The Game
Another impressive victory last Saturday against Wayne State has the Oilers riding high as they head into G-MAC play starting this Saturday, Sep. 21 against Lake Erie College. Findlay's home opener will kick off at noon in Donnell Stadium.

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Tickets
Tickets for Findlay vs Lake Erie

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Video streaming of the contest will be produced by UFTV and streamed on the Great Midwest Digital Network and is free of charge.

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Findlay Oilers (2-0, 0-0 G-MAC)
2024 Findlay Football Coaching Staff

For the first time since 2015, excluding the shortened spring 2021 season, the Oilers are off to a 2-0 start and there's no reason to think they'll be slowing down any time soon as those two wins have come on the road against quality opponents.

One of just two unbeaten teams left in the conference already, Findlay boasts the G-MAC's top offense at 39.5 points per game, scoring 11 touchdowns in two games, four more than Thomas More which is second in the league with eight scores. Defensively the Oilers are sixth in the league, allowing 25.5 points per game, although that number may be deceiving as many of those points have come late in the game when the contest was all but decided already.

The Oilers' offense has been lead by quarterback Matthew Rueve who has fit into the team's scheme flawlessly in his first year. Through two games, Rueve, the current Offensive Player of the Week in the league, leads the G-MAC in passing yards with 599 and is second with five touchdown passes. His QB efficiency rating is the best in the conference at 162.6.

Through the air, Findlay has proven to posses some of the best pass catchers in the conference as both Cam Childers and Redd Douglas have 125 or more receiving yards so far. They are just two of the weapons available to Rueve as Bryan Hunt, Mitch Nielsen, and Delon Hurt all pose threats to the LEC secondary.

Jayden Farmer and Makya Matthews have shared the load on the ground, both amassing 23 carries this season. Farmer has 97 yards while Matthews has 84 yards. Both have scored two rushing touchdowns.

On defense, Week 1 G-MAC Player of the Week Christion Stokes is the leading tackler with 20 stops including one tackle-for-loss. He also had his first Findlay interception last week against Wayne State. Linebackers Gavin DeGroat and Sam Weihruach have 14 tackles while Romaro Warren Jr., who has moved to the defensive line this season, has 12.

 
About the Opponent – Lake Erie Storm (1-1, 0-0 G-MAC)

A sixth coach in eight years has now taken the reigns in Painesville, Ohio as David Price is at the helm of the Lake Erie football program. With just 21 wins in the last ten years, a rebuild will take some serious work and buy-in from players and coaches alike. However, that is a task that Price is willing to take on and, through his previous experience, may be well suited for. Price comes to LEC after five years as defensive coordinator at Tiffin where he helped turn the Dragons into a perennial conference contender.

After taking a beating from #9 Ferris State in their season opener, the Storm found reason to believe in their home opener, walking off with a stunner against Post University, earning a 28-27 victory. Trailing 27-22 with just 38 seconds left in the game and two timeouts, Lake Erie needed to drive 75 yards and score a touchdown to earn the win. The Storm would reach the Eagles' 33-yardline with less than ten seconds to play. On the final play of the game, quarterback Alec Lewis found wide out Ali Lee Jr. in the front corner of the endzone, giving the Storm a one-point lead as time expired.

While a comeback win against Post, another school trying to build a winning culture, might not seem like a big deal to those outside the program, to those in it, that spark might be exactly what is needed to build belief in the locker room.

Lewis will handle the quarterbacking duties for LEC and, this year, is 22-of-40 for 258 yards and three scores. After struggling against Ferris St., Lewis had a solid game against Post, throwing for 208 yards and three touchdowns.

After losing first team all-conference wide receiver Jovohn Tucker from last year's roster, the Storm are now turning to redshirt junior Tae'Shaun Johnson. Johnson has eight catches for 85 yards and two scores thus far. On the ground, Nick Mosley is the leader with 26 attempts for 104 yards. The Storm do not have a rushing touchdown yet this year.

Defensively, Emarion Perkins leads the way with 19 tackles and 1.5 tackles-for-loss while Ronald Cutts has 13 tackles and Cameron Prater has 12. That unit is allowing a league-worst 41.5 points per game, however, and will have its' hands full with the league's top offense this week.

One player that will stand out is kicker Jaffer Murhphy, the current G-MAC Special Teams Player of the Week. Murphy is 4-of-5 on field goal attempts this year and, last week, kicked a league-record 53 yard field goal against Post. His leg can do even more as he has film on social media of himself splitting the uprights from 70 yards, albeit without a defense. From Marion, Iowa, Murphy has not played football until this year and transfered to LEC from Florida Gulf Coast where he was a forward on the soccer team.

All told, it is an uphill battle for the Storm this weekend in Donnell Stadium, but riding the thrill of a big win last week might be just the momentum they need to pull off another win in Week 3.

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