Football set for Senior Day matchup with Marietta

The Muskingum football team hosts OAC-rival Marietta for the annual Shriner Game on Saturday, November 12, at the Bullock Health and Wellness Complex. Kickoff is slated for 1:30 p.m., and Muskingum's senior day festivities will begin at 12:00 p.m.

Tickets

• Fans can secure their tickets ahead of the game or on-site by purchasing them online at the Fighting Muskies' official ticketing page found at fightingmuskies.com/athletics/tickets or via the HomeTown Ticketing mobile app available through the App Store or Google Play. Tickets are $8 for adults, $6 for students, and children 5-and-under are free. Muskingum faculty, staff, their families, Muskingum students, and parents of Muskingum student-athletes will receive free admission to the game.

Media Coverage

Video: A live HD video stream of the game, with play-by-play, will be available on fightingmuskies.com, the OAC TV app, and simulcast on the fightingmuskies Facebook page. The Wally's Pizza pregame show starts at 1:15 p.m.

Live Stats: Fans can follow live stats of the game on fightingmuskies.com.

Radio: WMCO 90.7 FM, the flagship station for Muskingum athletics, will broadcast the contest. The game can also be accessed online at http://us7.maindigitalstream.com/2034/.

GameDay Information

• No charge for parking.
• Concessions will open at 12:30 p.m.
• Home team tailgating is permitted in the Stadium Heights parking lot. Visiting team tailgating is permitted in the parking lot just beyond the left-field fence at Muskingum's baseball facility Mose Morehead Field. Link to Muskingum tailgating policy and map to tailgating parking lots.

Notables

• The contest against the Pioneers marks Muskingum's senior day. Senior members of Muskingum's football team, cheerleading team, and athletic training team will be honored on the field. Football seniors will be honored at 12:00 p.m. while cheer seniors and athletic trainers will be honored at halftime.
• With a win over the Pioneers, Muskingum would secure their first six-win season since the 1995 campaign.
• The contest also marks the annual Shriner Game between Muskingum and Marietta.
• The matchup is also being promoted as a Red Out by the Muskingum's Student-Athlete Advisory Committee. All fans in attendance are encouraged to wear red to the game.
• Before the contest, Muskingum's Student Senate, Muskingum's Student-Athlete Advisory Committee, and Muskingum's Office of Culture Engagement and Inclusion will be hosting a pregame tailgate from 11:30 a.m. – 1:00 p.m. on the East Lawn. The event will offer free wings courtesy of the Cambridge Buffalo Wild Wings, lawn games, and giveaways.
• Entering Saturday's game, senior quarterback Jordan Garrett has 6,103 yards of total offense for his career. Garrett is 274 yards away from becoming Muskingum's all-time leader in total offense.

The Series

• The contest marks the 101^st meeting between Muskingum and Marietta, with the first game being played in 1897. The Muskies lead the all-time series, 53-46-2.
• Muskingum also leads the Shriner Game series 7-6, with the first game in the series being played in 2009.
• In 1967, Vern Albery set the Muskingum program record for most field goals made in a game with four against Marietta.
• In 1978, Jamie Morckel nailed a 51-yard field goal against the Pioneers to set the program record for the longest field goal made in school history.
• Muskingum also set the program record for the most total net yards in a game with 693 yards against Marietta in 1957. In that game, the Muskies also set the program record for most points scored in a single game with 74, most touchdowns scored in a contest with 11, and most successful two-point conversions with four.

The Matchup

The Muskies enter Saturday's contest 5-4 overall and 4-3 in the OAC after most recently defeating Wilmington 27-13 last week. Against the Quakers, Muskingum totaled 356 yards of total offense, registered 17 first downs, and forced one turnover.

This season, Muskingum averages 319.2 yards of total offense with 219.7 of those through the air and 99.6 on the ground. The Muskies average 23.9 points per contest, and they allow 27.8 yards per game. 

Muskingum is led by senior quarterback Jordan Garrett who enters Saturday's contest 274 yards away from becoming Muskingum's all-time leader in total offense. This season, Garrett has completed 156-of-247 (63.2%) of his passes, and he averages 208.4 passing yards per game which ranks fourth in the OAC. Garrett has tossed 19 touchdown passes which places him third in the conference, and he's also rushed for 106 yards and four scores as well.

Garrett's top target this season has been senior receiver Zuri Edmondson whose totaled 721 yards on 45 catches this year. Edmondson averages 80.1 receiving yards per game which places him third in the OAC, and he ranks second in the conference with eight receiving touchdowns. Edmondson averages 16 cards per reception, and he hauls in five catches per game. Alongside Edmondson is senior wideout Ja'Lin Goodman whose tallied 378 yards on 30 receptions. Goodman has five receiving touchdowns on the year which is eighth in the OAC, and he averages 42 yards per game. Right behind Goodman is junior receiver Travis Roberson with 370 yards on 28 catches. Roberson has three receiving touchdowns on the season, and he averages 13.2 yards per catch. Junior wideout Travanti Keitt has hauled in 24 passes for 217 yards and two scores, and he averages nine yards per catch.

Muskingum's ground attack is led by senior halfback Donny Wilkinson with 317 total yards on 111 rushes. Wilkinson has two rushing scores this year, and he's also caught one touchdown pass out of the backfield this season. Freshman running back Noah Wellmeier has 236 yards this season on 72 totes, and he's found the end zone two times this year. Wellmeier averages 3.3 yards per carry as well.

Defensively, the Muskies are led by sophomore linebacker Austin Willforth with 94 total tackles this season. Willforth ranks second in the OAC in tackles, and he ranks 20^th in Division III. Willforth averages 10.4 tackles per game which is fourth in the conference, and he's also tallied 2.5 sacks this season. Alongside Willforth is senior linebacker Tristan Howell who has 60 tackles this season. Howell averages 6.7 stops per game, and he's also registered one interception and one fumble recovery this season. Freshman lineback Jeremiah Livingston has 60 tackles this season as well, and he's also added two sacks and one fumble recovery. Sophomore defensive back Cole Burch leads the Muskie defense with two interceptions this season, while freshman linebacker Garrett Gurney and freshman defensive lineman Onye Nwosisi both have one forced fumble to lead the Muskies. 

On special teams, the Muskies are led by freshman kicker Aaron Meyers whose 18-for-18 on extra points this season. Meyers is also 2-for-5 on field goals this year, with his long coming from 36 yards out. Junior kicker Hunter Albers is 8-for-9 on extra points this season, and he's 1-for-1 on field goals as well. Junior kicker Collin Scozzafava has 1,534 yards on 40 punts this season. Scozzafava averages 38.4 yards per boot, and he's down six kicks inside the 20-yard line.

Marietta enters Saturday's contest with an identical 5-4 overall record and 4-3 mark in the OAC. The Pioneers most recently defeated Capital 50-14 last Saturday. Marietta averages 320.8 yards per game this season, and they hold their opponents to 331.4 yards per game. The Pioneers average 24.6 points per game, while their opponents average 21.7 points per contest.

Marietta's offense is led by junior quarterback Connor Vierstra whose completed 115-of-201 (57.21%) of his passes this season. Vierstra has 15 passing touchdowns on the year, and he averages 171 passing yards per game.

Vierstra's top target this season is sophomore wide receiver Dawson Snyder whose hauled in 32 passes for 547 yards. Snyder has six receiving touchdowns this year, and he averages 17.09 yards per catch.

On the ground, the Pioneers are led by senior running back Bryce Agnew with 1,155 rushing yards on 223 attempts. Agnew averages 128.3 yards per game which is tops in the OAC, and he sits second in the conference with 10 rushing touchdowns.

Defensively, the Pioneers are led by senior linebacker Drake Neuberger with 77 total tackles. Neuberger has 12.5 sacks, 21.5 tackles for loss, and one interception this season.