Reading, Pa. (Oct. 11, 2024) - After the midseason bye week, Alvernia Football will return to action on Saturday, October 12th at home as the Golden Wolves welcome in FDU-Florham for game five of the season.
Alvernia is coming off a 34-20 loss at Stevenson on September 28th. The Golden Wolves outscored the Mustangs, 20-13, in the second half. But, Stevenson's 21 point first half lead was too much for the Golden Wolves to overcome.
FDU-Florham enters Saturday with a perfect 4-0 record. The Devils are receiving votes in this week's d3football.com weekly national poll. FDU is coming off a strong 48-26 win over Lebanon Valley in week four. The Devils put up 21 points in the first half against the Dutchmen and never looked back.
FDU-Florham finished 2023 with a 5-5 record overall and a 4-5 record in MAC play. The Devils are under third-year head coach Anthony Van Curen.
Inside the Series
Saturday will be the sixth matchup between the Golden Wolves and Devils. The Devils are 5-0 all-time against Alvernia, including a 41-16 win over Alvernia at FDU in 2023. The last time the two teams met at Alvernia was the 2022 season finale, which the Devils took by a 31-7 decision.
FDU averages 47.8 points per game over Alvernia, a number that is inflated by an 84 point performance by the Devils back in 2019. The 31 points Alvernia allowed against FDU at home in 2022 was the fewest Alvernia has allowed against FDU across the five previous matchups.
Scouting the Golden Wolves
Alvernia's offense has struggled to produce this season. The Golden Wolves are averaging just under 13 points per game and are averaging 206.5 yards per game. Alvernia also is averaging just 24:26 minutes in time of possession. In the air, Alvernia averages 152.5 passing yards per game. On the ground, Alvernia averages 54 rushing yards per game.
The Golden Wolves defense has spent a lot of time on the field so far this season. Alvernia allows 39 points per game and gives up an average of 446 yards per game. Teams have done well on the ground against Alvernia, which helps bolster opponents' time of possession against the Golden Wolves. Alvernia is giving up 224.8 rushing yards per game in comparison to allowing 221.2 passing yards per game.
Alvernia Keys to the Game
Get Out to a Quick Start: Alvernia has been outscored 101-10 in the first half across its first four games this season, and has been shutout in three of the four first halves it has played in. Against a team like FDU-Florham, who has scored 21 points or more in three of its first halves, Alvernia cannot afford to get too far behind early. The Golden Wolves have played better in the second half of games, but the first half lead that opponents build up has been too much to overcome.
Protect the Ball: The Devils are not a team that has taken the ball away much this season, so Alvernia does not want to help them out in that category. FDU only has one fumble recovery and one interception so far this season. Alvernia was averaging two turnovers per game through week through until the Golden Wolves turned the ball over four times against Stevenson. And, the Mustangs took advantage with 21 points off turnovers. Protecting the ball and limiting turnovers will be crucial for the Golden Wolves as they will not want to give any additional opportunities to an already explosive offense in FDU.
Win 3rd Down Conversions: Alvernia has struggled to extend drives on third down this season. The Golden Wolves enter Saturday with a 16% conversion rating on third down. Alvernia has to find a way to move the chains and extend drives on crucial downs. Defensively, Alvernia allows a 49% conversion rate on 3rd date. FDU-Florham is a team that is very good at moving the chains. The Devils have a 54% 3rd conversion rate and are ninth best across DIII at 3rd down conversions. The Golden Wolves will have to find a way to convert their own opportunities and stop the Devils on their 3rd downs.
Golden Wolves to Watch
Colin Payne - After struggling in weeks two and three, Payne had his most productive week against Stevenson since week one at Ursinus. Payne threw for 163 yards and a touchdown on 14-for-20 passing. He will need to keep the ball secure this week against FDU, but look for Payne to benefit from Alvernia's week off last week.
Dachan Thompson: Like Payne, Thompson had his best week since week one with 117 receiving yards against the Mustangs for his second 100+ yardage game this season. Thompson. Thompson averaged over 23 yards per reception against the Mustangs, and he will look to keep that momentum going against the Devils. And, like he usually is, Thompson is a mismatch against the slated starters of the FDU secondary.
McCabe Piavis: Piavis had a great game against the Mustangs in week four and had his first solid week since transitioning to a linebacker role for the Golden Wolves right before week one. Piavis had two interceptions, and ran one back for 25 yards to set up an Alvernia touchdown in the fourth quarter. Piavis is a threat at both the line of scrimmage and in pass defense. Piavis will be crucial in slowing down FDU's dual-threat quarterback Ryon Thomas, as well as running back Kwanir Edwards.
Kashantis Anderson: Anderson is having a great sophomore season for the Golden Wolves at defensive back. Anderson leads Alvernia with 31 tackles through the first four games this season and is averaging just under eight tackles per game. Anderson also has one interception this season and a half tackle for a loss.
Scouting the Devils
FDU is a high-scoring, explosive team. The Devils have not scored any less than 35 points in any of their four matchups this season and average 38.75 points per game. FDU averages 441 yards per game and only gives up an average of 243 yards per game. They have scored 22 touchdowns this season and have only given up seven.
FDU is fourth in the nation in passing efficiency with a 198.58 rating, and are fifth in the nation in average time of possession at 34:21.
The Devils defense holds its opponents to a 25% 3rd down conversion rate and limits opponent time of possession to 25 minutes per game.
Devils to Watch
Ryon Thomas (QB): Thomas is coming off a week four performance that earned him his second MAC Player of the Week honor. He threw four 204 yards and two touchdowns and rushed for 139 yards and three more touchdowns against Lebanon Valley. Thomas enters game five with an 80% completion rating and seven touchdowns. He is also a threat to rush the ball and averages just over 60 rushing yards per game. He also has ten rushing touchdowns to go along with his seven passing touchdowns this season. This will be Thomas' third time in the starting role against Alvernia. Over the last two meetings, Thomas has thrown for a combined 523 yards passing and seven touchdowns.
Kwanir Edwards (RB): Kwanir Edwards was named to the week four D3Football.com Team of the Week following a 193 rushing yard performance with three touchdowns against Lebanon Valley. Edwards is averaging 108.75 rushing yards per game with five rushing touchdowns this season. He is the primary rusher for a team that averages 189 rushing yards per game.
Christian Puntolillo (S): Puntolillo will likely be one of the primary defenders assigned to slow down Dachan Thompson. At 6-1, 205 lbs, Puntolillo is the biggest of the slated secondary starters for FDU. He has 23 tackles on the season with three pass breakups.
Aaron Smith (S): Smith joined Edwards on last week's D3Football.com Team of the Week. Smith had eight tackles and a game-ending interception against the Dutchmen. On the season, Smith leads the Devils with 25 total tackles. Along with his interception against Lebanon Valley, Smith has three pass breakups and a fumble recovery.
Ginika Ozurumba (LB): The Devils enter Saturday with 16 sacks and 32 tackles for a loss. Ozurumba accounts for three of those sacks and eight of the team's 32 tackles for a loss. He will likely be a heavy presence in Alvernia's backfield on Saturday. Ozurumba is third in the conference in tackles for a loss.
Game Information
Kickoff is set for 1:00 PM at Alvernia University. The stadium opens at 11:30 AM on Saturday morning, and tickets will be available for purchase in the PEC beginning at 11:30 AM. All tickets are $5.
Live options for Saturday are available at auwolves.com. The game will be broadcast to MACtv, and Billy Fisher and Dane Sabarese will be on the call for Alvernia.
