In week number seven, the Lions travel to Elizabeth city State University for their fourth CIAA contest and second CIAA north Division tilt of the season.

THE BASICS
Game #7: Lincoln (PA) (0-6, 0-3) vs  Elizabeth City State University (3-3, 1-2)
Date/Time: Saturday, October 14, 2017/ 1:00 p.m.
Location:  Elizabeth city, North Carolina
Stadium (Capacity):  Roebuck Stadium
Live Video/Stats – http://hbculivestats.com/ecsu/football/xlive.htm
Series – ECSU leads the all-time series 9-0
First Meeting:  Oct. 18, 2008 – ECSU 70 Lincoln 6 (at Avon Grove HS)
Last Meeting:   Oct. 15, 2016 -  ECSU  33  Lincoln 23 (at Lincoln)


THE OPENING KICK

• Saturday's game is Elizabeth City State's homecoming game.
• The Lions are seeking their first win of the season, along with their first road win of the season and  their first win ever against ECSU.
• Lincoln's last win came on September 10, 2016 a 33-23 win over Lincoln University of Missouri at Lions Stadium. 
• The Lions are also seeking their first conference win since a 20-10 win over Shaw University on September 26, 2015, a stretch of 21 consecutive losses.  The Shaw win is Lincoln's only CIAA win over the past four seasons.

ELIZABETH CITY STATE AT A GLANCE…
 
The Vikings have lost their last two CIAA games after opening conference play with a win over Johnson C. Smith.  ECSU lost last weekend to undefeated Virginia State University 56-0 and is averaging 21.6 points per game while allowing 37.8 points per game.  The Vikings are averaging 322.2 yards of total offense per game while allowing 353.
 
LINCOLN AT A GLANCE…
 
The Lions have dropped their first three conference games of the season, losing last week to Virginia Union University 45- 23.    Lincoln is averaging 14.8 points per game, ranking tenth in the CIAA.  The Lions are also is averaging 267.8 yards of total offense per game, also tenth best in the league.  The Lions are giving up 54.5 points  and 456.8 yards per game the highest totals amongst the 12 CIAA schools.
 
THE COACHES…

Reginald Byarse, Jr. was named the interim head coach of the Lions on May 1, 2017. Byarse, 29, has the distinction of being the youngest head coach of an NCAA Division II football program this season.  No stranger to the Lincoln football program, Byarse spent the last season as the Lions' Special Teams Coordinator and Defensive Backs Coach where he coordinated and managed all aspects of special teams position/positions assignment. Lincoln's punt return unit was one of only six Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association (CIAA) schools to average over ten yards per return in the 2016 season.   Byarse also was heavily involved in opponent evaluation and development of defensive game plans and assists with the administrative functions of the program. He spent the previous six seasons working at the high school level in various capacities. He graduated from Cincinnati in 2011.  

Earnest J. Wilson, III begins his second season overseeing the ECSU football program. He was named Elizabeth City State head football coach on February 19, 2016. Over the course of his first season at ECSU, Wilson led the Vikings to a 5-5 overall record and a 4-3 Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association record. He was also named the 2016 CIAA Football Coach of the Year. After starting the season 0-2, Wilson was able to get the Vikings on track finishing the season winning five of his final eight contests. Among those wins was Wilson's first victory as head coach over conference foes Chowan University (40-21) and Virginia Union (24-21). He also coached and helped develop senior All-American and All-CIAA tight-end Victor Tabbs.Wilson joins ECSU after a three year stint at Division I-AA Savannah State University of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC). Prior to his tenure at SSU he was at Hampton University, where he has served as the offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach since 2012. He also served stints at Jackson State (2010-12); New Mexico State (2005-09) and Benedict College (2003-04)

LAST TIME OUT…

The Lincoln University football team turned in a strong performance on Saturday against Virginia Union University but finished on the wrong end of the score as they dropped their second consecutive home game, losing to the Panthers 45-23 Saturday night at Lions Stadium.

Lions quarterback Vincent Espinoza (Madera, Calif./Madera (West Hills)) threw for 266 yards with 21 completions in 33 attempts including two touchdown passes.   Carlos Croslin (Baltimore, Md./Frederick Douglass (Globe Tech) ) produced 161 all-purposes yards including a spectacular 53 yard touchdown catch where he reversed from one side of the field to the other to score the touchdown.  Croslin caught four passes for 93 yards and had kickoff returns of 33 and 35 yards. Trey McCollum (Burlington, N.C./Western Alamance) caught six passes while Andre Price (Rialto, Calif./Jurupa Hills (Chabot))  added four receptions including a ten yard touchdown in the second quarter.  The Lions finished with 363 yards of total offense, their highest output of the season.  Lincoln also held possession for nearly 40 minutes of action.

Espinoza teamed up with Price to produce the Lions first score of the game, a ten yard pass that completed a ten play- 97 yard drive and gave Lincoln a 7-0 lead.  A fake punt that turned into a 43-yard pass completion by punter Cody Waddell (Elkton, Md./Northeast) to Rob Catchings (Jacobus, Pa./Dallastown Area (Alderson-Broaddus)) setup the touchdown.

The Panthers tied the game in quick fashion needing just 38 seconds for  Darius Taylor to hook up with Lavatiae Kelly from 22 yards out for the tying touchdown.

Croslin gave the Lions excellent field position for their next drive with a 35 yard kickoff return.  Three plays into the drive Croslin pulled off his spectacular 53 yard catch and run to give the Lions a 14-7 lead. 

A pair of Lions turnovers on their next two possessions both led to Panther touchdowns and a 28-14 VUU lead.    Waddell added a 32 yard field goal with 1:12 left in the quarter to close the gap to 28-17 where the score remained until halftime.

Darius Taylor's third touchdown pass of the night, a 15 yard throw to Jewison Dawkins made the score 35-17 late in the third quarter.  Lincoln came right back and scored on their next possession as the fourth quarter began when Rameses Owens (Warrensville Hgts., Ohio/Shaker Heights Robert Morris)) powered into the end zone from four yards out to close the gap to 35-23

The Panthers added a touchdown and a field goal later in the fourth quarter to round out the scoring and provide the final 45-23 margin.
 
LIONS TO WATCH

Offense – Wide receiver Andre Price (Rialto, Calif./Jurupa Hills (Chabot)) is currently second in the league with 28 receptions.  He also ranks third in the CIAA, averaging 71.8 yards per game.   Quarterback Vincent Espinoza (Madera, Calif./Madera (West Hills)) has completed 64 of 123 passes for 913 total yards (5^th best in CIAA) with seven touchdowns with two interceptions.  His seven touchdown passes rank sixth in the CIAA.  Running Back Rameses Owens (Warrensville Hgts., Ohio/Shaker Heights Robert Morris)) netted 227 yards rushing in his first six games as a Lion while scoring two touchdowns. Backup quarterback Trey McCollum (Burlington, N.C./Western Alamance) has the longest run from scrimmage this season at 84 yards and is second on the team with 84 net yards rushing.
Defense – Junior linebacker Deion Miller (Sayreville, N.J./Jersey Coast Academy), a Second Team All-CIAA honoree last season, recorded a career-high 18 tackles in the loss at Lincoln (Mo.) on 9/9.  His performance earned him the CIAA Defensive Back of the Week award as well as the ECAC Defensive Player of the Week Award.  He is currently second in the CIAA in tackles per game (8.5). Freshman Rob Thomas is tied for 12th in the CIAA in tackles/game (6.0). The Lions have forced eight fumbles in first five games, recovering five (4^th in the CIAA). 
Special Teams – Carlos Croslin (Baltimore, Md./Frederick Douglass (Globe Tech) ) has 372 return yards this season to rank third in the CIAA. His 19.6 yards per returns is the highest on the team.  Deontae Brockington (Randallstown, Md./Baltimore City College HS) is averaging 16.3 yards per kickoff return.  Cody Waddell (Elkton, Md./Northeast) earned ECAC special Teams Player of the Week last week after completing a 43 yard pass on a fake punt attempt along with two extra points and a field goal in the Lions loss to VUU..

VIKINGS TO WATCH

Offense – Senior quarterback Daquan Neal leads the Vikings in total rushing yards with 132; while passing for 1444 total yards (second in the league); including 10 scores (fourth in the league) on the season. Junior Deon Yarborough leads ECSU in receiving yards with 329; including a touchdown on the season; while averaging 54.8 yards per contest.
Defense – senior linebacker Miacah Cooper leads the team with 43 total tackles and is ranked sixth in the league. As a team, ECSU is ranked fifth in the league in interceptions with B.J. Harrington leading the way with three on the season
Special Teams – Kicker Josh Laverty is 4-9 on field goal attempts while making 14 of 16 extra point kicks.  David Watford and Deshon Saunders are the teams return threats on kickoffs averaging 19.9 and 16.9 yards respectively.

CIAA PREDICTED ORDER OF FINISH
Lincoln University is picked to finish sixth in the Northern Division this season by the conference's head football coaches.  The Lions were also picked to have the 12th-best team in the CIAA this season.  Elizabeth City State was predicted to have the seventh best overall record in the CIAA and finish fifth in the North Division.
 
UP NEXT FOR THE LIONS
Lincoln returns home for a battle with Virginia State University on October 21, 2017.  The game will be the Lions' homecoming event and kickoff is set for 1:00 p.m.