NO. 10 TOWSON (6-1 overall, 4-0 Colonial Athletic Association) @ NO. 21 DELAWARE (5-2 overall, 3-1)
When: Saturday, 3:30 p.m.
Site: Delaware Stadium, Newark, Del.
TV: Fox Sports Go/Fox College Sports Atlantic
Radio: 1300 AM
Series: Delaware leads 11-8
What’s at stake: Saturday’s 56-28 thrashing of Albany propelled Towson into the top 10 of the latest STATS Football Championship Subdivision poll. The only undefeated team in CAA competition, the Tigers are a half-game ahead of No. 15 Stony Brook (6-2, 4-1) and are enjoying their best start since the 1984 squad began the season at 7-0. They will test their five-game winning streak against Delaware, which is riding its own three-game wave. The Blue Hens are tied for third in the conference after walloping New Hampshire, 38-14, on Saturday. Towson has beaten Delaware in four of the past six overall meetings and two of the past three games in Newark.
Key matchup: The Tigers lead the CAA in scoring, averaging 40.3 points, and have scored at least 50 points in two games for the first time since 1993. They will tangle with a Blue Hens defense that has given up only 18.1 points per game — second in the league. Can Towson, which has scored 30 points or more in five of seven games, find and execute the right formula against Delaware, which has allowed only one opponent, No. 1 North Dakota State, to reach 30 points?
Player to watch: Tigers redshirt junior quarterback Tom Flacco was named the CAA’s Offensive Player of the Week for the third time this season after accounting for 386 combined passing and rushing yards and four total touchdowns. But Flacco, whose seven interceptions are tied for the second most in the conference, should be wary of a Blue Hens defense that leads the league in interceptions with 11.
MORGAN STATE (2-5 overall, 1-2 Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference) @ FLORIDA A&M (5-2, 4-0)
When: Saturday, 4 p.m.
Site: Bragg Memorial Stadium, Tallahassee, Fla.
TV: ESPN3
Radio: 88.9 FM
Series: Florida A&M leads 21-7
What’s at stake: Continuing a familiar yet frustrating pattern this season, Morgan State followed a win with a loss, dropping a 35-26 decision to Howard on Saturday. The Bears slipped into a tie for seventh in the MEAC with Norfolk State (3-3, 1-2). And now they get the unenviable task of clashing with conference leader Florida A&M, which is enjoying a four-game winning streak and has not suffered a loss since Sept. 15. And the Rattlers are coming off a bye during which they could rest and study film of Morgan State. Perhaps the one silver lining is that both of the Bears’ victories this season have occurred on the road.
Key matchup: Morgan State ranks seventh in the MEAC against the pass but leads the league in interceptions with 12, total takeaways with 18 and sacks with 19, including five from junior linebacker Ian McBorrough (Eastern Tech). Florida A&M does rank second in the conference in passing (224.6 yards per game), but has also surrendered 14 sacks, which is tied for the second-worst mark in the MEAC. Rattlers junior quarterback Ryan Stanley is also dealing with a bone bruise in his lower back.
Player to watch: Junior running back Joshua Chase exploded for 115 yards and one touchdown on 20 carries in Morgan State’s loss to Howard. The Bears could use a similar performance from the 5-foot-11, 215-pound Archbishop Spalding graduate to alleviate some of the pressure on junior quarterback DeAndre Harris.