November 20, 2025
Football Hosts Mercyhurst With FCS Bid On The Line
Blue Devils will take on Mercyhurst Saturday at noon for Senior Day and earn the NEC FCS bid with a win
The Central Connecticut State football team will play for a second consecutive FCS Championship berth when it hosts Mercyhurst on Saturday at Arute Field. The Blue Devils will honor their senior class at 11:30, prior to the noon kickoff.
For the second straight year, the final Saturday of the FCS regular season at Arute Field will help decide the NEC automatic qualifier for the FCS Championship. The Blue Devils earn the bid to the tournament with a win over Mercyhurst or a Duquesne loss at Robert Morris.
CCSU enters Saturday's game at 7-4 overall and 5-1 in league play, while the Lakers are 5-6 overall and 4-2 in conference play. A Mercyhurst win would give the Lakers a share of the NEC title.
Saturday is Youth Day, with all youth in a team jersey being admitted free of charge to the game.
CCSU Game Notes | Watch NEC Front Row | Livestats
QUICK HITS
• CCSU as clinched at least a share of the NEC title for the second straight season and for a record eighth time in program history
• Brady Olson set a school record with 423 passing yards at Duquesne, surpassing the 377 yards that Keith Toolan threw for versus Wagner in 1997
• Peter Cleary, 111 yards receiving, and Elijah Howard, 108 yards rushing, are the first CCSU duo to eclipse the century mark in those categories in the same game since Howard and Isiah Williams did so on 10/26/23 versus LIU. That is the last time a CCSU receiver had more than 100 yards in a game as well.
• Chris Jean had a career-best 12 tackles at Duquesne, eight solo
• Michael Trovarelli's six catches, 86 yards receiving and two TD catches are all career-bests. The last time a Blue Devil had two TD catches in the same game was the 2024 FCS game at Rhode Island, by Isaac Boston. Trovarelli has five receiving TDs this fall, tops on the team and has 314 yards on 27 catches.
• Brady Olson has thrown for 2,600 yards this season. The school single-season record is 2,934 held by Jacob Dolegala in 2016
• CCSU has accumulated back-to-back games with over 500 yards of offense, with 588 at Duquesne following 533 versus Stonehill. The Blue Devils have scored 73 points in the past two games. Prior to the Stonehill game last surpassed 500 yards of offense on 10/7/23 with 584 versus Delaware State
• The Blue Devils have won eight NEC titles and are repeat champions for the third time ('04 & '05 and '09 & '10). CCSU has won three outright championships during its time in the league
• Elijah Howard has run for 915 yards this season, 91.5 per game, and is 85 yards shy of becoming the 12th player to rush for 1,000 yards in a season as a Blue Devil. It would be the 17th 1,000 yard season in program history and the first since 2022 when Nasir Smith finished 1,219 yards.
• CCSU has 13 sacks in the past four games, 3.25 per game, raising their league leading average to 2.45 per game for the season, with 27 total. CCSU has four players ranked in the top-10 in the NEC in sacks with Gavin Taylor leading the way a 0.59 per game. Carter Banks is second at 0.50, Malachi Wright 7th at 0.35 and Wayne Coleman ninth at 0.32.
• The Blue Devils have secured a winning season for the second straight year and a winning NEC record
• Elijah Howard, with back-to-back 100+ yard rushing games, is the sixth active leading rusher in FCS play, with 2,839 career yards. He ranks atop the NEC standings with 915 yards this fall and his 91.5 yards/game is also first in the league. Howard is 8th among active FCS players with 3,720 APY.
• Chris Jean averages 1.20 passes defended per game for his career, with 30 over 25 games. That is the second-best number among active FCS players and 13th across all NCAA levels of play. He is fifth amongst FCS players with eight interceptions.
• The Blue Devils have recorded 31 TFL in the past four games, and enter the final weekend 12th in the nation at 7.2 TFL per game.
• Jack Stoll had another 1.5 TFL at Duquesne to move to 14.5 on the season and move to 16th in the FCS at 1.32 per game. Stoll has recorded 7.5 TFL in the past four games. He continues to lead the team with 75 tackles this season, 45 solo stops, and ranks fifth in the NEC at 6.8 tackles per game. He is one tackle shy of a single-season best for himself. He has twice this season recorded a dozen tackles in a game.
• CCSU leads the league in red zone defense at .730 stopping foes 10-37 times. CCSU is 10th in the nation in that category, giving up 19 touchdowns and eight field goals.
