LEBANON, Ill. – For the first time in 22 years, the Bearcats hold their home opener in the third week of the season. The Minnesota State University – Moorhead Dragons make the return trip to Lebanon after McKendree made the trek north during the 2023 season.
Game Information
- 12:00 p.m. kickoff
- Leemon Field (Lebanon, Illinois)
- $10 General Admission
- $20 Tailgate
Game Happenings
McKendree is hosting community day on Saturday around the game. Joining us during the tailgate will be: Drury Hotels, Jersey Mike's (download their app and present it to their table at the game to get a free sandwich), Qdoba, Raising Cane's, Hi-Pointe, Rooted Church, Fit 4 All and the Illinois State Police.
Great Lakes Valley Sports Network Pay-Per-View
The Great Lakes Valley Conference (GLVC) has announced an update to the pay-per-view (PPV) pricing for regular season GLVC Sports Network (GLVCSN) livestreams, the league announced on August 15th.
Fans will have three different purchase options for regular-season broadcasts, including an individual broadcast cost of $12, a monthly pass for $25, and a full regular season GLVC package at $120 that includes the four sports listed below. The price for Championships will vary, with more details announced closer to each event.
Series History against Minnesota State University – Moorhead
The lone game in the series was on September 16, 2023 in Moorhead, Minnesota. The Dragons took the game by the score of 38-17 as they led wire-to-wire.
Scouting the Bearcats
McKendree began conference play last week as they traveled to GLVC newcomer, Lincoln University and walked away with a win by the score of 34-19. This was Interim Head Coach Jason Rejfek's first career win.
Leading the offense has been QB Ty Michael who is 36 of 69 through the air for 453 yards. His lone touchdown on the season was a 12-yard pass to Chase Wells against Lincoln in the third quarter. The McKendree offense has done a good job of chewing clock as they lead the GLVC in time of possession at 33:50 per game.
The top receiver for the Bearcats is Yogi Flager, Jr. who has caught 12 passes for 198 yards. He has moved into second in program history receiving yards with 1,748. Eddie Clark leads the ground game with 119 yards and an average of 59.50 yards per game.
Nick Bova leads the defense with 18 tackles, 9 being unassisted. He also has 2.5 TFLs and a sack to add to his resume. As a defensive unit, the Bearcats are second in Division II in third down conversion defense, only allowing opponents to convert 15 percent of the time.
Scouting the Dragons
The Dragons are coming off a win over then No. 19-ranked University of Minnesota – Duluth in dramatic fashion. They were down two touchdowns with six minutes remaining in the game and ended up winning on a walk-off two-point conversion to knock off the ranked opponent.
They love to produce their offense through the air as QB Jack Strand completed 44 of 69 passes for 418 yards and four touchdowns. On the season, he is 65 of 115 for 718 yards, six touchdowns and three interceptions. Strand leads the country in completions per game and third in passing yards per game. As a team, the Dragons are third in Division II in passing offense at 360 yards per game.
His top target against UMD was Madden Thorson who caught 12 passes for 140 yards. While his top target on the season, Brady Perryman caught nine passes for 101 yards and scored three times.
On defense, Joshia Behm and Jack Bungarden lead the team with 15 tackles each. Behm had 3.5 TFLs for 15 yards to lead the team in that category.
