Football Travels to Delaware State Saturday

Date	Saturday, Oct. 19, 2019 (2 p.m.)
Matchup	Merrimack (2-4) Delaware State (1-5)
Venue	Dover, Del. // Alumni Stadium Tickets
Multimedia	Live Stats // Watch
Social	Twitter // Instagram

 
NORTH ANDOVER, Mass. – After completing its bye week last Saturday, the Merrimack College football program prepares to return to action this weekend when the Warriors visit Delaware State University for the first time. Kickoff from the Hornets' Alumni Stadium is set for 2 p.m. in Dover, Del. The Warriors will be making their second appearance of the season on ESPN, with Saturday's game streaming on Watch ESPN. 

Inside the Matchup:

Merrimack (2-4)	Category	Delaware State (1-5)
10/5 vs. Bryant (L, 24-17)	Last Time Out	10/12 at Morgan State (L, 34-3)
32.00	Scoring Offense	17.80
22.83	Scoring Defense	29.30
141.2	Rushing Offense	113.7
227.33	Passing Offense	164.8
368.5	Total Offense	278.5
321.2	Opp. Total Offense	355.5
10	Interceptions (Def.)	5
37.78% (34-90)	3rd-Down Conversions	29.00% (26-90)
31.46% (28-89)	Opp. 3rd-Down Conversions	38.00% (33-88)

 
Series History:
Merrimack and Delaware State will meet for the first time ever on Saturday.  The Hornets are one of six first-time opponents on the 2019 schedule for the Warriors, joining Virginia Lynchburg, Saint Francis (PA), Lehigh, Presbyterian, and Franklin Pierce.

Meet the Hornets:
Playing for first-year head coach Rod Milstead, the Hornets have started the season with a 1-5 mark. Delaware State is coming off of a loss against Morgan State by the score of 34-3.  At home this season, the Hornets are 1-2 and are averaging 30.3 points a game in the friendly confines of Alumni Staduim.

Home Cooking:
In their three home games this season, the Merrimack College Warriors are averaging 46 points a game which is good enough for best in the Northeast Conference.  Sophomore quarterback Christian Cater is torching teams on defense while on his home turf.  Carter has thrown for six touchdowns and has thrown for 554 yards while at Duane Stadium.

McKenzie and Holden Island:
Redshirt sophomore Darion McKenzie and junior Caleb Holden are both tied for second place in the Northeast Conference (NEC) with six pass break ups on the season.  In addition, McKenzie is tied for the league lead in interceptions with three through six games.

The Carter Effect:
Sophomore quarterback Christian Carter has been having the best year of his career statistic wise.  The signal caller is currently ranked second in the Northeast Conference (NEC) in passing yards per game with 212.7 and third in total offense with 226.2 yards a game.  With Carter at the helm the Warriors have neared setting numerous school records in their inaugural Division I season including scoring 76 points against Maryville State, the second most in program history

FCS History:
Merrimack entered this season with six games in its program's history against FCS opponents. The program boasts a 1-6 record over those six games; Merrimack has played Bryant (0-3), Central Connecticut (0-2), Rhode Island (0-1) and Wagner (1-0). Including four games in 2019, Merrimack now has a 1-10 mark against foes at the FCS level.The Warriors have played six total FCS programs - Bryant, Central Connecticut, Rhode Island, Wagner, Saint Francis University and Lehigh.

Up Next
Merrimack returns home for its penultimate home contest next Saturday, when the Warriors welcome Presbyterian to campus for a 1 p.m. kickoff at Duane Stadium.