Deep | CCSU Two-Deep | NEC Front Row | Live Stats | Scouting Report
 
LORETTO, Pa. – The Saint Francis Football team travels to New Britain, Conn. on Saturday for a big NEC matchup against Central Connecticut State.  Kickoff is set for Noon at Arute Field on NEC Front Row, with Bruce Biel and Marc Robbins on the call.
 
The Red Flash, led by Head Coach Chris Villarrial, is 5-3 this season, including 3-1 in the NEC.  SFU is coming off a 36-7 win over Robert Morris.  Safety Nick Rinella (Collegeville, Pa./La Salle College) scored two touchdowns and defensive end Louie Gartner (Bloomfield, N.J./Paramus Catholic) returned an interception 93 yards for a touchdown.
 
CCSU, coached by Pete Rossomando, is also 5-3 overall, with a 3-0 mark in conference play.  The Blue Devils have won five straight games and is coming off a bye week after earning a 31-14 win over Bryant on October 21.
 
SERIES HISTORY
Saint Francis trails 19-5 in the all-time series against Central Connecticut State, but has won the last two meetings, including last year's 31-21 win in Loretto.  SFU got the program's first ever win at CCSU in 2015, a 22-13 victory.  In last year's contest, Zack Drayer (Hershey, Pa./Hershey) accounted for four touchdowns, three passing and one rushing.  Kamron Lewis (Fresno, Calif./Edison) caught eight passes for a then career-high 189 yards and a touchdown.  Hakeem Kinard (York, Pa./York Catholic) recorded 10 tackles, including a sack, in his first career start.
 
LAST WEEK
The Red Flash earned a 36-7 win over Robert Morris with big plays by the defense and special teams.
 
In the win, SFU scored in multiple ways, including a rushing touchdown, punt return, interception return and safety. 
 
The Red Flash tallied 270 total yards, including 150 passing and 120 rushing.  Kamron Lewis (Fresno, Calif./Edison) caught five passes for 143 yards to lead the offense.
 
Saint Francis held RMU to 158 total yards, giving up 76 in the air and 82 on the ground.  SFU held a team below 100 yards in both categories for the first time since 2015 vs. East Tennessee State.
 
Safety Nick Rinella (Collegeville, Pa./La Salle College) had a dynamic day, with 61 rushing yards, including a 49-yard touchdown, and 69 punt return yards, including a 35-yard touchdown return.  It was SFU's first punt return for a touchdown since Lorenzo Jerome (Sunrise, Fla./J.P. Taravella) in 2014 vs. Bryant.  He added a fumble recovery.  Defensive end Louie Gartner (Bloomfield, N.J./Paramus Catholic) picked off a pass in the first quarter and returned it 93 yards for a touchdown. 
 
SFU recorded 12 tackles for loss and five sacks, its 11th performance with four or more sacks in the last three seasons.
 
PIESMAN TROPHY CANDIDATE
Junior defensive end Louie Gartner (Bloomfield, N.J./Paramus Catholic) has accounted for a lot of big plays this season.  In addition to his 93-yard interception return for a touchdown against Robert Morris, he had a 49-yard fumble return for a score at Presbyterian.  He also blocked a field goal against Wagner.
 
He is an early candidate for the Piesman Trophy award, which is presented by SB Nation to an offensive or defense lineman who makes extraordinary plays.
 
KAM BEING KAM
Junior Kamron Lewis (Fresno, Calif./Edison) is off to a strong start in 2017.  He caught five passes for 143 yards against Robert Morris, his 11th career 100-yard game.  Earlier this year, he set career highs against Bryant with 15 catches for 202 yards, including an eight-yard touchdown.  Lewis became just the second SFU player to have over 200 yards receiving in a game and the third player to have 15 or more receptions in a game.  Lewis has touchdown catches in nine of his last 12 games. 
 
Lewis ranks 11th in the FCS in receptions per game (7.1), 13th in receiving yards (820) and receiving yards per game (102.5) and 28th in receiving touchdowns (6).  Lewis has three 100-yard games, two games with 10 or more receptions and five games with at least one touchdown reception this season.
 
The All-American now has 2,405 career yards, he is now 36 yards behind Antoine Rivera (2005-09) for second all-time at Saint Francis.  His 143 career receptions are one away from tying Todd Eckenroad (1991-93) for fifth all-time at SFU.  Lewis' 17 career touchdowns are good for fourth all-time at SFU, three behind Rivera. 
 
THE DARKSIDE
The Saint Francis defense, known as "The Darkside", has been lights out this year.  The Red Flash currently ranks fourth in the FCS, allowing just 12.9 points per game. 
 
The Red Flash also ranks seventh in the nation in turnovers forced, with 11 interceptions and 10 fumble recoveries.  SFU also has 48 tackles for loss and 15 sacks.
 
With four defensive touchdowns, SFU has set a new program season record, topping three touchdowns each in 2015 and 2016. 
 
Saint Francis is 11th in the FCS in total defense (291.6 yards per game), 31st in rushing defense (127.5), eighth in passing defense (164.1), third in pass efficiency defense (94.3) and is fourth in the FCS in Red Zone defense, allowing conversions on just 59 percent of opponents' trips into the Red Zone. 
 
SFU's defense is a balanced effort with eight players recording 30 or more tackles through the first eight games.  Eight players have at least three tackles for loss, eight players have recorded at least one sack, seven players have forced a fumble and four players have at least two interceptions.  Linebacker Sean Orsini (Imperial, Pa./West Allegheny) leads SFU with 55 tackles, while linebacker Ben Bruni (Pittsburgh, Pa./Mt. Lebanon) and safety Hakeem Kinard (York, Pa./York Catholic) each have 50.  Linebackers Zane Stewart (Chambersburg, Pa./Chambersburg) and Da'Jon Lee (Fairfax, Va./Robinson) lead the team in tackles for loss, with eight and seven, respectively.  Each has a team-best three sacks on the year.  Safety Nick Rinella (Collegeville, Pa./La Salle College) leads the team with three interceptions, followed by Malik Duncan (Cleveland, Ohio/Cleveland Central Catholic), Hakeem Kinard (York, Pa./York Catholic) and Jalen Wells (Westerville, Ohio/Thomas Worthington) with two each.  Safety Delondo Boyd (Indian Head, Md./Henry E. Lackey), Kinard, Lee and Stewart each have two forced fumbles.
 
SEASON RECORDS WATCH
Halfway through the season, a couple Red Flash are already approaching SFU season records.
 
Quarterback Bear Fenimore (Austin, Texas/Westwood) has 139 completions this season, only 13 behind the fifth-most in a season at SFU.  He also has 14 touchdowns, one behind fifth-most in a season and two behind fourth. 
 
Receiver Kamron Lewis (Fresno, Calif./Edison) has 820 receiving yards, 37 behind the fifth-most in a season at SFU.  His 57 receptions are seven away from the fifth-most in a season and his six touchdown catches are two away from tying for fourth in a season.
 
With three interceptions, safety Nick Rinella (Collegeville, Pa./La Salle College) is two interceptions away from tying for the fifth-most in a season at SFU. 
 
VILLARRIAL NAMES TEAM CAPTAINS
The 2017 team captains were named before SFU's scrimmage on August 26.
 
Senior safety Delondo Boyd (Indian Head, Md./Henry E. Lackey), senior cornerback Malik Duncan (Cleveland, Ohio/Cleveland Central Catholic), junior tackle Mederick Flavius, Jr. (Lauderhill, Fla./Northeast) and senior tight end Matt Valenzuela (Sterling, Va./Dominion) were elected by their fellow players to represent the program as captains.  Boyd is in his second year as a captain after being the only underclassman captain last season.
 
MEET THE BLUE DEVILS
Central Connecticut State is 5-3 overall and 3-0 in the NEC.  The Blue Devils are on a five-game win streak and coming off a bye week after a 31-14 win over Bryant on October 21.  CCSU is currently tied with Duquesne atop the NEC standings.  The Blue Devils are coached by Pete Rossomando.  The fourth-year head coach is 14-28 at Central Connecticut State. 
 
The Blue Devils are averaging 31.8 points and 360.3 total yards per game, ranking second and fourth in the NEC, respectively.  CCSU ranks sixth in the NEC in passing, averaging 177.4 yards, and third in rushing, averaging 182.9 yards. 
 
Quarterback Jacob Dolegala, a junior, has completed 50 percent of his passes for 1,364 yards, seven touchdowns and five interceptions and has two rushing scores this year.
 
Senior Cameron Nash leads the backfield with 680 yards and an NEC-best nine touchdowns.  He's averaging 85 yards per game and 5.2 yards per carry.  Joining him in the backfield is 5-foot-11, 210-pound sophomore Drew Jean-Guillaume, a threat in the run and pass game, with 338 yards and five touchdowns, averaging 5.3 yards per carry, and 21 catches for 290 yards and three scores. Six-foot-two junior receiver Courtney Rush has 13 catches for 360 yards and two touchdowns, averaging just under 28 yards per catch. 
 
The Blue Devils use a 3-3-5 defensive scheme.  CCSU is allowing 31.0 points and 449.8 total yards per game, ranking sixth in the NEC in both categories.  The Blue Devils are giving up 253.4 passing yards and 196.4 rushing yards, ranking seven in both.  However, CCSU is very good at creating turnovers, forcing 19, including 11 interceptions.  CCSU leads the nation with five defensive touchdowns.  CCSU has recorded 31 tackles for loss and seven sacks this season.
 
Junior defensive end Chris Tinkman anchors the defensive line with 33 tackles this year, including 4.5 for loss and 2.5 sacks.  Sophomore James Dumas is a key part of the rotation, with 25 tackles, four tackles for loss, a sack and a forced fumble.  A talented linebacker group is led by senior Randall Laguerre had 65 tackles, 33 solo, 6.5 tackles for loss, half a sack, a forced fumble, a fumble recovery and a pass breakup.  Safety Najae Brown has 56 tackles and a 79-yard interception return for a touchdown against Penn.  Senior Jarrod Cann has recorded 53 tackles, 27 solo, four pass breakups and is tied for the NEC lead with four interceptions.  A key member of the secondary rotation is junior Tymir Hinton, with 52 tackles, four tackles for loss, a sack, a forced fumble, a fumble recovery and three interceptions, including a 100-yard return for a touchdown against Penn. 
 
Junior Frankie Palmer is eight-of-nine, with a long of 37, on field goal attempts.  He ranks third in the nation in field goal percentage and 29th in field goals made per game.  Tajik Bagley is one of the most dangerous kick returners in the FCS, averaging 25.2 yards per return.  He had a 95-yard return for a touchdown against Fordham.