THIS SATURDAY: crossing the lake - update: PC wins, next game at home

GREENWOOD, S.C. – Already their second time under the lights this season, the Presbyterian College football team will clash with the recently-revived Erskine Flying Fleet on Saturday, September 7. It will be the first time that the two schools have met since 1951, taking place at Greenwood High School.

Kickoff is measured for 7:00 PM and will be broadcasted live on Flo Football. PC is on the road for the second straight week to begin the campaign, although this particular drive is vastly shorter at under an hour in length.

Tomorrow night’s meeting – held at J.W. Babb Stadium – will be the last time that the Blue Hose are the visiting party for almost a full month. Following this affair, head coach Steve Englehart’s crew will size up three consecutive home games against Virginia-Lynchburg, Gardner-Webb, and Davidson.

GAMEDAY CENTRAL

 WHO: Presbyterian (0-1) at Erskine (1-0)

WHERE: J.W. Babb Stadium (Greenwood, S.C.)

WHEN: Saturday, September 7 – 7:00 PM

FOLLOW THE ACTION

 WATCH: Flo Football

LIVE STATS: SideArm

TWITTER/X: @BlueHoseFB

GAME NOTES: Presbyterian Notes | PFL Weekly Report

GROUNDING THE FLEET 

• While it’s been 73 years since Presbyterian and Erskine last faced each other on the gridiron, the series was owned by the Blue Hose when the two were regular opponents. They played 32 games from 1915 to 1951, and it was PC who emerged as the victor in 29 of those contests.  
• After dropping the 1937 game, the Scotsmen defeated the Flying Fleet in their last 10 tries before Erskine disbanded its football program shortly thereafter.
• There’s no other program who PC holds a longer current winning streak against, save for NCAA Division III school Guilford, whom Presby defeated 10 straight times from 1968 to ’78.
• Throughout the 10-game win streak over Erskine, the Fleet were shut out by the blue and garnet six times and never scored more than 13 points in that stretch. The last encounter in 1951 was decided by a 33-6 margin in Due West.

OPPONENT PROFILE

• Deleting their football program for 70 years until its revival in the spring of 2021, Erskine started off the season with an impressive 52-0 dissection of St. Andrews at home.
• The Flying Fleet put a 20-game losing streak to rest on the final day of August by registering 17 first downs and 312 yards of total offense. They were forced to punt just once over the entire meeting.
• Perhaps more impressive than the 52-point shutout, Erskine's defense held St. Andrews to an eye-popping 54 yards from scrimmage. The Knights completed only two passes all game that went for a combined three yards.
• Erskine connected on 80 percent of their pass attempts (12-for-15), throwing three touchdowns and rushing for three more. They tacked on a scoop-and-score early in the 3rd for a defensive TD, translating to their first win via shutout since the team was resurrected three years ago.

 SPRINTING SWITZER

• A bright spot for the Blue Hose in last Thursday's setback against Mercer (the same squad that earned a first-round win in the 2023 FCS Playoffs), senior running back Zach Switzer offered up an incendiary kick-return effort with 191 yards on eight attempts.
• That was the most of anyone at either the FBS or FCS levels for Week One, surpassing Presbyterian's Division I single-game record in that department by 40 yards (Jeremiah McKie in 2013 against VMI).
• Seven weeks of FCS football had been played since anyone collected 191 kick-return yards in a sole contest (October 7 of last year). Switzer totaled 85 yards on just two returns (45 and 40, respectively), taking six of his eight returns beyond 20 yards.

HERRIOTT CLIMBING UP THE LADDER

• Presbyterian's leading tackler three years running, linebacker Alex Herriott finds himself on the doorstop of a Blue Hose milestone this Saturday by needing just one more tackle to reach 3rd-place in PC's Division I-era history.
• By scattering seven stops in the season-starting affair with Mercer, the South Carolinian tied Jarrett Nagy and recently-inducted Big South Hall of Famer Justin Bethel with his 279th tackle.
• Colby Campbell (2017-20) and Donelle Williams (2011-15) are thus far the only two defenders since 2007 to have eclipsed 300 career tackles in the blue and garnet. Herriott needs only 21 more to join that company, averaging 90 tackles per season in his first three years with PC.

PC 31, Erskine 14

GREENWOOD, S.C. – Senior do-it-all tailback Zach Switzer accounted for 229 all-purpose yards on Saturday night at J.W. Babb Stadium, allowing the Presbyterian College football team to continue its dominance over Erskine 31-14.

Striking first with just five minutes elapsed and leading by as many as three touchdowns, the Blue Hose studiously picked up the in-state win in the first meeting between the two programs since the 1951 campaign.

Switzer was the star of the show for head coach Steve Englehart’s club, scoring on a 67-yard reception and later a 90-yard kick return that ended in the end zone. Redshirt Collin Hurst started at QB for the Scotsmen, completing nine-of-16 passes for 201 yards and a couple of scores.

Five different players for PC contributed a 20-yard gain for an offense that assembled 385 yards on the night. On the other end, the Blue Hose defense forced the Flying Fleet into a third-down 18 times, outgaining them by 116 yards.

FINAL SCORE: Presbyterian, 31 – Erskine, 14

RECORDS: Presbyterian (1-1) – Erskine (1-1)

LOCATION: J.W. Babb Stadium (Greenwood, S.C.)

ENGLEHART’S THOUGHTS

“We played with a tough mindset in a very physical grind-it-out type of game tonight. Our guys ran the ball extremely well, which opened up our passing game a bit and created a comfortable lead for the majority of the night.”

“All wins are great team wins, and I’m proud of the way we fought all game to make big plays in all three facets of the game.”

NOTABLES

- For Switzer, his collection of 229 all-purpose yards is the fourth-most in a single game during Presbyterian’s 17-year stint at the Division I level. It’s the most for any player in one bout since Englehart arrived on campus for the 2022 season.

- This comes just one week after the Tennesseean led all players in both FBS and FCS with 191 kick-return yards against Mercer (and by extension, the most of anyone in FCS since October 7 of last year).

- On the subject of records, senior linebacker Alex Herriott reached a significant individual milestone in the 1^st quarter by recording his 280^th career tackle. That is the third-most of anyone at PC since 2007, surpassing Jarrett Nagy and recently-inducted Big South Hall of Famer Justin Bethel.

- Junior Nathan Hajduk offered up his best outing from a statistical standpoint, tackling a career-high nine ball-carriers and finishing the night with his first career interception (a diving catch as Erskine was nearing the red zone).

- Defensive back Zeb Stroup would also align his first INT early in the second half, a similar sliding grab that halted all momentum from the home side.

- Hurst completed 56 percent of his throws in a fill-in role for injured QB1 Ty Englehart, combining for 120 yards on two completions (the aforementioned Switzer score and a 53-yard lob to Nathan Levicki).

HOW IT HAPPENED – FIRST HALF

- Carter Szydlowski set the tone early for the PC front with a 3^rd-down sack against Fleet signal-caller Craig Pender, leading to Switzer’s 67-yard sprint to pay dirt only five snaps later.

- The majority of the first frame was carried by both defenses, as the Blue Hose never let Erskine progress past midfield over that 15-minute period.

- Ahead 7-0 after the opening stanza, Presby boosted the lead to 14 after pouncing on a golden opportunity that opened after an Erskine muffed punt.

- Long snapper Dixon Musgrove recovered the loose ball at the nine-yard line, setting up Cincere Gill’s second-straight game with a TD that happened with 13:38 ‘til the half.

- The Flying Fleet were able to scratch their scoring itch with just over four minutes left in the 2^nd, converting two 4^th-down situations and a 3^rd-and-10 in a touchdown drive that ate up 5:19.

- It took 13 plays for the deficit to be cut in half, although Switzer swiftly hoisted the lead back to two scores on his 90-yard kick-return flash.

HOW IT HAPPENED – SECOND HALF

- Stroup’s hustling interception spoiled Erskine’s first series of the 3^rd while already trailing 21-7, although both squads traded punts shortly thereafter to keep the tally unchanged.

- Coach Englehart and co. were given another opportune moment following a shanked Erskine punt, allowing them to begin their next drive at the 34 of enemy territory.

- From there, the ball was turned to freshman running back Justin Montgomery, who rushed three times with the last one going 19 yards to the end zone.

- Cementing his first collegiate touchdown to beef up the lead to 28-7, PC was able to cruise from that point and only give up seven more points the rest of the way.

- Erskine’s second scoring sequence dwelled on even longer than the first, encapsulating nine-and-a-half minutes of clock and 16 plays.

- No matter, Presbyterian was able to avoid any late costly turnovers and notched their final points of the evening on a 23-yard field goal by sophomore Mack Mikko.

OWNING THE FLEET

- PC now moves to 30-2-1 all-time against their close rivals, winning each of the last 11 encounters versus Erskine. The series had been put on hold for seven decades until the Fleet’s revival in the spring of 2021.

- During Presby’s lengthy winning streak in this matchup, they’ve limited Erskine to 14 points or fewer in every one of those affairs. The Scotsmen have outscored the Fleet by a combined margin of 260-46 during this 11-game span.

UP NEXT

- On the road for the first two meetings this year, PC’s 12-game journey continues with the luxury of three consecutive home dates which will stretch from next Saturday all the way through to the 28^th.

- The first of those opponents to visit Bailey Memorial Stadium: The Virginia-Lynchburg Dragons, who have been defeated by Englehart’s crew in each of the past two seasons.

- Downing VUL 21-13 in 2022 and 48-17 last fall, the Blue Hose will finally get the chance to claim their home opener next Saturday (September 14) at 1:00 PM.

- That non-conference tussle will be streamed on ESPN+, with the Dragons dropping their first two bouts to Wagner and Livingstone.