GAME 4
Charleston Southern (1-2 / 0-1 Big South) vs. RMU (1-2 / 0-1 Big South)
Saturday, Oct. 9, 2021 • 3:00 p.m.
Joe Walton Stadium (3,000) • Moon Township, Pa.
 
TV: ESPN3
Audio: RMU Athletics Gameday App
Talent: Chris Shovlin (pxp) & Jim Elias (color)
Twitter: @RMU_Football • Instagram: RMU_Football
 
Slant Routes
 
- The RMU football team returns to Joe Walton Stadium for its first Big South home game in program history Saturday, welcoming Charleston Southern for a 3:00 p.m. kickoff as part of the University's Homecoming festivities.
 
- The Colonials enter Saturday's game against the Buccaneers winners of five consecutive games at the Joe. That includes the final four games of the 2019 season as well as a 22-16 triumph over Howard (9/25) in its 2021 home opener.
 
- RMU dropped its 2021 Big South opener, a 41-14 decision @ North Carolina A&T (10/2). The Colonials trailed, 20-14, in the third quarter before the Aggies scored on three consecutive possessions to take control.
 
- Redshirt senior quarterback George Martin finished 17-for-31 passing for 203 yards and a touchdown @ North Carolina A&T, connecting with redshirt senior D'Andre Hicks for an eight-yard touchdown pass with 23 seconds left before halftime that trimmed RMU's deficit to 13-7.
 
- Junior running back Jonathan Wynn led the ground game against the Aggies with three carries for 44 yards. His 40-yard touchdown run that pulled the Colonials to within 20-14 at the 11:06 mark of the third quarter.
 
- Clark is in his first head coaching position as the top man for RMU. He was named the 2019 Northeast Conference (NEC) Co-Coach of the Year and owns an overall record of 10-19 (.345).
 
- According to a poll of Big South head coaches and a media panel, the Colonials were picked to finish eighth in the league for the 2021 fall season. Senior linebacker Aniello Buzzacco was named to the 2021 Big South Football Preseason All-Conference Team.
 
- Buzzacco owns 22 tackles through the first three games of the 2021 campaign, including 12 solo stops. He also owns half a sack.
 
- Redshirt sophomore linebacker Jamar Shegog led the Colonials on defense @ North Carolina A&T, posting nine tackles, including eight solo takedowns. Shegog has racked up a team-high 33 stops for RMU in 2021, including 20 solo tackles. He leads the Big South in tackles per game (11.0), which is also tied with Stone Snyder of VMI for eighth in the NCAA Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) ranks.
 
- RMU takes to the road for its next two games after hosting Charleston Southern Saturday. The Colonials travel to Florence, Ala., Saturday, Oct. 16, for a 6:00 p.m. kickoff against North Alabama. RMU will also visit Gardner-Webb Saturday, Oct. 23, before returning home to host Hampton Saturday, Oct. 30, at Joe Walton Stadium.

CHARLESTON SOUTHERN LINKS
- Two-Deep
- Audio
- Video
- Live Stats
- Weekly Availability (Charleston Southern Preview)
- RMU Athletics Gameday App
 
The All-Time Series (Charleston Southern) – Saturday's tilt against the Buccaneers is the second in the all-time series as well as the second meeting between the two programs in the last six months. The Colonials traveled to Charleston, S.C., as part of its 2021 spring season, dropping a 27-14 decision April 10. Quarterback George Martin finished 18-for-38 passing for a career-high 304 yards and two touchdowns. Both his passing scores went to wide receiver D'Andre Hicks, who finished with seven catches for 72 yards.
 
Elementary, My Dear Watson – Redshirt sophomore defensive lineman Ricardo Watson has proven early in the 2021 season the ability to produce a splash play. In RMU's Big South opener @ North Carolina A&T (10/2), Watson notched his first career interception as a member of the Colonials, picking off Jalen Fowler on the first drive of the second half for the Aggies. His pick came a week after recording a pair of sacks in a 22-16 win over Howard (9/25) at Joe Walton Stadium. Through three games, Watson owns eight tackles, including four solo stops, and ranks fourth in the Big South in sacks (2).

Quotable (Bernard Clark, Jr. - CSU Preview) - "Defensively this is a totally different team with Charleston Southern. We have to scale it back a little bit, run to the ball and make sure we become more of a sure-tackling team on defense. Offensively we have to do a better job up front blocking and making sure we're getting the holes we need for a Jon Wynn to break off a 40-yard run like he did last week. We have to get our running game more established."
 
Joining The Club – Senior Aniello Buzzacco finished with seven tackles in RMU's Big South opener @ North Carolina A&T (10/2), helping him become the 23rd student-athlete in program history to eclipse 200 career stops. Buzzacco owns 205 career takedowns and is the 14th linebacker to wear an RMU uniform to compile at least 200 career tackles since the program began in 1994. He'll look to climb the chart for career tackles as the season progresses, as just 15 more tackles and Buzzacco will rank 15th on the all-time list. To crack the top 10 in school history, Buzzacco needs 51 takedowns.

Swarm & Smash – The RMU defense recorded six sacks in a 22-16 triumph over Howard (9/25), the most sacks in a game in the Bernard Clark, Jr., era. In addition, the six sacks are the most for the Colonials since recording seven @ Albany (11/3/07). Leading the way for RMU in the department was redshirt sophomore defensive lineman Ricardo Watson, who posted a pair of sacks. Redshirt senior defensive end Matthew Holmes, meanwhile, notched a sack and two quarterback hurries in the win while also blocking an extra point attempt by Howard in the third quarter that kept the Colonials on top, 14-13.
 
Action – Redshirt senior running back Alijah Jackson was a key contributor for RMU in its win over Howard (9/25), notching his first 100-yard rushing effort of the year with 107 yards on 26 carries, an average of 4.1 yards per attempt. Jackson picked up his ninth career 100-yard rushing game against the Bison and enters Saturday's game against Charleston Southern with 1,838 career rushing yards and a 4.7 per attempt average. His effort in the victory over Howard allowed Jackson to surpass former running back Devin Wilson (2002-05) into fifth place all-time at RMU for career rushing yards. Jackson also ranks 10th in program history in career rushing touchdowns (10).
 
Up Front – A key reason running back Alijah Jackson has posted the career numbers he owns is due to a veteran offensive line for RMU. The Colonials returned four of their five starters this fall, including graduate student Trevor Hicks and redshirt sophomore Bussy Remaley at left and right tackle, respectively, and graduate student Dylan Young and sophomore Hayden Baron at left and right guard, respectively. Hicks, named to the 2020-21 Big South All-Academic Team, owns 37 career starts for RMU, including 30 consecutive entering Saturday's tilt against Charleston Southern. Hicks is three starts shy of establishing the school record for consecutive starts at left tackle, which is owned by former Colonial Gus Alonso (2003-06) with 32 straight.
 
The Next Development – While Buzzacco anchors the linebacker corps for RMU, redshirt sophomore Jamar Shegog looks to be the next breakout candidate at the position for the Colonials. En route to being named to the 2020-21 HERO Sports Freshman All-America Team, Shegog finished second for the Colonials in the abbreviated 2021 spring campaign, finishing with 28 tackles, including 12 solo stops. Through three games of the fall season, Shegog is averaging 11.0 tackles per game, which tops the Big South. That average is bolstered by a career-high 18 stops @ Central Michigan (9/11), which helped Shegog become the 10th student-athlete in program history to finish with at least 18 tackles in a game.
 
Student-Athlete – Not only is the credentials for Aniello Buzzacco impressive on the field, he's no slouch off of it, either. Buzzacco was named to the 2020-21 Academic All-District 2 Team by the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) and was also one of 54 student-athletes named to the 23rd Annual Academic All-Star Team by the Football Championship Subdivision Athletics Directors Association (FCS ADA). A finance major, Buzzacco has compiled a cumulative grade point average (GPA) of 3.46.
 
A Memorial – The RMU Department of Athletics was saddened to learn of the passing of the program's first coach, Joe Walton, who died Sunday, August 15, 2021, at the age of 85. Walton spent 20 years as head coach of the Colonials, claiming six Northeast Conference (NEC) titles during his tenure and helping RMU earn the first automatic bid to the NCAA FCS Playoffs from the NEC in 2010. RMU hosted a memorial service for Walton after its 22-16 win over Howard (9/25) against Howard in the stadium named in his honor. The event took place on the field, featured a number of guest speakers and can be viewed in its entirety by using the following link.
 
Still On Top – The program's first running back, Tim Hall (1994-95), spent two seasons with the Colonials and during his career rushed for 2,908 yards. He accomplished the feat on 393 carries, an average of 7.40 yards per attempt. That total remains No. 1 in the NCAA Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) record book entering the 2021 season, a span that hits 26 years this fall.

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