GAME DAY LINKS --
McKENDREE at NORTHERN MICHIGAN
Saturday, Sept. 7, 2019, 1 p.m. ET (Noon CT)
Superior Dome -- Marquette, Mich.

LISTEN LIVE (Bearcat Sports Network)
LIVE STATS
LIVE VIDEO ($$$) -- Northern Michigan Broadcast

(LEBANON, Ill., Sept. 6)—Nearly four weeks after beginning pre-season training camp, the dawn of the 2019 season has come for the McKendree University football team. The Bearcats head north for the first of 11 regular-season games on Saturday with a trip to Northern Michigan University. Kickoff for the non-conference clash is set for 1 p.m. ET (12 noon CT). The game will be carried live and for free on the Bearcat Sports Network (www.glvcsn.com/mckendree), beginning with the pre-game show 15 minutes prior to kickoff.
 
McKendree went 6-5 last season with a 4-3 mark in Great Lakes Valley Conference competition. One of those victories came in the 2018 lid-lifter at home against Northern Michigan, 34-28. The Bearcats reeled off 27 second-half points to break a 7-7 halftime tie in notching their third season-opening win in four years.
 
A total of 15 starters return from last year's McKendree squad. With the graduation of three-year starting quarterback Reece Metcalf (Mount Carmel, IL/Mount Carmel), the Bearcats will turn to a new starting signal-caller in 2019. Redshirt freshman Turner Pullen (Shelbyville, IL/Shelbyville) will get the call on Saturday. Pullen enjoyed a record-setting playing career at Shelbyville High School. Sophomore Brenden Dickmann (Edwardsville, IL/Edwardsville) and junior Eli Oltean (St. Joseph, IL/St. Joseph-Ogden) are among those who could see action under center this season for McKendree.
 
Junior Jace Franklin returns and will take over duties as the Bearcats' lead running back. In his first season at McKendree in 2018, Franklin rushed for 661 yards and a pair of touchdowns. Freshman Jayden Mitchell (St. Louis, MO/Parkway Central) and junior Jerrico Johnson (Bourbonnais, IL/Bishop McNamara) will also help carry the load in the Bearcats' backfield.
 
The Bearcats' top returning receiver from a year ago is senior Matt Cole (Chicago, IL/Curie). He was third on last year's squad with 22 catches for 354 yards with three touchdowns. Cole also developed into the Bearcats' top threat on special teams, posting a school-record 708 kick return yards along with two TDs. Sophomore Steven Towns, Jr. (Normal, IL/Normal Community), is also back following a freshman campaign that saw him catch 14 passes, including four for scores.
 
Up front, senior Quinn Polaski (Homer Glen, IL/Lockport Township) and junior Jake Stevenson (Ludlow, IL/Paxton-Buckley-Loda) are returning starters expected to anchor a young offensive line. Among those moving into starting roles in 2019 are senior Dustin Logan (Tennessee, IL/Bushnell-West Prairie), sophomore Kenny Thomason (Mahomet, IL/Mahomet-Seymour) and redshirt freshman Larry Davis III (Country Club Hills, IL/Rich Central). The Bearcats do return a versatile duo at the tight end position in juniors Steven Leadlove (Belleville, IL/Belleville West) and Jace Kennedy (Dwight, IL/Dwight).
 
Most of McKendree's returning starters come on defense, including all four starters along the defensive line. Senior defensive ends Brandon Purnell (Chicago, IL/Simeon) and Michael Smith (Smithton, IL/Freeburg) registered 57 and 50 tackles, respectively, to finish among the team's top 10 in tackles a year ago. Senior Peyton Renken (Nashville, IL/Nashville), junior Isaiah Ward (Peoria, IL/Peoria Notre Dame) and sophomore Jalen Gaskin (Ypsilanti, MI/Belleville) are also back to help stack the line up the middle against the run. Other veterans returning to the Bearcats' front four are sophomores Shelby Benn (Lansing, IL/Brother Rice) and Justeon Kimmons (Chicago, IL/Whitney M. Young) along with junior Ebrima Njie (Chicago, IL/De La Salle Institute).
 
Senior Ricco Gipson, Jr. (Godfrey, IL/Alton), highlights another strong crop of returnees at linebacker for McKendree. Gipson led the Bearcats with 106 tackles in 2018, becoming just the fourth player in program history to top 100 stops in a season. Senior Jason Bennett, Jr. (Peoria, IL/Peoria), makes the transition from safety to outside linebacker after collecting 56 tackles last fall, which was good for fifth on the squad. Junior Iben King (Chicago, IL/Brother Rice) returns on the opposite side following a 27-tackle season in 2018. Senior Kennith Wilson (Chicago, IL/Simeon) saw plenty of action a year ago and was third on the team with 68 tackles. Fellow senior Darnell Harris, Jr. (San Diego, CA/Kearney), and junior Michael Tucker (Chicago, IL/North Lawndale College Prep) also return to provide even more veteran leadership at the position.
 
A young secondary for McKendree will be led by senior Dakota Reid (Chicago, IL/Morgan Park) and sophomore Kenneth Garrett, Jr. (Memphis, TN/Whitehaven) Reid had 36 stops in his first season as a starter in 2018, while Garrett came on in the second half of the year to finish seventh overall with 44 tackles. Players who saw significant playing time last year who will transition into key roles in 2019 include sophomores Jhaidyn Brown (Saint Peters, MO/Fort Zumwalt West), Kenneth Scarbrough III (East St. Louis, IL/East St. Louis) and Devon Myles (Chicago, IL/Westinghouse College Prep).
 
Junior Josh Lazaro (Bradley, IL/Bradley-Bourbonnais) is back for his third season of handling the Bearcats' placekicking duties. Lazaro scored a school-record 83 points as a kicker in 2018, which included a 13-for-16 run in field goals. Redshirt freshman Elliott Prott (Highland, IL/Highland) appears to be the front-runner to take over the punting duties for McKendree. Prott averaged nearly 38 yards per effort as a senior at Highland High School.
 
McKendree's next victory will be the 250^th in program history, which dates back to 1918. The Bearcats did not play football from 1951 through 1995, returning to the gridiron for the 1996 campaign. McKendree is 14-9 in season openers since 1996. The Bearcats won their 2018 road opener, a 34-17 decision at Kentucky State University.
 
Saturday's game will also mark the first game played indoors for McKendree. The Bearcats and Wildcats will meet inside the Superior Dome in Marquette, Mich., which seats approximately 8,000 fans.
 
Following Saturday's contest at Northern Michigan, McKendree will host the first four-game home stand in program history. Up first will be the Bearcats' first meeting against Michigan Tech on Sept. 14.
 
ABOUT NORTHERN MICHIGAN
The Wildcats went 3-8 overall and 1-7 in the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference in 2018. Third-year head coach Kyle Nystrom will be looking to replace the program's career and single-season rushing lead in Jake Mayon, who collected 173 yards against McKendree last September. Sophomore Deandre Caldwell will get first crack at the job after rushing for 411 yards behind Mayon in 2018.
 
Latrell Giles returns at quarterback for Northern Michigan, although Northern Michigan is expected to start sophomore Ryan Johnson under center against McKendree. He threw for 957 yards and three touchdowns last season while gaining nearly 400 yards on the ground. The Wildcats' top two receiving targets are also back in Ben Loutsis (25 catches) and Ravon Johnson (16 receptions).
 
Among the top returnees on defense for Northern Michigan are defensive back Brady Hanson, linebacker Austin Potter and fellow linebacker Isaac Darkangelo. Hanson tied for the team lead with 75 stops, while Potter and Darkangelo were third and fourth for the Wildcats with 51 and 50 tackles, respectively, in 2018.