GAME NOTES: Delta State University (3-6, 1-3 GSC) at Shorter University (5-5, 1-3 GSC) - Nov. 10, 2012
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CLEVELAND, Miss. - The Statesmen (3-6, 1-3 GSC) of Delta State University will close out the regular season on Saturday, Nov. 10 at Barron Stadium in a Gulf South Conference showdown with the newest member of the league, the Hawks (5-5, 1-3 GSC) of Shorter University.  Kickoff is set for 1:30 p.m. ET/12:30 p.m. CT.  The game will be featured on the Statesmen Sports Network starting at 12:30 p.m. ET/11:30 a.m. CT with the DSU Alumni Association Statesmen Game Day Report.  Matt Jones, J.T. Webb, Eric Gallo and Herb Brooks will have the call.  

Delta State and Shorter will be meeting for the first time in series history on the gridiron.  DSU and SU have competed on the softball field and cross country course over the years.       

Junior quarterback Spencer Van Brunt made his second and most successful start this past Saturday in a 33-18 loss at Indianapolis.  The Concord, Calif., native and Diablo Valley (Calif.) College transfer completed 18-of-34 passes for 170 yards with a touchdown and one interception.     

Freshman running back Rondreaus Truesdale has taken on a larger role as the season has marched on.  The Lancaster, S.C., native has rushed for 408 yards and three touchdowns, while grabbing nine passes for 95 yards.  He matched a career-high with 73 yards rushing at VSU.     

Rory Island, a sophomore linebacker from Waveland, Miss., recorded a monster game versus Indianapolis with 10 tackles and 2.0 tackles-for-loss.  He leads the team with 56 tackles on the year with 6.5 tackles-for-loss and 2.0 sacks.

Senior safety Montavius Hill is enjoying the best season of his career, as the Cleveland native ranks second on the team with 53 tackles.

Junior safety Kenny Barnes has quietly climbed the ranks of Statesmen defenders this season and currently ranks fourth on the squad with 46 tackles.  The Madison, Miss., native is also tied for the team lead with two interceptions.  

Senior All-American punter Andrew Jones is averaging 41.9 yards per punt this season, ranking 17th in the NCAA in net punting.   

Senior receiver/kick returner Lavon Downs averages a blistering 28.9 yards per kick return.  He has returned 14 kicks for 403 yards. Through nine games, the Avon Park, Fla., native has amassed 550 yards on 19 returns to rank fourth in single season history at DSU. 

Sophomore linebacker Diego Lubin enters this week's game versus the Hawks ranked 2nd in the GSC in tackles-for-loss.  The Western Kentucky transfer has totaled 45 tackles, 12.5 tackles-for-loss and 3.5 sacks in eight games this season.  

The Statesman “Black Swarm” defense features three players in the GSC's top 10 in tackles per game.  Junior All-American candidate Ixavier Triplett (51) is 5th followed by sophomore linebacker Rory Island (56) who sits 8th and senior safety Montavious Hill (51) who is 10th.  

DSU head football coach Jamey Chadwell is in his first season as skipper of the Statesmen and his fourth as a collegiate head coach.  Chadwell, a former East Tennessee State quarterback, is 25-20 all-time, including 20 wins in his last two seasons at North Greenville University.  

The Statesmen will be looking to close the regular season with a win Saturday at SU.  DSU is guaranteed its first losing campaign since 2002 (4-7).               

STATESMAN TO WATCH: LAVON DOWNS, WR/KR
Lavon Downs, a 6-foot-1, 185-pound senior reciever, is this week's “Statesman to Watch,” as he leads Delta State (3-6) into a matchup with new Gulf South Conference member Shorter University on Saturday, Nov. 10. Kickoff is set for 1:30 p.m. (EST) at Barron Stadium.

The Avon Park, Fla., native tied his season best with seven receptions for 69 yards and a touchdown for the Statesman in the 33-18 loss to Indianapolis on Saturday, Nov. 3. Downs also helped the Statesmen earn solid field position, as he averaged 29.4 yards on five kick returns.

Downs leads the DSU receiving corps with 37 catches for 453 yards and three touchdowns. The Fullerton College transfer also ranks ninth in the NCAA with a 28.95 average per kickoff return. His 550 kick return yards this year rank fourth in school history for a single season. 

INSIDE THE SERIES: DELTA STATE-SHORTER
Delta State and Shorter will be meeting for the first time in series history on Saturday, Nov. 10 at Barron Stadium.  In fact, DSU and SU have only competed in softball and cross country prior to the Hawks joining the Gulf South Conference.

STATESMEN SUFFER FIRST LOSING SEASON SINCE 2002
The Statesmen, who can finish no better than 4-6, will suffer their first losing season since 2002.  DSU went 4-7 that year in coach Rick Rhoades first season in Cleveland.   

VAN BRUNT MAKES MOST OF OPPORTUNITIES
Junior quarterback Spencer Van Brunt made his second and most successful start this past Saturday in a 33-18 loss at Indianapolis.  The Concord, Calif., native and Diablo Valley (Calif.) College transfer completed 18-of-34 passes for 170 yards with a touchdown and one interception.

ISLAND & HILL PACK TOUGH 1-2 PUNCH
Rory Island, a sophomore linebacker from Waveland, Miss., recorded a monster game versus Indianapolis with 10 tackles and 2.0 tackles-for-loss.  He leads the team with 56 tackles on the year with 6.5 tackles-for-loss and 2.0 sacks. Senior safety Montavius Hill is enjoying the best season of his career, as the Cleveland native ranks second on the team with 53 tackles.

STATESMEN IN THE NCAA STATS
The special teams play of the Green-and-White has been an asset this season. The kickoff return team currently ranks third in the nation in kickoff return average, posting 26.68 yards per return, and rank 27th nationally in holding opponents to just 4.71 yards per punt return.

Delta State football has several Statesmen ranked among the NCAA's leaders in many statistical categories.  Deigo Lubin, a linebacker who has packed a solid punch this year, is 35th in tackles-for-loss averaging 1.39 per contest. Lavon Downs has helped get the Statesmen a good starting field position this year, as he ranks ninth in the NCAA with a 28.95 average per kickoff return.

HUNTER MAKING RUN AT GAMES PLAYED RECORD
Offensive tackle Kendall Hunter, a 6-foot-6, 325-pound senior from Mound Bayou, Miss., is set to make a run at the school record for career games played.

The All-GSC and All-American candidate has started for three seasons at DSU and continues his 2012 campaign with 49 career games played on the offensive line, including 36 consecutive starts at right tackle. If all goes according to plan, he will amass exactly 50 games in the Green and White for DSU.

AGAINST THE STATES
The Statesmen are facing their fourth opponent this season from the state of Georgia in Shorter University on Saturday, Nov. 10.  Kickoff is set for 1:30 p.m. EST at Barron Stadium. DSU is 36-22-1 all-time against teams from Georgia, including a 1-2 record this season, which includes losses to Fort Valley State and Valdosta State and a win versus the University of West Georgia.

LUBIN ON THE LOOSE
Sophomore Diego Lubin currently ranks second the Gulf South Conference in tackles for loss coming into this week's game with 12.5 for a total of 60 yards, while ranking fifth in sacks 3.5 through nine games.

The Winter Haven, Fla., native posted another solid performance in the 59-41 loss against Indianapolis on Nov. 3, posting four total tackles in the contest including a tackle for loss and a forced fumble.

STATESMEN OFFENSE LOOKING FOR BALANCE
The Delta State University Statesmen offense has been one of the most explosive in the country over the last nine seasons. In fact, the Green-and-White has led the GSC in total offense five times since 2003,which included a three-year stretch from 2003-05. DSU also led the league in total offense last season with 463.7 yards per game. The Statesmen attack has not been as explosive this season, as the unit has gained 376.9 yards per game. The last time DSU has not gained more than 400 total yards per game was in 2001, as it finished with 381 yards per contest.