GAME DAY LINKS -- McKendree vs. Saint Joseph's -- Saturday, Oct. 17, 2015, Noon -- Alumni Stadium, Rensselaer, Ind.
LISTEN LIVE (Bearcat Sports Network)
LIVE STATS

McKENDREE/SAINT JOSEPH'S VIDEO PREVIEW WITH COACH BABCOCK
McKENDREE SEASON STATISTICS
McKENDREE GAME NOTES
SAINT JOSEPH'S SEASON STATISTICS

(LEBANON, Ill., Oct. 16)--The McKendree University football team will begin a two-game road trip on Saturday when the Bearcats head east to Rensselaer, Ind., for a match-up against Saint Joseph's College. Kickoff for the Great Lakes Valley Conference contest is set for noon at Alumni Stadium. The game can be heard live on the Bearcat Sports Network at www.mckbearcats.com/watch. There is no live video of Saturday's McKendree/Saint Joseph's game. 

McKendree is looking to bounce back into the win column after suffering its first loss of the 2015 season last Saturday in a 34-24 setback against the University of Indianapolis. The visiting Greyhounds broke a 24-24 tie on a field goal with just 1:58 remaining, then returned an interception for a touchdown less than a minute later to seal the win in a battle of GLVC unbeatens. The Bearcats slipped to 4-1 overall and are now 2-1 in conference play.

Isaac Fisher (Washington, IL/Washington) rushed for a career-high 138 yards and rushed for a pair of touchdowns, both of which came on fourth-and-one plays in the first half. Included in that total was a career-long 60-yard scoring burst in the second quarter for Fisher, who also threw for 225 yards against Indianapolis. Darius Crochrell (Edwardsville, IL/Edwardsville) was Fisher's favorite target in the effort with a team-best seven receptions, while Sean Dowling (Chatham, IL/Glenwood) added five catches for a team-high 76 receiving yards. Defensively, A.J. Wentland (Machesney Park, IL/Harlem) paced McKendree with a game-high 16 stops, 11 of which came in the second half. Four different Bearcats -- Nate Powell (Chicago, IL/King College Prep), Jabaree Winston (Chicago, IL/Simeon), Lucky Baar (Chicago, IL/Morgan Park) and Brett Pearman (Granite City, IL/Granite City) -- each chipped in with seven stops. 

Saint Joseph's is coming off a 42-14 home win last Saturday over Lincoln University. Quarterback Wade Burtron had 164 passing yards and threw a trio of touchdown passes in the victory. Burtron and Cobi Cook each rushed for a score as the Pumas built a 14-0 lead midway through the first quarter and never looked back. Garrett Lukens registered a team-leading nine tackles, while Tracey Whitehead added five tackles and a 13-yard interception return for a touchdown.

The teams have met three times, with Saint Joseph's winning each match-up. The Pumas rallied in the closing minutes last year at Leemon Field to notch a 35-33 victory. The Bearcats drove to midfield in the waning seconds, but could not complete the comeback. Fisher set McKendree program record with 34 completions and 58 passing attempts against Saint Joseph's. Fisher threw for 341 yards and rushed for another 71 in the contest. Tyler Brewer (Arnold, MO/Fox) also set a Bearcats' single-game record with 13 receptions versus the Pumas. A.J. Wentland (Machesney Park, IL/Harlem) led the defense with 16 tackles. 

McKendree will continue its two-game road swing next Saturday (Oct. 24) with a short trip to Rolla, Mo., for another GLVC contest against MissourI S & T. The Bearcats will return home on Halloween -- Oct. 31 -- to host Lincoln University. 

INSIDE THE McKENDREE/SAINT JOSEPH'S GAME
THE HEAD COACHES
McKENDREE: Mike Babcock is in his third season as the head coach of the McKendree Bearcats (13-13 at McKendree and overall). Babcock came to McKendree from Colorado State University-Pueblo, where he spent the five years as an offensive assistant coach. From 2009-12, Babcock served as the ThunderWolves' quarterbacks coach and passing game coordinator.

SAINT JOSEPH'S: Daniel Day is in his first season as the head coach of the Saint Joseph's Pumas (3-3 at Saint Joseph's and overall). 

THE SERIES (Since 1996)
The Pumas have won all three meetings against the Bearcats, including last year's 35-33 contest at Leemon Field.:
   2012 -- Saint Joseph's 24, McKENDREE 19 (at Leemon Field)
   2013 -- Saint Joseph's 31, McKENDREE 13 (at Rensselaer, Ind.) 
   2014 -- Saint Joseph's 35, McKENDREE 33 (at Leemon Field)

McKENDREE -- LAST TIME OUT...
The Bearcats fell from the ranks of the unbeaten last Saturday with a 34-24 loss at Leemon Field against the University of Indianapolis. Indianapolis scored 10 points in the final 1:58 of play to pull away for the Great Lakes Valley Conference victory. Isaac Fisher (Washington, IL/Washington) completed 23-of-44 pass attempts for 224 yards. Fisher did rush for a career-high 138 yards with two touchdowns, both of which came on fourth-and-one plays in the first half. Darius Crochrell (Edwardsville, IL/Edwardsville) hauled in a season-high seven passes in the contest, while Sean Dowling (Chatham, IL/Glenwood) added five receptions for a team-leading 76 yards. A.J. Wentland (Machesney Park, IL/Harlem) registered a game-high 16 tackles to lead the McKendree defensive effort. A quartet of Bearcats -- Jabaree Winston (Chicago, IL/Simeon), Brett Pearman (Granite City, IL/Granite City), Lucky Baar (Chicago, IL/Morgan Park) and Nate Powell (Chicago, IL/King College Prep) -- each added seven tackles against Indianapolis. 

SAINT JOSEPH'S -- LAST TIME OUT...
The Pumas jumped out to a 14-point lead midway through the first quarter and never looked back in cruising to a 42-14 win last Saturday at home against Lincoln University. Wade Burtron completed 15-of-22 attempts for 164 yards with three touchdowns in the win. Kobi Cook rushed for a game-high 91 yards on 22 carries, while Burtron added 66 yards on 13 attempts. both Cook and Burtron scored rushing touchdowns on the day. Tremel Glasper led the Pumas' receiving corps with four catches for 53 yards. Garrett Lukens led the Saint Joseph's defense with nine tackles, while Joel Wimbley added eight stops. Tracey Whitehead -- who had five tackles in the win -- started the scoring for the Pumas with a 13-yard interception return for a score less than three minutes into play. 

THE LAST MEETING, McKENDREE vs. SAINT JOSEPH'S
On Sept. 27, 2014 at Leemon Field, McKendree dropped a 35-33 heartbreaker to Saint Joseph's in the GLVC opener for both schools. The Pumas scored the winning touchdown with just 1:57 to play to rally for the victory. The Bearcats drove to midfield in the closing seconds, but could not complete the comeback. McKendree piled up 497 yards of total offense against Saint Joseph's and was led by a 341-yard passing night by Isaac Fisher (Washington, IL/Washington). He set school records for completions (34) and attempts (58) in the contest while throwing for three touchcowns. Fisher also rushed for 71 yards. Ryan Herring (Fairview Heights, IL/Belleville East) led all players with 90 rushing yards on 11 attempts, including a 65-yard scoring burst for the first points of the night. Tyler Brewer (Arnold, MO/Fox) set another school mark with 13 receptions against the Pumas, collecting 116 yards and a score. A.J. Wentland (Machesney Park, IL/Harlem) notched a game-high 16 tackles, while Bryce Colvin (East Peoria, IL/East Peoria) contributed 12 stops and Cameron Ford (Danville, IL/Danville) added 11 tackles. For Saint Joseph's, Tate Borlik went 17-of-26 through the air for 281 yards with a pair of TD tosses. His favorite target was E.J. Woody, who had four grabs for 127 yards. Tracey Whitehead led the Pumas with 12 tackles and a pair of interceptions. 

BEARCAT TRACKS
BEARCATS vs. THE HOOSIER STATE: McKendree has a record of 10-14 all-time against teams from the state of Indiana. Excluding the 2006 season, the Bearcats have played an Indiana school each year since the program was revived for the 1996 campaign. 

20 SEASONS OF FOOTBALL: 2015 marks the 20th season of football at McKendree since the program was revived in 1996. 

200 AND COUNTING: The Sept. 12 contest at West Liberty marked the 200th football game played by McKendree since bringing back its football program in 1996. 

DOUBLING UP: McKendree has scored at least 10 points in a game in 173 of its last 185 outings. 

21 AND OVER: McKendree sports a 114-23 record (.832) when scoring at least 21 points in a game. The Bearcats are 90-19 (.826) in their last 109 contests when reaching the 21-point mark.    

FISHER FACTS: Isaac Fisher (Washington, IL/Washington) had a career-best streak of four consecutive 300-yard passing games snapped against Indianapolis. Fisher has still thrown fore better than 220 yards in each of the Bearcats' five games to date. Also, Fisher continues to move his way up the program's career rushing list. Fisher now has 1,362 rushing yards with the Bearcats, which is good for 13th on the all-time list. Lamont Benn holds 12th place on the McKendree career rushing list with 1,436 yards, while Ryan Herring (Fairview Heights, IL/Belleville East) is a yard in front of Benn in 11th position with 1,437 yards.

A.J. IS OK: With 16 more tackles against Southwest Baptist, junior linebacker A.J. Wentland (Machesney Park, IL/Harlem) continues to move up the top 10 in career tackles at McKendree. Wentland enters today's contest with 215 stops, which is seventh on the Bearcats' career list with Darius Green. Jason Rejfek is up next in sixth place at 216 tackles, while Ryan Thornhill holds down fifth place on the all-time chart with 229 stops. Brandon Nigro holds the top spot with 295 stops during his four-year career with the Bearcats. 

SIGN OF THINGS TO COME?: The triumph at West Liberty marked the first win for McKendree in a road opener since the 2009 season. Since the revival of the football program in 1996, the Bearcats have won their road opener eight different times. In each of those seasons, McKendree closed the year with a winning record. In fact, the Bearcats averaged better than eight wins per season in those instances. 

THIS DATE IN BEARCAT FOOTBALL HISTORY
Oct. 17, 2009
There were plenty of milestones to go around as McKendree rolled to a 66-0 Homecoming victory over Waldorf College. Carl Poelker picked up his 100th victory as the Bearcats' head football coach, improving to 100-42 at the school. Poelker also grabbed his 188th career victory, which moved him into ninth place on the NAIA all-time wins list. Austin Fisher became the Bearcats' single-season passing leader during the first quarter of the contest. Fisher boosted his season total to 950 yards, surpassing the old mark of 922 yards set by Brendon Delaney in 2004. In addition, the 66 points scored by McKendree marked the second-highest point total ever registered at Leemon Field. The Bearcats took control of the contest early by scoring 35 points in the first quarter. McKendree scored on four of its first five possessions in the period and also added a 20-yard fumble return for a touchdown by Heath Bohannon. 

Oct. 17, 1998
McKendree overcame wet and sloppy playing conditions to post a 19-7 road victory at Iowa Wesleyan College. The contest featured a 25-minute weather delay and a shortened fourth quarter as the game was halted with just under three minutes remaining. McKendree won despite five lost fumbles against the Tigers. The Bearcats' offense was held scoreless as Brandon Murphy had a 93-yard kickoff return for a touchdown, while Ryan Thornhill and Ryan Jimison each recovered an Iowa Wesleyan fumble in the end zone for a score. All of the Bearcats' 170 yards of offense came on the ground, led by Jarrod Karnes' 66 rushing yards. Jimison and Thornhill each had six tackles to lead the McKendree defensive effort by holding the Tigers to 147 yards on the day.