LEBANON, Ill. – McKendree University Football seeks its third consecutive win this Saturday, Oct. 1 as the Bearcats open its six-game slate of Great Lakes Valley Conference contests against William Jewell College at Greene Stadium in Liberty, Mo.
 
The Bearcats improved its season record to 3-1 last Saturday with a 46-10 home win over Walsh University at Leemon Field. The win, which was the Bearcats' second straight victory, was keyed by an offense that gained 472 yards and scored a season high 46 points and a defense that allowed a season low 304 yards of offense (nearly 200 yards under season average they were allowing) and forced four turnovers, including redshirt sophomore defensive back Andrew Sherry (Manhattan, Ill./Lincoln-Way West) returning an interception 34 yards for a touchdown to give the Bearcats a 39-7 lead late in the third quarter. Sherry was named this week's GLVC Defensive Player of the Week to become the second Bearcat to be honored this season.
 
In the win over Walsh, redshirt junior quarterback Turner Pullen (Shelbyville, Ill./Shelbyville) accounted for nearly 400 yards of total offense and had a hand in three touchdowns, while redshirt junior receiver Jacob Bachman (Eureka, Ill./Eureka) caught seven passes for 116 yards to become the school's all-time leader in pass receiving yards as Bachman eclipsed former Bearcat Matt Cole's mark of 1,618 yards by one yard as he has now recorded 1,619 career receiving yards.
 
Pullen, who started the game 12-for-12 passing, completed 24-of-35 passes for 390 yards and had three touchdown passes and no interceptions. He also had five yards rushing for a total of 395 yards of total offense. He increased his career passing yards mark to 6,587 yards and his total offensive yard mark to 7,315 yards and his three touchdown passes pushed his career total to 60, which is four shy of Isaac Fisher's all-time school record of 64.
 
Coming into this weekend's action, Pullen continues to lead NCAA Division II football in both completion percentage (74.5 percent) and is tied for first in Division II in points responsible for (90 points). In addition, he is in the Top 10 nationally in completions per game (28.5), passing efficiency (174.1), passing touchdowns (13), passing yards (1,375), passing yards per game (343.8), total offense (360.0) and points responsible for per game (22.5). Additionally, Pullen is fifth among active Division II players in career completion percentage (62.0 percent), sixth among active D-II players in total touchdowns responsible for (82) and seventh among active D-II players in passing yards per game (235.6).
 
Bachman wasn't the only Bearcat receiver to have a big day against Walsh, as sophomore receiver Yogi Flager, Jr. (Belleville, Ill./Butler University) caught five passes for 119 yards and had two touchdown receptions, including a 40-yard touchdown reception from Pullen midway through the second quarter to give the Bearcats a 15-7 lead. A third receiver came just eight yards shy of 100 receiving yards as redshirt junior Tyler Siever (Carlyle, Ill./Carlyle) caught three passes for 92 yards, including a McKendree season-long reception of 73  yards on the Bearcats' final scoring drive of the game midway through the fourth quarter.

On the season, Flager, Jr., and Bachman are among the league leaders in receiving as those two are first and second in the league in receptions per game at 7.0 and 6.8 receptions per game respectively. Flagler, Jr. is the GLVC leading in pass receiving yards as he has caught 28 passes for 460 yards and has had five touchdown receptions and is averaging 115.0 yards per game, while Bachman has caught 27 passes for 280 yards and has caught three touchdown passes and is averaging 70.0 yards per game. Bachman is fourth among active D-II players in career receptions per game at 5.3.
 
One area that McKendree head coach Mike Babcock would like to see improved is their run game as the Bearcats are averaging 101.0 rushing yards per game as they have gained 404 yards rushing on 127 carries. Sophomore running back Narkel Leflore (Chatham, Ill./Glenwood) leads the ground attack with 207 yards and is averaging 4.2 yards per carry and 51.8 yards per game.
 
"I would really like to get our run game going better but is has been hard when we've had some key injuries on the offensive line, but we're trying to find ways to balance the offense out," Babcock said following Saturday's game with Walsh.
 
On defense, along with Sherry's interception, the other interception came from redshirt junior defensive back Darrwin Perkins II (Crete, Ill./Marian Catholic), while the Bearcats forced two fumbles, had six tackles for a loss and two quarterback sacks. The Bearcats allowed 138 yards rushing and 186 yards passing to the Cavaliers.
 
McKendree's defense is being paced this season by Sherry as he has recorded 19 total tackles, all of which are solo stops and he has had a tackle for a loss, an interception and a forced fumble, while sophomore defensive back Brandon Wilson, Jr. (Chicago, Ill./St. Laurence) having recorded 16 tackles and freshman defensive lineman Tanner Hollerich (O'Fallon, Ill./O'Fallon Township) leads in both tackles for loss (3.0) and sacks (2.0).
 
On defense, the Bearcats are allowing 459.5 yards per game as they are allowing 216.8 yards rushing per game and are second in the league in passing defense as they are allowing 242.8 yards per game. In addition, the Bearcats are tied for third in the league in sacks with seven and have a turnover margin of +4 as they have forced eight turnovers, which is second-best in the GLVC. Hollerich is tied for sixth in sacks as he is averaging 0.50 per game, while sophomore defensive back Ethan Young (Edwardsville, Ill./Edwardsville) is tied for second in interceptions as he is averaging 0.50 per game as he has picked off two of McKendree's five interceptions.
 
Saturday's game will kick off the 11th season of competition in the GLVC for McKendree. The league's first season of football competition came in 2012, which also marked the Bearcats' first full year as league members. Since the 2012 season, the Bearcats have gone 38-32 in league play and have won at least five games in GLVC play four times with the most recent time coming in 2017.
 
Since the Bearcats returned to the gridiron in 1996, McKendree is 17-6 all-time in conference openers, including a 7-3 mark in GLVC openers. The Bearcats have won six of their last seven league opener with five of those seven wins coming against Saturday's opponent, William Jewell. Last season, the Bearcats opened league play with a 52-10 win at Leemon Field in Lebanon, Ill.
 
Along with being the 11th GLVC opener in school history for the Bearcats, Saturday's game will also mark the 500th game for the Bearcats since the program began playing intercollegiate football in 1916. Since 1916, the Bearcats have posted a 262-223-14 all-time record, including a 168-102 record since restarting the football program in 1996. McKendree did not play football from 1951-1995.
 
McKendree has won all nine previous meetings in football with William Jewell, including picking up a 52-10 win last season in Lebanon. In last year's game, the Bearcats scored 38 first half points as they scored on seven of their first eight possessions as they led 17-0 after the first quarter and 38-3 at the half. In the first half, McKendree outgained the Cardinals, 380-121. The Bearcats gained 551 yards of offense as they passed for a season-high 341 yards and had four touchdown passes, including a single-game school record-tying three touchdown receptions by Steven Towns, Jr. Towns, Jr. caught four passes for a career-high 140 yards in the win.
 
Following Saturday's game, the Bearcats will return home to Leemon Field to play two straight games as they open the homestand on Saturday, Oct. 8 at 1 p.m. against 14th-ranked University of Indianapolis, before hosting on Saturday, Oct. 15 against Quincy at 3 p.m. At halftime of the Quincy, McKendree will celebrate its 25th Anniversary of the return of Bearcat Football by honoring and recognizing the program's 25th-Anniversary Football team.

ABOUT WILLIAM JEWELL
William Jewell comes into their GLVC opener at home with McKendree sporting a 1-3 overall record after snapping a 27-game losing that began in 2019 with a 24-17 come-from-behind win last Saturday at home against Kentucky Wesleyan. Prior to the win over Kentucky Wesleyan, the Cardinals' previous win came in the 2019 season opener against Southwest Baptist (29-9). WJC comes into play having lost 21 straight league games since picking up a 14-10 win at home against Southwest Baptist on Oct. 6, 2018.
 
In the win over KWC, the Cardinals, who are hosting McKendree for Homecoming on Saturday, scored 10 points in the fourth quarter to post the come-from-behind win. Jewell was outgained, 419-257 in the game as they rushed for 120 yards on 35 carries and they were 15-for-35 passing for 137 yards.
 
Junior quarterback CJ Ward was 15-for-35 passing for 137 yards and had one touchdown pass and no interceptions. Sophomore running back Jordan Clay and freshman running back Tabren Yates combined for rush for 89 yards in the win, while junior receiver Deldrionn Amos caught six passes for 68 yards in the victory.
 
Redshirt sophomore running back Taylor Eggers scored both of Jewell's touchdows against KWC, while redshirt junior kick returner Grant Latina took the opening kickoff 62 yards to set up Jewell's first score, which was a 2-yard run by Eggers. Defensively, senior linebacker Carson Anderson and sophomore linebacker Adam Callahan each had seven tackles in the win, while those two combined for 1.5 tackles for a loss and Anderson broke up two passes. Junior Taveris Albury had three tackles for a loss in the win.
 
On the season, Jewell is averaging 19.5 points per game and are averaging 240.8 yards per game on offense and are allowing 395.8 yards per game. The Cardinals have been strong against the pass this season as they are second in the league in pass efficiency defense (122.24) as they are allowing 249 passing yards per game with just over 6.6 yards per completion.
 
The Cardinals defense has picked off six passes, which is tops in the GLVC and 15th in NCAA Division II. Five different Jewell players have recorded an interception on the season, including junior cornerback Kwesi Hooks having picked off two of those six passes. One of Hooks' two interceptions was returned 66 yards for a score.
 
Jewell's defense has also recorded 24 tackles for a loss and three sacks on the year as Callahan leads the way with 28 tackles and three tackles for loss, while junior linebacker David Gysbers has had 25 tackles and 1.5 tackles for loss and Anderson has had 23 tackles, four tackles for loss and leads the team with two sacks.
 
Offensively, Ward is 50-for-101 passing for 509 yards and has had three interceptions and four touchdown passes, while Yates leads the ground game with 154 yards and has scored two times and Eggers has gained 72 yards on 22 carries and is has scored two touchdowns.
 
Amos and redshirt junior receiver Winston Quinn have combined to catch 24 passes on the year as Amos has gained 142 yards receiving and is averaging 11.8 yards per reception, while Quinn has had 160 yards receiving and is averaging 13.3 yards per reception.
 
On special teams, Latina is averaging 31.0 yards per return and had returned three kicks for 93 yards. Meanwhile, freshman Paul Geelan has gone 3-for-6 on field goals and is 9-for-9 on extra points attempts, while he is also averaging 38.1 yards per punt on 28 punts and has put seven punts inside the 20-yard line and one punt of 50-plus yards.