BLAZER GAME DAY FLORIDA TECH - GAME 10 Saturday, November 14th • 3:00 p.m. EST vs. Valdosta, Ga. • Bazemore-Hyder Stadium VSU Media Relations • (229) 333-5903 • www.vstateblazers.com Football Contact: Matt Malone ([email protected]) No. 18 VALDOSTA STATE HOMECOMING SHOWDOWN TO MAKE OR BREAK PLAYOFF HOPES FOR BLAZERS (7-2, 4-2 GSC) Each game this season for the Valdosta State Blazers has held more importance than the last, and this Saturday’s 3:00 p.m. homecoming matchup against the visiting Florida Tech Panthers at Bazemore-Hyder Stadium is no excep- Sept. 5 at Albany State W, 21-13 tion. Sept. 12 ^vs. Winston-Salem State W, 31-3 The Gulf South Conference showdown essentially represents a “win or go home” situation for both the Blazers Sept. 26 CUMBERLAND W, 56-22 and the Panthers, who currently rank No. 7 and No. 6 in the most recent NCAA Super Region 2 rankings. With playoff Oct. 3 *NORTH ALABAMA L, 12-34 positions available for the region’s top seven teams, both team’s playoff hopes are riding on Saturday afternoon’s Oct. 10 *at West Georgia L, 28-49 skirmish in Valdosta, Ga. Valdosta State will look to the reigning GSC Player of the Week and newly crowned VSU football career rushing Oct. 17 *MISSISSIPPI COLLEGE W, 34-7 leader, Cedric O’Neal, for stability on offense. O’Neal, who will celebrate Senior Day on Saturday with 22 fellow Oct. 22 *at Shorter W, 37-22 seniors, has been an absolute force for the Blazers throughout the latter part of the regular season. In the last three Oct. 31 *WEST ALABAMA W, 55-28 games, the running back has accumulated 489 rushing yards and seven of his 13 rushing touchdowns this season. In Nov. 7 *at Delta State W, 40-34 (3OT) addition, the Dublin, Ga. native has shown versatility with 13 receptions for 190 yards. Nov. 14 *FLORIDA TECH (HOMECOMING) 3:00 p.m. The Blazers have surged on offense during the second half of the season and will look to continue that trend this weekend. Valdosta State topped 400 total yards just once during their first five games, but have exceeded that total all times Eastern; *GSC; ^Cobb County Clash in each of their last four matchups. FLORIDA TECH Standing between Valdosta State and a 2015 postseason berth are the Panthers, who have seen equal amounts of success this season. In just their third season of the program, Florida Tech is riding high and has proven itself as a (7-3, 5-1 GSC) national contender. The team’s most recent victory, a 28-26 upset of the top-seeded West Georgia Wolves, helped the Sept. 5 NEWBERRY L 28-31 program earn votes in the latest AFCA national poll. Sept. 12 Southeastern Louisiana L 17-28 Florida Tech is led by quarterback Mark Cato, who currently represents one of just two quarterbacks in the GSC Sept. 19 WARNER W 37-0 to average over 200 passing yards per game. With a league-leading 18 touchdown tosses and 1,854 passing yards, Cato will represent one of the year’s biggest challenges for Valdosta State’s Black Swarm secondary. Sept. 26 North Alabama L 48-55 Oct. 3 Delta State W 41-37 GAME CENTER Oct. 10 WEST ALABAMA W 24-13 Oct. 17 Fort Valley State W 34-7 VALDOSTA STATE BLAZERS FLORIDA TECH Oct. 24 Mississippi College W 31-14 Record: 7-2, 3-2 GSC Record: 7-3, 5-1 GSC Oct. 31 SHORTER W 28-24 Ranking: No. 18 Ranking: Receiving Votes Oct. 7 WEST GEORGIA (HOMECOMING) W 28-26 Last Game: West Alabama (W, 55-28) Last Game: West Georgia (W, 28-26) Oct. 14 Valdosta State 3:00 pm Coach: David Dean (Georgia State, 1986) Coach: Steve Englehart (Indiana St., 2000) Record: 77-25 (9th season) Record: 44-29 (7th season) all times Eastern; *GSC at VSU: 77-25 (9th season) at FIT: 18-15 (3rd season) vs. GSC: 42-18 vs. GSC: 9-10 ABOUT THE GAME vs. FIT: 2-0 vs. VSU: 0-2 TV • None QUICK NOTES • Valdosta State is in its 34th year of intercollegiate football and owns an overall record of 264 wins, 117 losses RADIO • VSU RADIO NETWORK and four ties. Play-by-Play Dick Rockey • After last week’s win against Delta State, David Dean passed Chris Hatcher as Valdosta State’s winningest Analyst Spencer Van Horn head coach. His win total of 77, against just 26 losses, gives him a .748 career winning percentage. Sideline Tom Odom • The Blazers have scored in 290 straight games, tops among all DII schools. Network Stations WDDQ Talk 92.1 FM (Valdosta) • Last week, Cedric O’Neal needed 143 yards to become Valdosta State’s all-time rushing yardage leader. O’Neal WJEM 96.1 FM / 1150 AM (Valdosta) obliterated that number with a 190 yard rushing effort that included three touchdowns. With 3,907 total career WSFB 97.7 FM / 1490 AM (Quitman) rushing yards, O’Neal now holds the school record for most career rushing yards and most career touchdowns WJHC 107.5 FM (Jasper, Fla.) (45). His rushing touchdown total of 13 this season places him at the top of the Gulf South Conference, and last WKZZ 92.5 FM (Tifton) week’s performance earned the senior his first career GSC Offensive Player of the Week honor. • This week’s NCAA Super 2 Regional rankings make Saturday’s homecoming matchup one of the biggest in all of INTERNET RADIO Division II football. With Valdosta State standing at No. 7 and Florida Tech in at No. 6, both teams are facing a Live Audio talk921.com must win situation in order to earn a spot in the playoffs. Live Stats www.vstateblazers.com • Last week’s win against Delta State marked the first contest in Valdosta State history to reach triple overtime. Live Video ESPN 3/WatchESPN The last time a Blazer football game extended beyond regulation was on September 3, 2011, when the Blazers defeated No. 14 Wingate 34-28 in a double-overtime season opener in Wingate, N.C. SERIES HISTORY AGAINST FLORIDA TECH Valdosta State football’s history against the Florida Tech Panthers is a young one. The Blazers have faced their newest GSC rival just two times prior to today’s contest, and VSU has come away with victories in both of those contests. Last year, the Blazers survived a late comeback bid by the Panthers to escape Melbourne, Fla. with a narrow 31-29 win. 1996, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2004 AND 2010 GULF SOUTH CONFERENCE CHAMPIONS 1 FloridaTechGameNotes.indd 1 11/10/15 4:58 PM SERIES HISTORY VS. FLORIDA TECH TALE OF THE TAPE O’NEAL EARNS FIRST CAREER POTW HONOR VSU Category FIT Following another tremendous rushing effort on Satur- VSU 34.9 Scoring Offense 31.6 day, Cedric O’Neal was named the Gulf South Conference Year Record Streak Site Score 23.6 Scoring Defense 23.5 Offensive Player of the Week by the GSC office on Monday. 2013 1-0 Won 1 Valdosta, Ga. W, 52-14 182.3 Rushing Offense 184.2 O’Neal’s performance on Saturday included 29 carries 2014 2-0 Won 2 Melbourne, Fla. W, 31-29 180.2 Rushing Defense 184.0 for an average of 6.6 yards per rush. His total of 190 rushing 225.6 Passing Offense 249.3 yards marked the third straight game in which the senior has Valdosta State Average Points: 41.5 (83 total) 174.4 Passing Defense 158.4 rushed for 100-plus yards and pushed O’Neal past Aaron Florida Tech Average Points: 21.5 (43 total) 407.9 Total Offense 433.5 Jenkins for the most career rushing yards in school history. in Valdosta: Valdosta State leads 1-0 354.7 Total Defense 342.7 Three of Valdosta State’s touchdowns were scored by in Melbourne: Valdosta State leads 1-0 O’Neal, including the Blazers’ final score in triple overtime, STATISTICAL LEADERS THE BLAZER-PANTHER COMPARISON which led VSU to a critical 40-34 victory over Delta State. VSU DSU O’Neal’s career touchdown total of 45 also represents a Valdosta State Roster Breakdown 84 players 86 players school record and continues to climb as the season pro- Rushing Cedric O’Neal, 861 yards Seniors 25 12 gresses. Passing E.J. Hilliard, 1482 yards Juniors 21 38 The honor marks the second Player of the Week award Receiving Greg Dent, 581 yards for Blazer football this season, following a Defensive Player Scoring Cedric O’Neal, 84 points Sophomores 20 15 Punting Gavin Wilson, 37.1 average Freshmen 18 21 of the Week honor received by linebacker Kenny Murphy last Tackles Sharmaine Washington, 71 Starting Offensive Line week. Tackles for Loss Egim Etta-Tawo, 6.0 Height, Weight 6-4, 305 6-4, 309 Sacks Egim Etta-Tawo, 3.5 Starting Defensive Line GSC POSTSEASON CONTENDERS Interceptions Kenny Moore, 3 Height, Weight 6-1, 258 6-0, 250 The Gulf South Conference is well-represented in this Pass Breakups Kenny Moore, 6 Run-to-Pass Ratio 290-248 307-369 week’s release of both the NCAA regional rankings and the Kickoff Returns Greg Dent, 22.1 average Run-to-Pass Percentage 53.9% run 54.6 % pass AFCA national rankings. With West Georgia standing at No. Punt Returns Greg Dent, 6.2 average Turnovers Gained-Lost 13-7 18-25 7, North Alabama holding the No. 15 position, and Valdosta 3rd Down Conversions 41-of-104 37-of-126 State falling in at No.