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After suffering a loss to No. 3-ranked Kutztown two weeks ago by 15 points, Lock Haven rebounded with a 24-14 win against Gannon on the road to move to .500 and the Bald Eagles are hoping to go above .500 this week by hosting Clarion for a 1 p.m. kickoff.
This is the first time in three years the two schools meet after Lock Haven won a close matchup in 2023, 21-20. That win in 2023 snapped an 11-game losing streak to Clarion which dated to 2008.
Against Gannon, Robert Footman Jr. played well at quarterback. He didn't throw an interception, wasn't sacked and went 20 for 28 for 184 yards and two touchdowns. Footman did well spreading the offense out as seven receivers caught at least one reception and four had two or more. That includes Jayvon Tucker-Scott, who caught seven for 52 yards and Jake Roberts, who caught five for 31 and had both touchdown receptions.
The Bald Eagles ran for 134 yards on the ground as Ezequiel Johnson had 11 carries for 86 yards, averaging 7.8 per carry.
Defensively, Rocco Daugherty had a solid performance as he led the Bald Eagles with 12 total tackles, seven assisted and five solo. Troy Miller had eight tackles and LucRichard Rameau and Raheem Reid both collected six. JahCure Maxam and Justin Castro-Dixon both had a sack as well and Castro-Dixon forced a fumble.
The Bald Eagles did allow 215 rushing yards on the ground, however, as Nasean Hill ran for 96 yards and a touchdown on 19 attempts and Andrew Underwood ran it 18 times for 79 yards.
Clarion enters Saturday's matchup with a 3-1 record with two straight wins. After a 45-14 loss to No. 3 Kutztown, Clarion beat Lackwanna, 59-13, and Edinoro, 30-19.
Against Edinboro, Clarion quarterback Jase Ferguson threw for 312 yards, going 20 for 32 with three touchdowns. Tsirell Curry was on the receiving end of six catches for 91 yards and a touchdown, Davon Joens caught five for 68 and a score and JaTawn Williams caught three for 90 and a score.
Ferguson is having a solid 2026 season as he's thrown for 1,027 yards in four games with 10 touchdowns to four interceptions. On the ground, Ferguson has a team-high 194 rushing yards and three touchdowns while Tyreeck Hall has 160 yards and two scores and Kaevon Gardner has 142 and two touchdowns. That means Clarion has a number of options to run the ball and pick up yardage, something Lock Haven will have to focus on defensively.
The Bald Eagles will need to limit Clarion's rushing attack and not allow Ferguson to get into a groove throwing if Lock Haven wants to move to 3-2 on Saturday.