Football | 8/31/2018 11:34:00 PM

BLOOMSBURG (0-0, 0-0 PSAC East) vs MERRIMACK (0-0, 0-0 NE-10)
Saturday, September 1, 2017 - 2:00 PM
Danny Hale Field at Redman Stadium - Bloomsburg, Pa.

GAME COVERAGE
Live Radio: Bigfoot Country 106.5 FM (Jim Doyle and Andy Ulicny)
Live Radio Stream: Click Here
Live Video Stream: Click Here
Live Stats: Click Here
Twitter Updates: @GoBUHuskies

RELATED LINKS
Bloomsburg - Schedule | Roster | Statistics (2017)
Merrimack - Schedule | Roster | Statistics (2017)

SERIES HISTORY
First meeting

SCOUTING BLOOMSBURG
The Bloomsburg University football team is receiving votes according to the initial American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) Division II Coaches' Top 25 poll released recently. The Huskies received 13 points in the opening poll of the 2018 season. Earlier last month, Bloomsburg was picked to finish fourth in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Eastern Division.

The Huskies closed out the 2017 season with a 7-4 record - Bloomsburg's 19th consecutive winning season dating back to 1999. It is the third-longest streak in PSAC history, behind West Chester's 31 (1940-42, 1945-72) and Clarion's 22 (1964-85). The 19 straight seasons with at least six victories, however, continues a PSAC record. Bloomsburg has now posted a winning record in 23 of the last 24 years.

Bloomsburg returns seven of its nine All-Conference performers from last season, including redshirt senior defensive lineman Jake Klinger (Berwick, Pa./Central Columbia) who earned First Team All-American honors from the Don Hansen Football Gazette. Klinger led the Huskies with career-highs in total tackles (69), tackles for a loss (22.0), and quarterback sacks (11.0). His 22 tackles for a loss surpassed Justin Shirk's 21.5 tackles behind the line of scrimmage during the 2014 season and is the most by a Bloomsburg player in at least 18 years. Klinger had 18.5 tackles for a loss and 10 sacks over the last seven weeks of the regular season. He recorded at least one tackle in all 11 games, at least one tackle for a loss nine times, and at least one sack on six different occasions.

Joining Klinger as returning All-Conference honorees are redshirt senior offensive lineman Travis Krall (New Columbia, Pa./Milton Area) who, like Klinger, earned a spot on the First Team. Returning Second Team All-PSAC East members include redshirt senior defensive lineman Chris Gary (Philadelphia, Pa./Archbishop Wood), redshirt senior cornerback Marquis Seamon (Philadelphia, Pa./Father Judge), redshirt junior running back Alex Gooden (Parkesburg, Pa./Octorara), redshirt junior running back Qmac Quiteh (Tobyhanna, Pa./Pocono Mountain West), and redshirt junior wide receiver Michael Allen (Oley, Pa./Fleetwood).

Krall started nine games at left guard for the Huskies on his way to his first collegiate postseason accolade. He was an integral part of an offensive line that allowed 17 sacks during the regular season - sixth-fewest in the conference and helped pave the way for the pair of Second Team running backs in Gooden and Quiteh to combine for 1,660 rushing yards on the season.

Quiteh and Gooden provided a potent 1-2 punch in the backfield for the Huskies to earn their first postseason accolades. Quiteh led the Huskies with 979 yards on the ground while finishing second on the team with eight rushing touchdowns. In the PSAC, Quiteh ranked seventh overall, and third among running back in the east, in rushing yards during the regular season. He also led Bloomsburg in all-purpose yards during the season with 1,003. Quiteh had four 100-yard efforts during the year including a career-high 168 yards and two scores in a comeback win at East Stroudsburg. Gooden, meanwhile, finished second on the team with 681 rushing yards and three scores during the year. He had two 100-yard games with a career-high of 164 yards coming in a win at Millersville on September 30. The duo combined for 323 rushing yards on the season and the pair lost only a total of 49 yards on those carries.

For the second consecutive season, Allen found himself on the Second Team after leading the team in receptions (49), receiving yards (650), and touchdown receptions (8). He added 148 yards on kick returns to finish third on the team with 803 all-purpose yards. Allen caught at least one pass in all 11 games with a season-high of seven catches coming against Kutztown. He posted career-highs of 94 receiving yards and two scores in the season finale against Clarion on November 11. Allen's eight receiving touchdowns marked the most by a Huskies' player since Ryan Dickerson caught eight in 2012.

On defense, Gary earned a spot on the Second Team after earned First Team honors in 2016. While he finished shy of the 15 tackles for a loss and 12.5 sacks he posted in 2016, Gary still had a great 2017 campaign as he finished second to Klinger in both tackles for a loss (12.0) and sacks (7.0). The defensive end finished third in the PSAC  with five forced fumbles and tied for seventh in the league with two fumble recoveries. He also led the Huskies with eight quarterback hurries while posting a career-high in total tackles with 37.

The final All-Conference member, Seamon started the final nine games of the season after missing the first two but still finished tied for sixth in the PSAC in passes defended with 13. He led the Huskies, and was tied for fourth in the PSAC, with 11 pass breakups and was tied for second on the team with two interceptions. Seamon finished the season with a career-best 30 total tackles from his cornerback position.

THROUGH THE ARCHIVES
Bloomsburg comes into the 2018 season with an all-time record of 56-60-4 in 120 season openers from stretching from 1892-2017. Its record at home is 41-19-3 and on the road 15-41-1. The Huskies have also won 16 of their last 18 home openers, dating back to 2000. The school's all-time record in home openers is 75-40-5.
 
The Huskies' record in 44 seasons at Redman Stadium, since the first game in 1974, is 156-74-4.  The 3-3 record in 2017 was the first non-winning season at home since 1999. The last losing record was 2-3 in 1993.
 
Bloomsburg scored less than ten points in a game twice in 2017. The last time that occurred during a regular season was in 1998.
 
Bloomsburg's all-time record in games played on September 1 is 2-2. That includes losses to Youngstown State in 1990 and New Haven in 1994, with victories over C.W. Post in 2007 and Ashland in 2011.
 
The Huskies' all-time record in 81 games versus out-of-state teams is 44-35-2, with a home record of 25-11-1 and a 19-24-1 mark on the road.  The first game ever with an out-of-state team was at home in 1932 with Oswego of New York. Bloomsburg is 7-3 all-time against teams from the state of Massachusetts with a 4-2 record versus Stonehill and a 3-1 record against American International.
 
Two regular season games in 2018 are against a non-Pennsylvania opponent. The last time that occurred—not including 2008-12, when C.W. Post was a member of the PSAC—was in 1996, when Bloomsburg faced Wayne State and American International. The first time it occurred in school history was in 1952, versus Trenton State and New Haven.

SCOUTING MERRIMACK
Merrimack finished up the 2017 season with a record of 4-6 overall and 4-5 in the Northeast-10 Conference. Its non-conference loss was a near upset on the road against Division I Bryant University. Among the highlights last fall were an impressive 31-21 win on the road in Week 2 at American International. The 2017 season also featured the unveiling of the new Merrimack Stadium, which opened in style with a win over Pace, 44-10, in front of a record breaking crowd of more than 7,000 fans. Two weeks later, the Warriors posted a convincing win at home against Saint Anselm, 41-3, to finish the year undefeated in the new stadium. Merrimack saved its best for last in Week 10 by going down to New Haven and stunning the perennial power in a come-from-behind, 31-21, victory.

Four Warriors earned All-Conference accolades and three return this year, headlined by returning senior defensive lineman Jesse Jones, a First Team selection on defense. Rising sophomores Rodney Samson and Jake Ragusa earned All-Rookie Team honors.

Merrimack finished last season as the NE10's third-best offense in terms of yards per game, averaging 413.4 per contest – nearly 100 more than they did in 2016. The Merrimack rushing defense yielded only 124.3 yards per game, the second-fewest in the conference. The Warriors also finished second in the league in sacks, totaling 25 sacks on the year. Overall, Merrimack ranked fourth in the NE10 last season in total yards allowed per game (348.9). Merrimack out-gained its competition in six out of 10 games last year and surpassed 200 yards rushing on three occasions – including a 300-yard game on the ground.

Stay up to date with the Huskies all season long by following us on our official social media accounts: Twitter (@GoBUHuskies), Facebook (BUHuskies), and Instagram (BUHuskies).