West Liberty, W.Va. – Currently one of three teams with a win streak of three or more games in the Mountain East Conference, the West Liberty University football team carries the longest stretch of consecutive wins since 2016 into this weekend's home game against Notre Dame. The Hilltoppers seek their first-ever win over the Falcons on Saturday evening in a 5 p.m. kickoff at West Family Stadium.

GAME DETAILS

• Location: West Liberty, W.Va. (West Family Stadium)
• Kickoff: 5 P.M.

WEST LIBERTY STORYLINES

• West Liberty enters Saturday's game with a 3-4 (3-3 MEC) record on the season following a 24-7 victory at West Virginia Wesleyan last weekend. The Hilltoppers are currently tied for fifth place in the Mountain East Conference standings.
• West Liberty is averaging 24.4 points per game with 301.1 passing and 66.4 rushing yards per game, accumulating an average of 367.6 yards of total offense through seven games. The Hilltopper offense has scored 17 touchdowns through the air and four on the ground during the season.
• West Liberty ranks within the top-20 of NCAA Division II in seven statistical categories, ranking fourth in blocked kicks (6), 7^th in passing offense (301.1), eighth in blocked punts (3), 18^th in time of possession (32:33), 20^th in 3^rd down conversion percentage (47.2%), 21^st in 4^th down conversion percentage defense (28.6%), and 25^th in first down offense (151).
• The Black & Gold's passing attack is led by Rudy Garcia who leads the MEC completions per game (25.6), total passing yards (1,965), passing yards per game (280.7), while ranking fifth, seventh, seventh, in DII respectively. He has thrown 16 passing touchdowns this season which ranks second in the MEC and 16^th nationally.
• Rashawn Harvey has been one of the top wide receivers in the country this season, leading the conference in total receiving yards (719), receiving touchdowns (8), receiving yards per game (102.7), and receptions per game (7.4). Nationally he ranks seventh, eighth, eighth, and ninth respectively.
• Chris Charles has also been a threat at wide out this season as he ranks second in the MEC in total receiving yards (595) and receiving touchdowns (6) and is third in receptions per game (7.0) and receiving yards per game (85.0). In DII he ranks 18^th, 22^nd, 13^th, and 23^rd respectively.
• The WLU rushing attack has come to life during the past four games, averaging 98.5 yards per game and posted back-to-back 100 yard rushing games against Concord (102) and Glenville State (120). Khadeem Richards has been the go to running back, rushing for 240 yards and two touchdowns this season, while Garcia has also added a pair of rushing touchdowns of his own.
• On the defensive side of the ball WLU has accumulated 380.0 tackles with 50.0 tackles-for-loss and 31.0 sacks. The Hilltopper defense has forced five turnovers this year, with four interceptions and three fumble recoveries.
• Trent Crawford and Cam Rice are tied for the team lead with 39.0 tackles apiece in 2023, while Rice has tallied a team leading 15.0 tackles-for loss and 5.5 sacks.
• Rice earned his second MEC Defensive Player of the Week honor on Monday with a career-high 13 tackles and matched a career-best 4.5 tackles-for-loss which he set only two weeks ago against Concord, he also added 1.5 sacks. He ranks fifth in the country and leads the conference with 2.1 tackle-for-loss per game, while also ranking 27^th nationally and third in the league with 0.79 sacks per game.
• With his pick-six in last week's win over the Bobcats, Chris Wilson became the first player to return an interception for a touchdown since Shon Stephens did so against Alderson Broaddus last season on September 8, 2022. Brennen Bailey leads the team with a pair of interceptions and has broken up five passes.
• Justin Kaplan has made five consecutive field goals entering the week. He is four-of-five from 30 yards or more and has hit a long of 42 yards this season, occurring in a win over Glenville State.
• West Liberty has converted 59-of-125 (47.2%) third down attempts compared to 31-of-94 (33.0%) for their opponents. The Black & Gold are 6-of-11 (54.6%) on fourth down attempts while their opponents are 2-of-7 (28.6%). In the red zone the Hilltoppers are 16-of-24 on the season with 11 touchdowns and five field goals while their opponents are 20-of-27 with 17 touchdowns and three field goals.
• Roger Waialae is in his 19^th season as the head coach at West Liberty with a career record of 95-104 with the Hilltoppers. Waialae is currently the longest tenured coach in the MEC and holds the second most wins all-time in WLU football history.

NOTRE DAME STORYLINES

• Notre Dame enters Saturday's game with a 4-3 (3-3 MEC) record on the season following a 52-27 loss at undefeated Charleston last weekend. The Falcons are currently tied for fifth place in the Mountain East Conference standings.
• NDC is averaging 32.4 points per game with 222.4 passing and 182.0 rushing yards per game, accumulating an average 404.4 yards of total offense through seven games. The Falcon offense has scored 17 touchdowns on the ground and ten through the air during the season.
• Notre Dame ranks within the top-20 of NCAA Division II in seven statistical categories, ranking eighth in blocked kicks (3), 13^th in 3^rd down percentage defense (27.6%), 15^th in tackles-for-loss allowed (4.4), 20^th in passes intercepted (10), 23^rd in kickoff return defense (16.4), 24^th in red zone defense (65.0%), 25^th in blocked kicks (3).
• Deshawn Evans has completed 83-of-170 pass attempts for 1,125 yards and eight touchdowns through the air this season.
• Idris Lawrence has been one of the top running backs in the country this season, ranking third in the MEC in both rushing yards per game (106.8) and total rushing yards (641) and is 13^th and 20^th in DII respectively. Lawrence was named the MEC Offensive Player of the Week on October 9th.
• Michael Solomon and James Faulkner have been the top two wideouts for the Falcons this season, tallying 316 and 298 receiving yards. Faulkner and Napoleon Harris have hauled in a team-high two receiving touchdowns.
• On the defensive side of the ball NDC has accumulated 429.0 tackles with 42.0 tackles-for-loss and 12.0 sacks. The Falcon defense has forced 12 turnovers on the year, intercepting ten passes and recovering two fumbles.
• Isaiah Stephens and Nathan Rosario-Santos lead the team with 60.0 and 52.0 total tackles respectively. Stephens has collected 10.0 tackles-for-loss and 2.0 sacks while Rosario-Santos has notched 4.5 and 1.0 respectively.
• Stephens leads the conference and ranks seventh nationally with 5.7 solo tackles per game and is third and 24^th respectively with 8.6 total tackles per game.
• Three players have picked off multiple passes this season, with Jacalyn Morrison intercepting three passes, and Antoine Holloway II and Brayden Hall each intercepting a pair.
• After breaking the school record for longest field goal with a 47 yard attempt against Charleston, Cameron Shirkey was named the MEC Special Teams Player of the Week. Shirkey is 10-of-15 on field goal attempts this season and is 8-of-10 from inside 40 yards compared to 2-of-5 from 40 yards or more.
• Notre Dame has converted 38-of-100 (38.0%) third down attempts compared to 24-of-87 (27.6%) for their opponents. The Falcons are 7-of-14 (50.0%) on fourth down attempts while their opponents are 4-of-13 (30.8%) in seven games. In the red zone NDC is 25-of-29 on the season with 17 touchdowns and eight field goals, while their opponents are 13-of-20 with ten touchdowns and three field goals.
• Garrett Mack is in his second season as the head coach at Notre Dame with a record of 13-6 during his time with the Falcons.

SERIES HISTORY

• Notre Dame leads the all-time series 10-0 with all games occurring since the inaugural season of the Mountain East Conference.
• In last season's September 17^th match-up in South Euclid, Ohio, the Falcons only held a seven point advantage at the halftime break but would go on to win 34-17.