Oberlin, Ohio - The Oberlin College football team begins North Coast Athletic Conference play at home against Denison University on Saturday afternoon at 1 p.m.

What: Oberlin College (1-1, 0-0 NCAC) vs. Denison University (1-1, 0-0 NCAC)
When: Saturday, September 16, 1:00 p.m.
Where: Oberlin, Ohio (Austin E. Knowlton Athletics Complex)
Online Coverage: Live Video | Live Stats
TV: Oberlin Sports Network App on Amazon Fire, Roku, and AppleTV

Inside the Series …
Saturday marks the 78th time the Big Red and Yeomen have battled on the gridiron in a series that dates back all the way to 1911 … Denison has won nine straight contests against Oberlin with the last Yeomen triumph coming on October 13, 2012 in the form of a 30-6 victory … It was a banner day for quarterback Josh Mandel as he threw for 275 yards and three touchdowns … Classmate Robin Witjes was his top target, catching a career-high 12 balls for a career-best 222 yards and two touchdowns, which still ranks fifth all-time for receiving yards in a game.
 
Scouting the Big Red …
Denison finished the 2022 campaign at 8-2 and is 1-1 through the first two weeks of the season, earning a 45-35 victory over Capital before putting up a strong fight against No. 7 Linfield last week in a 28-14 loss … The Big Red offense has been cooking on all cylinders thus far, ranking second in the NCAC with an average of 501 yards per game while boasting the league's best passing attack behind senior quarterback Jimmy Stines … Stines ranks inside the top-10 in the nation and leads the NCAC with 645 yards to accompany his five TD tosses … Billy Guzzo has been one of his favorite targets, especially on the deep-ball as he has totaled a conference-best 258 yards on just six catches to go along with two TDs … Senior running back Trey Fabrocini has racked up a conference-best 222 yards to rank 24th in the nation and has scored three touchdowns … The experienced Big Red defense is headlined by Collin Murphy and Jeff Moore as they have combined for 29 tackles on the young season.

Last Time Against the Big Red …
The Yeomen defense turned in an inspired first-quarter effort - holding the Big Red scoreless in the frame - but Denison would eventually break through in the second quarter with four touchdowns and never look back in a 51-10 victory over the Yeomen … Former Oberlin wide receiver Ty Weatherspoon was a bright spot for the offense as he finished with a career-high 144 yards and a TD on six catches … Special teams plagued the Yeomen as three of Denison's six touchdowns came against Oberlin's punt team … Jaylin Epps opened the game's scoring just 90 seconds into the second quarter with a 60-yard punt return for a touchdown and he would later close out the first half with a 94-yard punt return for a score. 
 
How Bout' them Yeomen …
The Yeomen have been impressive on both sides of the ball through the first two weeks of the season, ranking third in the NCAC in total yards at 477.5 per game while sitting second in the league defensively allowing just 332 yards per game … Oberlin is second in the league with 194.5 yards rushing per game and owns the conference's best run defense at just 78 yards allowed per contest. 

Hunting Quarterbacks … 
Through two games, Oberlin College sophomore linebacker Hunter Green is leading the NCAC with 3.5 sacks while no other player in the league has more than 1.5 … The 5-foot-10, 226-pound Odenton, Maryland native has a conference-best 4.5 tackles for loss and is tied for second on the squad with 11 total tackles … Last season, Green led the Yeomen with 94 total tackles and tied for third with 6.5 TFL's. 

Super Back Super Star … 
Junior Evan Smith-Rooks has thrived in his new role in the Yeomen offense as a super back .. The 6-foot-4, 222-pound Atlanta, Georgia native is tied atop the NCAC with 14 receptions … Smith-Rooks is sixth in the league with 145 yards with eight of his catches on the season going for first downs. 
 
Chain Reaction … 
The Yeomen rank second in the league with an average of 27 first downs per game, while on the flip side they are also ranked second in first downs allowed at just 18.5. 

QB Battle … 
Saturday's game features a match-up between the top two yardage performers in the NCAC … Oberlin quarterback Drew Nye leads the NCAC with an average of 375 yards of total offense per game, while Stines is close behind at 351 yards … Nye has been more balanced with 566 passing yards and 184 rushing, while Stines has racked up 645 yards passing and just 57 yards rushing.