WISE - - UVa-Wise and Carson-Newman meet in a 1 p.m. kickoff Saturday with both schools in search of their first conference win of the season. The Cavaliers fell behind 21-7 last week before a late comeback bid fell short in a 21-14 loss to Mars Hill. Meanwhile, the Eagles failed to score in the second half as Wingate overcame a 28-20 halftime deficit to post a 30-28 win.

UVa-Wise (1-2, 0-1 SAC) has relied on the punt return talents of junior Demetrius Mann and its defense's big play ability through the season's first three games. Mann has already returned two punts for touchdowns this fall and ranks second nationally in yards per punt return at 35 yards per return. On defense, junior Drew O'Bryan's 6.5 tackles for loss leads a unit that is averaging 10 TFLs per game. Defensive lineman Chavon Fields and Rondre Knowles-Tenner have tallied three sacks each as the Cavs have a conference-best 10 sacks.

Carson Newman's (1-1, 0-1 SAC) veer offense has three players with at least 99 rushing yards through the Eagles' first two games. Quarterback Derrick Evans leads the way with 159 yards on 32 carries while Antonio Wimbush's 131 yards and Toot Johnson's 99 yards have also helped spearhead a ground game that ranks second in the SAC at 210.5 yards per game. Wimbush earned All-American honors in 2018 and enters Saturday 1,064 yards shy of the all-time rushing record at Carson-Newman. Through the air, Braxton Westfield has been one of the nation's biggest deep threats in the early going. The sophomore has five catches for 199 yards. His 39.8 yards per catch leads the country by more than four yards per reception.

On defense, Carson-Newman has been stingy against the pass. Opponents are completing just 48.1 percent of their passes for 137.5 yards per game making the Eagles the toughest team to throw on in the SAC to this point in the season. Senior defensive back Desmond Fairell already has three pass break ups while junior linebacker Rondrow Peebles has 1.5 sacks as part of his 15 total tackles.

The game will feature two of the SAC's best young punters. UVa-Wise's Drew Vermillion is averaging 39.8 yards per punt. A week ago, the freshman booted a season-long 56-yarder, it was his third punt of at least 50 yards this season. Across the field, fellow freshman Nate Craft is off to a good start as well. Craft is averaging 39.9 yards per punt with a long of 54 yards.

Despite being separated by just 123 miles, Saturday will mark the first time that UVa-Wise and Carson-Newman have met in football. The Cavaliers began their program as a NAIA institution in 1991 while the Eagles claimed five national titles as an NAIA school during the 1980's.

Next week, UVa-Wise will continue its three-game road trip with a game at nationally ranked Lenoir-Rhyne while Carson-Newman welcomes UNC Pembroke to Jefferson City.