Reading, Pa. (October 23, 2026) - Alvernia University (3-3, 3-2) plays host to defending MAC Champions Eastern University (5-1, 5-0) Saturday afternoon in a MAC football clash at 1:00 PM on Alvernia's Turf Field. 

The Golden Wolves come into the weekend with a 3-3 overall record and a 3-2 record in the MAC conference after a big come from behind victory over Albright last weekend. Eastern, who are at the top of the MAC with a 5-0 conference record, come into the weekend after a 17-0 shutout victory over Widener. The Eagles have beat the Golden Wolves all three times they have played but all three have been close games. Last year's 24-14 victory for Eastern was the largest margin of victory for the Eagles over the Golden Wolves with each of the first two matchups being one score ballgames. 

Scouting the Golden Wolves: 

Alvernia comes into the weekend after a comeback victory over crosstown rival Albright College, 20-14. The Golden Wolves posted 20 unanswered points en route to the victory over the Lions despite being out gained 378-169. When the offense struggled to move the ball last week the defense stepped up and stepped up big. Alvernia's defensive unit forced four turnovers against Albright, one of which came as a 74 yard pick six viz Shawn Young, and also recorded five tackles for a loss and three sacks. Eastern does not throw the ball often, but when they do, they are effective, so look for the Alvernia secondary to play a big part in the game Saturday and also look for the likes of Kashantis Anderson, Jordan Smikle and Young to step up and help defend the Eastern rushing attack. 

Alvernia Keys to the Game: 

Stop the Run: 
Yes, this is easier said than done against an Eastern team that leads the MAC in rushing yards with 1,623 and rushes the ball over 45 times per game, but if the Golden Wolves are to have any success against the Eagles tomorrow, it has to start with defending and stopping the rushing attack. The Golden Wolves had big games from their linebacking core and safeties against the Lions, but they will need their defensive line and the likes of Kyle Custis, Darrius Whetstone, Ethan Rebyak and A'myre Stewart-Caceres to stop the run game at the point of attack and frustrate the Eastern offensive line and running backs early. 

Fluster Nabb:
Eastern's quarterback Brett Nabb has only gone over 100 yard passing on two occasions this season but has recorded four 100 yard rushing games to combat that. The Eagles do not pass the ball much on average but when they do Nabb is precise. Nabb has completed 60% of his passes and tossed five touchdown passes including two last week, when the Eagles look to the skies, the Alvernia secondary has to lock up his receivers and shut down the passing attack. 

Convert on 3rd Down:
The Golden Wolves converted just five times in 12 attempts on third down on Saturday against Albright and went 0-2 on fourth down as well. Alvernia must convert on third and fourth downs when they get the opportunity and cannot afford to give the ball back to an Eastern team that thrives on running the football and chewing up the clock. 

Alvernia Players to Watch: 

Kashantis Anderson: 
Anderson, a senior safety, led the charge last weekend against Albright with an interception, forced fumble, fumble recovery and also recorded 11 total tackles. As mentioned earlier, Alvernia's secondary will have to play a massive role this week against the Eagles in both helping stop the run game and also shutting the passing attack down as well. Look for Anderson to be at the forefront of that effort for the Golden Wolves and if Alvernia comes away with a win Saturday, Anderson will for sure be a major part of that. 

Zakai Smullen:
Smullen comes into the week ranked second in the MAC in receiving yards with an even 500 on 28 receptions and three touchdowns. Smullen posted four receptions for 67 yards in the victory over Albright including a massive 25 yard grab down the seam late in the fourth quarter on Alvernia's game winning touchdown drive. After breaking out for a 205 yard performance against King's, Smullen has not gone over 100 yards in the last three games. Look for Smullen to turn it on this weekend against the Eagles and provide a spark on the offensive side of the football for the Golden Wolves. 

LJ Aldas: 
Aldas, a sophomore linebacker, has stepped into the main role in the Alvernia linebacker corps and has been all over the field as of the last four games. Since posting 14 tackles against King's, Aldas has recorded eight, nine and 11 tackles in the last three games and posted a tackle for a loss in all three of those games as well. Aldas also posted a sack in the victory over Albright and a forced fumble and fumble recovery. Along with Anderson, Aldas will need to step up and have a big game this weekend to stop the Eastern rushing attack and get the Alvernia offense back on the field. 

Scouting the Eagles: 

As mentioned above Eastern likes to run the football, a lot. The Eagles average 270 rushing yards per game at a 5.9 yard per rush clip and have scored 16 touchdowns on the ground. While they do favor the run, when they do pass the ball they have success. Brett Nabb, a graduate student quarterback, has completed 60% of his passes and along with that has the second most rushing yards on the team for the Eagles. Eastern's defense is also stout and allows just 12 points per game and 215 yards per game. The Eagles took down Widener, 17-0, last week with both of the touchdowns coming in the pass game. 

Eastern Players to Watch: 

Jeremiah Avrilien
Avrilien features the two headed beast that Eastern has in the run game and has 846 rushing yards on the season and nine touchdowns. Avrilien averages 141 yards per game on the ground and also boasts a 7.2 average yards per carry, both of which lead the MAC. After recording his second lowest rushing yards in a game this season last week against Widener, if Eastern has success running the football like they normally do this weekend, it will come with Avrilien as the feature. 

Brett Nabb
Nabb, a graduate student quarterback, is the second of the two headed beasts in the run game and sits just behind Avrilien with 648 rushing yards on the season. Nabb also posts over 100 rushing yards per game and has five rushing touchdowns to go along with his five passing touchdowns. Nabb tallied his third straight 100 yard rushing effort last week in the win over Widener but it was through the air that he found the endzone. Nabb tossed two touchdown passes last weekend and if the Alvernia defense has success defending the Eastern rushing attack, Nabb will have to step up in the passing game to help supplement the Eastern offense.