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LORETTO, Pa. – Saint Francis University football is set for its second FBS opponent of the season, Eastern Michigan, on Saturday, Sept. 21 at 2 p.m.
 
Offense
DeMarcus McElroy ranks third in the NEC with 274 rushing yards and is 27^th in the FCS with 91.3 rushing yards per game. He recorded the second-longest rush in program history with his 97-yard touchdown against CCSU. It was just the third play in program history of at least 95 yards. Gavin Thomson is fourth in the conference with 190 receiving yards and his 17.3 yards per receptions rank third amongst NEC players with at least 10 catches. Adrian Mejia entered the game against CCSU at quarterback with under 12 minutes remaining and went 8-of-9 for 33 yards. Jeff Hoenstine leads the program with 307 passing yards and Nick Whitfield Jr. had 121 in the season-opener at Dayton.
 
Defense
Fran Brown Jr. recovered a fumble in the end zone for Saint Francis' first defensive touchdown since Jack Courtney had a 20-yard pick-six on Nov. 12, 2022 vs. Duquesne. Brown Jr. is tied with Pierre Royster for the team lead with 21 total tackles, which ranks sixth in the NEC. Paul Tangelo ranks second in the NEC with 5.0 tackles for loss and 3.0 sacks. Saint Francis ranks fifth in the FCS with 77.7 rushing yards against and is tied for 22nd with 20.7 points against per game.
 
Special Teams
DaMario Crawford is one of eight players in the FCS with a kickoff return touchdown this season after his 94-yard touchdown against CCSU. It was tied for the fourth-longest return in program history and is the first kick return touchdown for Saint Francis since Makai Jackson on Sept. 17, 2022 at Wagner. Aidan Cirulli is fourth in the NEC with 41.7 yards per punt. Mac Plummer is 4-for-5 on field goal attempts and had a season-long 50-yard field goal at Kent State. Shawn Phillips also blocked the first field goal for Saint Francis since Ray Crittenden at Morgan State on Oct. 2, 2021.
 
Last Time Out
Saint Francis dropped its first home and conference game of the 2024 season 27-20 against CCSU. The Blue Devils scored the first six points behind back-to-back field goal drives in the first five minutes. Crawford immediately responded on the ensuing kickoff with a 94-yard touchdown and opened a 7-6 Red Flash lead. CCSU scored a touchdown of its own at 12:39 remaining in the second with a seven-yard quarterback rushing touchdown and opened a 13-7 lead. After CCSU punter Aidan Clark booted an 84-yard punt to the Saint Francis three-yard line, McElroy took the first play of the drive for a 97-yard touchdown and opened a 14-13 lead. CCSU scored the final points of the half on an 11-yard passing touchdown with 25 seconds remaining and led 20-14. Brown Jr. recovered a CCSU fumble in the end zone with 5:32 remaining in the third quarter and tied the game at 20 before the extra point was no good. Down to the final two minutes of the game, CCSU took the lead with a 10-yard fumble recovery for a touchdown and opened a 27-20 advantage. Saint Francis was unable to move past its own 30-yard line before CCSU clinched its victory.
 
Scouting Eastern Michigan
The Eagles enter Saturday's game with a 2-1 record and are coming off a double overtime win at home against Jacksonville State. Their only loss was 30-9 at Washington, who was receiving votes in national polls at the time of the game. Eastern Michigan's offense is led by quarterback Cole Snyder who is 59-of-92 for 643 yards, three touchdowns and no interceptions. Oran Singleton leads the program with 17 catches for 179 yards, followed by Terry Lockett Jr.'s 14 catches for 155 yards. Delbert Mimms III leads the rushing attack with 146 yards and two touchdowns. Justin Jefferson is tied for the Mid-American Conference lead with 3.0 sacks. Zach Mowchan leads the program with 26 total tackles (10 solo) followed by JT Killen's 20 total tackles. Jordan Toney has one fumble recovery for the only takeaway of the Eagles' season. Kicker Jesus Gomez is 8-for-9 on field goal attempts and is 2-for-2 in 50-plus yard attempts. He converted a 57-yard field goal at Washington and is one of four FBS kickers with a field goal of at least 57 yards. The Eagles were selected to finish sixth out of 12 programs in the MAC Football Coaches Preseason Poll.
 
All-Time vs. Eastern Michigan
Eastern Michigan was Saint Francis' first FBS opponent in program history when they met on Sept. 3, 2021. The Eagles took a 35-15 victory and scored the game's first 21 points. Eddie Bierals and Dwayne Majors are the only two current Red Flash players to record a stat in the meeting with one assisted tackle each. Majors started the game on the defensive line. Saint Francis is 1-3 against MAC opponents since the 2021 meeting.
 
Around the NEC
Duquesne defeated then-No. 20 Youngstown state 28-25 in a rematch of last season's FBS playoff game. CCSU defeated Saint Francis 27-20 in the first NEC game played of the 2024 season. Wagner took a road victory over Delaware State 30-7 and Robert Morris defeated Mercyhurst at home 55-28. Lehigh narrowly defeated LIU 20-17 and New Hampshire defeated Stonehill 45-6.
 
Week Four in the NEC
Robert Morris takes a trip to Wagner in its first conference game since rejoining the NEC. Saint Francis heads to Eastern Michigan for the only FBS game of the weekend. Mercyhurst heads to No. 3 Montana state and LIU is set to host Rhode Island, who is receiving votes in national polls. Stonehill hosts Sacred Heart and Duquesne hosts West Virginia Wesleyan to round out week four action.
 
Next
Saint Francis has a bye week before taking a trip to Delaware State on Saturday, Oct. 5 at 1 p.m.