Yellow Jackets Travel to Fairmont State in Search of "Quality Win"

Saturday West Virginia State travels to Fairmont State for what shapes up to be a classic a football game kicking off at 4:00 p.m.

The Yellow Jackets (5-3 overall, 4-3 in MEC) have one of the top offenses in the Mountain East Conference. The Falcons (5-3, 5-2) have one of the best defensive units.

WVSU is fourth in the league standings, one game behind third place Fairmont State.

It is supposed to be a chilly late afternoon and the leaves have begun to turn in the Fairmont area.

So the weather, the records, and the offsetting strengths of the squads all point to a great gridiron confrontation.

"It's a classic," WVSU Head Coach John Pennington said, "an old school kind of match up with two gritty teams."

While he works to keep his players focused on the Falcons there is something else on the minds of Yellow Jacket fans.

Anyone who follows West Virginia State football at all knows how important having a winning season would be. This year's squad is sitting at 5-3 with three games to play.
With an 11 game schedule six wins is the magic number.

The last winning season came in 2008 when WVSU finished 7-3, the same record as the previous season. You have to go back to 1991 and 1992 to find another winning mark. Both of those squads ended up 6-4.

All told that is four winning seasons over a 35 year span.

Yellow Jacket football fans are past craving a winning season, being hungry for a winning season, even beyond starving for one.

The 2015 team came agonizingly close before finishing 5-6.

That squad was also 5-3 at one point and Pennington, who was offensive coordinator at the time, and several current Yellow Jacket players were part of that team.

And they are using that season as a cautionary tale.

"The best way to get to number six is to just focus on our job," Pennington said. "For us it's just about continuing to have the strong mindset we have had, to be who we are."

Who the Yellow Jackets are is one of the top offensive teams in the Mountain East Conference and the country. They are the best in the nation at finishing drives in the redzone having converted all 35 of their opportunities inside the 20.

They are a threat to throw the ball, averaging 271 yards a game through the air, or run it, 209 yards a game.

Senior quarterback Matt Kinnick is second in the league in passing with 268 yards a game. Freshman running back Calil Wilkins is second in the conference in rushing averaging 120.5 yards.

Wilkins has missed the last two weeks with a minor ankle injury but could return this week.

Senior Juawan Etheredge has played well in place of Wilkins running for 100 and 111 yards the last two contests.

Record breaking senior receiver Quinton Gray is averaging 7.25 catches and 81.1 yards. Sophomore Tyrell Henderson has shown that he will be ready to step into Gray's spot next season with several clutch catches.

If WVSU cannot throw or run the ball across the goal line junior kicker Aaron Ball is the most efficient in the conference at putting it between the uprights.

He has made 12 of 13 field goal attempts for a league best 92.3 percent accuracy.

The Yellow Jackets are a team with an improving defense.

WVSU leads the MEC in pass defense allowing only 165 yards a game.

Sophomore defensive back Kyle Alexander leads the MEC in individual pass defense breaking up 11 passes and intercepting one while sophomore Darius Goode leads the team with 66 tackles.

Fairmont State boasts the stingiest defense in the conference when it comes to allowing points. The Falcons are allowing opponents an average of just 17.2 points a game.

"They have a really good defense," Pennington said. "They have good personnel and it's an older group."

Senior linebacker Marcus Porter leads Fairmont State with 69 tackles.

The Falcons were picked to contend for the MEC title in the preseason coaches' poll.

"We want to beat a quality opponent," Pennington said. "We want a statement kind of win."

For the Yellow Jacket faithful any victory that guarantees a winning season will be just fine with them.

Click here to watch live --- https://team1sports.com/wvsuyellowjackets/

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