The Basics
With alumni and past teams in attendance, the Drake football team plays host to Marist at Drake Stadium in its Pioneer Football League opener at 1 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 24.
Broadcast Information
The game will be streamed worldwide on ESPN3 with
Michael Admire handling the play-by-play and Jeff Woody as the analyst.
1350/102.1 ESPN Des Moines is back as the radio home of Drake Bulldog football. Chuck Reed will once again be the play-by-play man and is joined during home games by analyst Craig Wederquist.
About Last Week
The Bulldogs took a touchdown lead over Idaho early in the second quarter in a 42-14 defeat inside the Kibbie Dome on Saturday (Sept. 17).
After Idaho scored nearly halfway through the first half, Drake had an immediate answer on its next drive (15 plays, 70 yards). The Bulldogs utilized key third down conversions to move into scoring position.
Ian Corwin flipped a pass down the right sideline that was hauled in circus style by
Trey Radocha for a gain of 19 yards. A play later on second down and goal from the three-yard line,
Davion Cherwin rumbled in to even the score, 7-7 with only 1:15 left in the opening quarter.
After a quick three-and-out, the Bulldogs went back to work on offense early in the second quarter. Corwin connected with a wide-open Radocha streaking down the middle of the field. Radocha caught the ball and dragged Idaho defenders with him all the way to the three-yard line for a gain of 78 yards. On first down and goal from the three,
Dorian Boyland took the pitch and make a cut to find the end zone. Boyland's first rushing touchdown put Drake in front, 14-7 with 14:02 to play in the second quarter.
The Vandals took a 20-14 lead into halftime before taking the momentum and pulling away in the second half. Defensively,
Finn Claypool had a sack and
Tanner Pollock recorded a team-high nine tackles.
Idaho Postgame Thoughts from Head Coach Todd Stepsis
On playing opponents like North Dakota State and Idaho: "You see some bright flashes of the type of team we can be when you go into a game like this. Unfortunately, we kind of ran out of steam. We are going to correct the negatives and take the positives. We only had one penalty today, that's a huge positive."
On beginning PFL play: "The neat thing about the Pioneer Football League is that we can start fresh. In conference play, we're 0-0 and ready to see what this team can do."
PFL Openers
Drake is 22-7 in Pioneer Football League openers dating back to the league's creation in 1993.
First Timers
Dorian Boyland (RB) and
Tim Nesslage (TE) both scored their first collegiate touchdowns in the season opener at NDSU.
Austin Flax caught his first collegiate touchdown vs. Missouri S&T on Sept. 10.
Davion Cherwin rushed for his first collegiate touchdown in the first quarter at Idaho on Sept. 17.
Defensive Leader
Linebacker
Tanner Pollock has proven to be a hard hitter and leads the Bulldogs this season in tackles with 25 (15 solo) including 1.5 tackles for loss.
Big Play Trey
Last Saturday (Sept. 17), wide receiver
Trey Radocha hauled in a circus catch in the first quarter and was on the receiving end of a 78-yard pass play that is the second longest pass play in the PFL this season.
Scouting Marist
Marist lost to the Ivy League's Columbia last week, 38-3. The Red Foxes had an early bye the prior week after Georgetown handed them a 43-12 defeat on Sept. 3.
Redshirt sophomore Brett Landis has been the top offensive option for Marist with eight catches for 96 yards so far this season. Redshirt senior safety Clayborne Fields III paces Marist with 21 tackles (11 solo) and 1.0 tackle for loss.
Marist was predicted to finish sixth in the Pioneer Football League preseason coaches' poll. The Red Foxes finished the 2021 campaign with a 5-5 overall record (5-3 in PFL play).
Jim Parady has been at the helm of Marist football for 31 years and owns a 147-159-1 overall record.
Series History vs. Marist
Drake leads the all-time series, 8-1, having won eight consecutive games until Marist won 7-0 last year (Nov. 6, 2021) in Poughkeepsie, N.Y.
Up Next
The Bulldogs hit the road for the first time in PFL play this season for a 12 p.m. (CT) kickoff at Dayton on Saturday, Oct. 1.
