Football | 9/1/2023 10:27:00 AM
McPherson College (1-0) vs Sterling College (0-1)
Saturday, Sep. 2, 2023 | 6:00 PM | Smisor Stadium, Sterling, Kan.
WATCH | Tickets | Stats
Fresh off a 51-17 season opening win over Tabor, the McPherson College Bulldogs hit the road for the first time this season, traveling to Sterling to take on the Sterling College Warriors.
A LOOK AT THE DOGS
The Bulldogs had 570 yards of offense in last week's opener over Tabor, including 405 passing yards. After falling behind 10-0, including a pick-six, the Bulldogs scored 37 unanswered points.
Brysen Kerby was the Bulldogs leading rushers, finishing with 10 carries for 65 yards, including a 42-yard touchdown run that put the Bulldogs on top for good. Tristan Szabo had 15 carries for 65 yards and a touchdown. Alex Hill had a team-high eight catches for 128 yards and a score, while Traven Lewis-Johnson caught two passes for 78 yards and a touchdown.
Defensively, Taeylon Garland had six tackles and one tackle-for-loss, while Cameron Fouts matched with six tackles and a sack. Avery Crawford and Nehemiah Figueroa each picked off Bluejay passer Tyson Dozhier, with the latter returning it for 28 yards.
Placekicker Jack Lowery was successful on all seven of his PAT attempts, while punter Kevin Dodd downed three of his five punts inside the 20-yard line.
SCOUTING THE WARRIORS
The Warriors are coming off a 53-3 drubbing to (23) Bethel College in North Newton, Kan, while finishing with only 98 total yards. The Warriors used three quarter backs in the loss, with Jeremyah Raguindin doing the most damage, completing five of 13 passes for 56 yards. Rocklin Baptista went 4-for-20 for 26 yards (19 of which came on one pass) and three interceptions. Kendrick Bell carried the ball seven times for just 11 yards,
The Warriors lone points came with 4:14 left in the second quarter, when Luis Franco drilled a 35-yard field goal.
THE SERIES VS. STERLING
MC has won three straight against the Warriors, each by at least 18 points. Prior to that streak, the Warriors seemingly dominated the series, winning eight matchups in a row between 2012 and 2019. The Bulldogs are 7-13 in the last 20 meetings between the two teams. During the three-game winning streak, the Bulldogs have outscored Sterling 153-78.
LAST MEETING
The teams met in the 2022 season finale in Sterling, with the Bulldogs leaving with a 47-10 victory. Jonathan White broke a pair of records, rushing four 307 yards, setting a new single-game mark as well as breaking the Bulldogs single-season record. MC mounted a big lead early, scoring two touchdowns in the opening quarter, and one more in the second, to lead 20-10 at the break. White then took over in the second half, scoring all four of his touchdowns in the second 30 minutes.
QUOTING FISCUS
"This week we go on the road. First road trip for a lot of young guys. Biggest thing is to refocus and understand that each week is its own task. Sterling is going to be well prepared, and most teams make their biggest jump from week one to week two in terms of execution. We have to make a bigger jump than them and make less young-guy mistakes. This week is the about the Bulldogs playing the best that the Bulldogs can play and cleaning up some things in week two. I am looking forward to seeing the kids compete."
BULLDOGS BY THE NUMBERS
Home: 1-0
Away: 0-0
When scoring:
0-6 points: 0-0
7-13 points: 0-0
14-20 points: 0-0
21-27 points: 0-0
28+ points: 1-0
When allowing:
0-6 points: 0-0
7-13 points: 0-0
14-20 points: 1-0
21-27 points: 0-0
28+ points: 0-0
When scoring first: 0-0
When opponent scores first: 1-0
When leading at halftime: 1-0
When trailing at halftime: 0-0
When tied at halftime: 0-0
HE'S HIM
Junior quarterback Tristan Szabo set a pair of new career-highs in the 51-17 win over Tabor in week one. Szabo completed 75 percent of his passes, for a career-high 405 yards and three touchdowns. He also rushed for another career-best 62 yards and one score. Those numbers were good enough to win him KCAC Offensive Player of the Week for the first time in his career.
Szabo's previous high for passing yards came last year when he threw for 362 yards in a 17-16 loss to Tabor. His previous best on the ground was 57 in a 48-28 win over Sterling in 2021. He has 33 career touchdown passes and four touchdown runs. Szabo ranks third in the NAIA in passing yards.
OFFENSIVE EXPLOSION
The Bulldogs put up 51 points in the season opening win over Tabor, which is the most points scored in a game for MC since October 22, 2022 when they scored 53 to take care of business at Bethany College. It is also the most points scored against the Bluejays since accurate records began in 2004. Including the week one win, the Bulldogs have scored over 50 points four times in the Fiscus Era, and have scored over 40 points eight times.
A BULLDOG WIN WOULD...
... be their fourth straight win over Sterling College dating back to 2020
... be their first 2-0 start to a season since the 2010 season
... improve them to 4-1 against the Warriors under Coach Fiscus
... improve them to 11-9 on the road under Coach Fiscus
... be the 21st win for the Bulldogs under Coach Fiscus
UP NEXT
The Bulldogs return to McPherson Stadium on Sep. 9 to take on the University of Saint Mary. Kickoff is scheduled for 6:00 p.m.
COACH FISCUS
Jeremiah Fiscus enters his fifth year as the head coach of the McPherson College Football team in 2023.
The 2022 season proved to be a promising one, as Fiscus led the Bulldogs to a 5-5 record, but four of those five setbacks came to the top teams in the KCAC by a combined five points.
In his four years at McPherson, Fiscus has coached 46 All-KCAC players, including five first-team selections and nine players landing on the All-KCAC second team. He was also instrumental in the success of the 2020 KCAC Special Teams Player of the Year, Melvin Reed, and 2022 KCAC Player of the Year, Jonathan White, both securing NAIA All-American honors.
Coach Fiscus is a former Bulldog who played for the college from 2006 – 2007 under coaches Dave Cunningham and Brian Ward.
Upon graduation from McPherson, he was hired as a graduate assistant at Northwestern State University in Natchitoches, Louisiana, where he was the running backs coach. After earning a master's degree in sports administration from Northwestern State in 2010, Coach Fiscus was hired as a graduate assistant at Texas Christian University in Fort Worth. While at TCU, he earned another master's degree, this one in educational administration, and worked for head coach Gary Patterson as assistant offensive line coach and recruiting assistant.
In his two seasons at TCU, the Horned Frogs won two Mountain West Conference championships, in addition to winning the Rose Bowl and the Poinsettia Bowl. He coached two All-Conference offensive linemen and the MWC offensive player of the year, Andy Dalton.
After two years with the Horned Frogs, Coach Fiscus was hired by Henderson State University in Arkadelphia, Arkansas. He spent six seasons with the Reddies in a multitude of positions. He worked as director of equipment operations, team travel coordinator, NFL liaison, OL/TE/FB coach, recruiting coordinator, and offensive coordinator. During his time there, the Reddies won three GAC championships, had three NCAA D2 playoff appearances, and twice were #1 in scoring offense in NCAA D2 football.
Coach Fiscus is a 2003 graduate of Stafford High School in Kansas and was a multi-sport standout, lettering in track and field and football. After high school, he attended Dodge City Community College, playing for the Conquistadors from 2003-2005. After getting his associate degree at DCCC, Coach Fiscus transferred to McPherson College, where he played for two seasons and finished his education, graduating in 2008 with a Bachelor of Science in education.
Coach Fiscus is married to Jessie, and they have two daughters, Lennox (2016), and Laiken (2019), and a son Leonard (2021).
