Findlay Travels to Canton for First Ever Great Midwest Contest
The Game
The Oilers hit the road for their first ever Great Midwest Athletic Conference (GMAC) contest as they take on Walsh University in Canton, Ohio on Saturday, Sep. 30. The game will kick off at 1:00 pm.
Radio
All Oilers football games can be heard on 88.3 FM "WLFC" or on the internet via their web site. You can listen to the broadcast by clicking on the following link:
Video
Video for the contest will be provided on the Great Midwest Network:
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Fans are also encouraged to send questions in for coach Keys through Twitter. Please send questions throughout the week on Twitter Tim Montgomery @Oilersonair.
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The Series
Findlay and Walsh have not played since the 2015 season, a game in which the Oilers lost in double-overtime by a score of 39-38. Overall, the Oilers are 3-1 against the Cavaliers since their first meeting in 2012, a game the Orange and Black won 26-7.
Head Coach Rob Keys
Head coach Rob Keys is in his seventh season at the helm of the Oilers football program in 2017. He has recorded a 41-28 record with the program as a head coach, which includes a 34-26 mark in conference games. Keys has led the Oilers to five winning seasons in his six years as head coach.
For Findlay's 2017 coaching staff, please click on the following link:
The Oilers
In their most recent game, a 61-0 drubbing of Tuskegee University, the Oilers earned their first shutout victory in three years. It was the Oilers' largest shutout victory since a 70-0 win over Lindenwood in 1994. It is also the first time that Findlay has recorded back-to-back 50+ point games since 1997 when the Oilers had three straight games above the half-century mark with 62 against Iowa Wesleyan, 70 against St. Xavier, and 55 against Taylor.
After the 61-point route, Findlay is now the top scoring team in the league and ninth-best scoring team in the country at 42.8 points per game. Alderson Broaddus is second in the league in that category at 33.8 points per game. Findlay also leads the league in touchdowns scored with 25, seven more than the two teams in second (Ohio Dominican and Alderson Braoddus).
The Oilers have shown a great commitment to the run game this season and are churning out 275.5 yards per game on the ground, tops in the conference and seventh in the country. That is thanks, in large part, to an experienced offensive line that, of the four returning offensive lineman from last season, has combined for 74 starts in their careers. Senior Daouda Sylla has done the bulk of the running and is picking up 136.3 yards per game, the most in the league.
Despite that success on the ground, junior Rhys Gervais is still have a successful year from the pocket. He has completed 55-of-79 passes (.696) and has thrown for 813 yards and ten touchdowns. Although his yards per game are down from his first two years in his career, his passer rating is currently at a career-high of 190.2, fourth-best in the country this season. Because of this success on both the ground and in the air, the Oilers have reached the first down marker 110 times, second-most in the country.
Findlay's defense has also stepped up their game this season as they are holding opponents to 379.8 total yards per game, their lowest since 2014. The Oilers' secondary is a big reason why that defense has been successful. With five interceptions this season, the Orange and Black lead the Great Midwest and that has helped the Oilers to a +3 turnover margin.
2017 Season Statistics
2017 Roster
The Cavaliers
The Walsh Cavaliers enter the contest with an 0-4 record to start the 2017 campaign, the third season in a row in which they have lost at least their first four games.
The Maroon and Gold began their season with a loss at home to Wayne State 28-9, however they did hold the Warriors scoreless in the second half. Unfortunately for Walsh, that contest was their closest point spread this season as they were shutout in Week 2 be Saginaw Valley State and gave up 56 and 57 points in their next two games against Jacksonville and Central Connecticut State, respectively.
Walsh is led by head coach Dan Pifer who is in his first season with the Cavaliers. Pifer came to Walsh from Division III Olivet College where he took a team that finished 0-10 in his first year (2012) to consecutive MIAA Conference championships with a combined record of 18-3 in those final two seasons.
The only returning players who received all-conference accolades last season are offensive lineman Aidan O'Neill, and a pair of linebackers, Nick Sturgill and Seamus O'Sullivan. Each of these players earned honorable mention all-GLIAC a season ago.
Leading the Cavaliers offense will be sophomore Mitchell Ault. In his second year as the starting signal caller, Ault has thrown for 343 yards of 36-of-56 from the pocket. He is coming off a year in which he completed 135-of-223 for 1,141 yards and three touchdowns.
We Want Moore
After a 2015 where he had 69.7 receiving yards per game (11th in GLIAC), Moore vaulted his name to the list of the nation's top receivers in 2016. Last year, Moore averaged 101.4 receiving yards per game (third in GLIAC) and caught 15 touchdown passes (second in GLIAC). Moore's 15 TD catches in 2016 ranked third in the nation among returning wide receivers. Baddy Oliver (Colorado Mines) caught 26 TDs while Damon Gibson (MSU-Moorehead) caught 17.
This season, Moore has six touchdown passes caught, the second-most TD receptions in the country.
G-MAC Preseason Poll
The Oilers were picked to finish third in the eight-team Great Midwest Athletic Conference this season. Findlay received two first place votes and is selected to finish behind Ohio Dominican and Hillsdale College. Alderson Broaddus, last year's G-MAC champion, received one first place vote.
Defensive Improvement
In 2015, the Oilers' defense was giving up 468.3 yards per game, second-to-last in the GLIAC, ahead of only Lake Erie who gave up 533.5. In 2016, Findlay turned up the pressure on defense, limiting opponents to 386.3 yards per game, eighth in the GLIAC. That improvement showed on the scoreboard as their scoring defense improved from 37.2 ppg to 26.0 ppg allowed.
In their Week 1 win over Tiffin, the Oilers surrendered just 13 points and then in Week 4, Findlay shutout Tuskegee, their first shutout since beating Malone 38-0 in 2014. Findlay's defense leads the conference in scoring defense as they are allowing just 19.5 points per game.
This year, Findlay's defense leads the Great Midwest Athletic Conference in INT (5).
Links
NCAA Division II Stats
NCAA
NCAA Division II Football
American Football Coaches Association
D2Football.com
Great Midwest