Cumberlands Set to Face 11th-Ranked Tigers

By Press release submission

Oct 25, 2022

For the second straight season, the Patriots will be making the trip up I75 to face 11th-ranked Georgetown Saturday afternoon with a 1:30 p.m. kickoff at Toyota Stadium. The Patriots are looking for their first win over the Tigers since November 2, 2019 when they defeated Georgetown 14-7.

"Our focus is this week has been to continue to make improvements from week to week and the players are concentrating on the attention to details that we need in order to be success," said Head Coach Shan Housekeeper.

The Patriots enter the game with a 3-4 record overall looking to get back to .500 on the season. Georgetown comes into the week with a 5-1 record overall and 3-1 in conference play. The Tigers knocked off Pikeville 40-20 before their bye last week.

Continue to Make Special Plays

The Cumberlands special teams has continued to get strong over the past three weeks accounting for two block punts, two block field goals, and a block extra point. Leading that charge has been the reigning MSC Defensive Player of the Week Damon Byrnes-Mitchell, who has two block punts that resulted in Patriots touchdowns and a critical block field in the fourth quarter against Pikeville. Cumberlands five blocks lead the Mid-South Conference, while Byrnes-Mitchell is tied for the NAIA lead with three blocks on the year. Job Matossian has converted seven field on the season, while Harlin Brown can help UC win the field position game as he is averaging 38.51 yards per punt.

"Our coaching staff has done a great job of putting these players in the right positions and the players have excelled at finishing," said Coach Housekeeper.

Pressure the Quarterback

Georgetown is coming into the game averaging 226 yards through the air to help them reach 348 yards per game. The Patriots are going to have to continue to get pressure on the quarterback to force quick throws and give the UC secondary a chance to make plays. In last Saturday's game against Pikeville the Patriots had six players record at least seven tackles in the game, including three that had double-digit stops. The strong tackling couple with UC's ability to sack the opposition could make for a long day for the Tigers offense. Cumberlands is coming into this week with ranked seventh in the NAIA and second in the MSC with 24 sacks. Ten different Patriots have notched a sack on the season, including Cortez Brown, Myles Simon, and Kumi Sarpong Jr. who have each tallied 4.5 sacks to be ranked second in the conference.

"This group is really enjoying playing football and their passion for the game is shining through everyday," said Coach Housekeeper. "They continue to put in the effort every day and are executing at a high level."

Establish the Run

Cumberlands is averaging 92.0 yards per game on the ground this season with utilizing nine different rushers. Jamar Nuby, Martize Smith, and Phillip Garner have all surpassed the century mark on the year. Look for UC to establish their running game early and try to create holes for Nuby, Smith, and Devin Jones to break through to pick up chunks of yards and move the chains. Establishing the run will also open lanes in the passing game as UC looks to knock off their first ranked opponent of the season.

Live video of the game will be available here.

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