VIDEO / LIVE STATS / GAME NOTES
DEFIANCE, Ohio - Defiance will look to notch its fourth-straight win at Hanover's L.S. Ayres Field when it heads south to take on the Panthers on Saturday. The game is scheduled to begin at 1:30 pm.
SCOUTING DEFIANCE - The Yellow Jackets continue to lead the Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference in total defense with only 308.6 yards allowed per game. DC sits second in the league by allowing only 147.6 yards through the air per outing. The Defiance secondary has only four interceptions on the year but has slowed opposing quarterbacks by racking up 27 passes defended.
SCOUTING HANOVER - The Panthers will look to test the Defiance secondary with its highly touted passing attack that ranks first in the league with 267.7 passing yards and second with 32.5 points per outing. Quarterback Dexter Britt leads all HCAC performers with 256.8 passing yards per game, while receiver Daniel Passafiume leads the way with an average of 10 receptions per showing.
LAST MEETING - The Jackets blitzed the Hanover attack early and often, forcing a safety 83 seconds into the contest but the Panthers dominated play from that point on. Hanover outscored Defiance 37-3 through the end of the third quarter, before a fourth-quarter score cut the final spread to 37-12. DC outgained the Panthers but committed 11 penalties and turned the ball over four times in the loss. Andy Dalton excelled for the HC defense with 21 tackles and one interception, while D.J. Brigham and James Buari each notched a sack for Defiance.
SERIES HISTORY - DC trails Hanover by a 19-12 count in the all-time series against the Panthers but has narrowed the gap with victories in five of the last seven contests. Defiance and Hanover have split the last four meetings, with the visiting team winning all four. The Yellow Jackets have won three-straight games at Hanover, dating back to HC's last home win against Defiance during the 2004 campaign.
LAST TIME OUT - Defiance suffered its second shutout loss of the season inside of Justin F. Coressel Stadium when it fell by a 21-0 margin to Mount St. Joseph on October 13. MSJ's James Clay stole the show by rushing for 220 yards and a trio of touchdowns on 24 carries. DC countered with 249 yards on the ground but could not dent the scoreboard.
AROUND THE HCAC - The HCAC has turned into a two-team race, with Franklin and Hanover each boasting a 4-0 mark in conference action. The No. 23 Grizzlies will look to remain on top when they host Rose-Hulman (2-2), while Hanover tries to keep pace with FC when it welcomes Defiance (2-3) for a 1:30 pm start. In other action, MSJ (2-3) will host Manchester (3-2), while Anderson and Earlham square off in a battle of 0-4 squads.
D-D-D-DEFIANCE - The Yellow Jackets currently tout the best defense in the HCAC by allowing only 308.6 yards per game this season. That number dips to 273.8 against conference foes.
LONG DISTANCE ATTACK - DC has been using big plays to find the end zone this season, with nine of its 17 touchdowns coming from outside of the red zone. The Jackets boast four touchdowns of over 50 yards and six of over 45 yards. For the season, Defiance has averaged 28.8 yards per touchdown play.
A PICTURE IS WORTH A THOUSAND WORDS - Fans can choose from over 10,000 high-resolution photos of their favorite Yellow Jackets in action by visiting DC's online photo store at www.DefianceAthletics.com/galleries. Proceeds from the site help to support Defiance College.
BASKETBALL SEASON TICKETS - The installation of the new bleachers has been completed inside the Karl H. Weaner Community Center and fans can now purchase season tickets for the section with seat backs. The section contains 78 seats and is located at mid-court behind the scorer's table. For more information, call 419-782-2342, or stay tuned to www.DefianceAthletics.com for future announcements.
ONLINE WEBCASTS AND REPLAYS - Defiance College would like to thank Hubbard Company, Mark Moats Ford and The Plaza Motel for their support of the Yellow Jacket Sports Network in 2012. Each of DC's five home football games in 2012, along with the road games at Adrian and Bluffton will be broadcast live at www.DefianceAthletics.com/video. Past broadcasts will also be archived and available at that link. Broadcasts will also be replayed all season long by DCTV5 on Tuesday's and Friday's at 9:00 pm and by Bryan City Cable channel 3 on Tuesday and Thursday's at 9:00 pm.