Game Preview - Shippensburg

West Chester University (3-2, 1-1) travels to Seth Grove Stadium on Saturday for a 1:00 pm kickoff against the Shippensburg Raiders (1-4, 1-1)

Series History:
West Chester leads the overall series 28-13-1. In his 20 years at West Chester, Bill Zwaan is 15-6 against the Raiders, as the two schools faced each other twice in both the 2004 and 2017 seasons. Shippensburg alumnus Mark Maciejewski is in his 13th season as head coach and has a record of 81-48.

In one of the most memorable games in West Chester football history, Golden Ram quarterback Sean McCartney made his first collegiate start and threw for 444 yards and five touchdowns to lead West Chester to a 44-43 victory in two overtimes in a nationally televised Thursday night game in 2010. The following year, West Chester laid a 52-17 loss on the Raiders, but Shippensburg returned the favor in 2012, beating West Chester 42-24 on homecoming at Farrell Stadium and continued on to the PSAC championship game and the NCAA playoffs that year.

In 2013, Shawn Leo booted a 26-yard field goal with one second left to give West Chester the thrilling victory. And in 2017, West Chester defeated Shippensburg on the road in October, only to have to do it again in the first round of the NCAA Division II playoffs.

Last 10 Meetings:

Year	H/A	W/L	Score	Year	H/A	W/L	Score
2013	Away	Win	32-29	2017	Away	Win	27-6
2014	Home	Win	55-28	2018	Home	Win	28-21
2015	Away	Loss	27-11	2019	Away	Win	29-21
2016	Home	Win	31-15	2021	Away	Loss	34-18
2017	Away	Win	37-27	2022	Home	Loss	20-13

Last Meeting:

10/09/2022 Shippensburg 20 - West Chester 13

It was a tale of two halves as West Chester took a 13-0 lead into the locker room after two quarters, but the Raiders shutout the Golden Rams in the second half and came away with a 20-13 win. Shippensburg used a big play on each of their final two possessions which led to quick touchdowns and West Chester's clock consuming drives weren't enough to keep the ball out of Ship's hands.

WCU quarterback Ethan Kohler (18 of 34, 328 yards) had a big day, primarily connecting with Rahiem Bowens (5 catches, 100 yards). The defense was led by Sterlen Barr, Jr. (6 TKL) and Khalib Slaughter (4 TKL, 1 int). Sean Henry converted field goals of 30 and 32 yards.

Scouting the Opponent:

The Raiders are working through quarterback issues. They started the season with Boston College transfer Sam Johnson III (22 of 51, 329 yards, 3 TD's, 1 int), then moved on to Maine transfer Joey McCracken (19 of 37, 213 yards, 2 int) and have recently started West Virginia transfer Sam Stoner (27 of 50, 419 yds, 1 TD). McCracken is a redshirt sophomore from Lititz while Stoner is a freshman from York. While Stoner has only two net yards rushing, he also has two touchdowns which accounts for half of the Raiders' scores on the ground.

Their primary running backs are Tanner Hess (54 carries, 181 yards, 1 TD), Temple transfer Onasis Neely (29 carries, 100 yards) and Jake DeLuccia (30 carries, 85 yards, 1 TD), although Delucia (9 catches, 167 yards, 1 TD) also plays a role in the passing game. All-PSAC East receiver Redd Douglas (21 catches, 313 yards, 1 TD) and Jaimen Bryant (13 catches, 220 yards, 1 TD) are also top targets.

Shippensburg's 3-3-5 defense is led up front by defensive end Ibrahim Diawara (8 TKL, 2.0 sacks) and tackle Jacoby Sherard (10 TKL, 2.0 sacks). Linebackers Terrance Peterson Jr. (31 TKL, 1 sack) and Evan Townsend-Henry (28 TKL, 5.5 TFL) are in the middle, while defensive backs Isaiah Gilmore (31 TKL, 3.5 TFL) and Nasir Greer (9TKL, 5 PBU) mind the deep threat.

Kicker Jaxson Montross (5 of 8 FG, long 45) does all the kicking for the Raiders and is the reigning PSAC East Special Teams Player of the Week.

Two of Shippensbrug's top players from last season - wide recevier Ian Sheehan and linebacker Khi'on Smith - are now at Duquense and Wagner, respectively.

Analysis:

Shippensburg has one of the worst offenses in the conference from both a scoring and yardage perspective. WCU faced a similar case last week and it took overtime for the Golden Rams to eek out a victory. West Chester allows 200 yds/game on the ground, and opponents have scored 14 touchdowns on 17 trips into the red zone, so there's no stiffening when their backs are against the wall. Can the Golden Ram defense stop their opponent on third down? They may need to as the Raider defense, despite the 1-4 record, is fifth aganst the pass, sixth against the run, and fifth in overall yardage. Don't be fooled by the record, West Chester will have a battle on their hands.

Massey Ratings is expecting a 24-23 Shippensburg win while Versus Sports simulates a 28-23 Golden Ram victory.

Game Coverage:

Live Stats   Audio   Video

West Chester Athletic Site - West Chester Heads To Shippensburg With Unfinished Business Ahead

Coach Zwaan Podcast - Inside the Huddle Week 5

PSAC Site - PSAC Week 6 Football Notes

D2football - PSAC Columnist - PSAC Week Six Preview