Newberry, S.C.----The Wingate University Bulldogs are on the road for the fourth and final time this regular season, traveling to Limestone to take on the Saints at 1 p.m. Wingate is looking for a fifth consecutive victory, piling up 175 points over the last four games to take down UNC Pembroke, Catawba, Mars Hill and Newberry. The Bulldogs enter the weekend 6-3 overall and 3-2 in SAC play, while the Saints are 0-9 overall and 0-6 in league play.

ABOUT THE GAME

Saturday, Nov. 3 | 1 p.m.
Wingate (6-3; 3-2 SAC) at Limestone (0-9; 0-6 SAC)
Gaffney, S.C. (The Reservation)
Wingate picked second in preseason SAC coaches poll; Limestone picked seventh
 
SERIES HISTORY

- Fifth meeting between the two teams
- Wingate leads the series 4-0
- The Bulldogs have outscored the Saints 144-68
- WU is 2-0 at Limestone
- Wingate prevailed 44-20 at home last season
- The 'Dogs won 45-26 at Limestone in 2016
- WU downed Limestone 38-10 in the first game in Limestone history in 2014

COACHES

- WU head coach Joe Reich is in his 18th season at Wingate (116-77 overall)
- Winningest coach in WU history; one of three SAC coaches to ever win 100 games
- 2017 SAC Coach of the Year (Third time in his career)
- Brian Turk was just named the interim head coach on Oct. 22, 2018
- Turk also serves as the Offensive Coordinator and QB Coach
 
 MOST RECENT GAME

- Wingate scored the final 21 points of the game to win 31-17 at Newberry
- Held Newberry to a season-low 181 total yards
- WU had 224 rushing yards on a season-high 5.1 yards per carry
- Newberry was the SAC leader in total defense and scoring defense
- Nijere Peoples had 28 carries for 135 yards and two touchdowns
- Bryan Mitchell had five catches including a TD grab
- JT Stokes had 56 receiving yards
- Shaw Crocker threw for 129 yards and a score
- Domineke McNeill added 74 rushing yards and a touchdown
- Cameron Mattison and Matthew Ellis-White each had an interception
- Kam Johnson led the defense with eight tackles, including 1.5 TFLs
- Limestone fell 43-6 at Catawba
- The Indians piled up 628 yards of offense compared to Limestone's 301
- Catawba had the ball for over 38 minutes
- The Indians scored 24 points in the second quarter
- DJ Phillips was 16-for-29 for 253 yards
- Juwan Scott had nine catches for 107 yards

ABOUT THE BULLDOGS

- Coming off historic 9-2 season, winning its second SAC title in program history
- The 'Dogs made their second appearance in the NCAA Division II play-offs
- Started the season 9-0, ranked as high as 12th in AFCA top 25 (highest ever)
- Wingate is currently ranked ninth in the NCAA Super Region 2 Poll
- WU has outscored opponents 175-79 in four-game winning streak
- Wingate is 14-6 in road games since the start of the 2015 season
- Wingate has scored over 50 points twice in a season for the first time since 2009
- The Bulldogs have won 17 straight when scoring over 30 points
- Wingate started the season 2-0 for the fifth straight year
- WU started the season with six out of eight games at home
- Playing back-to-back road games for the first time this year

WINGATE OFFENSE

- The Bulldogs are averaging 33.2 points per game, ranking third in the SAC
- WU is fourth in the league with 396.0 yards of total offense per game
- The 'Dogs are second in the SAC in passing yards and fourth in rushing yards
- Crocker leads the league with 21 TD passes; second with 217.4 yards per game
- He leads the SAC in yards / attempt while ranking third in completion percentage
- Ranks fifth nationally in yards / completion; 11th in passing efficiency, 12th in TDs
- Peoples is second in the SAC with 96.1 rushing yards per game
- Leads the league with eight rushing TDs
- Peoples has gone over 130 rush yards in four of the last five games
- Stokes is second in the SAC in receiving yards (89.6 per game) and TDs (9)
- Stokes ranks 12th nationally in receiving touchdowns; 21st in receiving yards
- Stokes is 194 yards away from becoming WU's first 1,000-yard receiver since 2012
- BJ Muckelvene has 390 receiving yards, ranking fourth in the SAC with 5 TDs
- Wingate has scored on 34-of-39 red zone chances with 28 touchdowns
- The 'Dogs are 43-124 on third down (35 percent) / eight-for-12 on fourth down
 
WINGATE DEFENSE

- Wingate ranks ninth nationally in sacks; 16th in tackles for loss
- The Bulldogs rank 14th nationally in third down defense
- WU is second in the league in scoring defense (19.0 points per game)
- The 'Dogs are second in total yards allowed (297.8 per game)
- 12 different Bulldogs have recorded a sack this year
- Wingate has forced 17 turnovers (11 interceptions, 6 fumbles)
- Cardell Rawlings is second in the nation with 12.5 sacks; fifth with 17.5 TFLs
- Rawlings leads the team with 66 tackles, nine hurries and two forced fumbles
- Elijah Gilmore is second on the team with 48 tackles with 4.5 TFLs and two sacks
- Joe Kelly is third on the team with 46 tackles, adding two interceptions
- Kam Johnson has 45 tackles, five TFL's, four pass break-ups and an interception
- Matthew Ellis-White has 10 break-ups, 38 tackles and an interception
- Cameron Mattison leads the 'Dogs with three interceptions, adding 35 tackles and 3.5 TFLs
- Auntrell Mack and Gabe Price have six and five TFLs, respectively
- Robbie Wallace has 41 tackles and a pair of interceptions
 
WINGATE SPECIAL TEAMS

- McLean Robertson is 8-10 on field goals with a 42 and 43 yarder
- Robertson is 36-for-38 on PATs; also has 16 touchbacks
- Chris Birozes is second in the SAC with a 43.1 average on 49 punts
- Birozes has 13 punts of over 50 yards and 13 inside the 20
- Muckelvene has 11 punt returns for 112 yards (10.2 yards per return)
- Ra'Quan Simmons has 13 returns for a team-best 318 yards
- Simmons had a career-best 48-yard return at Newberry
 
ABOUT LIMESTONE

- The Saints started their football program in 2014
- Limestone is 13-38 all-time
- The Saints went 5-6 in the 2016 season, defeating three SAC teams
- LC went 3-4 in league play in its first year as a SAC football school in 2017
- The Saints are looking to avoid their first-ever winless season
- Lost a tight 16-13 game against #23 West Alabama
- The Saints have allowed over 40 points on six occasions
 
LIMESTONE OFFENSE

- The Saints rank last in the SAC with 314.6 total yards per game
- Limestone is also last in the league with 17.2 points per contest
- LC is fourth in the SAC in passing (223.2 YPG) and last in rushing (91.3 YPG)
- The Saints have scored over 20 points just twice this year (41 vs. Mars Hill)
- Limestone had a season-low six points at Catawba last week
- Phillips leads the league with 231.9 passing yards per game; fourth with nine TDs
- Phillips also leads the SAC in completion percentage (59.5 percent)
- Cody Rau is fourth in the conference with 69.9 receiving yards per game
- Rau ranks fourth in the SAC with six receiving touchdowns
- Jerko'ya Patton averages 59.1 rush yards per game, scoring one touchdown
 
LIMESTONE DEFENSE

- The Saints allow a league-high 42.8 points and 492.2 yards per game
- Limestone has given up 289.3 rushing yards per contest
- The Saints allow 5.7 yards per rush
- Limestone has allowed over 400 total yards in eight of nine games
- Opponents have gone over 500 yards four of the last five games and over 600 twice
- Allowed 468 and 496 rushing yards in back-to-back weeks vs. C-N and LR
- Limestone ranks seventh in the league with eight sacks
- Joshua Simmons leads Limestone and the SAC with 90 tackles and 6.0 TFLs
- DJ Witherspoon has three interceptions and a fumble recovery
- Dalton Yates has a team-best three sacks
- D'Meko Pryor has 58 tackles and a forced fumble
 
LIMESTONE SPECIAL TEAMS

- Griffin Martin is 10-for-13 on field goals and 17-for-17 on PATs
- Martin has hit four FGs over 40 yards including a 50-yarder; also has 12 touchbacks
- Thomas Cook leads the SAC with 43.7 yards per punt with 14 over 50 yards
- Rau has six punt returns for 94 yards including a 46-yarder
- Scott has 338 kick return yards with a long of 40
 
UP NEXT

- Wingate wraps up the regular season at home next weekend
- The Bulldogs host Tusculum at 3 p.m. on Senior Day
- Limestone ends its season against Wingate