Golden Ram Football Club: Game Preview

The #9 Golden Rams (9-0) travel to Slippery Rock (9-1) on Saturday in pursuit of their first PSAC title since the championship was resurrected in 2008. Both teams swept their division foes for the right to compete for the conference crown. Kickoff at Mihalik-Thompson Stadium is scheduled for 1:00pm.

This is West Chester's second consecutive trip to the PSAC championship game and third in the last four year, however the Golden Rams fell to IUP last season and dropped the game to Slippery Rock in 2015. Both of those games were played at Farrell Stadium.

Series History:
The Rock narrowly leads the series between the two schools 10-8. Head coach Bill Zwaan is 3-4 against Slippery Rock while his counterpart Shawn Lutz is closing his third season as head coach there.

In the final game of the regular season in 2006, with both teams owning a 7-3 record and the winner destined for the NCAA playoffs, West Chester won by a score of 21-20 when the Rock's 48-yard field goal attempt drifted wide left in the pouring rain in Slippery Rock. In 2010 also in Slippery Rock, Shawn Leo kicked a field goal to put the Golden Rams up 27-24 with two and a half minutes left. But the Rock converted a 47-yard field goal of their own with 31 seconds left to send the game into overtime. The Rock quickly scored a touchdown in overtime, but Nick Garcia blocked the point after giving West Chester hope. Although the Golden Rams picked up a first down, they were unable to get into the end zone and fell 33-27.

West Chester crushed the Rock in the first round of the 2014 NCAA playoffs at Farrell Stadium. The 2015 PSAC championship game pitted these two schools against each other, but Slippery Rock humiliated the Golden Rams in that game. The Rock has also won the past two games as these two teams faced each other in the early season crossover mathcup in 2016 and 2017.

Last 10 Meetings:

Year	H/A	W/L	Score	Year	H/A	W/L	Score
1974	Away	Loss	20-7	2011	Home	Win	20-17
1996	Home	Win	31-21	2014	Home	Win	46-20
1997	Away	Loss	27-14	2015	Home	Loss	61-12
2006	Away	Win	21-20	2016	Home	Loss	36-28
2010	Away	Loss	33-27 OT	2017	Away	Loss	49-42

Last Meeting:

09/09/2017 Slippery Rock 49 - West Chester 42

Despite outgaining the Rock by over 100 yards, the Golden Rams dropped a 49-42 decision in Slippery Rock. West Chester was doomed by 17 penalties resulting in 162 yards and the Rock's big plays. Slippery Rock touchdowns included a 96-yard kickoff return, a 43-yard run, a 37-yard pass, a 47-yard punt return, and a 90-yard pass. But after West Chester tied the game at 42 with six minutes left, Slippery Rock executed a 9-play, 81-yard drive for the final score.

Quarterback Paul Dooley was 19 of 38 for 261 yards and three touchdowns, primarily targeting Rasheem James (7 catches, 95 yards, 2 TD's). A.J. Long had four carries for 15 yards, but did not attempt a pass.

Jarey Elder and Shaquille James each had an interception and Jordan Burney recovered a fumble. All three turnovers led to West Chester touchdowns. Linebacker Tyler Morrissey had a game-high ten tackles and Brendan Paulison averaged 58 yards on seven punts.

Scouting the Opponent:

For the fourth consecutive year, the Rock has turned to a transfer for their quarterback. Unlike the previous three which came from FCS schools with just one year of eligibility left, dual-threat Roland Rivers III (144 of 235, 1,987 yards, 21 TD's, 6 int's; 91 carries, 437 yards, 7 TD's) is a junior from Gulf South Conference power Valdosta St. He is the Rock's third signal caller as the first two encountered injuries early in the season.

Eight different receivers have double-digit receptions, topped by Henry Litwin (37 catches, 617 yards, 6 TD's), Jermaine Wynn Jr. (36 catches, 494 yards, 7 TD's) and 6'3" Austin Scott (18 catches, 376 yards, 2 TD's). At 6'2, 218lb, Delaware transfer running back Wes Hills (147 carries, 1,113 yards, 12 TD's; 20 catches, 141 yards) is a big threat in the offense. The line is anchored by All-PSAC right tackle Steve Gaviglia.

The Rock's top tacklers are their three linebackers: Canisius transfer LB Brad Zaffram (61 tackles, 9.0 tackles for loss), Tim Vernick (57 tackles, 8.0 tackles for loss), and Trysten McDonald (53 tackles, 8.5 tackles for loss, 3 fumble recoveries). The secondary is led by free safety Kyle Hall (50 tackles, 5 interceptions), Ohio State transfer Eric Glover-Williams (29 tackles, 2 interceptions, 5 pass breakups), and defensive back Tyree Spearman (16 tackles, 8 pass breakups). Defensive end Chad Kuhn (40 tackles, 7.5 sacks) and Indiana State transfer defensive end Trey Blandford (34 tackles, 7.0 sacks) put the pressure on the quarterback.

Glover-Williams and Jermaine Wynn Jr. handle the bulk of the punt and kick returns. All-PSAC Kicker Jake Chapla is only 12 of 21 on field goals, but that includes 2 of 4 from 50+. He's only missed one PAT in 54 attempts. Chapla also does the punting and kickoffs and has been named PSAC West Special Teams Athlete of the Week four times this season.

Analysis:

Slippery Rock’s only loss this season came at Shippensburg in a manner that you almost have to see to believe. The Rock was leading 21-18 and had just thwarted a Shippensburg drive by intercepting the ball at the two-yard line with a minute left. But with only needing to run out the clock, on their second play, the Rock quarterback wasn’t ready for the snap which bounced off him and was recovered by the Raider defense in the end zone for the game-winning touchdown. Despite being down 25-21 with just 56 seconds remaining, Slippery Rock drove down to the Shippensburg 30-yard line, but their second down pass was intercepted to end the threat.

These two teams are among the top four in the PSAC in most offensive and defensive categories. Both teams have dual-threat quarterbacks, a balanced offensive attack, a defense that likes to get after the quarterback, and solid special teams. Both teams protect the ball well with West Chester being +10 and Slippery Rock being +6. If you can believe it, the Rock is actually penalized more often than the Golden Rams, so as long as West Chester doesn't get into retaliation, that may play into WCU's favor. And what impact will the freezing winds have on the game? This is expected to be the most challenging opponent that either will have faced thus far this season, and that's to be expected for a conference championship game.

Massey Ratings gives the Rock a one-point edge in the game while Atomic Football favors the Rock by four.

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