THE BASICS 

September 2, 2023 | 12:00 PM | Rooney Field (Pittsburgh, Pa.) 

Edinboro Fighting Scots (0-0, 0-0 PSAC West) 

• Roster | Stats | Schedule 

Duquesne Dukes (0-0, 0-0 NEC) 

• Roster | Stats | Schedule 

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Gameday Central  |  Full Game Notes  |  Game Program

OPENING KICKOFF
- The five-time Northeast Conference (NEC) champion Duquesne Dukes will look to get back to its winning ways this fall after suffering its first losing season since 2012 and first sub-.500 record conference play since 2014 with a 4-7 overall and 3-4 NEC record finishing in a tie for fourth in the league. In 30 seasons at the FCS level, the Dukes have posted a .500 record or better in 27 of those years.

- DU will begin the season at home for the first time since the abbreviated, conference-only spring 2020-21 season (a 30-27 win over Sacred Heart). The last full season to start at Rooney Field was 2019 (a 44-3 win over Walsh). Duquesne has opened the season with a home game just three times in the past 11 full seasons (2019 vs. Walsh, 2015 vs. Kentucky Christian (W, 47-7), and 2013 vs. Albany (W, 35-24).

- Duquesne has won 27 of 30 home openers since joining the FCS ranks in 1993. 

- Head coach Jerry Schmitt is 17-1 in home openers. The Dukes have captured a win in 15-straight and 23 of the last 24 home openers, including a 34-14 win over Thomas More last season.

- DU is 47-12 in non-conference home games (30-3 under Jerry Schmitt) at Rooney Field. The Dukes are 23-1 in non-conference play at Rooney Field since the beginning of 2008.

PREVIEWING THE DUKES
- Duquesne quarterback Darius Perrantes is atop the depth chart heading into the season. Perrantes started one game and appeared in seven last season, passing for six touchdowns and 539 yards on 37-of-71 passing. 

- JaMario Clements is back for his third season with the Dukes and is expected to step into a larger role in the backfield this season after Billy Lucas transferred and DeMarcus Ware graduated. Last year, Clements averaged 4.9 yards per rush on 45 carries for 220 yards, including a 94-yard outing with a touchdown versus Wagner in the season finale win. Taj Butts, a transfer running back from Missouri with three years of eligibility left, boosts the Dukes' depth. Butts saw action in six games and made one start last season for Missouri, and was a three-star recruit for the Tigers in 2021. 

- Duquesne will need to replace its top-two wide receivers from 2022, in terms of yards, Dwayne Menders, who graduated and earned an invite to Steelers rookie minicamp, was a First Team All-NEC selection and totaled 917 yards on 55 catches with six touchdowns, while Abdul Janneh transferred to Georgia Tech.

- The Dukes still have some experience and talent returning in the receiving core, while adding some newcomers that are expected to make an immediate impact. Joey Isabella is healthy after battling injuries last season that limited him to four games. Isabella is a Preseason All-NEC selection and scored two touchdowns on 12 catches for 191 yards in his limited 2022 season. Nick Leopold does a little bit of everything for the Dukes on special teams and can play multiple positions, he returns after snagging 15 receptions for 152 yards and two scores in 2022. Jalin Cooper, who also competes on the Duquesne track and field team, saw action in 10 games, including a start when DU opened with a four-wide set versus Wagner. Cooper totaled seven catches and scored a touchdown last season after transferring from Toledo. Keshawn Brown enters his third season with the Dukes and is scheduled to start in the opener.

- Transfer receivers expected to make an impact include; DJ Powell, who spent the last four seasons at Bethune Cookman totaling 914 receiving yards on 52 catches with three touchdowns over 29 games for the Wildcats, Ian Sheehan, a two-time all-conference receiver at Shippensburg (DII), Jermaine Johnson, who spent the last four seasons at UMass where he totaled 427 receiving yards on 55 catches and two touchdowns over 22 games and also saw time as a kick returner, and Tedy Afful, a transfer from Stony Brook where he spent two seasons and caught 10 passes for 133 yards with a touchdown over 16 games.

- On the offensive line, the Dukes return a pair of starters including center Michael Dorundo, who has started 26 consecutive games over the past three seasons, and left tackle Chris Oliver, who started 10 games and appeared in all 11 in his first season with the Red and Blue after transferring from Bowling Green. Dorundo was a second team All-NEC selection in the spring of 2020-21.

- Defensive Coordinator Mike Craig will head into his second season leading the Dukes defensive unit and he has a long list of returners, along with some talented newcomers.  

- The Dukes return all three starters upfront, including A.J. Ackerman, Kevin Kurzinger, and Ryan Lopez. Ackerman, a preseason all-conference selection has started 22 straight games for the Dukes, including all 11 last season (first four at defensive end and last seven at nose tackle). He posted 20 tackles with 13 solo and was third on the team with 2.5 sacks. Kurzinger returns as the leading pass rusher for the Red and Blue with three sacks and 7.5 tackles for loss a year ago. Lopez recorded four quarterback hurries in 2022, the most of any returner for DU, with one sack and 4.5 tackles for loss. 

- Noah Palmer played in all 11 games on the defensive line in his first season after transferring from Pitt and is slated to be right back in the trenches this fall. Alex Reese III and Clemente Ojinnaka will add depth to the line again this season, as well as newcomers Matt Brooks (a freshman who enrolled this spring and participated in spring ball) and Carlos Ramirez (a JUCO transfer from Pasadena City College).

- Linebackers Gianni Rizzo and Jayden Johnson return. Rizzo started seven games with 32 tackles (5.5 for loss), one sack, and broke up two passes. Johnson battled injuries and made four starts while appearing in all 11 games with 29 tackles. Ty Howard is also a returner expected to start on the outside with Sam Brown battling as well.

- Steven Cmielewski and Khatavian Franks are a pair of talented transfers adding depth and veteran leadership to the linebackers. Cmielewski spent the past four seasons at Stonehill. Last season, he played in nine games with 58 tackles (6.4 per game, which was good for sixth in the NEC) and forced two fumbles (tied for the third-most in the NEC). Franks arrives from Georgia Tech, where he spent the past three seasons but did not see game action. Franks was a three-star prospect out of high school and was ranked the 59th best outside linebacker in the nation by Rivals. The Dukes will be without Franks in the opener.

- In the secondary, CJ Barnes returns to lead a deep group of defensive backs. Barnes is one of two players on the Dukes defense that started all 11 games last season (Ackerman), and one of three overall (Dorundo at center). He is the leading returning tackler for Duquesne with 58 stops (39 solo) in 2022, including a pair of 10-tackle games.

- Tim Lowery is set to return after suffering a season-ending injury in the Hawaii contest last season, just four games into the 2022 campaign. In his last full season (2021), Lowery lead the team with six passes defended (five break ups/one INT).

- Shane Stump, who has appeared in every game over the last two seasons including five starts at linebacker last year, made a position move to safety this spring and is expected to contribute as a veteran leader, heading into his fourth season on the Bluff. Stump returns as the second leading tackler on the team after posting 54 tackles (33 solos) in 2022.

- Ayden Garnes started eight games and appeared in 10 as a cornerback last season. Entering his third season at Duquesne, Garnes is coming off a 33-tackle campaign (27 solos) with two interceptions (tied for a team high), a forced fumble, and fumble recovery.

- Adding to the secondary depth for the Dukes are returners Ezekiel M. Daure, a fifth-year veteran who had two interceptions in nine games played and two starts last season, Jaelen Carson, who saw action in six games in 2022 before suffering an injury and will enter his fourth season at DU, Donovan Stanley, who has recovered from an injury in camp last season which limited him to one game and will be in his fourth season on the Bluff, Malichi Lowery, the brother of Tim Lowery who has continuously developed over the past two seasons and appeared in six games last year, Ben LaCarte, who enters his fourth season and is returning from injury, and Sam Neill, who will be in his third season in the Red and Blue.

- A pair of Division II transfers round out a deep secondary unit for the Dukes, including Javon Colston (Walsh) and Dayvia Gbor (Minnesota Duluth). Gbor was an all-conference and all-region selection with seven interceptions and 11 pass break ups in 2022. The seven INTs ranked third nationally and first in his conference. Gbor will enter his fourth season of college football, after spending 2019, '21, and '22 at Minnesota Duluth. Colston played four seasons at Walsh, where he played 26 games and had two interceptions (both in 2022).

- Duquesne's kicking unit is back at it for another season. Brian Bruzdewicz ranked third in the NEC in field goal percentage in 2022 (66.7%) going 10-for-15 and connected on 30-of-31 PAT attempts. Punter Michael Berarducci has been the Dukes primary punter over the past two seasons. The junior from Allison Park, Pa. has ranked top three in the NEC each of the last two campaigns in yards per punt, including third last season with an average of 37.5 yards per punt. 

THE MATCHUP / SCOUTING THE SCOTS
- Duquesne also opened its 1929 season at home against Edinboro, a 14-0 win for the Dukes. The matchup against Division II Edinboro will be the sixth straight season a non-Division I member is on the schedule (every full season since 2017).

- Duquesne is riding an 11-game win streak against non-Division I schools dating to a 21-19 loss to West Liberty State on Sept. 30, 2006. The Dukes are 16-3 in games against non-DI foes since joining the level in 1993.

- Edinboro's head coach Jake Nulph was the special teams coordinator and defensive backs coach at Duquesne in 2018 when the Dukes won the NEC and won the program's first-ever FCS playoff game.

- The Scots, NCAA Division II members of the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference, return 17 of 22 starters from a year ago that saw them go 5-6 overall and 3-4 in PSAC West play.

- All-American punter Reed Martin headlines the returning players after also playing corner for the Scots in 2022. On the offensive side of the ball, receiver Thaddeus Standfield and offensive tackle Gabe Hulslander return as second-team All-PSAC West selections. Clay Cunningham leads the defensive returners as a second-team All-PSAC choice himself.

- Edinboro was picked to finish fifth in the eight-team PSAC West Preseason Coaches' Poll.

- The Scots last played a Division I opponent in the 2003 season opener at Youngstown State ... YSU won the matchup 35-11.

NEC PRESEASON POLL  
- Duquesne was picked to finish third in the NEC Preseason Coaches Poll, announced at NEC Media Day in late July. Media Day returned to an in-person event for the first time since 2019 with all eight teams at Metlife Stadium in East Rutherford, NJ.

- This is the 13th straight season that DU is top three in the conference preseason coaches' poll. Duquesne was picked first or second in each of  the previous 12 seasons. The Dukes received one first place vote, and has now received at least one in 12 of the last 13 preseason polls.

- Defending league champion Saint Francis, who rolled to a 7-0 conference record last season, was deemed the NEC favorite with five first-place votes.

- The Dukes had two preseason all-conference selections. Wide receiver Joey Isabella represented the offense with his second straight preseason All-NEC tab, then lineman A.J. Ackerman got a nod on the defensive side.

LOOKING BACK AT 2022
- The Dukes finished the 2022 season strong with a 33-0 shutout victory over Wagner at Rooney Field, capping off a 3-2 finish over the final five games. Two of the final five games went to overtime; a 50-48 home loss to LIU in two extra periods, then a 35-28 OT victory at home the following week over Sacred Heart. It was the first time in program history that DU played in two overtime games in one season.

NEXT WEEK
- Duquesne will travel to West Virginia for its first of two straight games against FBS opponents (6 pm at WVU on Sept. 9 ... 7 pm at Coastal Carolina on Sept. 16).

- The Dukes will begin a four-game road trip, their longest away stretch since 1990.

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.

- DU will be live on ESPN+ for the week two and three games at WVU and Coastal Carolina, as well as the October 28 game at Sacred Heart ... The October 7 game at Delaware will stream on FloFootball ... The remaining seven games can be viewed on NEC Front Row.

- Dukes Football can be heard live again this season on 104.7 HD2, on the iHeart Radio App, or on ESPNpgh.com by searching Duquesne.

TICKETS
Secure your tickets for every Duquesne Football home game here.