Full Game Notes (PDF)

SHIPPENSBURG (0-2) @ CAL U (1-1)
• When: Saturday, Sept. 21, 2018
• Where: California, Pa.
• Stadium: Adamson Stadium (6,500)
• Kickoff: 1 p.m.
• Live Video: CUTVSports1 (YouTube) I Stretch (CUTV Feed)
• Live Radio: WCAL (91.9 FM)
• Live Stats: Click HERE

SERIES BREAKDOWN
• All-Time Series: Shippensburg leads 42-32-1 I History
• First Meeting: 1926 – Shippensburg won 9-7
• Last Meeting: Sept. 15, 2018 @ Shippensburg – Cal U won 57-14 | Recap | Box Score I Video Highlights
• Streak: Cal U +4

NOTES
• Cal U continues crossover play on Saturday afternoon when it faces Shippensburg. Last week, the Vulcans dropped a 35-28 contest to Kutztown after allowing 21 fourth-quarter points. Meanwhile, Shippensburg fell by a 54-19 margin at Slippery Rock after surrendering 48-straight points.
 
• Cal U tied the score in the final minutes before suffering a 35-28 loss to Kutztown with the game-winning touchdown being scored with 14.4 seconds left. The Golden Bears scored a pair of touchdowns in less than one minute early in the fourth quarter to take a 28-21 lead with 10:36 left to play. The Vulcans later mounted a pivotal 12-play scoring drive that was capped by a seven-yard touchdown run by senior Nelson Brown with 2:18 remaining. Cal U recorded five sacks and three interceptions in the loss, including a return for touchdown by senior Lamont McPhatter II.
 
• The Vulcans and Red Raiders are meeting for the sixth time, but just for the second time at Adamson Stadium, since Shippensburg moved to the PSAC East prior to the 2008 season. Cal U and Shippensburg previously met every year from 1954-2007.
 
• An alumnus of the program, Mark Maciejewski is in his ninth season as head coach at Shippensburg. He ranks second in school history with 61 career wins and is the only coach to lead the program to six or more consecutive winning seasons. Maciejewski has led the Red Raiders to at least a share of first place in the PSAC East three times and has been named AFCA Regional Coach of the Year twice.
 
• Shippensburg won four of its last five games last season while featuring the Offensive Player of the Year and Freshman of the Year in the PSAC Eastern Division. Sophomore quarterback Brycen Mussina returns after leading the league with over 3,300 passing yards and 32 passing touchdowns last season. He has tallied over 400 passing yards this season while completing nearly 55 percent of his passes. Junior wide receiver Winston Eubanks has been an All-PSAC East First-Team selection in each of the past two years. He ranks fourth in the league with 217 receiving yards this season after eclipsing the century mark in both games. Shippensburg sits next-to-last in the PSAC this year in rushing offense at 52.5 yards per game. Redshirt freshman Bill Williams leads the team with 81 rushing yards on 20 carries with two touchdowns. The Red Raiders, which graduated all four of their All-PSAC East defensive selections from 2018, rank last in the 16-team league in scoring defense, total defense and rushing defense. Redshirt freshman linebacker Tyler Simon paces the team with 13 tackles while five other players have collected double-digit stops this season. Senior linebacker Tig Spinelli has posted 2.5 TFL and one blocked kick after tallying a career-high 76 tackles last year. Sophomore David Shank is handling both the kicking and punting duties again in 2019 after averaging 34.8 yards per punt last year. He has converted three-of-seven field goals with a long of 33 yards in his career.
 
• The Vulcans are tied with Lincoln (Mo.) for second in the country with 10 turnovers forced through two games this season. Morehouse (Ga.) of the SIAC paces the nation with 12 turnovers forced behind a staggering seven fumble recoveries. Cal U leads NCAA Division II with seven interceptions this year, as six different players have made at least one interception.
 
• The Vulcans have posted a 21-8 record against PSAC East teams since the start of the 2010 season. Cal U has tallied an 11-4 mark at Adamson Stadium against Eastern Division program during that span. Meanwhile, Shippensburg holds a 25-14 record against PSAC West teams since shifting to the Eastern Division in 2008.
 
• Freshman Joey Hood is averaging 44.0 yards on six punts this season with four punts being placed inside the opponents' 20-yard line. Last week, he forced Kutztown to start a pair of drives at its own 1-yard line. Hood is the first punter to average over 40 yards per punt since 2014, as Cal U has used a combination of quarterbacks and wide receivers to handle the punting duties in recent years.
 
• Cal U leads the PSAC and sits fourth in the country in rushing defense through two games, allowing a scant 19.5 yards per game. The Vulcans have yielded only 39 rushing yards on 47 attempts for an average of 0.83 yards per carry. Aiding the effort has been a combined eight sacks this year with sophomores Gerald Brown and Israel Xavier, plus redshirt senior Julian Cox, all collecting 2.0 sacks.
 
• Shippensburg quarterback Brycen Mussina led all freshmen quarterbacks in NCAA Division II last season in passing yards. He is the son of former MLB pitcher Mike Mussina, who played 18 seasons with the Baltimore Orioles and New York Yankees. Mike, who earned 270 career victories, was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame this summer after receiving over 76 percent of the votes in his sixth year on the ballot.
 
• Last week, senior defensive back Lamont McPhatter II registered a 26-yard interception return for a touchdown against Kutztown. He has scored a defensive touchdown in both games this year and now boasts six defensive touchdowns, including four interception returns for touchdown - the most in recent program history (since 2002). McPhatter led NCAA Division II last year with 198 interception return yards.
 
• Sophomore defensive back Jermal Martin, Jr. posted an interception on back-to-back drives last week against Kutztown. He made his initial interception in the end zone during the closing seconds of the first half before recording an interception at midfield on the opening drive of the third quarter. Last year, Martin finished with a pair of interceptions in the victory at Shippensburg.
 
• Last week, senior running back Nelson Brown reached the century mark for the 13th time in his career. He finished with 100 rushing yards on 25 attempts and one touchdown. Brown has totaled at least 20 carries in a game nine times over the last two years after logging nearly 450 attempts in two seasons while at Lenoir-Rhyne.
 
• In two games this year, sophomore linebacker Israel Xavier has tallied a combined 11 stops with 2.0 sacks. He set a career high last week with seven stops (two solo) and posted 1.0 sack for a consecutive game. Xavier previously played at the FCS level in 2017 at Saint Francis, appearing in all 11 games. The Ohio native was an all-state honoree as a senior at the scholastic level.
 
• Senior wide receiver Jordan Dandridge posted 88 receiving yards and one touchdown on five catches against Kutztown. He has collected at least five receptions seven times over his last nine games. A native of Georgia, Dandridge made a pair of catches over 30 yards last week and all 10 of his receptions this year have resulted in either a first down or touchdown.
 
• Last week, redshirt senior linebacker Julian Cox set career highs with 3.0 TFL and 2.0 sacks while tallying seven stops (all solo) against Kutztown. He has registered 12 tackles (eight solo), 3.5 TFL, 2.0 sacks and an interception return for a touchdown this year. Cox suffered a season-ending injury in Week 1 of 2018 after previously playing three years at the FCS level with Albany.
 
• The 10 individuals from Cal U recognized among The PSAC's 150 Contributors will be recognized on Saturday. Three of the 10 individuals served as head coach of the Vulcans with the late Elmo Natali and Jeff Petrucci also having the distinction of being standout players with the program. Former defensive back Rontez Miles is one of only two PSAC 150 Contributors currently on active rosters with NFL teams.