WISE - - Saturday's game between Shepherd and UVa-Wise pits two teams that come in on vastly different starts. Two years removed from winning the inaugural Mountain East Conference title, the Rams appear to be back in 2013 form. No. 20 Shepherd has outscored its first two opponets 88-25, including a season-opening 43-0 defeat of West Virginia Wesleyan.

Shepherd ranks first among MEC schools in overall team defense, allowing just 200 yards a game. The Rams are allowing 120.5 yards per game through the air to lead the MEC and rank second in rushing defense at 79.5 yards per game.  Possibly the most impressive defense stat of the young season is the fact that opponents have advanced inside the red zone just twice thus far against Shepherd.

Veteran quarterback Jeff Ziemba leads the Rams' offense. Ziemba has passed for 502 yards and six touchdowns through two games. As a sophomore in 2014, Ziemba threw a league-low two interceptions on 247 attempts. Shepherd has used a pair of backs in the running game early on. Both Allen Cross and Jabre Lolly have gained over 100 yards thus far. Cross has rushed for a team-high 138 yards while Lolly is averaging 5.9 yards per carry on his first 20 attempts of 2015.

Coach Dewey Lusk's Cavaliers started the 2015 season with a bang by scoring the first 21 points in their season opener against Tusculum. Since then, UVa-Wise has been outscored 89-7. A week ago, the Cavs fell 42-0 at Notre Dame College.
     
A bright spot in the early going has been UVa-Wise's ability to stop the run. The Cavs allowed 71 rushing yards in week one before limiting a Notre Dame team that averaged 9.3 yards a carry in week one to 3.2 yards a rush last week.
     
To have a shot against the Rams, the Cavs will have to improve on the ground. In two games, UVa-Wise has gained 140 yards on 72 carries. Despite struggling on the ground, tailback Carlton Griffith has been able to get the ball in the passing game. With 13 receptions, Griffith tops all UVa-Wise pass catchers.
     
In last season's meeting, Lolly rushed for 111 yards and a score while the Rams' defense allowed just nine rushing yards and 107 yards of total offense in a 51-0 Shepherd win.
     
Next week, UVa-Wise visits Glenville State for a 1:30 p.m.Saturday kickoff while Shepherd returns home to entertain Notre Dame College in their homecoming game.