ABOUT THE GAME

• Millersville returns to Biemesderfer Stadium for Homecoming Saturday to take on No. 23 Shepherd and its high-powered passing offense. The Marauders are Rams could not be more different stylistically as Millersville ranks fifth in the PSAC in rushing offense and Shepherd is No. 2 in passing offense. The Marauders have run the ball 234 times and passed 180 while Shepherd has run just 169 times and its 187 pass attempts have generated 615 more yards than Millersville. The Marauders excelled in the first four weeks with its running game and are 3-0 this season and 7-0 over the last two seasons when rushing for at least 140 yards. Keeping the ball away from Shepherd's offense is key for Millersville as the Rams have scored at least 27 points in their five wins. Shepherd has allowed 149 or more rushing yards three times. 
• Since 1968, Millersville is 24-26-1 in Homecoming games but have won three of the last 10. Last season the Marauders snapped a three-game Homecoming skid with a 17-14 win over Shippensburg. Shepherd is the Marauders' Homecoming opponent for the third time in the last four seasons. Millersville has not topped more than 17 points in the last four Homecoming games.
• Friday, Oct. 13 through Sunday, Oct. 15, Millersville fans can stop at Raney Cellars in Millersville and purchase a special edition Roll Ville IPA. The craft brew will also be on sale during Saturday's Homecoming game. $2 from each purchase will be donated back to Millersville Athletics. 

SCOUTING THE MARAUDERS

• Since starting the season 3-1, Millersville has dropped the last two games, and turnovers have been the biggest difference. In the first four games, Millersville was plus-six in turnover margin, committing just two turnovers. The Marauders have committed eight turnovers in the last two weeks and were minus-seven in turnover margin. The running game was also a key part of Millersville’s first three wins as it averaged 204 yards in those three games. The last two weeks, however, the Marauders have averaged 70.5 yards per game and 2.8 yards per carry. Aside from the turnovers, the Marauders have moved the ball successfully, generating at least 19 first downs in each of the last three games. 
• One bright spot for the Millersville offense in the last two weeks has been the play of Hakim Melvin, who has totaled nine catches for 165 yards and two touchdowns after totaling seven catches for 72 yards in the first four games. Melvin has a touchdown catch in three consecutive games. Melvin also has a return touchdown and a rushing touchdown, ranking him 13th in the PSAC in scoring.
• Millersville added four more sacks to their team total against East Stroudsburg and now lead the PSAC with 21 on the season. Garrett Cox recorded two on Saturday and is now a half-sack out of the PSAC lead with 5 1/2 on the season. Cox’s 13 1/2 tackles for loss also lead the league, and he ranks second overall in tackles.
• Kicker Trent McDowell made a field goal for the third-straight game, and he’s now connected on three in a row, connecting from 35, 38 and 39 yards. 
   

SCOUTING SHEPHERD

• Shepherd entered the season with the tall task of replacing Harlon Hill Trophy winner and now-Chicago Bears quarterback Tyson Bagent, and while it hasn’t been a seamless transition, the Rams are still 5-1 and boast the PSAC’s No. 2 passing offense. Seth Morgan ranks second in the league with 270.3 yards per game while completing 65.8% of his passes, which also ranks second. Three Shepherd wide receivers rank in the PSAC’s top 20 in receiving yards with Cameron Dorner boasting 407 yards and four touchdowns on 27 catches. Dorner, Barry Hill and Jeremiah Taylor all have catches for at least 52 yards this season, which is a challenging match-up for a Marauder defense that has allowed six passes of 40 yards or more. Shepherd has run the ball more times than it has passed, but it has passed for more than 300 yards three times while rushing for 100 or more just twice.
• Dorner and Malakai Brown are also two of the PSAC’s best kick returners. Both players have return touchdowns and averaged better than 31 yards per return. 
• On defense, the Rams are aggressive in pass coverage, totaling eight interceptions to six touchdowns allowed. However, the Rams rank 14th in the PSAC against the pass, allowing 242.7 yards per game. The Rams allowed at least 117 yards rushing in each of the first four games of the season, but in the last two weeks they surrendered just 48 to Shippensburg and 57 to Lock Haven. Shepherd also tallied nine sacks in the last two weeks after recording four in the first four games. 

SERIES HISTORY

• While Shepherd has won all three match-ups with Millersville since joining the PSAC East in 2019 and five in a row in the series overall, Millersville has made games interesting lately. Last season, the Marauders trailed 21-17 at the half, getting a fumble return for a touchdown from Steve Sweeney. Millersville picked off now-Chicago Bear QB Tyson Bagent two times. In 2022, Millersville scored first and held the nation's top-ranked passing offense to its lowest output of the season while also recording three interceptions and three sacks. Millersville's last win in the series was also the Marauders' last NCAA Playoff win. That came by a 21-14 score at Biemesderfer Stadium in 1999. Millersville is 7-4-1 all-time at home against the Rams. 
• THE LAST MEETING (Shepherd 55, Millersville 17 (Oct. 15, 2022): For the first 30 minutes, Millersville gave the Shepherd Rams all they could handle. But the nation's No. 1 offense and the Harlon Hill Trophy winning quarterback Tyson Bagent could only be held in check for so long, and the Rams pulled away by scoring 34 unanswered points in the second half for a 55-17 win. The Rams rushed for 250 yards and totaled 532 yards of total offense. The Rams also recorded a fumble return for a touchdown and a pick-six. 
   

THE LAST TIME OUT

• Millersville: East Stroudsburg 38, Millersville 17 (Oct. 7, 2023) - Millersville could ill-afford to play from behind against East Stroudsburg and the PSAC's No. 1 rushing offense and defense, but the Warriors gashed the Marauders on the ground and connected on big plays through the air early, scoring 21 points in their first four drives, and Millersville could not recover in Saturday's 38-17 loss.
• Shepherd: Shepherd 27, Lock Haven 10 (Oct. 7, 2023) - Seth Morgan completed 25-of-36 passes for 301 yards and two touchdowns in Shepherd's road win. Shepherd got its first score with one minute remaining in the first quarter and then rattled off 24 unanswered points.