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LORETTO, Pa. – Saint Francis University football is set to host its homecoming game on Saturday, Oct. 28 against Merrimack.
 
Offense
Dawson Snyder leads the Northeast Conference with 489 receiving yards, which is ranked tied for 33rd in the FCS this season. He is one of two NEC receivers over 400 yards and is 62 yards ahead of second. Cole Doyle produced his second 200-yard performance of the season at Duquesne and is second in the conference with 1,222 passing yards this season. His 1,531 total offensive yards and 56.6 completion percentage lead the NEC. The Red Flash offense is third in the conference with 337.4 yards of offense per game and 21 total touchdowns.
 
Defense
Carter Glassmyer remains atop the NEC with 37 solo tackles and is second with 61 total. Blye Hill leads NEC freshmen with six total passes defended and he is one of four FCS freshmen with at least 1.0 pass defended per game this season. Mercury Swaim recorded his first collegiate interception against Duquesne and is one of four Saint Francis players with one this season. Swaim and Pierre Royster each have two forced fumbles this season, which is tied for second in the NEC.
 
Special Teams
After a Mason Frye blocked punt against Duquesne, Trey McLeer returned it for a 40-yard touchdown. It was the first blocked punt returned for a touchdown since Ray Crittenden on Nov. 6, 2021 against Sacred Heart. Aidan Cirulli is averaging 39.4 average yards per punt and has a long of 62-yards this season. Mac Plummer is 5-for-8 with a long of 36.
 
Last Time Out
Saint Francis had a near 24-point comeback fall short against Duquesne in a 38-35 loss. The Dukes jumped out to a 31-7 lead at halftime after three passing touchdowns and one fumble recovery for a touchdown accounted for most of the damage. The fumble recovery occurred on a Saint Francis punt attempt in the final 10 seconds of the half. In the third quarter, Saint Francis ended the frame with a one-yard touchdown run. Duquesne matched the score with a touchdown at 11:48 remaining in the game and led 38-14. Mason Imbt followed with a one-yard touchdown at 8:32 remaining and cut the deficit to 38-21. Saint Francis then blocked a punt and returned it for a touchdown and cut the deficit to 10 points. Jayden Ivory's first-career touchdown with 57 seconds remaining cut the deficit to three points, 38-35. The Red Flash recovered the ensuing onside kick and set up a 45-yard field goal for Plummer that missed wide left. 
 
Scouting Merrimack
The Warriors own a 4-3 overall and 3-1 conference record this season. Merrimack dropped its first conference game of the season at Wagner and followed with three-straight victories over Sacred Heart, Stonehill and LIU. Running back Tyvon Edmonds ranks sixth in the FCS with an NEC-high 125.3 rushing yards per game and is second in the conference with six rushing touchdowns. Quarterback Malakai Anthony has started the last two games for Merrimack after Gavin McCusker started the first five. Anthony is 12-of-22 with 290 yards, four touchdowns and one interception this season. Donovan Wadley leads the receiving group with 15 catches for 277 yards and three touchdowns. DJ Frazier leads the defense with 35 total tackles and Tyler Leavy leads with 5.0 tackles for loss. Tre Jordan and Darion McKenzie each have two interceptions. Kicker Lliam Davis leads the conference at 10-for-12 on field goal attempts, while Cole Peterson is fifth with 39.2 average yards per punt.
 
All-Time vs. Merrimack
Saint Francis owns a 3-0 advantage over Merrimack after the Warriors reclassified to Division I in 2019. Both teams entered the 2022 meeting with a 6-0 conference record and resulted in an NEC Championship game to end the regular season. Saint Francis took a 52-23 victory to clinch its second NEC title in program history. In the game, Doyle tied a single-game program record with five touchdown passes and had the second-most single-game passing yards with 411. Snyder produced 162 rushing yards in the game, which is still the most in a single game by a Red Flash player over the last three seasons. Saint Francis won the first two meetings in matchup history 42-14 in 2019 and 22-6 in 2021.
 
Around the NEC
LIU kicked off week nine in the NEC with a 24-23 victory over Central Connecticut on CBS Sports Network. The Sharks improved to 2-2 in conference play, while Central Connecticut fell to 1-3. Last Saturday, Duquesne defeated Saint Francis in a thrilling 38-35 game and moved the Dukes to 3-0 and dropped the Red Flash to 2-2. Merrimack won its third-straight game with a dominant 39-0 victory over LIU and improved to 3-1. Central Connecticut won its first conference game of the season with a 17-3 victory over Wagner and dropped the Seahawks to 2-2. Stonehill improved to 2-2, while Sacred Heart fell to 1-4 in a 22-19 overtime victory for the Skyhawks.
 
Week Nine in the NEC
Central Connecticut hosted LIU Thursday night on CBS Sports Network – the second NEC game televised on the network this season. On Saturday, Oct. 28, Duquesne visits Sacred Heart, Stonehill visits Wagner and Merrimack visits Saint Francis.
 
Next
Saint Francis hosts Senior Day in its final home game of the season on Saturday, Nov. 4 at 12 p.m.