Oilers Take #22 Ranking and Six-Game Streak to Canton
Game Notes
The Game
For the first time in three years the Oilers will play a game as a nationally ranked team. The #22 Oilers head to Canton, Ohio on Thursday, Oct. 26 as they look to extend their six-game winning streak in a game against the Malone Pioneers. Kick off will be at 7:00 pm.
The Series
The Oilers and Pioneers have squared off six times since their initial meeting in 1995, a 15-7 win for Findlay. The Orange and Black have never lost, sporting a perfect 6-0 record against the team from Canton. These teams last met in 2015, when both teams were members of the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC), with the Oilers earning a 49-17 victory.
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 Stream
Video streaming for the contest will be provided by UFTV and the Great Midwest Network.
Coach Keys Weekly
Don't forget to tune into 88.3 FM "WLFC" for Coach Keys Weekly. The show is aired at 7:00 pm on Tuesdays.
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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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 45-28 record with the program as a head coach, which includes a 37-26 mark in conference games. With the Week 7 win over Hillsdale, Keys secured his sixth winning season in seven years as head coach at Findlay.
For Findlay's 2017 coaching staff, please click on the following link:
The #22 Oilers (7-1, 4-0 GMAC)
The Oilers, one of the hottest team in the nation right now, are on their longest win streak since 1997 and have surged into the national rankings, checking in at #22 this week. It is their first time in the top-25 poll since 2014 when the team spent one week at #25. Findlay is also ranked fourth in Super Region One which, if they can maintain that spot, would mean the Oilers would play host to an NCAA Division II Playoff game.
Through eight games this year the Oilers have been able to move the ball at will, picking up 218 first downs this season, second-most in the nation, and also converting on third down at nearly 53%, sixth-best in the nation. Part of the reason for the success is a talented offensive line that ranks second in the country in sacks allowed per game (0.38) and is paving the way for a rushing attack that is putting up 287.5 yards per game, sixth in the country, and 511 yards of total offense, seventh in the country.
Powering that offense has been a quarterback, Rhys Gervais, that is completing passes at a career-high rate of 70%, the fifth-best completion percentage in the country. He has been helped by tailback Daouda Sylla who ranks 11th in the nation at 7.1 yards per carry and ranks third in the nation with 14 rushing touchdowns. Findlay's other big weapon on offense is the talented receiver, Jason Moore, who ranks fourth in the country with ten receiving touchdowns.
When the Oilers do have to punt, they are the best in the country with a net punting average of 41.2 yards per punt and do not allow opponents any chance at a return. Findlay also leads the nation in punt return defense at -3.2 yards per return.
Equally as impressive has been the play on the defensive side of the ball where the Oilers are allowing just 13.9 points per game, ninth-best in the country, and are making 7.8 tackles-for-loss per game. One area where Findlay has been lights out is in the secondary where the self-titled 'Air Marshalls' are helping lead the way for a defense that has intercepted 12 passes, 13th in the country, and has scored four defensive touchdowns, fifth in the country.
Leading the Oilers' talented secondary has been senior Aaron Ivory, the most recent Great Midwest Defensive Player of the Week. Ivory has three interceptions this season, all of which have been returned for touchdowns while his teammate in the secondary, Francis Cutchember, leads the team with 43 tackles. But, Ivory and Cutchember could not do what they do without some talent in front of them. At linebacker, junior Justice Jenkins has lived in the backfield and has picked up five sacks, seven tackles for loss, and a forced fumble. He currently ranks fourth in the country with three fumble recoveries, as well.
2017 Season Statistics
2017 Roster
The Pioneers (1-6, 1-3 GMAC)
The Pioneers are fresh off their first win of the 2017 season, a 24-13 win over Lake Erie College in Week 8. The win was Malone's first since September 3, 2016 in the season opener against Taylor.
In the 24 seasons of football at Malone University, just seven have ended with a winning record, and at 1-6 this year, that number will not change. The last time the Pioneers, which have never had a winning season as an NCAA DII institution, ended a year over .500 was in 2008 when the team finished 6-4 (Malone was in the NAIA until 2011).
The team is anchored by their center, JD Stamper, who was selected first team all-Great Midwest last season as a sophomore. He has helped block for Xavier Garland who has rushed 87 times for 347 yards and five scores.
Another play returning with Great Midwest credentials is the kicker, Marcus Moeller. Last season, he was named first team all-Great Midwest after a year in which he made 13-of-17 field goals, including a career-long 47-yard kick. From the second week of the season through the tenth week, he made 11 consecutive field goals. Moeller also handled the punting duties and averaged 39.6 yards per punt on 59 punts, including a 67-yard punt.
Head coach Fred Thomas is in his second year at Malone. Last year he led the Pioneers to a 1-8 record and now has a career record at Malone of 2-14.
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.
Dominating Opponents
The Oilers have outscored their opponents 325-50 over the course of their six-game winning streak, winning those games by an average of 45.8 points. The 325 points scored is the most points scored over any six-game stretch in school history.
Against Different Conferences
Findlay has played opponents representing four different conferences this season. They are 1-1 against the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC), 1-0 against the Great Lakes Valley Conference (GLVC), 1-0 against the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SIAC), and 4-0 against the Great Midwest Athletic Conference (GMAC).
Links
NCAA Division II Stats
NCAA
NCAA Division II Football
American Football Coaches Association
D2Football.com
Great Midwest