The Davidson Wildcats (0-1) will visit the Stetson Hatters (0-0) at Spec Martin Memorial Stadium on Saturday.
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The game (1 p.m. ET start time) won’t be on TV, but anyone in the US can watch Davidson vs Stetson football live on ESPN+ right here:
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Davidson vs Stetson Preview
Both teams begin their six-game conference schedules with this matchup, although Davidson does have one game under its belt. The Wildcats lost their opener to Elon, 26-23 back on February 20.
The triple-option offense incorporated by the Wildcats managed to win the time of possession battle, but they failed to score more than a field goal in the second half. Davidson started out hot, scoring 20 points in the second quarter, but managed just three after that, and that made all the difference. Wildcats quarterback Tyler Phelps went 14-20 for 156 yards and a touchdown in the loss.
“I’m incredibly proud of our guys,” head coach Scott Abel noted after the game, “I think we truly expected to win this game once we got into the fight … Midway through that first half our guys expected to win. And that’s exactly what this program has turned into. And for that I’m incredibly proud of them, but we’ve got to learn how to finish these games and finish these moments, but there’s so much to take away.”
On the other side, the Hatters will be playing for the first time since November 2019, when they went 7-4. Stetson averaged 32 points a game, and gave up 26.2 per contest on defense, with offensive production being key to the team’s success. When scoring 27 or more points that year, they went 7-0. They were well-rounded, scoring 22 touchdowns on the ground and 21 through the air, with the running game being their strong suit.
Hatters coach Roger Hughes noted this week that he and his staff have tried to take the uniqueness of the offseason and turn it into a positive for the team. Taking advantage of the NCAA giving players an extra year of eligibility, Hughes thinks he can bring more young talent to the team while developing the players he has.
“It’s really one of those things where we can develop as much as we can out of the younger players,” the Hatters coach said.
“We’ve got to be smarter as coaches,” Hughes said. “If we do it appropriate, I think we can be pretty successful. … I think we have an opportunity to possibly get to some people who still are football fanatics but haven’t had a chance to watch us because they’re driving to Gainesville or Tallahassee or Miami.”
The Wildcats handled the Hatters the last time these two teams met, winning 42-14 in 2019. Davidson has improved greatly on the defensive side of the ball in particular since then, however, so the game shouldn’t be so lopsided this time around.