The Muskingum football team travels to 2nd-ranked Mount Union on Saturday to battle the Purple Raiders in Ohio Atheltic Conference action. The kickoff is scheduled for 1:30 p.m. in Mount Union Stadium.
The Muskies enter the game at 2-6 overall and 1-6 in league play. Muskingum is averaging 366.3 yards and 21.6 points per game. The offense is directed by junior quarterback Brody Hahn who has passed for 1,169 yards with six touchdowns. Hahn has also added 419 yards rushing with six touchdowns.
Hahn's top receiving targets are senior Darius Hayes-Carruth, sophomore Jacob Quinn, and freshman Tyler Heinecke. Hayes-Carruth has a team-best 26 receptions for 458 yards with four touchdowns. He currently ranks fifth all-time at Muskingum with 1,384 receiving yards. Quinn has 14 grabs for 152 yards and two scores, while Heinecke has 13 receptions for 195 yards.
Leading the Muskie ground game this season is senior running back Bernard Johnson and freshman running back Jeffrey Curtis. Johnson has rumbled for 422 yards and two touchdowns, while Curtis has racked up 346 yards with three touchdowns.
Sophomore kicker Gavin Costello and junior punter Jarrett Patton pace the Muskie special teams. Costello is seven-of-eight on field-goal attempts and 19-of-20 in extra-point attempts. Patton is averaging 38.8 yards per boot, with four inside the 20 and 11 fair catches.
Muskingum's defense, which is allowing 379 yards and 32.6 yards per outing, is led by senior defensive lineman Tim Ousley with 68 tackles with seven sacks for 40 yards. Ousley is the Muskingum career sacks leader with 25 and currently ranks 11th all-time in tackles with 252. Junior linebacker Nehemiah Bowie and senior linebacker Caleb Gaiters help aid the defense with 55 stops each.
Mount Union stands at 8-0 overall and 7-0 in the OAC and leads the all-time series 42-29-2. The Purple Raiders are averaging 530.9 yards and 53.1 points per game. Senior quarterback De'Angelo Ford leads the offense with 1,887 yards with 29 touchdowns, and senior receiver Justin Hill leads the nation with 16 touchdown catches. Junior Josh Petruccelli leads the ground game with 941 yards with 12 touchdowns.
The Purple Raider defense is allowing 191.9 yards and 8.1 points per game. Senior linebacker Trey Williams leads the squad with 44 stops. Junior defensive back Kordell Ford and junior linebacker Mitch O'Hara have each registered 36 hits.