WISE – The UVA Wise football team hits the road for their penultimate road trip of the season when they make the short trip to Carson-Newman to face the 18^th-ranked Eagles Saturday afternoon.

After facing a team in their first season of football last week in Anderson, the Highland Cavaliers will now face the oldest football program in the SAC in Carson Newman. The Eagle football program was started in 1895. For context, the C-N football team is older than five South Atlantic Conference schools (Anderson, Coker, LMU, UVA Wise, and Wingate).

Kickoff is set for 1:00 p.m. at Burke-Tarr Stadium.

ABOUT UVA WISE
- The Highland Cavaliers will enter the game with a 2-3 overall and 1-2 South Atlantic Conference record.
- Carson-Newman leads the series 4-1, with the first meeting happening on September 28, 2019 in Jefferson City. The two programs not meeting before then is interesting considering the relative closeness of the two schools. The Eagles won the last meeting on Nov. 4, 2023 in Wise by a 52-7 margin. The win by the Cavs was a 33-7 win in Wise on September 25. 2021.
- The Cavs enter the game with 1,455 total yards of offense on the season (291.0 yards a game), compared to 2,035 (407.0 ypg) by their opponents.
- No team has converted more than 50 percent of their third downs against the Cavs this season.
- Jake Corkren is 94-156 for 875 yards and six touchdowns on the season.
- Dejauvis Dozier has 60 carries on the season to lead the Cavs, while Ian Scammel has 49.
- Seth Fischbach has is averaging 11.4 yards a catch this season as he has 24 catches for 274 yards and two touchdowns. DJ Powell has 18 receptions for 227 yards, while Dorien Goddard has 199 yards on 23 catches with a touchdown.
- Powell leads the team in kick returns with 240 yards on nine returns, including a 56 yarder vs. Catawba
- Brub Hines III leads the team with 36 total tackles (21 solo). He also has 1.5 tackles for loss and an interception. Jalen Pickens also has 1.5 tackles for loss to go along with 28 tackles (18 solo). Other players with 20 or more tackles are AJ Stewart (24), Matthew Strong (21), Nasir Spruill (20), and Emmanuel Scott (20).
- Scott and Kenneth Long have two sacks apiece to lead the team. Spruill, Jimmie Simmons and Raaphell Mays II all have a sack each.

ABOUT THE EAGLES
- The Eagles are 6-0 on the season after last week's come-from-behind Miracle at Mars Hill in which they score 13 points in the last 94 seconds to sneak out of Meares Stadium with the 28-27 win.
- Carson-Newman moved up to 18^th in both the AFCA and D2Football.com polls. They entered the poll on Sept. 23 for the first time since 2021.
- Like UVA Wise, Carson-Newman also has a first-year head coach. Ashley Ingram is in his first season at C-N following 16 seasons on the staff at the US Naval Academy.
- The Eagles have 2,279 yards of total offense, while their opponents have 1,731. They are dominating in rushing as they are averaging 268.7 yards on the ground a game while holding the opposition to 99.7 rushing yards a game.
- Passing is somewhat of a weak spot for C-N as opponents are out-throwing the Eagles by a combined 1,133 yards per catch to 667 yards by C-N. That stat can be a bit misleading as the Eagles have 10 passing touchdowns to 8 by the opposition.
- Zane Whitson is completing 52.6 percent of his passes (20-38) while throwing for 252 yards and five touchdowns. Gavin Gosnell is 6-13-0 for 134 yards and two TDs, while Tre Luttrell is 8-11-0 for 245 yards and three touchdowns.
- Jeremiah Carroll (14 catches, 185 yds, 3 TD), Cade Meeks (10 catches, 174 yds, 2 TDs), and Don Bradley (7 catches, 101 yards) are the main go-to players on the Eagle receiving corps.
- C-N's bread and butter offense for decades has been the veer, and this season to date they have five players with 100 or more yards rushing on the season. Jayden Sullins has been the main rushing threat as he has 96 carries for 462 yards and five TDs. Don Bradley has 29 carries for 300 yards and a pair of touchdowns, while Cam Ferguson has 271 yards and three touchdowns off of 48 carries.
- Christian Hicks leads the team with 39 tackles, while Mekhi Brown has 33 tackles and a sack. Jacorey Long also has 30 tackles and 2.5 sacks.

UP NEXT
The Highland Cavaliers will return home for their final two home games of the season as they host Mars Hill on October 26 and Tusculum on November 2. Kickoff for each game will be at 2 p.m.