SHIPPENSBURG Red Raiders (1-0, 1-0 PSAC East) at EDINBORO Fighting Scots (0-0, 0-0 PSAC West)
 Shippensburg Game Notes
Radio:  WFSE 88.9 (Streamed on www.edinboronow.com)
TV:  ETV (Streamed on www.edinboro.tv)

The Game Story
After opening the season with a 30-10 loss to Saint Jospeh's(Ind.), Edinboro plays the first of ten straight games against PSAC competition. The Fighting Scots will play at Sox Harrison Stadium for the second straight week, hosting a Shippensburg team which rolled over Seton Hill, 64-14, in its season opener. Unlike a year ago when all games against PSAC competition counted, this year the games against Eastern Division opponents will not count in the league standings.

The Fighting Scots are looking to snap a string of three straight losing seasons. That marks the first time with three consecutive losing campaigns since a stretch of six straight losing seasons from 1997-2002.

Edinboro will honor members of the 1965 team at Saturday's game as part of the celebration of the 50th anniversary of Sox Harrison Stadium. The first game at Sox Harrison Stadium was played on October 2, 1965 against Slippery Rock.

Edinboro is staring at another demanding schedule in 2015. Eight of the 11 teams on the 2015 slate posted winning records, with Slippery Rock and Gannon winning nine games, Saint Joseph's and California(Pa.) eight games, and Mercyhurst seven.  The combined record of the eleven 2015 opponents is 65-56, but the combined records of the eight teams with winning records was 59-29. 

The Fighting Scots sport a new look this season, with a significant change in uniforms. For the first time black will be incorporated into the uniforms, with the Fighting Scots able to choose from red or black pants, along with red and white jerseys. Edinboro will don red jerseys and black pants for the season opener. 

Edinboro hassomeone other than a Harris opening the season as the starter at quarterback for the first time since 2005. Trevor Harris was the starter from 2006-09, and younger brother Cody took over in 2010 and would be the starter to open the year for the next five years. Jake Sisson, who made one start a year ago as a true freshman, opened the season under center a week ago. 

While six starters return on offense and six more on defense, youth will once again be served in 2015.  The 2015 roster features 38 true freshman and 10 redshirt freshman. Many are expected to see time as head coach Scott Browning and his staff tries to reap the benefits of a strong recruiting class. A year ago a total of 43 games were started by true freshman.

Edinboro faced a Saint Joseph's that featured one of the top ground games in the country the last two years. The Pumas would finish with 235 yards on the ground. Now they must try to slow down a Shippensburg ground game that leads the PSAC and ranks 14th in Division II after rushing for 292 yards vs. Seton Hill. The Red Raiders rank second nationally in scoring (64.0 ppg.) and 18th in total offense (536.0 ypg.). 

Edinboro was picked to finish seventh in the PSAC West in the coaches' preseason poll after being picked to finish sixth the previous two years. The Fighting Scots finished in a tie for sixth in 2014. Shippensburg was 6-5 a year ago. The Red Raiders were tied for third, along with next week's opponent -- East Stroudsburg, in the PSAC East in the coaches preseason poll.

On TV/Radio
The Edinboro-Saint Joseph's game can be heard live on WFSE FM 88.9, with Mike Fenner providing the play-by-play and Tyler Trumbauer the commentary. ETV, Edinboro's student television station, will also televise the contest. In addition, all Edinboro radio broadcasts will be aired by the Keystone Sports Network. The games will be broadcast on ESPN 92.7 FM in Erie and WWCB 1370 AM in Corry, Pa., in addition to being streamed live.  

The All-Time Series 
Shippensburg leads 25-24-1
Edinboro and Shippensburg met for the first time since 2009 a year ago, with the Red Raiders making it back-to-back victories with a 47-21 victory at Seth Grove Stadium. Prior to 2009 the two teams had met on a yearly basis since 1962. Edinboro had won the previous four meetings with Ship before the 2009 contest.  

The Last Meeting 
2014 -- Shippensburg 47, Edinboro 21
The Fighting Scots jumped out to a 7-0 lead on Cody Harris' 19-yard touchdown pass to Darren Massey in the first quarter. After that, it was all Shippensburg as the Red Raiders scored the next 33 points.  They led 19-7 at the half, then tacked on two more scores to start the third quarter. Harris would throw another touchdown pass, this one covering eight yards to Kolbe Hughes, and accounted for the third on a six-yard run. He completed 29 of 36 passes for 300 yards. Edinboro would finish with 361 yards, but the high-powered Shippensburg attack totaled 479 yards on the rainy afternoon. Chris Lawshe and Ryan Zapoticky split time at quarterback and completed 25 of 36 passes for 233 yards and 3 TDs. Blair Brooks scored a pair of touchdowns on the ground and ran for 170 yards to pace a ground game that accounted for 246 yards. Massey enjoyed an outstanding day in the loss, catching 11 passes for 161 yards.  Harris completed 29 of 36 passes for 300 yards with 2 TDs and an interception. 

Last Week 
Saint Joseph's(Ind.) 30, Edinboro 10 
Edinboro opened the 2015 season with a 30-10 loss to Saint Joseph's(Ind.) on Thursday night in front of a crowd of 4,172 at Sox Harrison Stadium. On a hot and humid night a veteran Saint Joseph's squad wore down a young Edinboro squad which played a number of true freshmen. The Pumas scored the last 20 points of the game after Edinboro tied the score at 10-10 early in the third quarter on a 32-yard field goal by Austin Reese. Justin Kempka accounted for Edinboro's touchdown, catching a two-yard pass from Jake Sisson. Saint Joseph's was one of the top rushing teams in Division II a year ago, averaging 242.6 ypg. rushing. They would end the night with 235 yards on the ground, while Edinboro managed 100 yards, most of that on the final series. Saint Joseph's finished with 430 total yards, while Edinboro had 315 yards. Most of that came through the air behind sophomore Sisson, who was making his second career start. Sisson completed 26 of 42 passes for 215 yards, but threw four costly interceptions.  The bright spot for Edinboro was wide receiver Darren Massey. The junior tied David Bostic's school record for receptions in a game with 13, good for 100 yards. He also moved into 11th place in career receptions with 119.  Alex Caratelli, a former transfer from Robert Mossris playing in his first game at Edinboro, added 5 receptions for 56 yards, and Connor Hollenbeck caught 5 balls for 49 yards. Ja'maal Eveillard led Edinboro in rushing with 66 yards on six carries, all in the final series of the game. Cory Bell got the start at tailback and gained 42 yards on 13 rushes.    
     
Shippensburg 64, Seton Hill 14 
Shippensburg scored on eight of its final nine drives in its season-opening win against Seton Hill, including twice on defense, as the Red Raiders used a balanced offensive attack and forced three turnovers to rout the visiting Griffins, 64-14. a 24-point explosion in a stretch of five minutes transformed a close game into a lopsided affair.   While the Shippensburg offense piled up 536 yards, including 292 on the ground, the defense played a major role in the victory. The SU defense scored twice,  on an interception and fumble return, forced three turnovers, and recorded three sacks. On the offensive side, Justin Pyle scored three times, catching touchdown passes of 19 and 34 yards and scoring on a one-yard run. Quarterback Ryan Zapoticky finished the day 15-of-26 for 244 yards and four touchdowns while also running a team-high 13 times for 59 yards. Colin McDermott ended as SU's leading rusher with 12 carries for 80 yards, all in the fourth quarter. Andrew Smith had 148 all-purpose yards (58 rushing), and Pyle had 128 all-purpose yards (75 receiving).
          
The Coaches
Scott Browning (Ohio State '81) took over as Edinboro's 13th head coach on January 5, 2006, and in his first six seasons he tied the record for most wins by a coach during that period.  Browning is entering his tenth season with a 57-43 record, and is in his 30th season as a member of the Edinboro staff.  With the season-opening 35-34 win over Walsh in 2013, he became the third coach at Edinboro to reach 50 wins, joining Tom Hollman and Bill McDonald.   The 2014 win over Clarion was his 55th, moving him into sole possession of second place in career victories.  Browning was certainly no stranger to Fighting Scot football when he was hired as head coach, serving as an assistant coach for the previous twenty years. While at Edinboro he has coached the offensive linemen, defensive backs and running backs, along with serving as the offensive coordinator.  Browning became the first head coach at Edinboro to debut with a win since McDonald in 1969 when the Fighting Scots opened the 2006 season with a 28-14 win at West Chester.  He went on to lead Edinboro to a 6-5 finish, the most wins ever by a first-year coach.  That was followed by a 7-4 finish in 2007.  His next two Fighting Scot editions recorded a school-record tying nine wins.  In 2008 Edinboro ended the year at 9-2 and was ranked 20th in the final AFCA Top 25.  The Fighting Scots had a 9-4 record in 2009, making the NCAA playoffs for the first time in his tenure.  Edinboro would end the year 24th in the AFCA poll.  The Boro posted back-to-back 7-4 finishes in 2010 and 2011.  The 4-6 finish in 2012 represented Browning's first losing season as head coach.
 
Mark "Mac" Maciejewski (Shippensburg '92) was named the head coach at his alma mater on December 8, 2010, replacing long-time mentor Rocky Rees. Now in his fifth season as head coach and 15th overall season at Shippensburg, he has enjoyed record-breaking success. His 25 wins in his first three seasons are the most in a three-year period in 110 years of football history at Shippensburg. In 2012, Maciejewski was named the AFCA Division II Region I Coach of the Year and the PSAC Eastern Division Coach of the Year after leading Shippensburg to an 11-2 finish. The Red Raiders reached the second round of the NCAA playoffs, winning their first NCAA postseason game since 1991. Shippensburg also played in the PSAC Championship game. In his next two seasons the Red Raiders finished with 7-4 records, and a year ago they were 6-5. He began his coaching career as a graduate assistant in 1995 and 1996. After stints at James Madison and Saint Francis, he returned to coach the SU secondary from 2000-02 before serving as the defensive coordinator from 2003-04. From 2006-10, Maciejewski was named Shippensburg's assistant head coach and was once again charged with leading the secondary. As a defensive lineman from 1989-92, Maciejewski was one of the most intimidating players in Red Raider football history and is one of just three players in program history to receive All-PSAC First Team honors in three consecutive seasons at the same position. Maciejewski finished his playing career with 23 sacks (one shy of the school record) and 28 tackles for loss as a nose guard. He earned Football Gazette and Associated Press Third Team All-America honors in 1991 and '92, respectively. He was elected to the Shippensburg University Athletics Hall of Fame in October 2010. 
         
Browning Comments ... on the Fighting Scots
"I thought defensively at times we didn't play badly if you take the missed tackles out of the equation. I think we developed some bad habits from not hitting enough in the preseason and it carried over into the game. I was disappointed in our total production on offense. We didn't adjust very well. We saw some things on film that we realize we didn't adjust to during the game. The special teams were a bright side. Austin Reese really showed up."

Browning Comments ... on the Red Raiders
"Shippensburg is good. They're explosive offensively. They have a really good quarterback. They do multiple things on and show you multiple formations. Defensively, they're aggressive like they always are. The line is good and the secondary is very strong. They have very good corners and their safeties play smart. They are also strong on special teams and have some very good return men. It will take a great team effort." 

 



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