PITTSBURGH - The Duquesne University football team is off to a 2-0 start in conference play for the fourth time in the past five seasons and is set to host the defending NEC champions Saint Francis for Homecoming and Family Weekend on Saturday afternoon at Rooney Field.
THE BASICSÂ
October 21, 2023 | 1:00 PM | Arthur J. Rooney Field (Pittsburgh, Pa.)
Saint Francis Red Flash (2-4, 2-1Â NEC)Â
Duquesne Dukes (3-3, 2-0 NEC)Â
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BY THE NUMBERS
OPENING KICKOFF
- Duquesne improved to 2-0 in league play for the fourth time in the past five seasons with a dominating 44-20 win over Central Conn. State last week in its first home game since Sept. 2 ... 44 points were the most in a conference home opener for DU since joining the NEC in 2008 ... In the Dukes NEC opener, they defeated LIU, 31-28, on the road off a last second field goal by Brian Bruzdewicz in a game that they trailed by as many as 14 in the second quarter ... DU has averaged a league-best 37.5 points over its two conference games this season.
- Saint Francis improved to 2-1 in NEC play with a 31-7 win over Wagner at home in the first-ever nationally televised game in conference history Thursday night on CBS Sports Network ... The Red Flash are on a two-game win streak (15-10 win at Stonehill on 9/30) after dropping four straight to start the season, including their NEC opener on a last second field goal versus Sacred Heart ... SFU is allowing a league-low 18 points per game in conference action.
- Both teams tout a reigning NEC Player of the Week ... Taj Butts took home offensive honors for DU after posting a career-best 118 yards on the ground and scoring three touchdowns, the first Duke to do so since A.J. Hines in 2018 ... Carter Glassmyer earned his second defensive weekly award of the season with 11 tackles (7 solo) and a sack last week for SFU.
- Quarterbacks Darius Perrantes (DU - 11 TD, 1097 yds) and Cole Doyle (SFU - 10 TD, 1018 yds) are the only two in the NEC with double-digit touchdowns and over a thousand yards this season.
- Jerry Schmitt (DU) and Chris Villarrial (SFU) are the two longest-tenured coaches in the NEC. Â
THE SERIES
- The Dukes are 38-10 all-time against Saint Francis in a series that dates to 1913, the longest standing series against any NEC foe.
- DU is 22-3 at home against SFU and 9-2 in the last 11 at Rooney Field. The Red Flash won a 17-10 matchup in the last meeting in Pittsburgh on Oct. 20, 2021.
- Last season, SFU established its series record for points scored  (51) and largest win ever versus DU (37), in a 51-14 rout of the Dukes in Loretto ... Joe Mischler got the nod at QB for DU and was held to 92 passing yards and two INTs ... This week will be the first time Darius Perrantes faces the Red Flash ... JaMario Clements saw time at running back with nine carries for 41 yards, while Keshawn Brown had three catches, Nick Leopold added two, and Jalin Cooper secured one grab as the lone offensive returners for the Dukes in the matchup from a year ago ... CJ Barnes had a team-leading seven tackles as the leading returner on the defense ... Michael Berarducci punted a career-most nine times in the 2022 loss.
- The last Dukes win came in November of 2019, which made Coach Jerry Schmitt the winningest coach in program history ... Under Coach Schmitt, the Dukes are 12-5 against the Red Flash and own an 8-4 record versus a Villarrial-led SFU.
- Saint Francis, who has won the past two meetings, has never won three in a row against the Dukes.
THE COACHES
Duquesne: Jerry Schmitt (19th season / 116-81 at Duquesne) Â
- Head coach Jerry Schmitt is in his 19th 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 head coach. Schmitt passed Greg Gattuso (1993-2004) for the most wins in program history. Schmitt is one of 11 active coaches with 100+ FCS wins at their current school.
- Schmitt is the longest tenured coach in the NEC. He is also the longest tenured coach amongst any of the collegiate or professional football teams in Pittsburgh
Saint Francis: Chris Villarrial (14th season / 61-78 at SFU)
- Former All-Pro Offensive Lineman Chris Villarrial was named the 25th head coach of the Saint Francis University football program on December 20, 2009. He served one year as the offensive coordinator under predecessor Dave Opfar before he became the head coach.
- He is the all-time winningest coach in Saint Francis history. He surpassed Art Martynuska with a 35-21 win at Delaware State on Nov. 23, 2019.
- Both of Duquesne's coordinators are Saint Francis U alums. Offensive Coordinator Anthony Doria played quarterback for the Red Flash and accounted for a NEC record 8,544 passing yards at from 2003-06 ... Defensive Coordinator Mike Craig played linebacker for the Red Flash from 2002-06. Craig registered 227 tackles and 31.5 TFL during his career, totaling over 45 stops in every season.
SCOUTING THE RED FLASH
- Saint Francis has bounced back from losing its first four games of the season with two straight NEC wins over Stonehill and Wagner ... The Red Flash, like the Dukes, are coming off a season-high in total offense posting 434 in the nationally-televised win over Wagner on Thursday.
- Quarterback Cole Doyle, the 2022 NEC Offensive Player of the Year and Walter Payton Award Finalist, leads the offense averaging 169.7 passing yards per game with 10 touchdowns, both second in the NEC ... He also has one rushing touchdown and averages 37 yards rushing per game ... Doyle leads the conference with a 56.8% completion percentage.
- Dawson Snyder leads the NEC with 393 receiving yards this season and is coming off a season-best 110 last week ... Snyder has 22 catches on the year and averages 18 yards per catch, while snagging three touchdown grabs ... Casey McKinney also has 20 catches for 282 yards and three TDs.
- Jordan Jackson is the go-to running back and notched a career-high 128 yards last time out ... He is atop the Red Flash stat board with 296 yards on the season ... Doyle is second on the team with 223 rushing yards.
- Reigning NEC Defensive Player of the Week Carter Glassmyer leads the defense with a league-best 52 tackles, 40 of which have come in conference play with two sacks ... The Red Flash defense is fourth in the NEC with 27 points per game against and 377.8 total yards of offense allowed.
- SFU, who was picked to finish first in the Preseason Coaches' Poll and won the league with a perfect 7-0 record last season, welcomes 57 newcomers, 51 of which true freshman.
DUKES IN THE NORTHEAST CONFERENCE
- The Dukes have enjoyed a great deal of success in NEC play, claiming five conference titles since 2011. Duquesne won a share of the league crown in 2011, 2013, 2016 and 2018 while capturing the outright title in 2015. Duquesne earned the NEC's automatic bid to the FCS playoffs in both 2015 and 2018.
- Duquesne is the winningest program in the conference over the past 12 seasons with a league-leading 83 wins and 53 conference wins since 2011.
- Duquesne is 62-40 all-time in NEC contests including a 36-17 mark at home. The Dukes are 21-6 in NEC action at Rooney Field over the last eight seasons.
- Duquesne is one of two schools that has won five NEC titles since 2011 (Sacred Heart).
BUTTS NAMED OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK
- Duquesne's Taj Butts was named the Northeast Conference Offensive Player of the Week after posting a career-high 118 yards on the ground with three touchdown (two rushing and one receiving) ... The three scores are tied for the most of any player in the NEC in a game this season and was the first time a Duke recorded three in a game since A.J. Hines did so in October of 2018.
- A redshirt sophomore from St. Louis, Mo., Butts had the most touchdowns of any player in the NEC this past week, was the only NEC running back to rush for multiple touchdowns, and broke off the longest run of the week with a 58-yard romp into the endzone, his longest career run ... He scored each of the first two touchdowns for Duquesne, first a two-yard catch then a 15-yard run bouncing off tacklers, and added his third in the second quarter on the long run ... Butts, a transfer from Missouri playing his first season in the Red and Blue, was second in rushing yards for the week and one of three 100-yard rushers, while using the least amount of carries (12) of the three for an NEC-best 9.83 yards per rush. It is Butts' first weekly award as a Duke and the first Offensive Player of the Week for DU of the season.
- Duquesne has now had a running back earn a weekly award from the league in three consecutive weeks ... Freshman Edward Robinson was Rookie of the Week in Week Five and Six ... Brian Bruzdewicz has the only other "of the week" award for the Dukes this season, earning special teams honors after making the game-winning field goal at LIU.
PUTTING UP POINTS
- Duquesne is second in the league in scoring offense averaging 27.5 points per game ... The 44 points versus Central Connecticut were the most in a conference home opener for the Dukes since joining the NEC ... The 17-points at WVU were the most ever for DU in three games against a Power-Five opponent ... DU's 49 points in the home-opening win was the second-most in the past 12 home openers (56 in win over Virginia Lynchburg in 2021).
- The 49 points and seven touchdowns scored against Edinboro in the season opener are the second most points and tied for most touchdowns in a game this season in the NEC (CCSU - 51 pts / 7 TDs vs. Delaware State on Oct. 7)
- Duquesne's 44 point rout of CCSU was the second-most in an NEC game this season (Merrimack - 45 vs. Stonehill on Oct. 7).
TOUCHDOWNS THROUGH THE AIR
- 13 of the 21 offensive touchdowns this season have come through the air (Perrantes - 11 and Robinson - 2), which is the most passing TDs by any NEC team this season ... SFU is the only other team to have double-digit passing TD's this season with 11
- The three passing TDs vs. Edinboro, at LIU, and vs. CCSU are tied for the most in a game this season by an NEC program ... DU and Saint Francis are the only teams in the NEC that has recorded three passing TDs in multiple games ... The Dukes have had at least one passing touchdown in every game this season and multiple four times.
- Graduate transfer DJ Powell is the first receiver in the NEC to catch five touchdowns this season ... He snagged the longest TD grab of the season for DU (52 yards) on the first drive at Delaware and added his fifth of the season last week on a tough grab inside the back corner ... Powell has now had TDs in back-to-back games for the second time this season.
- Junior transfer Tedy Afful is alone in second on the league's leader board with four receiving TDs after catching a first-quarter, 13-yard fade in the win over CCSU last week ... Afful has an NEC-best three touchdown catches in conference play.
- Redshirt sophomore Keshawn Brown is in a five-way tie for third with three receiving scores ... Duquesne is the only team with three receivers to have multiple touchdown catches ... Saint Francis is the only other team (Casey McKinney - 3 and Dawson Snyder - 3) to have multiple receivers with multiple scores.
- Afful (at LIU) and Powell (vs. Edinboro) are the only two receivers in the NEC to record multiple touchdown catches in a game this season.
- Junior quarterback Darius Perrantes leads the NEC with 11 touchdown passes and 1097 passing yards ... Perrantes has thrown a TD in three straight games and five of the six this season, including multiple scores four times ... He is coming off his second three-touchdown game, tied for the most in a game by an NEC QB this season ... Perrantes and SFU QB Cole Doyle are the only players in the NEC this season to pass for three touchdowns in multiple games ... He has 11 career games with multiple passing TDs.
LONGBALL IS WORKING
- The Dukes have connected on 27 passes for 15-plus yards this season with multiple in every game so far including a season-high six in both conference games along with the Power-Five matchup at WVU ... Eight have gone for touchdowns ... The Perrantes to Powell connection on the first offensive drive of the game at No. 9/10 Delaware for 52 yards was the longest catch and score for the Dukes.
- DU ranks fourth in the FCS and paces the NEC in passing yards per completion (15.11) ... The Dukes average the most passing yards per game in the NEC (199.0) ... The 265 passing yards vs. CCSU were the third-most by an NEC team this season ... Duquesne is the only NEC team to have three 200+ passing-yard games this season (at LIU and WVU).
- Darius Perrantes is second in the FCS and leads the NEC in yards per completion at 15.67 ... He also leads the NEC in yards per attempt (8.19) and passing yards (1097 / 182.8 per game).
- Duquesne has the top three receivers on the NEC's yards per reception leader board, all above 18 yards per catch ... Â DJ Powell (21.06) is seventh in the FCS and first in the NEC, Â Tedy Afful (18.59) is second in the conference, and Keshawn Brown (18.10) is a close third.
- The trio is also second through fourth in receiving yards in the league, all with 300+ yards on the season ... Brown paces the group with 362 yards and 60.3 per game, Powell is third in the NEC with 358 yards (59.7 / game), and Afful holds the fourth spot at 316 yards (52.7 / game).
GROUND GAME GOES CRAZY
- Led by NEC Offensive Player of the Week Taj Butts, the Dukes posted their second 200+ yardage game on the ground in the CCSU win with a season-high 248.
- Butts (118 yds) and JaMario Clements (101 yds) last week were the first two Dukes to rush for 100+ yards in the same game since Nov. 20, 2021 at Wagner.
- The Dukes tied a season-high with three rushing TDs last week (Butts - 2, Clements - 1) ... Duquesne has now rushed in a touchdown in three consecutive games.
- DU now ranks third in the NEC in rushing offense at 169.3 yards per game and has all three of its triple-threat backs above 300 yards ... Butts leads the pack at 350 (5th in NEC), while Clements and freshman Edward Robinson are tied for eighth in the league at 309 apiece.
- All three have scored two rushing touchdowns this season as well.
WE'LL TAKE THAT
- Duquesne's defense has created the most turnovers in the NEC and is tied for 25th in the nation with 11 turnovers gained ... Last week was the first game DU did not record a takeaway.
- DU dominated in the season opener with five takeaways (3 INTs and 2 fumbles), four of which in the first quarter ... The Dukes had back-to-back special team recoveries jumping on a loose ball after a punt at WVU and Coastal, while adding a fumble through the endzone for a touchback in Week Two at WVU.
- DU forced two turnovers in the NEC opener at LIU, both inside the red-zone (a first quarter fumble recovery and a fourth quarter interception), then added an INT in the endzone at Delaware by Ayden Garnes.
- The DU offense has scored a touchdown on the ensuing drive after each of the Dukes' two special teams fumble recoveries this season (at WVU and Coastal).
- The season opener was the first time in recorded program history that the Dukes defense charted five takeaways in a single game.
- Duquesne has had 10 different players involved on its 11 turnovers ... Garnes (2), Tim Lowery, Ezekiel M. Daure, and Dayvia Gbor have INTs ... Ty Howard, Ryan Lopez, Nick Leopold, Gbor, and Garnes recovered fumbles ... Gianni Rizzo, Kevin Kurzinger, Jaelen Carson forced fumbles.
FUMBLE FRONT-RUNNERS
- Duquesne leads the conference and is fifth in the FCS in fumbles recovered with six.
- On the offensive side of the ball, the Dukes are atop the NEC and tied for 10th in the FCS alongside Saint Francis with two fumbles lost.Â
SACK PARTY
- Duquesne has had 15 different players account for its 15 sacks this season.
- Ryan Lopez leads the unit with 2.0 ... Gianni Rizzo, CJ Barnes, Jaelen Carson, Dayvia Gbor, Ty Howard, Noah Palmer, Nick Curci, A.J. Ackerman, Matt Brooks, Kevin Kurzinger, Ayden Garnes, and Jack Dunkley all have 1.0, while Jayden Johnson and Jason Patterson have 0.5 each.
- 15 sacks for an average of 2.50 per game ranks second in the NEC and 24th in the FCS.
- The 2022 Dukes totaled 29 sacks, tied for the sixth-most in a season in program history.
NO PUNTS
- Duquesne did not punt last week, the first time with 0 in a game in recorded history.
NEC WEEKLY HONORS
PLAYER OF THE WEEKS
- Week 5: Special Teams POW - Brian Bruzdewicz / Rookie of the Week - Edward Robinson
- Week 6: Rookie of the Week - Edward Robinson
- Week 7: Offensive Player of the Week - Taj Butts
- Edward Robinson, a freshman running back from Maple Heights, Ohio, was named the NEC Rookie of the Week in back-to-back weeks five and six ... The first Duke to earn back-to-back ROW awards since AJ Hines won six in a row  in 2016 ... Hines went on to win a league record 10 times in his freshman campaign ... Dillon Buechel (QB - 2013) was the only other DU rookie to earn the honor multiple times in a season.Â
PRIME PERFORMERS
- Week 1: DB - Ayden Garnes ... Week 2: QB - Darius Perrantes ... Week 5: QB - Darius Perrantes, WR - Tedy Afful, K - Brian Bruzdewicz ... Week 7: RB - Taj Butts, QB - Darius Perrantes, WR - Tedy Afful.
NEXT WEEK
- Duquesne will begin a two-game road trip, heading to Sacred Heart for a 12 p.m. kickoff on ESPN+ ... DU is 13-6 all-time vs. SHU ... Two of the last three have gone to OT, with DU winning 35-28 in OT last year.
FOLLOW THE DUKES
- Follow Duquesne football online all season at GoDuquesne.com, as well as on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook (@DuqFB).
- Live coverage links for every Duquesne game can be viewed on the schedule page.
- All of the remaining games can be viewed on NEC Front Row, except for the October 28 contest at Sacred Heart will be exclusively streamed on ESPN+.
- Dukes Football can be heard live all season on 104.7 HD2, on the iHeart Radio App, or on ESPNpgh.com by searching Duquesne.
