Lycoming football returns to MAC play in road trip to King’s
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Welcome back to the MAC.
It's been a long time coming, but for the first time since before the pandemic, Lycoming football is getting back into the mix of conference play. The Warriors will head to King's College on Saturday as Middle Atlantic Conference matchups get underway in Week 3.
In their lone game thus far this season, the Monarchs (1-0) averaged one yard per run on 34 rushing attempts in a 13-10 win over Moravian University. That sluggish ground game was the polar opposite of a strong performance through the air, however.
King's quarterback Tyler Moore connected with seven different receivers for 256 yards, and completed 24 of his 46 passes. While there's something to be said about the Monarchs' production in the passing game, the Warriors (1-1) know all too well about getting their feet back after the first week.
For that reason, limiting King's to the air the way Moravian did could be an advantage for Lycoming.
"(Moore is) a guy who's pretty experienced and can definitely move the sticks for those guys," Warriors coach Mike Clark said during practice on Wednesday. "Our hope is, obviously we always want to stop people from running the ball if possible and make them throw it, it makes them one dimensional, allows you to rush their passer better and those kinds of things, but that will still be the plan going into this game."
Lycoming has allowed 345 total passing yards against it through the first two games, the bulk of which came in Week 1 against Susquehanna University. It'll be a big test for the Warriors' pass defense, especially with only so much film to study.
King's is already coming off an early bye week. Since the Monarchs only have Lycoming's first game for film study due to the league pool, there will be a lot of unknowns for both sides in the game-to-game exchange of the first three weeks.
"They say you make your most improvement from Week 1 to Week 2. I thought we improved," Clark said. "It'll be interesting to see how with an extra week that happens for them."
The Warriors are slated for a 1 p.m. opening kickoff at McCarthey Stadium in Wilkes-Barre. After 22 months, the race for the MAC begins on Saturday.
"The message for us this week is to continue to move in the right direction, and our goals are to reestablish expectations for our football program. We didn't do that in Week 1, but I thought we played a pretty good game last week," Clark said. "If you want to be a good team, you have to win on the road."
LYCOMING PLAYERS TO WATCH: Joey Guida, Kyle Powell and Tyjah During.
Guida and Powell flipped the script in Week 2 for the Warriors' backfield. After minimal ground production against Susquehanna, the two combined for 162 yards across 26 rushing attempts, with two touchdowns for Guida. Powell also found the end zone on a checkdown.
During could also be an impact player this week. The senior wide receiver had big plays on special teams against Lebanon Valley, though they were often bogged down with penalties on Lycoming. If the Warriors get less calls on special teams, During could set up the offense with great field position on Saturday.
During also came up with big receptions in each of the first two games of 2021 so far. An 18-yard connection from Elijah Shemory put the Warriors in the red zone against Susquehanna in Week 1, and During hauled in a 50-yard pass this past Saturday. He's been making the most of his targets on offense, and could make another splash on the road.
KING'S PLAYERS TO WATCH: The receiving corps.
Not only did the wideouts get an abundance of targets in the Monarchs' pass-heavy offense in Week 1, but King's utilized pass-catching running backs as well. If the Monarchs decide to challenge Lycoming's pass defense as heavily as they did against Moravian, there could be a number of contributions all around.