NEW BRITAIN, Conn. - A pair of perennial Northeast Conference (NEC) powers find themselves in uncharted territory this Saturday, when the Dukes battle Central Connecticut State Saturday afternoon at Arute Field. 

The two programs have regularly battled for the conference championship over the last seven seasons. The Dukes have captured three NEC crowns with a pair of Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) Playoff appearances while the Blue Devils have won two conference titles (2017 & 2019) and earned the league's bid to the postseason in both of those years. 

G7 | DUQUESNE (1-5, 0-2 NEC) at CENTRAL CONNECTICUT STATE (0-6, 0-2 NEC)
DATE: Saturday, Oct. 22
TIME: 12:00 p.m. ET
LOCATION: New Britain, Conn. - Arute Field
LIVE VIDEO: NEC Front Row with Bruce Biel (pxp) and Marc Robbins (analyst)
RADIO: BIG 104.7 FM HD2 / ESPN 970 AM / iHeart Radio with Alex Panormios (pxp) and Tad Maurey (analyst)

OPENING KICKOFF
- The Dukes are off to uncharacteristically slow start. The last time Duquesne opened the season at 1-5 was 1987 during the final season under former Head Coach Terry Russell. That team finished the season at 2-7 overall. The last time the Dukes had five losses in their first five games was 1991 when the team played at the Division III level and ended the season 0-9.  

- In 30 seasons at the FCS level, the Dukes have posted a .500 record or better in 27 of those years. Duquesne has captured 205 wins and 16 conference titles during that span.

- Duquesne has lost each of its last two games following a bye week. The Dukes were defeated at Sacred Heart 31-13 last season and fell on the road at Stonehill 24-20 earlier this season following a week off. Prior to last season's loss at Sacred Heart, the Dukes had won seven-straight games when coming off of a bye.

NOTABLES
 - The Dukes are one of the least penalized teams in the FCS this season. Duquesne leads the NEC with just 4.17 penalties per game and has yielded the fewest penalty yards in the nation at 190 total. The 31.67 penalty yards per game is the second-lowest total in the FCS this season.

- Joe Mischler's third quarter fumble versus Merrimack was the first fumble lost by the Dukes this season. The Dukes are tied for seventh in the FCS with one fumble lost in 2022. Duquesne led the FCS with just two fumbles lost last season.

- Despite protecting the ball, the Dukes are sixth in the NEC with a negative-two (-2) turnover margin. 

- The Dukes are holding opponents to 153.5 passing yards per game, which ranks second in the NEC and fifth in the FCS. 

- The Dukes are averaging 2.67 quarterback sacks per game to lead the NEC and rank 26th in the FCS. Linebacker Todd Hill paces the team and slots fifth nationally with 1.08 sacks per game.

- Wide receiver Dwayne Menders Jr. and safety CJ Barnes were both named NEC Prime Performers last week for their efforts in the loss to Merrimack. Menders Jr. led the offense with four catches for 93 yards and a touchdown. He also chipped in 31 yards rushing on three carries and had a 19-yard punt return (143 all-purpose). Barnes led the defense with 10 tackles (six solo).

- Abdul Janneh was named the NEC Offensive Player of the Week following the team's loss at Youngstown State on Sept. 3. He led the Dukes with eight catches for 121 yards and two touchdowns in that setback. He is the only Duquesne player to receive a weekly NEC honor this season.

- The Dukes have yielded the fewest yards on kickoffs to opponents in the NEC this year. Duquesne is allowing 13.12 yards per return, which slots sixth overall in the FCS.

THE SERIES
- CCSU and Duquesne are even at seven wins apiece following last year's thrilling last-minute 31-27 victory for the Dukes at Rooney Field.

- Darius Perrantes found Cyrus Holder for a 30-yard touchdown connection with just 29 seconds to play in the fourth quarter to put the Dukes in front late.

- On the first play of the ensuing drive, Tyshaun James snagged a 49-yard reception off the hands of a Duquesne defender to give the Blue Devils possession at the Dukes' 17-yard line.

After a four-yard gain and a pair of completions, CCSU had one more chance with three seconds showing on the clock, but Jeremiah Josephs stopped Kyren Petteway at the seven-yard line as time expired to seal the Duquesne victory.

- The all-time series dates back to the 1993 season, which was Duquesne's first season playing in then-NCAA Division I-AA. That season was also the first season of football at Rooney Field.
 
THE COACHES
Duquesne: Jerry Schmitt (18th season / 110-76 at Duquesne)  
- Head coach Jerry Schmitt is in his 18th season at the helm of the Duquesne program. He became the Dukes' all-time winningest coach in 2019 with a 30-21 victory over Saint Francis U for his 98th win as Duquesne's head coach. Schmitt passed Greg Gattuso (1993-2004) for the most wins in program history.

- Schmitt posted his 100th win at Duquesne with the Dukes' victory at Wagner during the spring 2021 season. He is one of 10 active coaches with 100 FCS wins at their current school.

Central Connecticut State: Ryan McCarthy (3rd season / 15-15 at CCSU)  
- Ryan McCarthy was officially named the CCSU head coach in October of 2019 after serving as the offensive coordinator the previous four seasons. He was named interim head coach in the spring of 2019.

- McCarthy was the 2019 Northeast Conference co-Coach of the Year, while also collecting the Gridiron Club of Greater Boston Division I Coach of the Year. He also finished fifth in the voting for the Eddie Robinson Award as the FCS National Coach of the Year presented annually by STATS after leading CCSU to an 11-2 record and a FCS Playoffs berth. 

- Prior to CCSU, McCarthy spent 13 seasons on staff at the University at Albany.

SCOUTING THE BLUE DEVILS
- CCSU is searching for its first win this season after its second one-score loss of the season two weeks ago at Brown.

- Nasir Smith ranks third in the NEC with 76.8 yards per game and is averaging 4.9 yards per carry. The Dukes have allowed 210.5 rushing yards per game this season, including over 250 yards in three different games (Florida State, Youngstown State, Merrimack).

- Chizurum Umunakwe leads the NEC and ranks fifth in the FCS with 10.5 tackles per game. His 1.2 tackles for loss per game slots him third in the NEC.

- The Blue Devils have struggled on third down this season, converting just 28.6 percent (22 of 77) of their attempts, while allowing opponents to convert 53.6 percent of the time (45 of 84).

NEXT WEEK
- The Dukes will return home to Rooney Field to take on LIU on Saturday, Oct. 29 at noon.

- Duquesne will play three of its final four games of the season at home.