11/1/24

SCRANTON, Pa. -- Lackawanna College football is on a roll, and the Falcons are hoping to keep things moving when they take the field on Saturday, November 2nd, with a road match-up at Monroe University. 

You can read the full games notes for this week's contest HERE.

Kickoff is scheduled for a 4:00pm ET start from Memorial Field at The Stadium in Mount Vernon, NY. Lackawanna is 11-3 all-time against Monroe, winning five straight against the Mustangs and ten of the last eleven match-ups dating back to 2015. Lackawanna won the first match-up, earlier this season, by a 44-13 margin. The Falcons scored the first 24 points of the contest, kicking three field goals in the first half, and were never under any duress the rest of the way. Bryan Johnson (Woodbury, NJ) got the start and accounted for four touchdowns on the day, throwing a pair and rushing for two more. Keegan Hughes (Scranton, PA) kicked three field goals and accounted for 14 points on the day. The Falcons had 387 yards of total offense, and held Monroe to -19 yards rushing on the day. You can read the full recap HERE. 

Lackawanna College (6-2) comes into this week's contest as the #11 team in the latest NJCAA Division I rankings, dropping one spot from ten to eleven, despite winning by 55 points on the road at Hocking last weekend. Five teams in front of Lackawanna in last week's rankings, which included teams ranked first, fourth, fifth, sixth, and ninth, all lost, but Lackawanna's 67-12 win at Division III Hocking College was apparently not enough to let Lackawanna take advantage. Lackawanna was dominant on offense, moving the ball to the tune of 624 yards of total offense, 467 of which came on the ground. Lackawanna had two 100-yard rushers on the day, with Maurice Edwards (Mundelein, IL) gaining 130 yards on just seven carries. Bernardo Henry (Maplewood, NJ) had 119 yards rushing and score. Quarterback Wyatt Hagan (Chantilly, VA) threw for 95 yards and three touchdowns. Johnson threw for 62 yards and a touchdown, and ran for 76 yards. Receiver Christian Harrison (Temple Hills, MD) caught three passes, two of them touchdowns, while Michael Hodge (Richmond, VA) had three catches for 55 yards and a score. Defensively, the Falcons held Hocking to 59 yards rushing and forced four turnovers. Linebacker Nyair Graham (Camden, NJ) had nine total tackles with two TFLs to lead the Falcons, while Gene Townsel (Richmond, VA) had six tackles, blocked a punt that led to a touchdown, and recovered a fumbled two-point conversion attempt and returned it for a defensive two-point conversion. You can read the full recap HERE. 

Monroe (4-3) is on a two-game winning streak, and is coming into this contest off a bye week. Their last game was a 40-16 victory on the road at Nassau CC on October 19th. The Mustangs trailed 16-7 in the second quarter to Nassau, after a safety, a 51-yard touchdown, and a fumble recovery in the end zone in quick succession put the Lions (2-6) in front. Monroe didn't blink, putting together an 80-yard touchdown drive to close out the second quarter with a little momentum, down 16-14. That score was the first seven points of 33 in a row, as the Mustangs clamped down defensively and put together some more scores, which included a score in the third quarter to take the lead, then two rushing touchdowns and a fumble recovery in the end zone. the Mustangs ran for 113 yards as a team, but defensively they were excellent, turning the opposition over three times, holding them to 10 yards rushing on the day, and putting up seven sacks. Quarterback Raeden Oliver passed for 124 yards and a touchdown. Running back Rodreckus Johnson had 85 yards rushing and two touchdowns, while Sean Robinson ran for 56 yards and a score. Theodore McDuffie had six total tackles, including 2.5 tackles-for-loss and a sack, as well as a fumble recovery touchdown. Kareem Lewis had five tackles, while Ahshod Hill had five stops, two TFLs, and a half a sack. 

Monroe is averaging around 26.6 points per game this season, 21st out of 41 NJCAA Division I teams this year. The Mustangs have scored 108 points in their last two games, after scoring a combined 78 through their first five games. Monroe averages around 280 yards of offense per game, which includes 78.6 yards per game on the ground, 36th in the country. They fair a little better passing the ball, averaging 201 yards per game, 16th in the country. Defensively, the Mustangs give up 254.6 yards per game, in the top ten in the country. Teams are scoring about 24 points per game againts Monroe this year. 

The head coach for Monroe University is Kevin Pulley, now in his second season as the head coach and tenth season overall with the program. Pulley became the second-ever coach of the Mustangs in December 2022, when he took over for Terry Karg, who started the program ten years earlier. Pulled had been with the program since 2015, and had been the offensive coordinator since 2016. With Pulley pulling the strings on offense, Monroe's offense continued to rise as one of the best in the country, culminating in the 2021 season, where the Mustangs went undefeated through the regular season for the first time ever, averaging 38.36 points per game and finishing ranked #6 in the NJCAA end of season rankings, competing in the Graphic Edge Bowl in Iowa. Pulley is a Rutgers graduate, and has a master's degree in Sports Management from Drexel University. Before Monroe, he spent time coaching in HS at Stamford HS in Connecticut, as well as an assistant coach before that at Vineland HS in New Jersey. Pulley is 10-8 in his brief time in charge of Monroe.   

The head football coach for Lackawanna College is Mark Duda, now in his 31st season at the helm for the Falcons. Duda has 212 career victories, the most among active coaches in the NJCAA. Coach Duda, an NJCAA Hall-of-Famer, has produced over 400 scholarship athletes and had 20 different players end up with NFL contracts after spending time at Lackawanna. Lackawanna has had a .500 or better record in 26 of his 30 previous seasons, and has five official undefeated regular seasons. Duda is a northeast PA native, graduating from Wyoming Valley West in 1979, a prominent member of the Spartans' vaunted "Mad Dog" defense. Duda went on to play at the University of Maryland, setting a record of 13 sacks in a year, which stood for 30 years, before being drafted by the then-St. Louis Cardinals in 1983. Duda made 34 starts and 55 appearances, recording 9.5 sacks in the NFL. He earned a bachelor's degree from East Stroudsburg in 1991, and has a master's degree from Thomas Edison College. 

Lackawanna College has one more regular season game remaining after this weekend. The Falcons will host the #2 Georgia Military College Bulldogs on Saturday, November 9th, at PenFed Field at Scranton Memorial Stadium. Kickoff is set for 1:00pm ET.