WISE - - No. 16 Lenoir-Rhyne visits UVA Wise Saturday in a 2 p.m. kickoff in what will be Homecoming 2021 at Carl Smith Stadium. The game will feature the reigning South Atlantic Conference Offensive and Defensive Player of the Week as UVA Wise's Jaevon Gillespie took home the offensive award and Lenoir-Rhyne's Dan Louba was the defensive honoree.

Gillespie had a career-day in the Cavaliers' 33-7 win over Carson-Newman. The Greeneville, Tenn. native rushed for 166 yards and four touchdowns, both of which established new career highs for the running back. Gillespie highlighted his day in the third quarter with the longest play of the season for UVA Wise, an 80-yard touchdown scamper.

Louba spent most of last Saturday in the Mars Hill backfield. The linebacker recorded a career-high four sacks while adding a pair of pass deflections and a fumble recovery to his six-tackle day.

When the Bears come on the field Saturday, a familiar face will be leading the squad. Mike Jacobs is in his second season at Lenoir-Rhyne after four highly successful seasons at Notre Dame College (Ohio). Jacobs' teams at Notre Dame faced UVA Wise three times when the Cavs were members of the Mountain East Conference. The Falcons won each of the contests but, each game was decided by one possession.

As has always been the case with Jacobs' teams, the Bears possess a high-powered rushing attack. Behind freshman running back Dwayne McGee's 141.7 yards per game, Lenoir-Rhyne averages 192.7 rushing yards a contest to rank second in the SAC and 30th nationally. Overall, the team's 444.3 yards of total offense is tops in the conference.
UVA Wise continues to come up with big plays on the defensive side of the ball. The Cavs have forced ten turnovers in the season's first four games; additionally, defensive coordinator Matthew White's unit ranks fifth in NCAA Division II at 4.5 sacks per game.

The game is the second of a three-game homestand for the Cavs. Thus far, UVA Wise is outscoring opponents 87-7 over its first two home games. The program has not started a season 3-0 at home since 2017.

Lenoir-Rhyne will be looking to begin a year 3-1 or better for the fourth consecutive season. Overall, the Bears are 30-5 over the team's last 35 contests.

Next Saturday, Dane Damron's squad wraps up its homestand when Newberry comes calling for a noon kickoff.