WATCH (NEC FRONT ROW) | LIVE STATS | SFU NOTES

LORETTO, PA- Saint Francis open up the home Northeast Conference slate on homecoming as western Pennsylvania rival Duquesne comes to town for a noon kickoff.
 
ABOUT THE MATCHUP
The Red Flash come into the game at 2-4 overall and 0-1 in conference after a 23-22 heartbreaking setback at Wagner last Saturday. That is the fourth one-score loss for the Red Flash this season and third in the final seconds.
 
The Dukes are coming into the weekend at 4-3 overall and 1-1 in conference. They knocked off Robert Morris 48-24 last Saturday night. Duquesne ran wild at Rooney Field, rushing for 321 yards and five touchdowns against the Colonials.
 
TOUGH SLEDDING
Saint Francis' stout run defense will be tested against the Dukes. SFU currently leads the NEC allowing just 105 yards on the ground per game. The Red Flash defense held the FCS' leading rusher, Ryan Fulse to under 100 yards and under four yards per carry. Ben Bruni (Pittsburgh, Pa./Mt. Lebanon) and Hakeem Kinard (York, Pa./York Catholic) were all over the field on Saturday, making 14 and 11 stops each, respectfully. Both marks were their respective career highs. AJ Hines ranks second to Fulse by averaging 5.6 yards per carry and has a NEC-best nine rushing touchdowns. The junior ran for 182 and three scores against Robert Morris last weekend.
 
NO FLY ZONE
The Red Flash pass defense ranks second in the Northeast Conference, giving up 188 yards through the air and is tied for a conference low eight touchdowns through the air. Jermaine Ponder (Rochester, N.Y./Bishop Kearney) is second in the NEC with seven pass break-ups and will probably draw the tough assignment of matching up with Nehari Crawford. The senior leads in the Northeast Conference with 101 receiving yards per game and is tied for the conference lead with seven touchdowns.
Quarterback Daniel Parr is the second-most accurate passer in the NEC, completing nearly 65 percent of his throws and averages about 205 yards per game.
 
THIS BEAR IS BEST
Graduate student Bear Fenimore (Austin, Texas/Westwood) is enjoying a strong final season in Loretto. The Texan is second in the Northeast Conference in passing, averaging over 220 yards per game and is second in the NEC with 13 touchdown passes. After not throwing a touchdown against Lehigh, Fenimore has thrown at least two TD passes in each of his last five games.
 
THEY ARE VERY TALL, THAT HELPS
Fenimore has spread the wealth amongst his receiving corps. Five different receivers have two or more touchdowns, led by senior All-American Kam Lewis. Lewis goes number-for-number with Crawford, with each ranking either one or two in yards, receptions and touchdowns. Right behind Lewis is Cyrus Holder (Uniondale, N.Y./Milford Academy), who is second to Lewis on the teams in yards and receptions, ranking third in the NEC in the process. The junior's 16 yards per catch are tops on the team.
 
THOU SHALT NOT PASS
The Saint Francis offensive line has been rock solid this year, allowing just seven sacks through six games this season. The unit is a veteran group led by seniors Mike Ames (Pittsburgh, Pa./Penn Hills), Evan Ferguson (Sterling, Va./Dominion), Mederick Flavius and Isaac Jackson as well as redshirt juniors Christian Eubanks (Reynoldsburg, Ohio/Reynoldsburg) and Alec Shriner (Oviedo, Fla./Oviedo). The Red Flash duo of Jymere Jordan-Toney (Philadelphia, Pa./Franklin) and Chris Cropper (Wilmington, Del./St. Frances Academy) average 4.5 yards per carry with 10 rushing touchdowns.
 
IT'S A BLACKOUT
Fans are encouraged to wear black for a BLACKOUT at DeGol Field. The game will also be streamed on NEC Front Row with Pat Farabaugh and Jay Roberts on the call. The game will also be simulcasted on Twitter through the Periscope app.