GAME DAY LINKS --
McKENDREE vs. QUINCY -- Saturday, Nov. 4, 2017, 6 p.m.
Leemon Field -- Lebanon, Ill.

WATCH LIVE (Bearcat Sports Network)
LIVE STATS
QUINCY PREVIEW WITH COACH BABCOCK

McKENDREE GAME NOTES
McKENDREE SEASON STATISTICS
QUINCY GAME NOTES
QUINCY SEASON STATISTICS

(LEBANON, Ill., Nov. 3)--The McKendree University football team will wrap up the home portion of its 2017 schedule on Saturday when the Bearcats play host to Quincy University. Kickoff for the Great Lakes Valley Conference showdown is set for 6 p.m. at Leemon Field. The game can be seen live on the Bearcat Sports Network at www.glvcsn.com/mckendree, beginning with the pre-game show at 5:45 p.m.

McKendree brings an overall record of 6-3 and a 4-1 GLVC mark into Saturday's night's meeting with Quincy. The Bearcats, who are 3-1 at home this season, have won 11 of their last 12 contests on the Leemon Field turf. A victory on Saturday would give McKendree four home wins for the third consecutive season. 

Prior to Saturday's contest, McKendree will honor 19 players appearing in their final home game for the Bearcats. McKendree has fared well in Senior Day/Night games, posting a 15-6 record in such contests since 1996. In fact, the Bearcats have won 12 of their last 13 senior sendoffs. 

The Bearcats will be in search of their third straight win following last week's 36-12 home triumph over Lincoln University. Shayeen Edwards rushed for 118 yards on 19 carries, marking the sixth time this season -- and 10th time in the last two seasons -- that he has topped the century mark. Reece Metcalf threw three touchdown passes for the second straight contest, with two going to Jalyn Williams and the other on a 69-yard connection with Josh Revay early in the fourth quarter. The Metcalf-to-Revay TD pass marked the longest offensive play from scrimmage this season for McKendree. Austin Weltha led the defensive charge for the Bearcats with 14 tackles, while Michael Tucker added a career-best 11 stops in his first start at outside linebacker. Tobias Cook notched his second defensive touchdown of the season when he scooped up a Blue Tigers' fumble and rambled 61 yards for a score. 

Quincy comes to Lebanon with an overall record of 3-6 with a 1-4 ledger against GLVC foes. The Hawks dropped a 31-7 decision at home last Saturday to Truman State U niversity. Brendan Saak scored the lone touchdown of the day for Quincy when he caught a 17-yard pass from Trey Gibson with just under five minutes to play. Kody Wood had seven receptions for 108 yards while Nate Rueckemann and Cody Leonard each had a team-best nine tackles against the Bulldogs.

Saturday's game will mark the 19th meeting all-time between McKendree and Quincy. The Bearcats hold a 14-4 edge in the series, which includes last season's 35-17 Bearcat win in Quincy, Ill. McKendree has won all nine previous meetings against the Hawks at Leemon Field. The two teams have played each season since 2002. 

Next Saturday (Nov. 11), McKendree will close out the 2017 regular season with a visit to Truman State. Kickoff is set for 1 p.m. in Kirksville, Mo. 

McKENDREE/QUINCY GAME NOTES 
2017 Records --
McKENDREE: The McKendree University Bearcats are 6-3 overall and 4-1 in the Great Lakes Valley Conference.
QUINCY: The Quincy University Hawks are 3-6 overall and 1-4 in the Great Lakes Valley Conference.

The Head Coaches --
McKENDREE: Mike Babcock is in his fifth season as the head coach of the McKendree Bearcats (31-20 at McKendree and overall). 
QUINCY: Gary Bass is in his first season as the interim head coach of the Quincy Hawks (3-6 at Quincy and overall). 

The Series (Since 1996) --
McKendree holds a 14-4 advantage in the series with Quincy. That includes last year's 35-17 victory for the Bearcats in Quincy, Ill. McKendree is 9-0 all-time against the Hawks at Leemon Field:
   1997 -- McKENDREE 39, Quincy 0 (at Leemon Field)
   1998 -- Quincy 27, McKENDREE 17 (at Quincy, Ill.)
   1999 -- McKENDREE 38, Quincy 12 (at Leemon Field)
   2002 -- McKENDREE 55, Quincy 20 (at Quincy, Ill.)
   2003 -- McKENDREE 24, Quincy 7 (at Quincy, Ill.)
   2004 -- McKENDREE 31, Quincy 7 (at Leemon Field)
   2005 -- McKENDREE 44, Quincy 0 (at Leemon Field)
   2006 -- Quincy 21, McKENDREE 17 (at Quincy, Ill.)
   2007 -- McKENDREE 37, Quincy 19 (at Leemon Field)
   2008 -- Quincy 20, McKENDREE 13 (at Quincy, Ill.)
   2009 -- McKENDREE 38, Quincy 0 (at Leemon Field)
   2010 -- McKENDREE 50, Quincy 21 (at Quincy, Ill.)
   2011 -- McKENDREE 44, Quincy 20 (at Leemon Field)
   2012 -- Quincy 38, McKENDREE 19 (at Quincy, Ill.)
   2013 -- McKENDREE 51, Quincy 16 (at Leemon Field)
   2014 -- McKENDREE 28, Quincy 21 (at Quincy, Ill.)
   2015 -- McKENDREE 56, Quincy 30 (at Leemon Field)
   2016 -- McKENDREE 35, Quincy 17 (at Quincy, Ill.)

McKendree -- Last Time Out --
The Bearcats collected their second straight Great Lakes Valley Conference victory with a 36-12 triumph at home last Saturday against Lincoln University. Shayeen Edwards rushed for a team-leading 118 yards on 19 carries, while Reece Metcalf threw for 196 yards and tossed three touchdown passes for the second week in a row. Josh Revay also had a big day with five receptions for 125 yards, including a 69-yard touchdown catch in the fourth quarter. Josh Lazaro booted a career-long 41-yard field goal in the victory as well. Austin Weltha recorded a game-high 14 tackles to pace the Bearcats' defense, while Michael Tucker added a career-best 11 tackles and Kyle Kirkpatrick had nine stops. Tobias Cook scored McKendree's sixth defensive touchdown of 2017 when he scooped up a fumble late in the second quarter and rambled 61 yards to paydirt. 

Quincy -- Last Time Out --
The Hawks were defeated last Saturday at home in GLVC play by Truman State University, 31-7. Brendan Saak scored the lone touchdown of the contest for Quincy as he caught a 17-yard pass from Trip Gibson with just under five minutes to play. Gibson was 11-of-21 through the air for 128 yards. Kody Wood had a game-high seven receptions for 108 yards for the Hawks.Nate Rueckemann and Cody Leonard shared team-high honors in tackles for Quincy with nine stops. 

The Last Meeting -- McKendree vs. Quincy -- 
On Nov. 5, 2016 at Quincy, Ill., McKendree registered its fourth consecutive victory thanks to a 35-17 win over Quincy. Shayeen Edwards collected a career-high 129 yards on 25 carries, including a 16-yard touchdown run late in the third quarter. Reece Metcalf threw for a pair of touchdowns and ran for another in leading the Bearcats to a 21-10 halftime lead. Derrick Curry added a special teams score as well with a 64-yard punt return for a touchdown with just over 11 minutes to play. McKendree had six quarterback sacks in the contest, giving the team 49 for the season to set a new program standard. Lucky Baar and Darion Simmons each had two sacks in the effort. Kyle Kirkpatrick finished the game with a team-best 11 tackles, while Austin Weltha and A.J. Wentland each added nine stops. 

BEARCAT TRACKS -- 
SENIOR SENDOFFS: McKendree has posted a record of 15-6 in Senior Day/Night games at Leemon Field since 1996. The Bearcats have won 12 of their last 13 Senior Day/Night contests, including last season's 41-14 triumph against Truman State University.

BEARCATS vs. THE LAND OF LINCOLN: Since the start of the 1996 season, McKendree has posted a record of 56-18 (.757) against schools from the state of Illinois. 

SHAYEEN 2K: Shayeen Edwards became just the fifth player in McKendree program history to rush for 2,000 yards in his career. He hit the milestone during the fourth quarter of the Bearcats' game at Davenport University. Entering tonight's contest, Edwards sits in fourth place on the Bearcats' career rushing list. 
1) Daryle Jones -- 3,187 yards
2) George Smith -- 2,378 yards
3) Brandon Murphy -- 2,239 yards
4) Shayeen Edwards -- 2,222 yards
5) Drew Cofty -- 2,041 yards

CARRYING THE LOAD: In addition to moving up the Bearcats' career rushing yards list, Shayeen Edwards is within striking distance of the program mark for rushing attempts. Edwards is currently second on the McKendree career list for rushing attempts with 507. Only Daryle Jones (574) had more carries in a Bearcat uniform than Edwards. 

NOT "SHAY" ABOUT PILING UP YARDS: With his 118-yard performance against Lincoln, Shayeen (pronounced "SHY-heen") has now registered 10 games with at least 100 rushing yards over the last two years. That streak has been put together over the Bearcats' last 15 games, dating back to the Southwest Baptist game in 2016. 

WELTHA'S MOVING ON UP: Thanks to his 14-tackle performance against Lincoln, Austin Weltha has moved into fourth place on the Bearcats' career list for tackles. Weltha enters tonight's game with 254 tackles in a McKendree uniform. 

SPEAKING OF WELTHA: Austin Weltha has recorded 96 tackles so far in 2017. He needs four stops to become just the third player in program history with at least 100 tackles in a season. The other McKendree players to reach triple-figures in tackles in a single season are A.J. Wentland (2014, 2015 and 2016) and Brandon Nigro (2011).

RETURNING HIS WAY TO THE TOP: Derrick Curry enters tonight's contest with 58 career kick returns. He needs just five to become the program's career leader in the category. Cameron James holds the Bearcats' current record with 62 kick returns. 

CURRY'S CONSISTENCY: Derrick Curry comes into tonight's game with 58 kick returns and 58 punt returns in his four-year McKendree career. 

DEFENSE LEADS TO OFFENSE: With Tobias Cook's 61-yard fumble return for a score in the Bearcats' win over Lincoln, McKendree has now registered six defensive touchdowns in 2017, That establishes a program record for the Bearcats' NCAA Division II era, which dates back to 2012. 

FAMILIAR FOE: Tonight's game pitting McKendree against Quincy will mark the 19th meeting between the two programs since 1996. In fact, McKendree and Quincy have met on the gridiron each year since the 2002 campaign. The Bearcats and Hawks were rivals in the Mid-States Football Association-Midwest League from 2002-10 before the Great Lakes Valley Conference began playing football in 2012. The schools also met in the 2011 season finale when both were football independents.

21 AND OVER: McKendree sports a 130-26 record (.833) when scoring at least 21 points in a game since the beginning of the 1996 season. 

UNI-TRACKER: McKendree used five different uniform combinations during the 2016 season. Below are the records for the Bearcats while wearing each combo. We will again track the McKendree football record in 2017 while wearing certain combinations. McKendree's 2016 record in the uniform combination is in parentheses:
**Graphite Jersey/Purple Pants: 1-1 (2-0)
**Graphite Jersey/Graphite Pants: 2-0 (4-0)
**White Jersey/Purple Pants: 1-1 (0-2)
**White Jersey/Graphite Pants: 2-0 (1-1)
**White Jersey/White Pants: 0-1 (1-0)

REECE PIECES TOGETHER TOUCHDOWN STREAK: Reece Metcalf has thrown three touchdown passes in consecutive games (Missouri S&T and Lincoln) for the first time in his career. He also has 12 TD passes over his last six games, which marks the best run by a McKendree quarterback in two years. Isaac Fisher threw 14 touchdown passes over the first four contests of the 2015 campaign. 

RULING THE RED ZONE: McKendree leads the Great Lakes Valley Conference in both red zone offense and red zone defense. Entering tonight's game with Quincy, the Bearcats have converted on 87.1 percent of their scoring opportunities in the red zone (27-of-31), while the team is allowing its opponents just a 66.7 percent success rate (22-of-33) inside the McKendree 20-yard line. 

TOP TACKLERS IN THE GLVC: McKendree currently boasts the top two tacklers in the Great Lakes Valley Conference. Austin Weltha leads the league with 96 total tackles and a per-game average of 10.7. Ricco Gipson is second in the conference at 10.6 tackles per contest. Kyle Kirkpatrick rounds out the top 10 for McKendree in the No. 10 spot at 8.2 tackles a game. McKendree is the only GLVC team with three players in the top 10 in tackles. 

ROAD WARRIORS: The Bearcats' win at Missouri S&T marked the team's third road triumph of the 2017 season. That gives McKendree at least three wins away from Leemon Field for the third time in the last four years. 

LONGEST PLAYS IN TEAM HISTORY --
Since 1996
RUSH: 90 yards by Brandon Murphy vs. Iowa Wesleyan, 2000*
PASS: 85 yards by Dan Loudenslager to Zach Atkins vs. Georgetown, 2008*
KICKOFF RETURN: 100 yards by Brandon Murphy vs. Olivet Nazarene, 1997*;  100 yards by Ryan Keen vs. Tiffin, 2013*
PUNT RETURN: 90 yards by Derrick Curry vs. Truman State, 2016*
INTERCEPTION RETURN: 100 yards by Lawrence Davis vs. William Penn, 2007*
FIELD GOAL: 51 yards by Jordan Fark vs. University of the Cumberlands, 2010
PUNT: 78 yards by Monte Wolke vs. West Liberty, 2016
* -- Touchdown

THIS DATE IN BEARCAT FOOTBALL HISTORY -- 
Nov. 4, 2000
McKendree was defeated its in home finale by Olivet Nazarene University, 35-20. The Bearcats nearly overcame a 19-point deficit to the Tigers in a Mid-States Football Association-Midwest League contest. Brandon Murphy recorded the seventh (and final) kickoff return for a touchdown in his McKendree career when he registered a 98-yard effort in the third quarter. Kyle Roach led the Bearcats with 106 rushing yards on 18 carries. Brian Schneider booted a pair of field goals, including a season-long 48-yarder. Bryan Cantu led the Bearcats' defense with 10 tackles.