Complete Game Notes (PDF) ALL-TIME SERIES  |  Game-by-Game Scores
Slippery Rock owns an 11-5 advantage in the all-time series that dates back to 1984. The teams are meeting for the fourth straight season and the fifth time in the last six years. This is the fourth time since 2011 that SRU will play a PSAC title game at Kutztown. The Bears are 2-1 in the previous three home PSAC title games against SRU. Each of the last four games in the series and seven of the last nine in the series have been decided by one-possession scores, as have all five KU wins in the series.
 
• First Meeting: 1984 (SRU won 21-6)
• Last Meeting: 2022 (KU won 23-21)
• Current Streak: Kutztown +2
• at KU: SRU leads 6-3
• at SRU: SRU leads 5-2
• Most Points Scored (KU): 56 ( 2012)
• Biggest Win Margin (KU): 8 (2017)
• Most Points Scored (SRU): 68 (1999)
• Biggest Win Margin (SRU): 48 (2013)
• Last SRU Win: 2019 at KU (37-35)
 
COACHING MATCHUP
Slippery Rock head coach Shawn Lutz is in his 28th overall year at The Rock and his eighth year (seventh season) as head coach, where he owns a 68-17 record with five PSAC West titles and four trips to the NCAA playoffs. Lutz was the PSAC West Coach of the Year in both 2018 and 2019 and was the Don Hansen Football Gazette Division II National Coach of the Year in 2019. The 68 wins are the most among all PSAC head coaches since the 2016 season. Lutz was an assistant at SRU for 20 years before taking over the program in 2016. He has been a member of the coaching staff for 13 of SRU's 20 PSAC West titles. Lutz played tight end at West Virginia University, graduating in 1996, and earned a master's degree in sport management from SRU in 2003.
 
Jim Clements is in his ninth season as the head coach at Kutztown, where he has posted a winning record in every season and has become the winningest coach in program history. He has led the Golden Bears to four PSAC East titles, one PSAC championship and three trips to the NCAA Division II playoffs. Clements owns a record of 75-27 in his eight seasons at Kutztown and also posted a record of 66-24 in eight seasons as the head coach at Division III Delaware Valley. He is a 1996 graduate of Widener.
 
NATIONAL RANKINGS
Slippery Rock moved up one spot No. 4 in the AFCA rankings and moved up one spot to No. 5 in the D2football.com rankings this week. Kutztown is receiving votes in the AFCA poll this week. SRU has been ranked in every AFCA national poll since the final poll of 2018. Both updated polls are available on page nine of the PDF notes linked above.
 
SRU PSAC CHAMPIONSHIP HISTORY
Slippery Rock is making its fourth appearance in the last five seasons and 14th overall appearance in a PSAC Championship game (the game was played from 1960-87, was eliminated from 1987-07, then reinstated in 2008). The Rock are making their eighth appearance in the title game since it was reinstated by the league in 2008, the most of any program in the conference. SRU is playing in its seventh PSAC title game in the last 10 seasons and its eighth since the 2011 season. The Rock are 7-6 in their previous 13 title games and are 3-2 in their last five trips with wins in 2014, 2015 and 2019. SRU has won 12 overall PSAC championships with five awarded based on record in the years that did not have a title game.
 
KU PSAC CHAMPIONSHIP HISTORY
Kutztown has two PSAC titles to its name, which both came at home after wins over SRU in 2011 and 2021. The Golden Bears are making their fifth trip to the title game since it was reinstated, which ranks second in the league behind SRU. No other teams in the league have made more than three appearances in the title game since 2008.
 
STATE GAME APPEARANCES SINCE 2008
Slippery Rock (8), Kutztown (5), Cal (3), West Chester (3), IUP (3), Shippensburg (3), Bloomsburg (1), Shepherd (1).
 
FAMILIAR FOES IN PSAC TITLE GAME
SRU and Kutztown will be playing each other for the PSAC title for the third time in the last four seasons and the fourth time since the 2011 season. All four of those meetings have been played at Kutztown. The Golden Bears won in 2011 and 2021 and Slippery Rock won in 2019.
 
CLOSE GAMES IN SERIES
Each of the last four games between Kutztown and Slippery Rock have been decided by one possession scores with the largest deficit in any of those games being eight points. Seven of the last nine meetings between the teams have been decided by eight points or less, including all five of Kutztown's wins in the series and all three of the PSAC Championship game meetings between these two teams.
 
BEST ON BEST
This game features the No. 1 offense (SRU) in the PSAC against the No. 1 defense (KU) in the PSAC. Slippery Rock ranks first in the PSAC in scoring (46.0 ppg), total offense (481.9 ypg), passing offense (296.2 ypg), rushing offense (185.7 ypg), total first downs (242) and third down conversions (56%). Kutztown ranks first in the PSAC in scoring defense (14.7 ppg), total defense (257.0 ypg) and opponent first downs (140), while ranking second in rushing defense (87.2 ypg) and third in passing defense (169.8 ypg).
 
LAST MEETING – NOV. 12, 2022  |  Box Score
Kutztown scored on a 61-yard touchdown pass late in the fourth quarter to earn a 23-21 win over a depleted SRU team in week 11 at The Rock last year. SRU played without its starting QB Noah Grover, its top two running backs and wide receiver Kyle Sheets, leaving the offense undermanned against the top defensive unit in the PSAC. Brayden Long made his first career start at QB and played his first meaningful minutes since his senior year of high school in 2019. He threw for 227 yards and one TD with no INT. Cohen Russell caught six passes for 74 yards and one TD. Kutztown got 256 passing yards and two TD from Donny Blaine and 155 receiving yards and one TD from Jerome Kapp, who had the game-winner. KU finished the game with a 365-256 advantage in total offense. SRU went on to the NCAA Playoffs, while KU narrowly missed the postseason with an 8-3 record.
 
LAST WEEK FOR SRU
Slippery Rock put up 670 yards of offense with 28 rushing plays and 28 passing plays on the way to a 56-18 win at Edinboro. The Rock threw for 413 yards and ran for 257 yards while averaging 9.2 yards per carry. Brayden Long went 23-of-27 for 400 yards and five TD. Cohen Russell had career-highs of 180 receiving yards and three TD. Kyle Sheets had his sixth 100-yard game of the season with 104 yards and one TD. Khalid Dorsey and Chris D'Or each had one rushing TD. Donnell Henriquez pulled down one interception and Josh Stokes recovered a fumble forced by Michael Henwood.
 
LONG EARNS FOURTH PSAC WEEKLY HONOR
Junior QB Brayden Long was named the PSAC West Offensive Athlete of the Week for the fourth time this season after throwing for 400 yards with five TD and no INT last week at Edinboro. His passer rating for the game was 270.74, which is the top single-game effort in the region this season and the No. 6 performance in Division II this year. Of the top 15 highest passer ratings this year, Long's performance last week is the only one that included more than 25 pass attempts.
 
LAST WEEK FOR KUTZTOWN
Kutztown scored two fourth quarter touchdowns to complete a 27-17 comeback win on the road at West Chester. Judd Novak hit Mekhi Gibson for a 69-yard TD pass for the go-ahead points with 8:14 to play and Darryl Davis-McNeil scored on a 14-yard run with 1:41 to play to put the game away. KU finished with a 369-328 edge in total offense with 218 passing yards and 151 rushing yards. Novak completed 11-of-21 passes for 218 yards with two TD and no INT. Davis-McNeil rushed for 76 yards and one TD on 13 carries. Kurtis Ravenel Jr. caught six passes for 116 yards and one TD.
 
REGIONAL RANKINGS
Slippery Rock was ranked No. 1 in the second set of Super Region One rankings released this week by the NCAA. The regional rankings will determine which seven teams from Super Region One make the NCAA Playoffs. Rankings below.
 
SUPER REGION ONE RANKINGS
Nov. 6, 2023

Rank	School	Conf.	DII W-L
1	SLIPPERY ROCK	PSAC	10-0
2	Tiffin	GMAC	10-0
3	Charleston	MEC	8-1
4	California (Pa.)	PSAC	7-2
5	Kutztown	PSAC	8-2
6	Shepherd	PSAC	8-2
7	East Stroudsburg	PSAC	8-2
8	Fairmont State	MEC	8-2
9	Frostburg State	PSAC	6-3
10	New Haven	NE10	6-2

KINGS OF THE WEST
Slippery Rock has lost just two PSAC Western Division games since Oct. 21, 2017 and is 35-2 against the Division since then, including 33-2 since the beginning of 2018 with five straight PSAC West titles. The last time SRU didn't claim at least a share of the PSAC West title was 2017. The Rock have won or at least shared nine of the 12 PSAC West titles dating back to 2011, easily leading all programs in the Division.
 
5 UNDEFEATED TEAMS LEFT IN DIVISION II
Slippery Rock is one of just five undefeated teams remaining in Division II. The Rock are the only unbeaten team in the PSAC and one of just two unbeaten teams in Super Region One, joining Tiffin (10-0) of the Great Midwest Athletic Conference. The other unbeaten teams are Colorado School of Mines, Benedict and Harding, which are all 10-0 as well.
 
50TH STRAIGHT RANKED GAME
Slippery Rock will play its 50th consecutive game as a ranked team this week. The Rock have appeared in every AFCA national poll since the final poll of the 2018 season. The last poll released that did not include SRU in the top 25 was Nov. 13, 2018.
 
HIGHEST RANKING SINCE 1999
Slippery Rock owns a single-digit ranking for the fourth straight year and the seventh time in the last eight seasons. The No. 4 mark is the highest for The Rock football program since it reached its all-time high of a No. 2 ranking in 1999. The Rock have been ranked in the single digits in 14 different seasons since 1962.
 
SRU AS A TOP FIVE RANKED TEAM
Slippery Rock is 18-3 all-time when ranked in the top five. Two of those three losses came in the NCAA Division II Playoffs in 1998 and 1999 and the third loss came against Division I Youngstown State in the 1999 season opener.
 
LOOKING FOR SECOND 11-0 START
Slippery Rock is looking for its second 11-0 start in program history with the first coming in 2019. The Rock won their first 13 games in 2019 to set the program's single-season winning streak record. Prior to that, SRU's best start to a season was a 9-0 final record in 1924 and an 8-0 mark in 1939, both coming before the team played more than 10 games in a season. SRU's dominant teams of the late 90s never played undefeated seasons because they opened the year with Division I games, often losing those before winning out the rest of the regular season.
 
NO CLOSE GAMES
Slippery Rock has won every game this season by more than one possession and has won each of the last nine games by at least 21 points. The closest final score all year was the opener against Wayne State, which SRU won 28-17. That also marked a season-low in scoring for The Rock. SRU has scored at least 42 points in each of the last six weeks and has scored 42 or more points in eighth of 10 games this season.
 
THIRD QUARTER DOMINANCE
Slippery Rock is outscoring opponents 132-13 in the third quarter this year, scoring an average of 13.2 points in the third while allowing just 1.3 points in the third.
 
MIDDLE OF GAMES BELONG TO SRU
Slippery Rock is outscoring opponents 147-51 in the second quarter and 132-13 in the third quarter for a combined advantage of 279-64 over the second and third quarters this season. 
 
STILL NO FIELD GOALS
SRU has attempted only three field goals this season with one of those missing and two being blocked. The Rock are one of just three teams in Division II that have failed to convert a single field goal this season. The other two teams (American International and Shaw) are both 3-7 for a combined record of 6-14 on the year.
 
RUNS OF AT LEAST 25-0 IN EIGHT STRAIGHT
Slippery Rock has gone on runs of at least 25-0 in each of its last eight games, using huge runs to put games out of reach early or to put them away late. Last week, SRU went on a 35-0 run after trailing Edinboro 10-7 entering the second quarter. The week before that, SRU went on a 35-0 run to open the game against Clarion. The week before that, SRU went on a 35-0 run after Cal took a 13-7 lead. The week before that, SRU closed the game on a 25-0 run after Gannon led 24-21 in the third. Before that, SRU went on a 40-0 run at Mercyhurst that began with a 34-0 third quarter. A week before that, The Rock opened the game against IUP on a 28-0 run in the first half. One week before that, SRU went on a 28-0 run at Seton Hill after the game was tied 7-7 and way back in week three, SRU closed the game on a 35-0 run against Millersville after the Marauders led 21-7 in the first half.
 
SECOND BEST TURNOVER MARGIN IN THE NATION
Slippery Rock ranks second Division II in turnover margin, averaging +1.80 turnovers per game. SRU ranks first in the PSAC and fourth nationally in turnovers lost (7) and first in the PSAC and seventh nationally in turnovers gained (25). The Rock also lead the PSAC and rank fifth nationally in interceptions with 17 picks.
 
THIRD DOWN OFFENSE
Slippery Rock enters this week ranked No. 3 in all of Division II in terms of third down offense, converting on 56.2 percent of its third down attempts on the season. The Rock are 63-of-112 on third down this year. SRU also ranks first in the PSAC and eighth nationally in total first downs with 242.
 
ROCK OFFENSE IN THE NATIONAL RANKS
Slippery Rock enters this week with one of the highest-ranked offensive units in the nation. The Rock rank third in Division II in third down conversions (56%), third in fewest interceptions thrown (2), third in completion percentage (70.3%), third in passing efficiency (183.2), fourth in turnovers lost (7), seventh in scoring (46.0 ppg), seventh in passing (296.2 ypg), seventh in total offense (481.9 ypg) and eighth in total first downs (242).
 
PASS COVERAGE AMONG NATION'S BEST
Slippery Rock enters this week ranked 15th in Division II in passing defense, allowing 152.2 passing yards per game. Opponents have a QB efficiency rating of 98.1, which ranks as the 10th lowest among all defenses in Division II. SRU also ranks fifth in interceptions with 17 and seventh in total turnovers gained with 25. Opponents have thrown just seven total TD passes against the SRU defense through the first 10 weeks.
 
RUSHING DEFENSE MUCH STRONGER LAST THREE GAMES
Slippery Rock held Edinboro to 88 rushing yards and Clarion to 84 rushing yards last two weeks, which marked the first games this season SRU has limited teams to under 100 yards rushing. In the last three weeks, SRU has limited Cal, Clarion and Edinboro to 296 combined rushing yards (98.7 ypg) after giving up more than 200 rushing yards per game in three straight weeks to IUP (217), Mercyhurst (221) and Gannon (224) in weeks 5-7.
 
SCORING DRIVE FACTS AND FIGURES
The Rock have scored 31 touchdowns this season on drives that lasted 2:04 or less, including 23 touchdown drives that took 80 seconds or less. SRU has scored touchdowns on 27 different drives that were at least 75 yards and six different drives that went more than 90 yards.
 
OFFENSE EXPLODES AT EDINBORO
The 670 yards put up by SRU last week was the most by any SRU team in more than two years dating back to a 671-yard output at Gannon Oct. 30, 2021.
 
LONG HAS HIGHEST PASSER RATING IN DIVISION II
QB Brayden Long enters this week with the highest QB efficiency rating in Division II at 181.3. He is completing 70% of his passes (215-of-308) for 2,879 yards with 32 TD and just two INT. His two INT are the fewest among any of the 36 QBs in the nation with at least 275 passing attempts on the season.
 
LONG AMONG BEST QUARTERBACKS IN NATION
QB Brayden Long leads the PSAC in every notable passing category and ranks among the national leaders in Division II in several passing categories. He ranks first in Division II in passing efficiency (181.3), third in points responsible for (222), third in completion percentage (70%), fifth in passing touchdowns (32), fifth in yards per attempt (9.35), seventh in passing yards (2,879 yards) and ninth in completions per game (21.5).
 
LONG MOVING UP SINGLE-SEASON RECORD BOOK
Brayden Long ranks tied for second in SRU single-season history in TD passes (32), sixth in passing yards (2,879), eighth in completions (215) and ninth in attempts (308). He needs 21 more completions to move all the way into the top five, 66 more attempts to reach the top five and 121 yards to become the sixth player in SRU history to pass for 3,000 yards in a single-season. 
 
LONG IN CAREER RECORD BOOK ALREADY
Brayden Long has only started 11 games at SRU and already has his sights set on the career top 10 lists at SRU. He enters this week ranked 11th all-time at The Rock in passing yards (3,128) and eighth in passing touchdowns (33). Long is also the most accurate passer in SRU history among any players with at least 10 starts at the QB position, completing 68.3 percent (241-of-353) of his passes with just two interceptions on 353 career attempts.
 
SHEETS AND RUSSELL THE LAST TWO WEEKS
SRU receivers Kyle Sheets and Cohen Russell have both gone over 100 receiving yards in each of the last two weeks, combining for 525 yards and six TD grabs in the last two weeks alone.
 
SHEETS AND RUSSELL CLOSING IN ON 1,000
Kyle Sheets and Cohen Russell are both closing in on 1,000 receiving yards this season and have a chance to become the 10th and 11th players in program history to reach the milestone. Sheets needs just three yards, while Russell is 127 yards away from 1,000. They could become the second duo in SRU history to top 1,000 yards in the same season after Henry Litwin (1,509) and Jermaine Wynn Jr. (1,339) both went over 1,000 yards in 2019.
 
SHEETS AMONG BEST RECEIVERS IN NATION
WR Kyle Sheets was injured on the third play in week one and did not return, finishing with no catches and missing the entire game. He returned the next week and since then has caught 60 passes for 997 yards and 14 touchdowns in nine games. His 14 TD catches are the second most among all players in Division II. Sheets is averaging 110.8 yards per game over the last nine weeks. Despite missing that first game, he still ranks fourth in the nation in TD catches (14), seventh in receiving yards (997) and eighth in receiving yards per game (99.7), even with his per-game averages reflecting the first game.
 
SHEETS CLIMBING SRU RECORD BOOKS
Kyle Sheets enters this week ranked fifth all-time at SRU in touchdown catches (26), sixth in receiving yards (2,251) and seventh in receptions (138). His numbers this fall, all of which came in the last nine games, already rank No. 4 in single-season history at SRU in TD catches (14) and No. 10 in yards (997).
 
RUSSELL WITH CATCHES IN 23 STRAIGHT GAMES
Slot receiver Cohen Russell has at least one catch in every game since the opener in 2022 for a streak of 23 straight games with a catch entering this week. Russell has at least 50 receiving yards in each of the last nine weeks and is coming off back-to-back career-highs the last two weeks. He has 11 catches for 315 yards and three TD the last two weeks.
 
DORSEY AMONG NATIONAL LEADERS
RB Khalid Dorsey enters this week ranked sixth in Division II in average yards per carry at 7.03 yards per rush. Dorsey leads SRU with 745 rushing yards and nine TD on just 106 carries.
 
THREE-HEADED MONSTER IN BACKFIELD
Slippery Rock has the deepest running back stable in the region with Khalid Dorsey, Chris D'Or and Isaiah Edwards. The three running backs all average at least 5.7 yards per carry. Dorsey has 745 yards and averages 7.0 yards per touch, while Edwards has 396 yards and averages 6.5 yards per touch and D'Or has 496 yards and averages 5.7 yards per touch. The trio have combined for 1,637 rushing yards and 27 total touchdowns this fall. Perhaps more importantly, all three are likely among the freshest backs in the league nearing the postseason as none of the three have more than 106 carries.
 
BALL HAWKS ON DEFENSE
The Rock defense has come down with 17 interceptions to rank first in the PSAC and fifth in Division II this fall. Josh Stokes leads the way with five picks to rank 14th in single-season history at SRU, while Eddie Faulkner IV is second on the team with four, Ali Abdul-Hakim has two and Selvin Haynes, Max Heckert, Savion Harrison, Jalen Dangerfield, Munchie Johnson and Donnell Henriquez each have one. In addition to the 17 picks, The Rock have recorded 30 pass breakups for a total of 47 passes defended.
 
ROBERTS UP TO THIRD IN SINGLE-SEASON PAT KICKS
Placekicker Kevin Roberts has made 63-of-65 PAT kicks this season to climb all the way up to No. 3 in the single-season record book at SRU for most made PAT kicks in a season. He trails only all-time SRU scoring leader Jake Chapla, who made 79 in 2019 and 66 in 2018.
 
WE'VE PLAYED A LOT OF FOOTBALL
Slippery Rock has played 63 games since the start of the 2018 season, which is tied with Notre Dame (Ohio) and Shepherd for the most games played among all Super Region One schools. The Rock are averaging an impressive 10.75 wins per year over the last four complete seasons, all of which have resulted in trips to the NCAA Playoffs.
 
WINNING SEASONS STREAK
Slippery Rock has put together a winning season in each of the last 13 years, which ranked ninth among all Division II programs for the longest active winning seasons streak in the country entering this fall. The Rock are already guaranteed to extend that streak to 14 years. California (19 after this year) is the only PSAC team with a longer active streak.

UP NEXT
The NCAA will announce the 2023 Playoff field Sunday night with the NCAA Selection Show airing at www.ncaa.com at 6 p.m.




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