Wheeling Football Opens 2024 Season Against DI Mercyhurst - Wheeling University Athletics (2024)

Football 8/28/2024 2:17:00 PM

Wheeling, W. Va. – After a long three months of waiting, the Wheeling University Athletic season is set to officially kick-off on Thursday. Wheeling Football will get the season started on Thursday, August 29th, when they host Mercyhurst with kick-off at 7 PM. For the Cardinals, they will be taking on an NCAA Division I program for the first time in school history, with Mercyhurst making the jump to the Northeast Conference (NEC).

The 2023 season was another successful year for the Cardinals, as the team finished 5-5 overall and 4-5 in MEC (Mountain East Conference) play. It was the fourth straight season that the Cardinals have finished .500 or better and they got out to one of their best starts in program history. They opened the season with a bang, picking up a 35-24 win over Seton Hill and went on to win three of their first four games of the year, including two of the first three MEC contests. After falling to UNC Pembroke in week four, the Cardinals came back with a historic win on Homecoming & Family weekend when they took down West Virginia Wesleyan 58-3, scoring the most points in a game in program history. However, the team would face a heavy road schedule, with three of their final four games coming on the road. They would end the year with a win on senior day against West Virginia State serving as their final win of the season.

In 2024, the team returns several players who gained valuable in-game experience. It starts with the quarterback room, where the team returns Javon Davis after missing most of 2023 due to injury. At the time of his injury, Davis had thrown for 598 yards and four touchdowns in five games and was on his way to another solid season. In his place stepped Landon Lutz, who took the reins for the final nine games. Lutz would throw for 1394 yards and nine touchdowns while holding a 47.3% completion percentage. The two will captain an offense that scored just over 26 points per game a season ago and looks to continue that success. They will also get a boost from transfer wide receiver Chris Charles, who was a second team All-MEC honoree with West Liberty a year ago and led the Hilltoppers in receiving touchdowns.

On defense, the Cardinal's most experienced group comes up front in the Defensive line. Leading the way will be defensive end Caleb Grant, who is coming off his first All-MEC honor in 2023. He was the team leader with 4.5 sacks a season ago, while setting a career high with 39.0 total tackles. He will be joined in the middle of that defensive line by Chase Nolan and Rashard Jackson, who will look to plug up the middle of the defense. In the defensive secondary, the Cardinals welcomed back Dalton Hoover and Masiah Thorne to lead the middle of the field. Hoover was the team's leading tackler a season ago, finishing with 49.0 tackles and 4.5 tackles for loss. Thorne missed most of the year due to injury and brings with him experience in the defensive secondary to lead a young group of defensive backs.

As they open the 2024 season, the Cardinals are looking to take advantage of playing on their home field six times in 11 games. It has been a place where the team has seen a lot of success, going 12-4 over the last three seasons. Last season, four of the team's five wins came at Bishop Schmitt Field, including the historic 58-point showing against West Virginia Wesleyan. The Cardinals will open the season at home for the third season in a row, going 2-0 over the last two Thursday night openers. After being picked #6 in the annual MEC Football Preseason Poll, their highest selection in program history, the Cardinals are looking to get off to a fast start and use that as momentum heading into a challengingMEC Schedule.

The Matchup

The Cardinals and Lakers will be meeting for the first time in program history on Thursday night at Bishop Schmitt Field. Mercyhurst is playing their first year as an NCAA DI program in the NEC but came from the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) in 2023. They would finish the season 2-9 overall and 1-6 in PSAC play. Their lone conference win of the season came in a high scoring affair with Clarion, where the Lakers picked up a 36-35 win.

The Lakers averaged 22.09 points per game a season ago, and the defense was scored upon with an average of 42.00 points per game allowed. Two Lakers on the defensive side received preseason honors with defensive lineman Camden White and linebacker Tyler Buterbaugh earning Preseason All-NEC honors. The Cardinals will look to take advantage of that defense and score early and often on the night.

The Details

Kick-off for Thursday night's game is scheduled for 7 PM at Bishop Schmitt Field. You can watch the game live by clicking HERE or follow along with Live Stats by clicking HERE.