WILKES-BARRE, PA (October 17, 2019) -- The Monarch football team return home where they've had success this season, taking on Alvernia University in Middle Atlantic Conference (MAC) play Saturday. The Monarchs have dropped their last two games, but King's did take No. 13 Delaware Valley to the edge last week, falling 28-13 in Doylestown. The Golden Wolves of Alvernia are coming off a historic win, having knocked off Lycoming College last week 29-24 for its first ever MAC win. These teams have played just once all-time, during AU's first campaign last year, with King's earning a 51-7 win in Reading.  

Event Details
Opponent: vs. Alvernia University (2-4, 1-3 MAC)
Date: Saturday, October 19, 2019
Time: 1 p.m.
Location: Wilkes-Barre, PA – Betzler Field at McCarthy Stadium (Directions)
Tickets: Adults - $5, Seniors & Non-King's Students - $2, King's Students & Children 6 and under - Free
Live Coverage: (Live Video) (Live Stats)



Things To Know:
King's vs. Alvernia Game Notes
King's vs. Alvernia Flip Card
Tailgating Policy
Pet Policy

The Coaches: Jeff Knarr is in his 10th season with the Monarchs, as he is only the second coach of King's College football since 1991. Knarr took over for Rich Mannello, who was the head coach since football was reinstated at King's in 1993. Ralph Clark is in his second season as head coach of Alvernia, going 1-9 in the first season of Golden Wolves football in 2018. This season, Clark has doubled his win total from the first year, going 2-4 thus far including earning his first MAC win last week. Clark, who is 3-13 as a head coach, has some ties to the King's football program, as his son Quincy is a starting returner and reserve running back for the Monarchs. 

Looking at Alvernia: Alvernia has the top rushing attack in the conference coming into the game on Saturday, rushing for 202.2 yards per game offensively. On the flip side, AU doesn't throw the ball a ton, and is 11th in the MAC in passing yardage per game with 143 a game. The Golden Wolves are second in the league in interceptions with seven, and also come into the contest as the highest penalized team in the MAC, posting on average 99.8 yards of penalties a game. Running back Malcom Carey leads the league with nine rushing TDs, and is third with 573 yards. 

Preseason Poll: The Monarchs were picked to finish tied for sixth this season with crosstown rival Wilkes University. Reigning champ Delaware Valley University was the favorite among the coaches to repeat, while Stevenson was picked second. Lycoming, Widener and Misericordia rounded out the top five. Alvernia was picked 11th.

Looking Fresh: King's will be in gold pants with red jerseys and gold helmets Saturday afternoon in Doylestown.

Single Digit Tough:  The Monarchs award single digits based on merit, and recently named two more as Single Digit players. Junior Gabe Boccella was honored with the accolade and will wear #8, while lineman Joe Damiano also earned the honor. Due to NCAA regulations, linemen can not wear single digits, but Damiano will wear a single digit in practice. With those two, King's now has seven Single Digit Tough players: Sallavanti (1), Horn (2), Downes (3), McCall (4), Shelton (5), Boccella (8), Damiano (66), Swartz (67). 

Captains This Weekend: The Monarchs will send out seniors Peter Swartz and Jordan Downes, along with juniors Elijah Demosthene and Myles Shelton for the coin toss vs. Alvernia. 

A Look At The Monarchs: 

• The Monarch defensive unit continues to be among the best in the MAC and the nation, as King's lead the MAC in third-down conversion rate against, ranking 22nd nationally at 26.6. 
• King's continues to be very disciplined, ranking second in the MAC and 13th nationally in penalty yards per game with just 33.4. 
• KC has done a solid job of limiting turnovers this season, especially on fumbles. King's has lost just one fumble all season, which is the lowest number in the MAC and 16th in Division III.
• Junior Jordan Downes comes into Saturday's game second in Division III in all-purpose yardage with 192.80 yards per game, while ranking ninth in the nation in rushing yards per game with 130.6. 
• Before last game, Downes moved into fourth place on the all-time rushing list at King's, passing Kyle McGrath and his 2,347 yards from 2011-14. He now sits with 2,408 for his career, trailing only Damon Saxon (2,670, 1997-2000), Jim DeMaise (2,808, 1996-99) and Richard Jackson (5,365, 2001-04). Junior H-back Brandon Cohen has been featured this season in the offense, and has caught a touchdown in each of the last two games and has at least three catches in every game this year. He also leads the nation in catches for a TE. 
• Junior Gabe Boccella is fourth in the conference in yards with 447 this year, while his 89.4 yards per game is currently third in the league. 
• Sophomore Tyler Moore ranks third in the conference in passing yardage with 1,163, and his completion percentage of 63.6 is second in the MAC and 19th in Division III. 
• Freshman Justin Timonte ranks second in the conference in field goals per game with 1.20, which is 18th in the country.
• King's tackle totals aren't as high as they would be normally since they're getting off the field so well, but Mando Sallavanti and Charles McCall each are ranking in the top 17 in tackles in the mack with 7.0 and 6.6, respectively. 
• Izu Mozie and Jassiem Lettsome have been a force in the middle of the line for King's, especially against the run. Those two have helped lead a defense allowing only 94.8 rushing yards per game, second-best in the MAC and 47th in the nation.
• Junior Jaret Horn still leads the MAC and is in the top five in the country on turnovers created with four interceptions, one fumble recovered and one fumble forced.
• Freshman Joe Carchio has carved out a nice role recently, playing nearly the whole game at safety last week while also taking over at punter. He has had eight of his 17 punts either fair caught or downed inside the 20. 
• King's has held its opposition to under 30 points in each of the first five games this season, the first time this has happened since the 2002 season when King's went 9-3 and advanced to the Second Round of the NCAA Tournament. It's also just the second time all-time this has happened. 
• This year, the Monarch defensive unit has allowed just seven points total when opposition has started a offensive drive after a kick-off before the team's own 30-yard line. 
• The Monarchs are drawing the third-most fans for home games this season on average, posting 2,967 a game in McCarthy Stadium. Only Widener (4,376) and Lebanon Valley (3,400) are drawing more. 

King's Two-Deep Injury Report: No significant injuries on the two-deep. 

A Look Ahead: King's heads back on the road for its second-to-last road game of the season, traveling to the Old Line State for the first time in two years to take on Stevenson University in Owings Mills, MD Saturday, October 26 at 1 p.m. in Middle Atlantic Conference play.