LORETTO, Pa. – Saint Francis University football visits Morgan State for its final non-conference game of the season on Saturday at 12:00 p.m. The matchup marks the first-ever meeting between the programs and Saint Francis' second-straight game against a MEAC opponent.

Scouting Morgan State
The Bears enter Saturday's contest with an 0-3 record and are being out-scored 121-27 through the first three games. Morgan State scored a season-high 20 points against FBS opponent Tulane in week two, though they gave up 69. The Bears were shutout 31-0 against CAA opponent Towson and lost 21-7 against NEC member Sacred Heart. Quarterback Neil Boudreau has a 51.67 completion percentage for
297 yards, three touchdowns and three interceptions on the season. Wide Receivers Wesley Wolfolk and Thomas Marcus account for 211-of-394 receiving yards for the Bears this season. Lawrence Richard has the only Morgan State interception of the season, while three Bears have one sack each and four have two tackles for loss. Morgan State was selected to finish fifth in the MEAC in the Preseason Coaches' Poll.

Last Time Out
The Red Flash dropped their third non-conference game of the season in a 28-16 defeat against Norfolk State. Kahtero Summers put the Red Flash in the lead early with a 17-yard touchdown catch, and Saint Francis led 10-7 at halftime. The Spartans out-scored the Red Flash 21-6 in the second half to seal their victory. Norfolk State rushed the ball 59 times for 323 yards and controlled 37:28 in time of possession. Running back Marques DeShields had a season-high 175 total yards and Summers scored his team-leading third touchdown of the season. Martin Foray, Jr. recorded 15 total tackles and increased his Northeast Conference-leading total to 45 in four games. The Red Flash held Preseason Walter Payton Award Watch List quarterback Juwan Carter to just 12-for-22 for 99 yards and two touchdowns, though the Spartans elected to continue feeding a successful running attack.

DeShields Named to NEC Prime Performers Week 4
Running back Marques DeShields earned a spot on the NEC Prime Performers list for the first time as a member of the Red Flash. The redshirt junior rushed for 73 yards and had five catches for 102 yards against Norfolk State. His 175 total yards were the most by a Saint Francis player this season. He added a season-long 46-yard run and 46-yard reception in the game.
 
Saliby Earns Second NEC Special Teams Player of the Week Honor
Punter Jordan Saliby was named Special Teams Player of the Week for the second time this season. He recorded seven total punts with an average of 48 yards per punt in Saturday's 39-24 victory over Wagner. He produced three punts of 50+ yards, including a season-long 59-yard punt, and pinned Wagner inside the 20 four times. Two of his punts pinned the Seahawks at the one-yard line and one of those was in the game's final minute that led to a Raymond Crittenden game-sealing pick-six.

Russell, Brown Named to NEC Prime Performers List
Quarterback Jyron Russell threw for 194 yards and four touchdowns in a 39-24 win over Wagner. All-four of Russell's touchdown passes came in the second half to lead Saint Francis' comeback victory. Donnell Brown recorded six total tackles, two tackles for loss and 1.5 total sacks in Saturday's victory. His six tackles for loss and 2.5 sacks both lead the NEC through the first three weeks of the season.

Saliby, Noel Earn NEC Weely Honors
Punter Jordan Saliby earned Special Teams Player of the Week and defensive back Breon Noel earned Rookie of the Week in the conference's first weekly awards of the season. Saliby recorded seven punts for 285 total yards, a 40.7 yard average. Noel made seven total tackles (two solo) and one tackle for loss. Both players earned these awards in their first game as a member of the Red Flash.

Summers Named to NEC Prime Performers List
Wide Receiver Kahtero Summers was named one-of-eight NEC Prime Performers in the season's inaugural week. Summers recorded five catches for 115 yards, including a 51-yard catch-and-run. He tallied just 189 yards during his entire freshman season in 2019.

History Made at Eastern Michigan
Saint Francis football's game against Eastern Michigan will mark the team's first game against an FBS opponent in program history. The Sept. 3 matchup against the Eagles is followed by a matchup with No. 5 Delaware on Sept. 11. "Delaware is a top FCS program and Eastern Michigan is an up-and-coming program in the FBS, you want to be like them," head coach Chris Villareal said. "You always want to put yourself against that sort of competition and it's a great step for all of us to make the leap to the next level of competition."

Watkins Named to All-Northeast Conference Preseason Team
Redshirt Senior James Watkins was named to the All-Northeast Conference Preseason Defensive Team, the conference announced Aug. 3. The Oxon Hill, Md. native was named Second-Team All-NEC in 2019 after finishing third on the team with 11 tackles for loss and four sacks.

2019 Defensive Returners
Safeties Martin Foray Jr. and Gio Vonne Sanders return after leading the 2019 secondary. Foray Jr. was second on the team with 77 total tackles (56 solo) and third on the team with nine pass breakups. Sanders led the team with four interceptions, added 39 tackles and four pass breakups. Defensive ends James Watkins and Sam Cummings return after both ranking top-four on the team with 11 and 7.5 tackles for loss respectively. Watkins also ranked third on the team with four sacks, while Cummings was fifth with 2.5.

Red Flash Picked Fifth in Preseason Coaches' Poll
Saint Francis was picked to finish fifth in the NEC Preseason Coaches' Poll, ahead of LIU and Wagner. Sacred Heart earned four first-place votes to earn the No. 1 spot in the poll, followed by Duquesne (two) and Central Connecticut (one). Merrimack is in the NEC, and will play a full schedule, but is not eligible for a title until 2023. 

Lewis Returns to Saint Francis as Defensive Coordinator
Saint Francis alum and two-time All-American Scott Lewis returned to the Red Flash as the team's defensive coordinator, the program announced Jan. 29. Lewis had 524 career tackles, which ranks fifth in FCS history, and he was top-12 in total tackles all-four seasons. His 12.2 tackles per game rank third all-time in the FCS.

Villarrial Makes Saint Francis History
On Nov. 23, 2019 against Delaware State, head coach Chris Villarrial earned his program-record 46th win. He surpassed Art Martynuska who coached in Loretto from 1969-76 and 1981. Villarrial is a two-time NEC Coach of the Year, winning back-to-back in 2015 and 2016. The 2016 season was also Saint Francis' first appearance in the FCS Top-25 poll. 

2020-21 Northeast Conference Results
In the shortened spring 2021 football season, Sacred Heart took the Northeast Conference Championship with a 34-27 win over No. 25 Duquesne. The win marked the Pioneers' fifth NEC Championship, as they advanced to the FCS Tournament and lost 19-10 to No. 5 Delaware. Saint Francis and Central Connecticut opted out of the entire spring 2021 season.

Villarrial Brings NFL Experience to Loretto
Head coach Chris Villarrial brought NFL experience when he joined Saint Francis, having spent time as an offensive lineman with the Chicago Bears (1996-2004) and Buffalo Bills (2004-06). He was drafted in the fifth round (152nd overall) by the Bears after he broke the NFL Scouting Combine Bench Press Record. As a member of the Bears, he was a two-time All-Pro player and guided a 1,000-yard rusher in every season. After joining the Bills, he helped the offensive line give up the fewest sacks in franchise history. In his career, Villarrial made 148 starts.

Next
Saint Francis returns to conference action for its final six games of the season, starting with LIU at home on Saturday, Oct. 9 at 1:00 p.m.