Adrian College, Siena Heights football hit the road
After a win last week for the Adrian College football and a bye week for Siena Heights, both of Lenawee County's college football teams will be on the road this week.
The Saints (1-0) will kickoff at 1 p.m. Saturday (noon central time) against St. Xavier (Ill.) in a Mid-States Football Association crossover game.
After reaching the national NAIA playoffs in four of the last five years, Saint Xavier University is off to a surprising 0-2 start. SHU wants to extend that losing streak to three.
The Saints iare coming off a remarkable comeback win over Olivet Nazarene two weeks ago and look to carry momentum into this week. SHU trailed 24-7 at one point in the third quarter before roaring back to win with a late touchdown, then holding off ONU at the end.
Stat leaders: Andre Chenault led SHU with 78 yards rushing on eight carries, including a long run in the third quarter that set up a touchdown by Will Alexander (Sand Creek). That touchdown sparked the Saints to two more second half scores and the win. Alexander averaged 7.7 yards on his six carries. Eric Williams II was the leading receiver for SHU in the game with 31 yards on three receptions – including a touchdown.
On defense, Zach Keyser was in on 11 tackles and All-American Kole Murlin 10 in the Saints opener while Antonio Smiley had two sacks, three tackles for loss and forced a fumble.
When Saint Xavier has the ball, Stuart Ross has 404 yards passing in two games. The bulk of those yards have gone to Justin Pringle, who has 14 catches for 190 yards and a touchdown. The Saints had a stingy run defense in its opener and looks to force the Cougars to the air in this one.
Saint Xavier started the season ranked No. 11 in the national NAIA poll after going 7-4 last year. The Cougars are unranked now. Siena Heights received votes in the most recent poll, putting them at No. 31.
Series: The Saints haven’t played Saint Xavier in Chicago since 2015. Saint Xavier won the most recent meeting between he two schools, 20-13, in 2021. The Cougars lead the all-time series 3-1.
Adrian at Bluffton
The Bulldogs kickoff at 6 p.m. in Bluffton, Ohio where they will look to carry some momentum from last week's 33-0 shutout of Hanover.
Adrian (1-1) did great work on the ground led by dual threat quarterback Aaron Jenkins.
Jenkins rushed for 115 yards on 17 carries for two touchdowns while also completing 5-of-14 passes for 71 yards.
Steven Moses moved back from linebacker to running back and rushed for 96 yards on 18 carries while Jimmie Clark rushed for 47 yards on 13 carries and a touchdown. In total, the Bulldogs ran the ball 50 times for 270 yards.
Jack Kujawa got some time under center and completed 4-of-5 passes for 40 yards.
Jack's older brother Kenny Kujawa remains the favorite target, no matter who is under center, as the Finlandia transfer has caught nine passes for 115 yards.
The Bulldogs traveled to Bluffton during the shortened fall 2020 season and lost, 28-21. The two have played 14 times with Adrian winning 11.
Freshman Jalan Minney has been a solid target as well, catching five passes for 63 yards.
Despite a 31-0 loss to Heidelberg in the opener, the Bulldogs defense played well.
Adrian has forced six turnovers in two games, including five interceptions.
Kyle Minder is leading the team in tackles with 16, which includes a sack and he's forced a fumble.
Adrian has five sacks on the season, two from Tche Leroux.
Bluffton enters the game at 0-2 after a 33-26 loss to Kenyon to start the season before falling to another MIAA foe, Albion, 51-2.
The Beavers have a more balanced offense with Maalik Tucker leading on the ground with 177 yards on 32 carries and two touchdowns. Kainan Stoner has 85 yards on 26 carries.
Blake Rine has completed 27-of-52 passes for 280 yards, one touchdown and one interception. Rine has distributed the ball evenly among his receivers, but Andre Price Jr. leads the team with eight receptions for 98 yards.
Bluffton's defense has allowed 502 yards rushing in two games with seven touchdowns, but has forced four fumbles and recovered one. The secondary has allowed for 657 yards and four touchdowns with one interception.
This article originally appeared on The Daily Telegram: Adrian College, Siena Heights football hit the road
