OLIVET NAZARENE AT QU

When: 1 p.m. Saturday

Where: QU-Stadium

Records: Olivet Nazarene -- 2-3 (1-0 in Mid-States Football Association Midwest Division). QU --2-3 (1-0 MSFA Midwest Division).

Coaches: Olivet Nazarene -- Gary Newsome (39-42 at Olivet Nazarene, eighth season; overall, same). QU -- Bill Terlisner (35-56 at Quincy, ninth season; overall, same).

Last meeting: Oct. 6, 2007 -- Olivet Nazarene 27, QU 24. Matt Soulia's 31-yard field goal as time expired gave Olivet Nazarene a win in Bourbonnais. QU's Eric Broughton made a 25-yard field goal with just over four minutes left to tie the game. Quarterback Craig Moore threw three touchdown passes -- two to Chris Jenkins.

All-time series: Olivet Nazarene leads 4-1.

As the fans see it: According to those registered for the "Are You Smarter Than The Sports Guys" contest at www.whig.com, 85 percent favor QU.

Tough part over?: Coming into the season, it looked like the Hawks' scheduled was front-loaded with tough teams. The combined record of the Hawks' first five opponents is 14-10. The last half of the schedule doesn't necessarily look like its smooth sailing for the Hawks. The Hawks' six remaining foes have a combined record of 15-15. QU has two ranked opponents left on their schedule. QU plays at No. 22 St. Francis (Ill.) on Oct. 25 and plays host to No. 17 Saint Ambrose (3-2) on Nov. 8.

More home cooking: The Hawks' only win in the series against the Tigers came at QU-Stadium in 2006 -- the first game between the schools in 15 years. The Hawks won 35-9 that afternoon, part of a string of recent home success.

QU's senior class is 13-4 in home games and has never had a losing home record. The Hawks have just two home games left after this week, making Saturday's game important if it wants to continue that string of winning seasons at home.

Tiger tidbits: After two MSFA crossover games -- a 61-3 loss to St. Xavier and a 43-3 loss to Malone -- the Tigers started league play with a 28-12 win at Iowa Wesleyan. Olivet Nazarene is balanced on offense, averaging 136 yards on the ground and 132 yards passing. Marshall Fraley, who had 194 yards in last week's win at Iowa Wesleyan, is seventh in the MSFA in rushing with 406 yards and two TDs.

Hawks happenings: Senior linebacker Jacob Zsuppon leads the MSFA with 56 tackles. He's just 23 tackles away from taking over as the school's all-time leader in the category.

Junior kicker Alex Beard is the most accurate kicker in the MSFA, making 75 percent of his field goals (6 for 8).

— Don O'Brien