Complete Game Notes
Game 5: Lincoln (0-4, 0-4 MIAA) at Pittsburg State (4-0, 4-0 MIAA)
Date/Time: Saturday, Oct. 5 - 1:00 p.m.
Location: Pittsburg, Kan.
Stadium (Capacity): Carnie Smith Stadium (12,000)
Tickets: Available at Site
Streaming - http://www.themiaanetwork.com/
Audio - Available on Facebook
Audiocast - https://www.facebook.com/BlueTigerAthletics
Live Stats - https://pittstategorillas.com/sidearmstats/football
Series - Pittsburg State leads, 9-0

THE KICKOFF 
The Lincoln football team returns to the road this weekend, as the Blue Tigers travel to Pittsburg, Kan. to play Pittsburg State on Saturday (Oct. 5) in a 1:00 p.m. CDT contest. It will be the second trip to the Sunflower State for the Blue Tigers, who opened the 2019 campaign in Topeka, Kan. vs. Washburn.

The Blue Tigers are seeking their first win of the year after falling at home to Emporia State, 50-7, last Saturday (Sept. 28). Pittsburg State enters the weekend 4-0 following a road win over Nebraska Kearney, 37-14, on Saturday. The Gorillas are one of just three remaining undefeated MIAA teams.

This Saturday's game in Pittsburg will be streamed on the MIAA Network, and Lincoln fans will be able to listen to James Stanley's call of the game on Facebook Live. The audio-only stream can be heard at https://www.facebook.com/BlueTigerAthletics.

QUICK HITS 
- This will be the 10th meeting between Pittsburg State and Lincoln in a series that dates back to 1981. Pittsburg State has won each of the past nine meetings, with the most recent being a 59-38 decision in Jefferson City back in 2013.

- A victory for Lincoln would be its first against an MIAA opponent since the end of the 2013 season, and its first road win over an MIAA program since beating Central Missouri, 20-7, in 1975.

- Lincoln is seeking its first road win, and its first league road win, since beating William Jewell, 23-14, as a GLVC program on Oct. 20, 2018.

- This will be the first daytime game of the 2019 campaign for Lincoln, which opened the season with two Thursday night games before playing a pair of contests on Saturday nights.

- LU is seeking its first win in Kansas since 2008.

- Lincoln is in the midst of 11-straight conference games to begin the 2019 campaign. The only non-conference game will be the St. Louis Heritage Football Classic against Kentucky State in the Dome at America's Center on Nov. 23.

- The Blue Tigers enter this week's game with an all-time record of 260-458-25.

- Malik Hoskins was named the interim head coach of the Blue Tigers in May 2019 and enters the week with an LU record of 0-4 and an overall record of 3-11.

- After a five-year absence, Lincoln has returned to the MIAA for its 24th season as a football-playing member. The Blue Tigers, who were an associate member of the GLVC from 2014-18, previously played in the MIAA from 1970-89 and from 2011-13. The MIAA is the fifth different conference in which the Blue Tigers have been a member, joining the Midwest Athletic Association, the Great Lakes Football Conference, the Central States Football League and the GLVC.

- This is the 89th season of Lincoln football. The Blue Tigers first fielded a team in 1920 and played every year until 1943, when Lincoln took a year off due to World War II. LU then played each season from 1944-1989. The football program was disbanded at that point, but was brought back in 2000.

BLUE TIGERS TO WATCH
OFFENSE - Hosea Franklin had the best opening week of the season by an NCAA Division II rusher, as he gained 251 yards on 20 carries, breaking the LU single-game record in the process. Franklin is averaging 140.3 yards per game and 7.0 yards per carry.

CJ Closser and Dre'Shon Alston each caught TD passes from Chancellor Johnson in his first start as Lincoln's quarterback. Tori Hicks made a pair of touchdown catches against Missouri Southern, and Franklin has made four catches for 40 yards. Alston leads the Blue Tigers with seven grabs while Hicks is next with six.

DEFENSE - The Blue Tiger defense made a huge impact in the season opener, forcing Washburn into seven turnovers. LU had three interceptions and forced and recovered four fumbles. The LU defense continued its opportunistic ways against Missouri Southern, tallying another pick and two more fumble recoveries.

Cody Alexander had a pair of interceptions in the opener and is second among the Blue Tigers with 27 tackles while Hasan Muhammad-Rogers, who has two fumble recoveries and an interception, ranks fourth with 26 total takedowns. Piere' Jones has broken up three passes and has made a fumble recovery to go with 13 tackles, and Quan Mason has a pair of quarterback hurries.

Bri'on Sanders is leading the team with 31 total tackles and has forced two fumbles on the year, and Chavon Gross, who also has two picks, is next with 27 tackles. Thomas Burton has also forced two fumbles through two games, and Cody Bagby has a fumble recovery while Vontavious Thacker has a hurry. Thacker has 17 tackles, TeAndre Skinner has 20 takedowns, and Elliott Albert is next on the list with 15.

SPECIAL TEAMS - Reagan Harrell has had seven punts pin opponents inside their 20-yard line, and has had two kicks travel at least 50 yards while averaging 37.1 yards. On kickoffs, Javier Moreno is averaging 51.6 yards while, in the return game, the Blue Tigers are led by Muhammad-Rogers with 16.9 yards on kickoffs and 5.3 yards on punts.

PITTSBURG STATE AT A GLANCE
The Gorillas boast the MIAA's top scoring defense, giving up just 18.8 points per contest, and also rank first in total defense (277.0) and passing defense (130.8). PSU also has one of the league's best special teams units, as placekicker Jared Vincent is a perfect 13-for-13 on field goals and the team is leading the MIAA in kickoff coverage (41.6). The Gorillas are additionally leading the conference in both sacks by (16) and sacks against (three).

Mak Sexton is completing 71.7-percent of his passes and has thrown for 508 yards and three scores. Pittsburg State has used multiple quarterbacks in each of the season's first four contests, with Brandon Mlekus having thrown for 245 yards and three scores while Matt Harman is 7-for-14 on the season. Tucker Horak has five rushing TDs while Kiah Kintchen averages a team-high 6.8 yards per carry. Tyler Adkins is averaging 49.5 yards per game on the ground, and Mlekus has a net rushing total of 178.

Lorenzo West has made plays on both offense and special teams, with three total touchdowns, including on a 100-yard kickoff return. As a receiver, he is tied with Brenner Clemons with 14 grabs, and leads PSU with 300 yards for 75.0 yards per contest. Bryce Murphy also has a pair of scoring grabs.

Kaden Roy and Chase Johnston each have 23 tackles, and Morgan Selemaea has 16 to go with two break-ups and a pair of interceptions. Simanu'a Thomas is tied with Ned Bingaman with 2.5 sacks, and KiAnte Hardin has three interceptions while Levi Wyrick has three tackles for loss.

THE COACHES
Malik Hoskins was elevated to the position of interim head coach after spending the past two seasons serving as Lincoln's offensive coordinator. This is Hoskins' second stint as an interim head coach, as he held that title at Lane in 2015. Before coming to Lincoln, Hoskins coached at Bacone, where he worked with six offensive players who earned some form of all-conference recognition. In 2018, Hoskins was selected to attend the NCAA/NFL Coaches Academy due to his commitment to player development.

Tim Beck led Pittsburg State to the 2011 NCAA Division II championship and is 80-30 in his 10-year tenure as the program's head coach. Beck, who has directed Pittsburg State to three other postseason appearances, spent the previous 16 seasons as PSU's offensive coordinator and has been at Pittsburg State for 32 years overall.

BROKEN RECORD:  Hosea Franklin started 2019 on a record-breaking note by rushing for 251 yards against Washburn on Sept. 5. That total broke a nearly 50-year-old record, surpassing the 245 yards gained by Leo "The Lincoln Locomotive" Lewis in the early 1940s. Franklin averaged 12.6 yards per carry, the third-most by any NCAA DII player during the first week of the season.

LET'S BE FRANK: No running back in the MIAA is off to a hotter start than Hosea Franklin, as the sophomore leads the conference with 142.5 yards per game. Franklin also leads the conference in total rushing yards (570), is third in all-purpose yards (152.5) and ninth in the conference in total offense (142.5).

NATIONAL LEADERS:  Hosea Franklin is off to a hot start, ranking sixth in Division II in total rushing yards (570) and seventh in rushing yards per game (142.5). Franklin, who additionally rates 14th in all-purpose yardage (152.5), is not the only Blue Tiger high in the NCAA DII rankings, as Brion Sanders is 10th in solo tackles (6.3, an average that leads the MIAA) and sixth in fumbles forced (0.5), and Thomas Burton is third in the latter stat (0.67).

TAKE ME AWAY:  Opportunistic would be the best way to describe the Lincoln defense's performance thus far in 2019, as the Blue Tigers have picked off five passes and both forced and recovered seven fumbles. The 12 takeaways lead the MIAA and are seventh in NCAA Division II this season. Lincoln also is fourth in DII in fumbles recovered and is 42nd in the nation in interceptions.

TACKLING MACHINES:  In addition to creating turnovers, Lincoln also tackles well, with a few Blue Tigers ranking among the best in Division II. Bri'on Sanders is 10th in the nation with 6.3 solo tackles per game while Chavon Gross is 15th (6.0), and both players are respectively first and second in the MIAA in those statistics.

THE RUNDOWN:  Bolstered by an outstanding opening night by Hosea Franklin, LU currently boasts the sixth-best rushing attack in the MIAA. LU, which is also 43rd in the nation, is averaging 191.0 yards per game on the ground. Franklin's 7.2 yards per carry are 13th nationally.

RETURN TO ME:  Hasan Muhammad-Rogers ended the 2018 campaign as one of the best kick returners in the GLVC, rating third in the conference and 45th nationally with 581 combined kick return yards. The senior has now become one of the MIAA's best returners, ranking third in the league and 14th in DII with 326 yards.

UNDER THE LIGHTS:  For the first time in LU history, the Blue Tigers opened the season with four-straight night games. With two Thursday night contests and a pair of Saturday night games to begin the year, this week's daytime match marks the longest into a season that LU will have played its first day game.

ALL-CONFERENCE:  Lincoln returns a pair of players who earned All-GLVC recognition for their stellar play in 2018. Hasan Muhammed-Rogers, a playmaker who also helped the Blue Tigers on both offense and special teams, was an All-GLVC second team selection at defensive back, as he had 57 tackles while breaking up three passes. Chavon Gross, meanwhile, was named to the all-league team as an honorable mention at defensive back after breaking up 10 passes, notching 4.5 tackles for loss and 40 total takedowns.

ON THE AIR:  Blue Tiger football is back on KJLU, as all six of Lincoln's home games will be broadcast this year. LU fans can also listen to four of the Blue Tigers' five road games online, as Lincoln play-by-play announcer James Stanley will provide an audiocast for the games at Washburn, Pittsburg State, Northwest Missouri and at Central Missouri. The road games will be audiocast through Facebook Live at https://www.facebook.com/BlueTigerAthletics.

IT'S A CLASSIC:  Tickets are now on sale for the St. Louis Heritage Football Classic, a game at the Dome at America's Center between Lincoln and Kentucky State. Visit www.lubluetigers.com/shfc2019 to reserve your seats for the Nov. 23 match-up of HBCUs.

GEAR UP FOR THE GAME:  LU fans can get everything they need for the game at www.BlueTigersStore.com, the official online store for LU athletics. Everything from jerseys to office supplies can be found on the site, with a portion of all sales going to benefit Lincoln athletics.

UP NEXT:  Lincoln begins a two-game homestand next Saturday (Oct. 12) when the Blue Tigers host Nebraska Kearney at 2:00 p.m. CDT.