PITTSBURGH - After a successful two-game home stand, the Duquesne University football team will take its league-leading 3-0 record to Fairfield, Connecticut and face off against Sacred Heart on Saturday afternoon in Northeast Conference action on ESPN+.
THE BASICSÂ
October 28, 2023 | 12:00 PM | Campus Field (Fairfield, Conn.)
Duquesne Dukes (4-3, 3-0 NEC)Â
Sacred Heart Pioneers (1-7, 1-4 NEC)Â
GAMEDAYÂ LINKS
Watch Live on ESPN+  |  Follow Live Stats |  Listen Live on 104.7 HD2 / iHeart Radio App (keyword: Duquesne)
Gameday Central | Duquesne Game Notes |  SHU Game Notes |  NEC Weekly ReleaseÂ
BY THE NUMBERS
OPENING KICKOFF
- Duquesne moved to 3-0 in conference play, its best start since the 2020-21 spring season (4-0) ... The Dukes fended off a late comeback and held on for a 38-35 victory over defending NEC champion Saint Francis last weekend ... SFU missed a 45-yard field goal in the final seconds to tie it after DU led by as many as 24 points ... The Dukes dominated CCSU 44-20 and Brian Bruzdewicz made a game-winning field goal at LIU, after DU trailed by as many as 14 in the second quarter, for the 3-0 start ... DU has scored over 30 points in all three league games so far and has averaged a league-best 37.7 points in NEC action.
- Sacred Heart enters on a four-game losing streak ... The Pioneers are 1-4 in the NEC ... All five games have been decided by 10 points or less, including a pair of three-point games ... SHU defeated Saint Francis at home on a field goal as time expired (37-34), then lost in double overtime last weekend at Stonehill (22-19) ... The Pioneers had a chance to win it in the first OT, but missed a 40-yard field goal ... Stonehill answered an SHU FG in double OT with a touchdown for the win.
- The teams tied for third in the preseason coaches' poll after both finishing 3-4 in the NEC a year ago ... Two of the last three matchups have gone to overtime.
- Duquesne has garnered a major weekly award each of the past four weeks ... Tim Lowery earned special teams this week, the second SPTOW for DU after Bruzdewicz got the honor in Week Five after the game-winning field goal ... Duquesne running backs grabbed awards in Weeks Five, Six, and Seven ... Edward Robinson was named back-to-back rookie of the week in five and six, while Taj Butts claimed Offensive Player of the Week after three touchdowns versus CCSU in Week 7.
THE SERIES
- The Dukes lead the all-time series, which has been played annually since 2006, 13-6.
- DU snapped a two-game losing streak to the Pioneers last season with a 35-28 overtime victory at Rooney Field ... A fourth down stop in overtime lifted the Dukes to a 35-28 win ... Following a touchdown on the Dukes overtime possession, Sacred Heart faced a 4th-and-1 at the Dukes' 16-yard line on their possession. Pioneer quarterback Rob McCoy kept the ball on a read-option play, but Duquesne defenders Jayden Johnson and Jon Muehlbauer penetrated the backfield and sealed the victory with a TFL ... The Dukes will have a lot of new faces in the lineup this year ... Joey Isabella led the team with 61 receiving yards on three catches, while Nick Leopold and Logan Lutz each caught a touchdown ... Jeremiah Josephs had three TFLs, while Josephs, A.J. Ackerman, and Clemente Ojinnaka all had a sack to lead the returners on the defense.
- Duquesne has been under the direction of head coach Jerry Schmitt during all but one of the all-time matchups.
SCOUTING THE PIONEERS
- Sacred Heart is looking for its first home win of the season (0-3) ... The Pioneers have battled in close games throughout, but was only able to win a road contest at Saint Francis with a walk-off field goal (1-4 in NEC).
- SHU won the NEC in spring 2021 and fall 2021 before tying for 4th last season.
- Sacred Heart leads the FCS in passing yards allowed (100.2 per game), while ranking 13th nationally and second in the NEC in total offense allowed per game (301.1).
- The Pioneers are second in the conference in third-down defense (31.8%), average the second-least amount of penalty yards per game (42.8) ... They are second in turnovers gained (12) and fumbles recovered (6) behind Duquesne.
- Kicker Sam Renzi is ninth in the FCS and leads the NEC averaging 1.5 field goals per game.
- Rob McCoy and Cade Pribula have split time at quarterback ... Both have thrown for two TDs, while McCoy leads with 603 yards ... The duo has thrown for four touchdowns and 10 interceptions.
- Malik Grant and Jalen Madison tag team the run game ... Grant is third in the conference with 586 yards, while Madison is fourth with 463.
- Aboraa Kwarteng is second in the conference averaging 4.0 catches per game and has a team-high 293 yards ... Five players have 13 or more receptions this season.
- DeAndre Byrd has 58 tackles to lead the team, while Nick Foglia and Tyreke Brown have a team-high 6.0 TFLs, three of Foglia's have been sacks ... The Pioneer defense has six INTs this season.
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 84 wins and 54 conference wins since 2011.
- Duquesne is 63-40 all-time in NEC contests including a 37-17 mark at home. The Dukes are 22-6 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).
PUTTING UP POINTS
- Duquesne is second in the league in scoring offense averaging 29.0 points per game and leads the league at 37.7 points per game in NEC action.
- 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 points in the rout of CCSU were the second-most in an NEC game this season (Merrimack - 45 vs. Stonehill on Oct. 7).
TOUCHDOWNS THROUGH THE AIR
- 16 of the 25 offensive touchdowns this season have come through the air (Perrantes - 14 and Robinson - 2), which is the most passing TDs by any NEC team this season ... Saint Francis is the only other team to have double-digit passing TD's this season with 12.
- The three passing TDs vs. Edinboro, at LIU, vs. CCSU, and vs. Saint Francis 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 have recorded three passing TDs in multiple games ... The Dukes have had at least one passing touchdown in every game this season and multiple five times.
- Graduate transfer DJ Powell extended his NEC lead to six touchdown catches after his third straight game with a TD last weekend ... He leads all NEC receivers by at least two TD catches.
- Junior transfer Tedy Afful and redshirt sophomore Keshawn Brown have four touchdown grabs each, in a three-way tie for second in the league ... Afful is tied with Merrimack's Donovan Wadley for an NEC-best three touchdown catches in conference play.
- Saint Francis is the only other team (Casey McKinney - 3, Dawson Snyder - 3, and Aaron Tutino - 2) to have multiple receivers with multiple scores.
- Afful (at LIU) and Powell (vs. Edinboro) are two of four receivers in the NEC to record multiple touchdown catches in a game this season ... Donovan Wadley (Merrimack) and Isiah Williams (CCSU) joined the list this past week.
- Junior quarterback Darius Perrantes leads the NEC with 14 touchdown passes and 1324 passing yards ... Perrantes has thrown a TD in four straight games and six of the seven this season, including multiple scores five times ... He has back-to-back three-touchdown games and has done it three times, the most 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 12 career games with multiple passing TDs.
LONGBALL IS WORKING
- The Dukes have connected on 32 passes for 15-plus yards this season with multiple in every game so far including a season-high six in the first two conference games along with the Power-Five matchup at WVU ... 11 have gone for touchdowns ... All three passing touchdowns last week were for over 15 yards ... Joey Isabella streaked down the middle of the field for a 69-yard touchdown, the longest of the season for DU, in the second quarter versus SFU.
- DU ranks second in the FCS and paces the NEC in passing yards per completion (15.45), only behind Villanova (16.60) ... The Dukes average the most passing yards per game in the NEC (203.0) ... The 265 passing yards vs. CCSU were the third-most by an NEC team this season ... Duquesne is the only NEC team to have four 200+ passing-yard games this season and has done so in all three conference games.
- Darius Perrantes is second in the FCS and leads the NEC in yards per completion at 15.95, only behind Connor Watkins from Villanova (17.07) ... He also leads the NEC and is 16th in the FCS in yards per attempt (8.38) and passing yards (1324 / 189.1 per game).
- Duquesne has three of the top six receivers on the NEC's yards per reception leader board, all above 17 yards per catch ... Â DJ Powell (19.41) is 15th in the FCS and first in the NEC, Â Tedy Afful (18.06) is third in the conference, and Keshawn Brown (17.17) is third in the league.
- The trio is also top six in receiving yards in the league, all with 300+ yards on the season ... Powell paces the group with 427 yards and 61.0 per game, which are both second in the NEC, Brown is third in the NEC with 395 yards (56.4 / game), and Afful holds the sixth spot at 325 yards (46.4 / game).
GROUND GAME IS ROLLING
- Taj Butts (118 yds) and JaMario Clements (101 yds) versus CCSU 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 versus CCSU (Butts - 2, Clements - 1) ... Butts added his third TD run of the season last week and the Dukes have now rushed in a touchdown in four consecutive games.
- DU ranks third in the NEC in rushing offense at 168.7 yards per game and has all three of its triple-threat backs above 300 yards with Butts leading the pack at 415 (69.2 per game), the fifth-most in the NEC ... Clements is sixth in the league at 397 yards (56.7 per game) and freshman Edward Robinson has 329 yards (47.0 per game) to rank 10th in the conference ... All three have scored multiple rushing touchdowns this season as well ... Butts' three leads the way.
BRING OUT THE TURNOVER CHAIN
- Duquesne's defense has created the most turnovers in the NEC and is tied for 25th in the nation with 14 turnovers gained ... The Dukes have had a takeaway in all but one game.
- 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 ... Tim Lowery picked up two special teams fumbles and Dayvia Gbor had a first-quarter interception in the win over Saint Francis.
- Lowery scooped and scored a botched punt last week, the first fumble return for a touchdown by a Duke since Christian Kuntz, an active member of the Pittsburgh Steelers, scooped and scored versus Sacred Heart on November 12, 2016
- 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 in its 14 turnovers ... Garnes (2), Gbor (2), Â Tim Lowery, and Ezekiel M. Daure have INTs ... Tim Lowery (2), Ty Howard, Ryan Lopez, Nick Leopold, Gbor, and Garnes recovered fumbles ... Gianni Rizzo, Kevin Kurzinger, Jaelen Carson forced fumbles that led to turnovers ... The Dukes also have three forced fumbles that were not recovered - Ryan Lopez (2) and Noah Palmer (1).
FUMBLE FRONT-RUNNERS
- Duquesne leads the conference and is seventh in the FCS in fumbles recovered with eight.
- DU has recovered two fumbles in three separate games, the most multi-fumble recovery games by any NEC team this season.
- Tim Lowery's two fumble recoveries are tied for the most by an NEC player this season.
- On the offensive side of the ball, the Dukes are atop the NEC and tied for 9th in the FCS with just two fumbles lost.Â
SACK PARTY
- Duquesne has had 16 different players account for its 18 sacks this season.
- Noah Palmer (3.0) and Ryan Lopez (2.0) lead the unit ... Gianni Rizzo, CJ Barnes, Jaelen Carson, Dayvia Gbor, Ty Howard, Nick Curci, A.J. Ackerman, Matt Brooks, Kevin Kurzinger, Ayden Garnes, Khatavian Franks and Jack Dunkley all have 1.0, while Jayden Johnson and Jason Patterson have 0.5 each.
- 18 sacks for an average of 2.57 per game is tied for the NEC lead.
- The 2022 Dukes totaled 29 sacks, tied for the sixth-most in a season in program history.
THIRD-DOWN LEADERS
- Duquesne leads the NEC in third down conversion percentage (39.8%) and is converting at a 47.4% rate (18-for-38) in conference play.
- Defensively, the Dukes are holding conference opponents to 28.6% conversions on third down, the second-best mark in the league.
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
- Week 8: Special Teams POW - Tim Lowery
- 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
- With Lowery's Week 8 Special Teams honor, it is the first time Duquesne has had two players earn the Special Teams Player of the Week since 2016 (Austin Krimmins / Xavier Nelson).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 ... Week 8: DB - Tim Lowery, QB - Darius Perrantes, WR - Joey Isabella.
NEXT WEEK
- Duquesne travels to Wagner next Saturday for a noon kickoff in Staten Island ... The Dukes are 13-5 all-time against the Seahawks and 6-3 on the road ... DU has won eight straight against Wagner.
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.
