GAME DAY LINKS -- 
McKENDREE vs. LINCOLN -- Saturday, Oct. 29, 2016, 2 p.m.
Dwight T. Reed Stadium, Jefferson City, Mo.

LISTEN LIVE (Bearcat Sports Network -- FREE)
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LIVE STATS

McKENDREE/LINCOLN VIDEO PREVIEW WITH COACH BABCOCK
McKENDREE GAME NOTES
McKENDREE SEASON STATISTICS

LINCOLN GAME NOTES
LINCOLN SEASON STATISTICS

(LEBANON, Ill., Oct. 27)--The McKendree University football team will look to extend its win streak to three games on Saturday when the Bearcats head to Jefferson City, Mo., for a Great Lakes Valley Conference game at Lincoln University. Kickoff is set for 2 p.m. at Dwight T. Reed Stadium. Saturday's game can be heard live on the Bearcat Sports Network (www.glvcsn.com/mckendree) with the pre-game show set to begin at approximately 1:45 p.m.

McKendree comes off one of its most complete team performances of the 2016 season last Saturday when the Bearcats rolled to a 40-7 victory at Leemon Field against Missouri S&T. The Bearcats scored touchdowns on their first two possessions and never looked back in posting season-highs in both points (40) and margin of victory (33 points). Offensively, McKendree rushed for a season-best 264 yards against the Miners, including a career-high 105 yards by junior Preston Thompson (Markham, IL/Tinley Park). On the defensive side of the ball, the Bearcats recorded a season-high eight quarterback sacks, including three from senior Lucky Baar (Chicago, IL/Morgan Park), who saw his first game action in nearly three weeks against Missouri S&T. Special teams also played a big role in last Saturday's triumph as Steven O'Block (Libertyville, IL/Carmel Catholic) tied a school record with four field goals and set a new mark by scoring 16 points on the day. The Bearcats also had takeaways on consecutive kickoffs by O'Block at the outset of the second half. 

Now 5-3 overall, McKendree sits at 3-2 in GLVC play. The Bearcats sit in a three-way tie for third place in the league standings with Quincy University and Missouri S&T. Saturday's contest will mark the next-to-last road trip for McKendree in 2016. The Bearcats' final game away from Leemon Field will take place a week from Saturday when they head north to face Quincy. McKendree, which is a perfect 5-0 at home, is in search of its first road win of the year at Lincoln. 

The Blue Tigers bring a 1-7 overall record and an 0-5 conference mark into Saturday's contest with McKendree. The Blue Tigers' lone win came in non-conferene play at home against Lane College, 12-9. Lincoln has dropped each of its last three outings, including a 38-7 setback last Saturday at the University of Indianapolis. In that game, the Blue Tigers trailed by a 10-7 margin at the half before the Greyhounds reeled off 21 points in the third quarter to pull away for the win. 

Lincoln was limited to just 132 yards of total offense at Indianapolis. Derrick Wilkerson accounted for nearly half that total with 61 yards rushing on the day. Addison Tucker registered a game-high 13 tackles while Marvin Holley added 11 stops. Will Randolph leads the Blue Tigers with 351 rushing yards on the season. At quarterback, Dennis Vinson has thrown for 1,261 yards and six touchdowns. Bryson Winfrey has caught a team-high 30 passes, while Anthony Townsend leads Lincoln with three TD receptions. On defense, Tucker has a team-best 57 tackles. The Blue Tigers also have one of the most dangerous kickers in the GLVC in Alex Templeton, who has booted seven field goal in 2016, including two from at least 50 yards. Templeton's 54-yard field goal against Lane -- which is a school and GLVC record -- provided the game-winning points in the Blue Tigers' lone win of the year. 

McKendree has won both previous meetings with Lincoln, including last season's 65-0 triumph at Leemon Field. In that contest, the Bearcts rolled up 587 yards of total offense and posted the highest point total by a Bearcat team in the program's NCAA Division II era that dates back to 2012. Isaac Fisher (Washington, IL/Washington) was 26-of-30 for 308 yards with three touchdown passes in the effort. Fisher also ran for 82 yards and another score against the Blue Tigers. 

INSIDE THE McKENDREE/LINCOLN GAME
THE HEAD COACHES
McKENDREE: Mike Babcock is in his fourth season as the head coach of the McKendree Bearcats (22-17 at McKendree and overall).

LINCOLN: Lee Johnson is serving as the interim head coach of the Lincoln Blue Tigers (1-3 at Lincoln and overall).

THE SERIES (Since 1996)
McKendree has won both meetings against Lincoln on the gridiron, including last year's 65-0 decision at Leemon Field:
   2014 -- McKENDREE 56, Lincoln 36 (at Jefferson City, Mo.)
   2015 -- McKENDREE 65, Lincoln 0 (at Leemon Field)

McKENDREE -- LAST TIME OUT
The Bearcats scored two touchdowns in the first five minutes and never looked back in cruising to a 40-7 Great Lakes Valley Conference win last Saturday at home against Missouri S&T. Offensively, McKendree rushed for a season-high 264 yards as Preston Thompson (Markham, IL/Tinley Park) cranked out a career-best 105 yards with a touchdown in the effort. On the defensive side, the Bearcats registered a season-high eight quarterback sacks, including three by Lucky Baar (Chicago, IL/Morgan Park). The special teams unit also shined as Steven O'Block (Libertyville, IL/Carmel Catholic) set a school record by scoring 16 points (4 FG's, 4 PAT's) against the Miners and tied another with four field goals in the contest. McKendree also recovered an onside kick on the second-half kickoff. Brandon Wildman (Monticello, IL/Monticello) ran for a touchdown and threw for another in the first two drives for the Bearcats. A.J. Wentland (Machesney Park, IL/Harlem) led the McKendree defense with 11 tackles, while Baar finished with eight stops along with his three sacks.

LINCOLN -- LAST TIME OUT
The Blue Tigers trailed by only three points at the half last Saturday at the University of Indianapolis, but the host Greyhounds pulled away in the final 30 minutes to send Lincoln to a 38-7 defeat. The Blue Tigers were held to just 132 yards of total offense in the effort. Derrick Wilkerson accounted for nearly half that total as he rushed for a team-high 61 yards on 13 carries. Jordan Davis was just 3-of-11 through the air for 41 yards. Delvon Rouser caught three of those passes, including a 26-yard TD grab in the second quarter. Addison Tucker had a game-high 13 tackles to show the way for Lincoln, while Marvin Holley added 11 stops with a sack and a forced fumble.

THE LAST MEETING -- McKENDREE vs. LINCOLN
On Oct. 31, 2015 at Leemon Field, McKendree rolled up 587 yards of total offense on its way to a 65-0 victory over Lincoln. The 65 points scored by the Bearcats marked the highest scoring output for the program in its NCAA Division II era that dates back to 2012. It was also McKendree's highest scoring output since a 66-0 home win against Waldorf College in 2009. The Bearcats' defense matched a season-high with eight quarterback sacks and allowed a season-low 265 yards of total offense. The McKendree special teams unit also joined in the fun by returning a blocked punt for a touchdown early in the third quarter. Isaac Fisher (Washington, IL/Washington) completed 26-of-30 pass attempts for 308 yards with three touchdowns. He also added 82 rushing yards and another score on the ground. Shayeen Edwards (East St. Louis, IL/Cahokia) collected 67 yards on the ground along with a pair of rushing TD's. Cameron James (Edwardsville, IL/Edwardsville) caught seven passes for 78 yards and had two touchdown grabs. A.J. Wentland (Machesney Park, IL/Harlem) led a balanced defensive effort with nine tackles, while Darion Simmons (Peoria, IL/Peoria) and Brad Wyss (Gardner, IL/Seneca) each had two sacks in the win.

BEARCAT TRACKS
BEARCATS vs. THE SHOW-ME STATE: McKendree has a record of 15-10 against teams from the state of Missouri since 1996. The Bearcats were 4-1 against programs from the Show-Me State a year ago. McKendree will have five games against Missouri schools in 2016, and is currently 2-1 in such contests so far this year.

TWICE AS HONORED: For the first time in 2016, McKendree had two players honored as GLVC Player of the Week recipients in the same week. Lucky Baar (Chicago, IL/Morgan Park) earned the league's Defensive Player of the Week nod with three of the Bearcats' eight quarterback sacks in the 40-7 win over Missouri S&T. Steven O'Block (Libertyville, IL/Carmel Catholic) garnered the league's Special Teams Player of the Week award with his school record-setting 16-point performance while he tied a Bearcat record by kicking four field goals against the Miners.

CARDIAC 'CATS: McKendree's 20-16 come-from-behind Homecoming victory over Saint Joseph's was historical in the modern era of McKendree football. It marked the first time since the program was revived in 1996 that the Bearcats scored in the final minute when trailing to rally for a win. McKendree has been tied with an opponent on several occasions heading into the final minute of regulation before scoring for the win. The last time that happened was in the 2010 regular-season opener, when Austin Fisher threw a 40-yard touchdown pass to Nick Jones with 17 seconds remaining to lift the Bearcats past the University of the Cumberlands, 34-27, in the Big River Bowl held in Dyersburg, Tenn.

EDWARDS CONTINUES CLIMB UP ALL-TIME RUSHING LIST: With his 100-yard effort at Southwest Baptist University, Shayeen Edwards (East St. Louis, IL/Cahokia) became the 20th player since McKendree revived its football program in 1996 to rush for 1,000 career yards. Edwards has pushed his career total to 1,279 yards, which is currently 15th on the program's all-time list:
   11) Marlone Chenault -- 1,448 yards
   12) Ryan Herring -- 1,437 yards
   13) Lamont Benn -- 1,436 yards
   14) Dominique Jones -- 1,344 yards
   15) Shayeen Edwards (East St. Louis, IL/Cahokia) -- 1,279 yards
   16) Jason Yelton -- 1,255 yards
   17) Jason Jackson -- 1,241 yards

O'BLOCK KICKS UP SOME RECORDS: Steven O'Block (Libertyville, IL/Carmel Catholic) set a new McKendree record by scoring 16 points by kicking in the Bearcats' win over Missouri S&T. He had four field goals and four extra points in the contest. In addition, his four field goals tie a program record set by Brian Schneider (1998 vs. Walsh) and matched by Stephen Webb (2002 vs. Northwestern Oklahoma State University). O'Block also moved past Schneider for second place on the Bearcats' career listed for points scored by a kicker at 248. He needs five points to match Webb's career mark of 253. O'Block also became the Bearcats' career leader in field goals made with 39, one better than Schneider's previous mark of 38.

WENTLAND CONTINUES TO TACKLE THE BEARCATS' RECORD BOOK: A.J. Wentland (Machesney Park, IL/Harlem) matched his own McKendree program record for tackles in a game with 22 stops in the Bearcats' contest at Southwest Baptist University. Wentland first established the mark in the 2015 regular-season opener at West Liberty University. Wentland continues to add to his McKendree career mark for tackles, which now stands at 392. Wentland also has topped the 100-tackle mark for the third straight year, and has 116 stops entering the Missouri S&T contest. He set another record by reaching 100 tackles in the fastest time in a season (seven games).

RAISING THE BAAR: Lucky Baar (Chicago, IL/Morgan Park) added to his McKendree career record with his three sacks against Missouri S&T. That marked Baar's 11th multi-sack game at McKendree. Baar now has 42 1/2 sacks in his four seasons with the Bearcats. He now stands 3 1/2 sacks shy of tying the NCAA Division II career mark of 46 sacks, which is currently held by Marc Schieckl, who played at Colorado School of Mines from 2007-10. In addition, in the Missouri S&T game, Baar became the Bearcats' career leader in tackles for loss at 59 1/2, moving past Oku Satcher, who had 59 tackles for loss during his McKendree career from 1999-2001.

SACK MASTERS: As a team, McKendree has registered 39 quarterback sacks so far in 2016. The Bearcats lead the Great Lakes Valley Conference in the category, and top all NCAA Division II programs by averaging 4.88 sacks per game.

MANY HAPPY RETURNS: Derrick Curry (Glen Ellyn, IL/Montini Catholic) already has 29 punt returns through the Bearcats' first seven games of 2016. That is the most in a season for a McKendree punt returner since Adam Clapp had 30 back in 2006. The Bearcats' single-season record is 42, which was set by Clapp during the 2004 campaign.

PASSING GRADE: McKendree enters today's game having thrown at least one touchdown pass in 12 consecutive games. That streak dates back to the Missouri S&T game in Rolla, Mo., last October.

21 AND OVER: McKendree sports a 121-25 record (.829) when scoring at least 21 points in a game.

UNI-TRACKER: McKendree made history of sorts against Angelo State by wearing purple uniform pants for the first time in program history. The purple pants give the Bearcats multiple uniform combinations as they can also be worn with the new white road jerseys. We will track the McKendree football record in 2016 while wearing certain combinations.
   **Graphite Jersey/Purple Pants: 2-0
   **Graphite Jersey/Graphite Pants: 3-0
   **White Jersey/Purple Pants: 0-2
   **White Jersey/Graphite Pants: 0-1

NATURAL-LY: McKendree will have the rare opportunity to play on a natural grass field on Saturday at Lincoln University. This will be the Bearcats' lone contest on grass in 2016. McKendree is 81-30 (.730) all-time on a grass playing surface since the beginning of the 1996 season.

RECORDS WATCH: A.J. Wentland (Machesney Park, IL/Harlem) (tackles) and Lucky Baar (Chicago, IL/Morgan Park) (quarterback sacks and tackles for loss) have already eclipsed McKendree career records they were chasing entering the 2016 season. The following McKendree players on the 2016 roster have a chance to become the Bearcats' career leader in at least one statistical category. Listed below are those players, with their current rank and the statistics needed to become the all-time leader in the respective categories:
LUCKY BAAR
• Forced Fumbles: Third all-time with seven. Zach Carter and Deveon Moss lead the way with eight.
STEVEN O'BLOCK
• Kick Scoring -- Second all-time with 248 points. Stephen Webb set the Bearcats' career mark with 253.
SEAN DOWLING
• Receiving Yards -- Third all-time with 1,249. Cameron James (Edwardsville, IL/Edwardsville) closed his McKendree career last year with a program-record 1,614 receiving yards.

THIS DATE IN McKENDREE FOOTBALL HISTORY
Oct. 29, 2005
Lamont Benn rushed for a career-high 130 yards in leading McKendree to a 19-9 win at Olivet Nazarene University. It was the third straight Mid-States Football Association-Midwest League victory for the Bearcats, and their fifth consecutive triumph against the Tigers. McKendree scored on its first and last possessions of the first half on its way to a 9-0 lead. Brendon Delaney capped a 14-play, 65-yard drive following the opening kickoff with a one-yard quarterback keeper for a touchdown. Stephen Webb then added a 29-yard field goal with just 13 seconds left before intermission to give the Bearcats their nine-point lead. Webb added another 29-yard field goal in the third quarter, and Dominique Jones scored from four yards out to close out the scoring for the Bearcats. George Smith added 74 rushing yards on 12 carries in the effort. Mike Harrison and Marcus Mann paced the McKendree defense with eight tackles each.