CLINTON, S.C. – For the first time in almost a full month, the Presbyterian College football team will compete on their home turf as the Drake Bulldogs visit Bailey Memorial Stadium this Saturday. Kickoff in Clinton is labeled for 1:00 PM, broadcasted live via ESPN+.

The only school of the 11 in the Pioneer Football League to have played three conference games without a loss, Drake will stroll onto Presbyterian's campus for the first time ever tomorrow.

Head coach Steve Englehart looks to play spoiler against the Bulldogs as Drake stands one win away from tying the second-longest PFL winning streak in conference history.

It's Homecoming weekend at PC, with the Blue Hose looking to make a statement and defeat a league opponent who is currently gaining votes into the national FCS rankings.

 
GAMEDAY CENTRAL
WHO: Presbyterian (2-5, 0-3) vs. Drake (4-1, 3-0)
WHERE: Bailey Memorial Stadium (Clinton, S.C.)
WHEN: Saturday, October 19 | 1:00 PM
ADMISSION: Football Tickets
GAMEDAY PROTOCOL: Bailey Memorial Stadium Policies & Map
FLIP CARDS: Sponsored by Founders Federal Credit Union
CLEAR BAG POLICY: Handbag Code

 
FOLLOW THE ACTION
WATCH: ESPN+ (Gabriel Schray & Tim Webb)
LIVE STATS: StatBroadcast
TWITTER / X: @BlueHoseFB
GAME NOTES: Presbyterian Notes | PFL Weekly Report

 
 
OPPONENT PROFILE

• One game away from tying the second-longest Pioneer Football League winning streak in the conference's 33-year history, Drake will visit Clinton for the first time ever with 14 straight league wins in their back pocket.

• Head coach Todd Stepsis engineered a remarkable turnaround in 2022, reconstructing a team that had started that season 0-8 with a season-closing three-game winning streak. They've not lost a PFL game since that moment, running the table last fall and receiving the automatic bid to the FCS Playoffs.

• Drake has been affiliated with the Pioneer Football League since its inception in 1991, winning their seventh conference championships last season.

• The Bulldogs' season has already been crammed with drama, pulling out a 35-32 overtime triumph against scholarship program Eastern Washington for their first win of the campaign.

• Kicker Shane Dunning drilled a 48-yard field goal as time expired that lifted Drake past San Diego in the PFL opener, going on to win the next two conference clashes with Valparaiso and Butler.

• A win on Saturday would tie San Diego's mark of 15 conference wins in a row from 2005-2007 for the second-best league win streak in PFL history. USD is also in possession of the number one longest streak, winning an incredible 39 straight over a period of six seasons (2015-21).

• Drake toppled Butler seven days ago in a 27-17 decision, ending their status as one of five FCS squads that were still unbeaten entering the day.

 
 
CLOSE CALLS
 
 • A magnet to tight games like a moth to a flame, Presbyterian has found themselves in the midst of a close contest in almost every PFL outing since 2023. Counting last weekend's one-score defeat at Morehead State, the Blue Hose have competed in 10 games over the last year-and-a-half that were decided by 10 points or less.

• Of those 10 nail-biters, nine have been against Pioneer League opponents. PC has played seven games since September 2023 where the final margin was smaller than one touchdown.

• While their history with Drake is very small (just two meetings), both of them fit the bill of Presby's recent close games. PC's inaugural affair versus the Bulldogs was decided by four points in 2021, which led to an even thinner difference last year (16-14) in Iowa.

• On that frigid November afternoon in Des Moines 11 months ago, PC nearly spoiled Drake's eventual perfect PFL record in the penultimate game of the season. The Blue Hose kept Drake out of the end zone over the final three quarters (allowing only three field goals the rest of the way), whittling the lead down to a deuce with just over two minutes on the clock. The ensuing onside kick attempt fell to the Bulldogs, allowing them to escape a scrappy PC performance.

 
 
SECOND "RECEIVING VOTES" CHALLENGER
 
 • Drake will make their first-ever trip to Bailey Memorial Stadium as one of 20 schools at the FCS level to be "receiving votes" in the latest American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) poll.

• The Bulldogs currently have eight votes from the association (10th-most of all teams not in the top 25). This is the second opponent that PC has gone up against this year to be receiving votes in the rankings, the other being Mercer.

• Mercer has risen to #7 in the nation since starting the season against PC, displaying a 6-0 record.

 
 
AROUND THE PFL
 
• The marquee matchup of Week 8 is in Indianapolis when Butler hosts Dayton. The Flyers are 2-0 on the young season after holding off Davidson in Week 7. Butler returns home and seeks to bounce back after seeing its unbeaten run to start the season ended by defending champion Drake in Des Moines last week.

• St. Thomas, the other unbeaten team, travels to Valparaiso seeking to stay at the top of the standings. Davidson looks to rebound from its first conference loss when it hosts Stetson. The week's long trip belongs to Marist, who heads from New York to San Diego, for a meeting against the Toreros.

• Phil Steele Magazine released its 2024 FCS Mid-Season All-American Team on Friday. Butler junior offensive lineman Adam Doland and Drake junior defensive lineman Finn Claypool were fourth-team honorees at the halfway point.