WISE - - Two teams riding high will meet Saturday when UVa-Wise hosts Notre Dame College in a noon kickoff inside Carl Smith Stadium. The Cavaliers are coming off their first season opening win, a 13-10 double overtime victory at Tusculum College last Thursday. Meanwhile, Notre Dame College cruised to a 44-17 win over the University of Charleston in its home opener last Saturday.

Like UVa-Wise, Notre Dame College is under the direction of a first-year head coach.  Mike Jacbos became the third coach in program history in May after serving as a defesnive line coach and defensive coordinator for the Falcons earlier in his career. A two-time letter winner at The Ohio State University, Jacobs played in over 30 games during his collegiate career, including appearing in two Sugar Bowls.

This will be the fourth time the two schools have met with Notre Dame having the upper hand in each of the first three contests. Jacobs' defense limited UVa-Wise to eight rushing yards in a 42-0 win in 2015.

This year, the Falcons have some of the more explosive offensive players in the MEC. The team returns reigning MEC Freshman of the Year D.J. Green at tailback while also having dual-threat quarterback Malik Grove and standout wide receivers Mitchell Shegos and Emmanuel Smith. Grove and Green combined for 4,876 yards of total offense last season while Shegos and Smith combined to catch 140 passes for 1,713 yards and 16 touchdowns. Shegos led the league with 7.09 receptions per game while his 1,086 receiving yards ranked second in the MEC.

UVa-Wise will look to repeat its best defensive performance since becoming a NCAA Division II member while looking to improve on offense. The Cavs limited Tusculum to 232 yards of total offense but posted just 209 yards when in possession of the football.

UVa-Wise's special teams and secondary proved to be pivotal in the win. Placekicker Trent Martin was a perfect 2-2 on field goal attempts, the senior was also succesful on an onside kick attempt while posting a touchback in his only other kickoff duty. Punter Trevor Owens also had a big night. The Lebanon native punted nine times in the win averaging 40.6 yards per punt, the Middle Tennessee State transfer had one punt top 50 yards while having another inside the Tusculum 20-yard line.

In the secondary, freshman Jay'Ronn Lovelace picked off the first pass of his collegiate career to halt a Pioneers' drive in the Cavs' red zone early in the second quarter. In overtime, junior Ed Kargo intercepted Tusculum quarterback Luke Lancaster on the second play from scrimmage in the second overtime which helped lead to the UVa-Wise victory.

The Cavs' offense was at its best late in the game, averaging 5.4 yards per play in the two overtime periods. A win Saturday would allow UVa-Wise to start 2-0 for the first time since 2008. The 2008 squad won its first three games before finishing 8-3.