Welcome to our latest and greatest preview series: the FCS Roundup! Each week, we will look to highlight all of the lower-level programs in action against the Mid-American Conference in one place.
Thanfully for all of our sanity, both Toledo and Ball State were able to dispatch Morgan State and New Hampshire, respectively, allowing the conference to get two more notches on the belt against the lower levels. As of publication, the MAC now is 6-2 against FCS opponents. Week 5 will be the last time an FCS team
appears on the schedule, as the calendar gives way to league play.
That’s looking ahead though; this week will see three more FCS teams walk into MAC stadiums, with two more NEC matchups and a Big South squad set on the plate.
We’ll list them in order of appearance below:
Wagner Seahawks
- Who are they playing? Central Michigan, on Saturday, September 20th at 1 p.m. Eastern time
- Location: Kelly/Short Stadium in Mt. Pleasant, Michigan
- Viewing options: The game will be available only on ESPN+; a valid subscription is required for viewing.
- Radio options: Adam Jaksa (play-by-play) and Brock Gutierrez (color) will provide the Central call for 98.5 WUPS-FM.
- All-time series: First-ever meeting
Wagner has not had the greatest of seasons, starting 0-3 in the 2025 campaign. Last week was a particularly embarrassing loss, falling to Pioneer League foe Marist by a 21-10 final score in their home opener. Their tilt against Central will be their second FBS-level opponent of the year, previously taking on the Kansas Jayhawks to open the season.
Central Michigan head coach Matt Drinkall was animated when asked how he was going to keep his players focused against a team like Wagner coming off losses to Pitt and Michigan.
“I don’t know who thinks the Wagner game is going to be easy for us,” Drinkall said during press availability on Monday. “I don’t know why anybody would think that is the case. The way talent is distributed in college football right now, I don’t understand why anyone would ever think any game is easy.”
Offensive tackle Martin Koivisto echoed the sentiment, saying nobody on the team was happy about losing the last two games and that they were not going to underestimate Wagner.
“Whoever it is, whoever lines up against us, whether it’s Michigan, Wagner, whoever we’re going to play, we’re going to try to execute our brand of football.”
Drinkall is right in certain respects; on paper, the two teams are comparable in counting stats. Wagner averages 12 points per game on offense while giving up 32.6 points per game, with 249 yards of total offense gained and an 419.7 yards on defense.
Wagner wants to keep the ball on the ground, with 129 rushing plays to 70 pass attempts through three games (about a 43:23 per game ratio.) Last week against Marist, the Seahawks ran for 242 yards and a touchdown on 50 attempts while passing 24 times for 56 yards. Four Wagner players have logged at least 18 attempts and 75 yards on the season.
Former Boston College halfback Andre Hines (41 carries, 170 yards, two touchdowns) is the star to look for on offense, leading the team in carries, rushing yards and scores. Sekou Kamau is the primary back-up, with 28 carries for 128 yards. Quarterback Jack Stevens also figures into the running attack, with 129 pre-sack yards on 29 attempts.
Stevens has been overwhelmed for the most part in the passing game, completing 57 percent of his passes for 248 yards and a touchdown with six interceptions. Receivers Teree McDonald (team-leading 11 catches, 78 yards) and Derek Burrell (nine catches, team-leading 81 yards) up top of the chart. Slot receiver Jeremiah Colclough has the team’s lone receiving touchdown to go with seven catches for 80 yards.
On defense, the Seahawks run a 3-4 base offense, with an emphasis on trying to stop the run first and foremost.
Unfortunately for Wagner, it is cornerback Sam Martin (16 total tackles, three pass break-ups and a forced fumble) who leads the team in total tackles and solo stops (14), an indication their passing defense has been prone to big plays. Defensive end Luke Jakubauskas (11 tackles, 2.5 tackles-for-loss, sack, forced fumble, fumble recovery) is the primary disruptor for the Seahawks. Linebackers Armani Itote (13 tackles, two TFLs, two sacks) and Jordan Johnson (15 tackles, TFL, sack) have been efficient tacklers, with 10 and 13 solo stops, respectively.
As a unit, the Seahawks have 12 tackles-for-loss and five sacks on the season, which is encouraging, but have given up an average of 200 yards on the ground and 219 yards through the air, and only recovering two of the six fumbles made by opponents, nullifying any potential gains.
Gardner-Webb Runnin’ Bulldogs
- Who are they playing? Ohio, on Saturday, September 20th at 3:30 p.m. Eastern time
- Location: Peden Stadium in Athens, Ohio
- Viewing options: The game will be available only on ESPN+; a valid subscription is required for viewing.
- Radio options: Marty Bannister (play-by-play) and Rob Cornelius (color) will provide the Ohio call for WXTQ-FM 105.5.
- All-time series: Ohio leads the all-time series 3-0, with the last meeting in 2016.
Ohio looks to continue their great form of play against the Gardner-Webb Runnin’ Bulldogs of North Carolina.
GWU will be no slouch; the Runnin’ Bulldogs are 2-1 on the season, with a win over a ranked Western Carolina to start the season and a 10-point win over The Citadel to move to 2-0 against FCS peers and receive votes in the AFCA FCS Top 25 poll. GWU did lose to Georgia Tech in a “buy game” 59-12, but did manage to find a respectable 326 yards of offense, forced a fourth-down stop on defense and even held a brief— if early— lead against their ACC foe in the effort.
GWU is a ground-control team, with three players logging at least 25 carries and 100+ yards. St. Francis [PA] transfer Quasean Holmes leads the way as the primary halfback with 44 carries for 254 yards and a touchdown, while quarterback Nate Hampton is a true dual-threat, with 44 rushes for 157 yards and a team-leading four rushing scores. Carson Gresock (25 carries, 155 yards) gets run as a relief back.
Hampton, a transfer from Liberty, has wasted no time establishing himself as a starter, with five touchdowns through the air to go along with his rushing stats. He’s still got some work to do, completing just 50 percent of his passes, but he’s sterling otherwise, with zero interceptions despite the level of competition.
His main target will be Anthony Lowe, who leads the team in receptions (17) and touchdowns (three) as the main possession receiver. Lowe has 197 yards on the year. James Madison transfer Chris Lofton leads the team in yards (248 yards) as a big play threat, averaging 22.5 yards per catch.
The Runnin’ Bulldogs run a multiple defense based in a 4-3 look, with no distinctions between defensive linemen and defensive backs. On the season, GWU has allowed an average of 480 yards per game— with an average of 218 yards on the ground— while giving up 39 points per game.
App State transfer Cahari Haynes leads the team in solo tackles (13), sits second in tackles-for-loss (2.5) and tied for the team lead in forced fumbles (one) despite being listed as a backup on the depth chart. Jamari Young (19 tackles, TFL, sack) is in a similar situation, while Jecari Bryson (19 tackles, 12 solo) is one of two starting backers in the top five in tackles. Defensive back Jackson Marshall is capable of cleanup in the back end, with 17 tackles. Josiah Harris has the team’s lone interception.
Robert Holtz (three TFLs, two sacks) and Antonio O’Berry (2.5 TFLs, sack) have been most effective in getting to the backfield in the pass game. Javin Griffin and Andre Crawley Jr. are two 300+ lb. run-stuffers, combining for five TFLs to keep track of.
Duquense Dukes
- Who are they playing? Akron, on Saturday, September 20th at 6 p.m. Eastern time
- Location: InfoCision Stadium in Akron, Ohio
- Viewing options: The game will be available only on ESPN+; a valid subscription is required for viewing.
- Radio options: Dave Skoczen (play-by-play) and Joe Dunn (color) will provide the Akron call for WHLO-AM 640.
- All-time series: First-ever meeting
Of all the FCS teams most capable of pulling off an upset of a MAC side this week, Duquense certainly feels capable of the feat.
Jerry Schmidt is in his 21st season coaching the Dukes, and led their shocking upset of the Ohio Bobcats back in 2021, earning the NEC’s first-ever win over an FBS squad. Duquense’s results since then against FBS opponents haven’t been pretty, but Akron hasn’t exactly been a world-beater in 2025.
Duquense has shown flashes in two losses this season, with some great individual performances against Pitt in a blowout and taking 10th-ranked Lehigh to the wire on home turf in a tough non-conference matchup. They also sport a 10-of-11 conversion rate in the redzone and average 28 points scored per game while picking up 336.7 yards per game, all much higher totals than Akron has mustered so far.
The player to circle and highlight is #5 in white, the man they call “Joey Magic” at Rooney Field. Joey Isabella shined brightest against Pitt in Week 1, with eight catches for 120 yards, and currently sits at 22 receptions for 319 yards and three touchdowns, notching his second 100-yard performance of the year against Lehigh. If the name sounds familiar, he is indeed the younger brother of Andy Isabella, the former UMass Minuteman who went on to play in the NFL.
Isabella has caught at least touchdown in 10 of his last 11 games, and held the longest touchdown streak in the FCS heading into the 2025 campaign, making him a formidable matchup for a Zips defensive backfield which has had difficulty keeping receivers behind them. No other receiver has more than six catches or 90 yards on the season.
Seventh-year senior Tyler Riddell will be the signalcaller for the Dukes, with 604 yards and eight touchdowns (one interception) on 64.8 completion percentage through three contests. He transfers in after a season at Gardner-Webb in 2024 and five years at East Tennessee State.
The running game is typically a rotation, with Taj Butts (22 carries, 103 yards, touchdown) leading the way. Five different Dukes have at least 12 carries so far, with the team accumulating 302 yards on the season.
On defense, Duquense works with a multiple 4-3 look, swapping in defensive linemen for defensive ends in subpackages.
Linebacker Jabari Odoemenem has been a standout contributor for the Dukes, winning NEC Defensive Player of the Week honors for his 12-tackle performance against a ranked Lehigh team. Odoewmenem has a team-leading 20 tackles overall, with 12 solo stops, while also notching 2.5 tackles-for-loss and four QB hits.
2024 first-team all-NEC defensive end Jack Dunkley will also be a handful, sitting at 3.5 TFLs and a sack through three games in 2025. Last season, Dunkley, who stands at six-foot-four, 250 lbs., picked up 12.5 TFLs and 9.5 sacks to lead the Dukes.
Youngstown State transfer safety Dallas Harper, a Pittsburgh native, had a stellar debut for the Dukes vs. Pitt, picking off an interception in the endzone, and has built on that performance since, sitting third-best in tackles (12), second-best in solo tackles (11) and third-best in TFLs (1.5.)
