Pioneer Football League Update | Week 13 Lookahead

Valparaiso Beacons Athletics

Valparaiso has done it. They put an end to their nine game losing streak as they took down the Stetson Hatters 32-31 in overtime. It was a game that got off to a bad start for the Beacons as they were shutout in the first half while giving up 17 points putting them down 17-0 at the half. Then in the second half they turned things around as they put up 24 points while only giving up seven to send the game into overtime. Then in overtime they gave up seven points but with nothing to lose they went for two to win the game and converted the play resulting in a much needed win for the Beacons. In this game Valparaiso put up 347 yards in total with 203 coming from the pass and the other 144 coming from the run. While not the most explosive offense at times, it was good enough to help them get the win. For Valparaiso this comeback win earned Rowan Keefe the quarterback the PFL Offensive Player of the Week. He got the award by going 18-26 for 204 yards, with two touchdowns as well as three two-point conversions, and ran for 21 yards and a touchdown on nine carries. Keefe wasn’t the only one on the team to earn an award though as Nic Lendino a defensive back earned the PFL Special Teams Player of the Week award. Lendino earned his award by blocking a punt in the third quarter which helped fuel the fire for their comeback. Lendino also had four tackles in the game with two of them being solo, as well as two pass breakups. Now the 2-9 Beacons will go on the road to Indianapolis, Indiana to take on the Butler Bulldogs in what will be their final game of the year. Watch to see if the Beacons can go out with a bang when they kickoff at 1:00 p.m. ET, with the game available to watch on the FloCollege streaming service. 

Butler Bulldogs Athletics

Butler continues to tumble as the year has come closer and closer to the end. As they suffered a 29-7 loss against the San Diego Toreros. This loss is a tough one to take because when they entered the fourth quarter the score was 7-6 in favor of the Bulldogs, but then the wheels flew off as they gave up 23 unanswered points leading to loss. For the Bulldogs the disastrous fourth quarter had them give up a safety, which then led to a touchdown, an interception which led to a touchdown, and a turnover on downs which led to the third touchdown of the quarter and San Diego’s 23 points. Butler stat wise in this game only managed a total of 216 yards. With a large amount of those yards coming from the pass with 141 of those yards. The run game wasn't helpless though as they put up 75 rushing yards. The Bulldogs did turn the ball over two times in the game as they lost a fumble and threw an interception, as well as turning the ball over on downs four times as they went 1-5 on fourth down in the game.  Just not a good day for the Bulldogs, as they will try and improve their 5-6 record in their final week when they take on the Valparaiso Beacons. This game will take place at 1:00 p.m. ET, and is available to watch on the FLOF streaming service. 

Dayton Flyers Athletics

Dayton stumbled for their second week in a row this time by a score of 14-6 against Drake. That conference loss now has the Flyers at 6-4 overall and 4-3 in the conference giving them no shot at the conference crown going into the final week. For the Flyers this was a game in which they put up plenty of offensive yards; they just couldn’t get the ball into the endzone, as they had 340 yards on the day. 197 of those yards came from the pass and the remaining 143 came from the run. The Flyers were able to put up some yards but they turned the ball over three times as they lost one fumble and threw two interceptions. A couple of turnovers on downs and a missed field goal as well did in the Flyers as it was too much to overcome in this bid to upset the conference leading Drake Bulldogs. Now the Flyers will go on the road in their final game in which they will take on the Davidson Wildcats in a matchup that could have plenty of fireworks with neither side having anything to lose in their final week. To watch this one get on ESPN Plus at 1:00 p.m. ET to see who can win this PFL match-up.

Davidson Wildcats Athletics

Davidson’s high of upsetting Presbyterian didn’t last long as they came crashing down with a 37-10 loss against Marist. The Wildcats are now 2-9 on the year as they had no responses for the Red Foxes in the second half. For the Wildcats this was a game that they had tied at 10 all at the half but then they were shutout in the second half while giving up 27 points leading to a beat down in the loss. For the Wildcats they put up 239 yards on the day as they passed for 193 yards, and rushed for only 46 yards. The struggle to run made it easier for the Red Foxes to watch out for the pass and this hurt the Wildcats especially in the second half when trying to make a comeback. For the Wildcats this was a game where the struggling offense tried to convert on fourth down multiple times and ended up going 1-4. Along with the turnovers on downs they also threw an interception in this leading to an even worse loss on the day. Now Davidson will play their last game of the year at home when they take on the Dayton Flyers. Expect an exciting matchup where both teams try anything and everything, and to find out what they do tune in at 1:00 p.m. ET, on ESPN Plus.

Marist Red Foxes Athletics

Marist has set themselves up to go even on the year as they got a 37-10 win over the Davidson Wildcats, making them 5-6 on the year. For the Red Foxes this game was one in which they were tied 10-10 at the half but they really turned up the jets in the second half as they put up 27 second half points while not giving up any more points for the remainder of the game. This was a game where their offense really had things rolling as they had 513 yards of total offense. The passing game was really working as they had 317 yards. The run game also went well with them producing 196 yards. Giving them a nice day of offense. They did have one hiccup on the day though as they lost a fumble but their defense made sure that it didn’t hurt them by getting the ball right back with their own interception. Overall a very nice game for the Red Foxes as their last home game ends in a victory. Now they will look to get one more win on the year when they go to Clinton, S.C. to take on the Presbyterian Blue Hose. This is a game where the Red Foxes can play upset as the Blue Hose still have an opportunity to tie for first place atop the Pioneer Football League Conference. To see if they do it, turn on the game at 1:00 p.m. ET, with the game on ESPN Plus. 

Presbyterian Blue Hose Athletics

Presbyterian’s dream season seemed all but over after they lost to Davidson, but a loss by Drake that same week and a bounce back win this week by the Blue Hose gave them an opportunity to co-host the PFL title this year. This week's win was over the red hot St. Thomas Tommies by a score of 23-9. The win now has the Blue Hose with an overall of 9-2 and 5-2 in the conference. This win was one where they dominated every quarter but the third.The third quarter was the only one that got away from them as they committed both turnovers in that quarter and gave up all nine of the Tommies points, but the struggle in the third did not cost them game as they bounced back with a big fourth quarter to secure the victory. In this game the Blue Hose put up 298 yards on the day with most of the yards coming from the pass, as they threw it for 237 yards. The run game didn’t have its best performance but one that did help as they had 61 yards on the day. The win sets them up for a chance at the conference crown, and to get it they will need to win their final regular season game against the Marist Red Foxes, with the game starting at 1:00 p.m. ET, and available to watch on ESPN Plus. Aside from having to win for a chance at the crown the Blue Hose will need the Drake Bulldogs to lose as well in their game.

San Diego Toreros Athletics

San Diego put another win on the board as they took down the Butler Bulldogs 29-7. The win has them now at 7-4, and 5-2 in the conference making them tied for second overall. For the Toreros this was a game that was very slow going as they only had three points at the half and six points entering the fourth quarter. They then exploded for 23 points in the final quarter to not only take the lead but then run away with the game. The fourth quarter saw them start things off wrong with an interception, but things would only go good from there. The Toreros then got a safety, which they followed up with a touchdown. They then immediately got an interception which would result in  another touchdown. Now the score was sitting at 22-7, and the Bulldogs went for it on four down and the Toreros forced a stop and then scored on their short field possession. Giving them a 29-7 final score. In this game San Diego put up 383 yards, with both the pass and run doing well, as they passed for 218 yards, while running for 165 yards. The Toreros also managed to get two turnovers with one as a fumble recovery and the other as an interception. The Toreros did turn the ball over once from a thrown interception, but it didn’t hurt them as the Bulldogs couldn’t score from it. For San Diego this win showed everyone what they thought the Toreros could be all season even after their slow start. Now San Diego looks for one last win when they take on the Stetson Hatters in DeLand, Florida at 1:00 p.m. ET with a chance to potentially tie for the conference crown. This game can be seen on ESPN Plus and can be listened to at USDToereos.com.

Stetson Hatters Athletics

Stetson suffered another loss on the year this time against Valparaiso who took them down 32-31 in overtime. The loss now has them at 3-8 on the year. This was a game in which the Hatters had the lead not only in regulation but also in overtime, but a fourth 2-point conversion by Valparaiso ended up giving them the win in overtime. For the Hatters this game saw the offense put up yards as they finished the day with 416 of them. A large part of those yards came from the run as they had 282 rushing yards, while the pass game put up 134 yards. Stetson also never turned the ball over in this game as they did several things right in the game it just wasn’t enough for them to get the win. Now they prepare for their final game of the season in which they will play at home in DeLand, Florida against the San Diego Toreros. This is a game in which they can fully prevent San Diego from tying atop the conference by just beating them in the game. To see if they can do it tune in at 1:00 p.m. ET, on radio at USDToreros.com or watch on ESPN Plus.

Morehead State Eagles Athletics

Morehead State made a comeback in their most recent game to take down the Butler Bulldogs 31-30 as they got the tying touchdown and then go ahead extra point with just a minute left in the game. For the Eagles this was a game where they put up 344 yards on the day. The passing game was really working for them as they passed for 298 yards, while the run game was not so successful as they could only muster up 46 yards on the ground. Another problem that the Eagles had was giving away the football as they lost a fumble in the game. But their defense more than made up for the one lost fumble by recovering a fumble themselves as well as getting two interceptions in the game finishing the day with three turnovers helping them win the turnover battle 3-1. Now the 6-5 Eagles will try and upset the Drake Bulldogs when they take them on at 2:00 p.m. ET on the road in Des Moines Iowa. To keep track of this game tune in on the radio at 1350 or 102.1, or watch on stream at ESPN Des Moines through ESPN Plus.

Drake Bulldogs Athletics 

Drake will keep their title crown as they are guaranteed the number one spot after getting their most recent victory 14-6 over the Dayton Flyers. This win makes them 7-3 on the year and 6-1 in the conference. While the win locked up a guaranteed first place it does not mean that they can’t share the spot as Presbyterian and San Diego still have a shot to tie with the Bulldogs atop the division. Aside from winning the conference for a third straight year the Bulldogs also took down Dayton in a game where they did all of their scoring in the second quarter. In the game Drake put up 307 yards of total offense with 99 of those yards coming on their first touchdown drive of the game, which put them up seven nothing. On that 99 yard drive it was nearly all run as they had 21 passing yards and the remaining 78 yards were from the run. Which is pretty much how the game went as they rushed for 248 yards while only passing for 59 yards. The offense didn’t have its best performance but the defense had one heck of a game as they kept the Flyers off the board until the fourth quarter, as well as having a player earn a PFL award. It was Sean Allison, a linebacker who earned the PFL Defensive Player of the Week award as he intercepted two passes and had 12 tackles, eight of which were solo. Allison’s first interception came in the endzone late in the first quarter to deny Dayton a score which the Bulldogs then turned into their 99 yard score. His second interception came on the opening drive of the second half in which the Flyers were driving, shutting down that drive as well. He also broke up a pass on fourth down with the Flyers on Drake’s 15 yard line. Overall Allison was a huge contribution to the Bulldogs win and thoroughly deserved the award. Now Allison and the Bulldogs look for one last win in the regular season to try and lock up the conference crown and prevent anyone from sharing it with them. They will try to do this when they take on Morehead State Eagles at 2:00 p.m. ET. To see what the Bulldogs do tune in on your radio on channel 1350 or 102.1. You can also watch the game on ESPN Des Moines.

St. Thomas Tommies Athletics

St. Thomas had their title conference hopes dashed when they lost to Presbyterian 23-9. The loss makes them 7-4 on the year and 5-3 in the conference putting them at 4th overall. For the Tommies this most recent loss came in a game where they struggled to score as all nine of their points came in the third when they forced two turnovers. One was a fumble that they recovered and the other was a pick six that brought the game within one. They had an opportunity to tie the game but instead chose to go with a 2-point conversion attempt that ended up failing. After that the Tommies never got another chance to tie or take the lead, as Presbyterian dominated the fourth quarter with two touchdown drives with one of those drives going for over seven minutes in length. In this game the Tommies didn’t even break 200 total yards as they only went for 175 yards in the game. The run game did not have its best performance as they could only get 31 yards on the ground. The pass game did have a little more luck by getting 144 yards, but it was definitely not enough to help them get the win. Now St. Thomas will have to go and play their hardest game of the year when they go on the road to Fargo N.D. to take on the Bison. St. Thomas will look to pull off the ultimate upset this Saturday when they start at 3:30 p.m. ET. Find out what happens by watching this one on ESPN Plus.