After picking up its first win of the season Sept. 20 against the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, the Elon University football team will head to South Carolina Sept. 27 to face No. 3 Coastal Carolina University.
This marks the beginning of a tough stretch of games for the Phoenix. Of Elon’s nine remaining opponents, seven are either ranked or received votes in this week’s top-25 rankings released by The Sports Network.
The Chanticleers (4-0) moved up two spots in the rankings to No. 3 in the Football Championship Subdivision, the highest ranking in program history.
At his weekly luncheon held on Tuesday afternoons in Burlington, Elon head coach Rich Skrosky said he was asked if he sees any weaknesses in Coastal Carolina. His response following Tuesday’s practice was pretty clear.
“[Coastal Carolina doesn’t really have] any weaknesses,” Skrosky said. “They’re playing hard, they’re playing with confidence. They’ve been in big games and went far in the playoffs last year so we’re going to have to have an ‘A’ game to be competitive with them.”
The Chanticleers are averaging 35 points per game while giving up just 13 through their first four games. Coastal Carolina has displayed a balanced offense thus far, averaging 211 rushing yards per game and 199.2 yards per game through the air.
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While the numbers speak for themselves, Skrosky mentioned the way in which Coastal Carolina is using its weapons. The Chanticleers leading receiver, sophomore Bruce Mapp, has hauled in 21 passes through four games, but the second and third receivers on the team have caught 16 and 13 balls, respectively. This presents a unique challenge for an Elon defense that held Charlotte to 13 points and intercepted three passes.
“We flew around,” senior linebacker Jonathan Spain said of the defense’s performance against Charlotte. Everyone was running to the ball. The quarterback threw us some passes but we were disrupting up front with the D-line. Everyone was just flying around having fun and executing.”
The game will be taking place at Brooks Stadium, the home of Coastal Carolina, which is another obstacle the Phoenix will have to overcome. According to Skrosky, though, being able to play in a hostile road environment all comes down to preparation.
“Any time you prepare yourself for that situation, you’re able to keep your composure,” Skrosky said. “When you don’t prepare for it, you don’t [maintain composure]. We do everything we can to get [the players] in the right frame of mind as well as in the right shape physically and schematically.”
For Elon senior quarterback Mike Quinn, the key is to block out unwanted distractions.
“Once it’s game day and once it’s ready to go, it’s just us as teammates out on the field,” Quinn said. “It’s just minimizing the outside clutter that gets in people’s heads to make them play worse.”
For the second straight week, Elon football will be broadcast on television. Evan Lepler and Nate Ross will have the call this week on the American Sports Network for the 7 p.m. kickoff.
About Coastal Carolina.....
—Coastal Carolina is 4-0 on the season and ranked No. 3 in both the Coaches’ and media polls.
—The Chanticleers beat Florida A&M University 48-3 on the road this past week.
—Joe Moglia is in his third season as head coach of the Chanticleers. He has an overall record of 24-8 and was named Big South Coach of the Year for the 2012 season.
—Coastal Carolina won two playoff games in 2013 before falling to top-ranked North Dakota State in the quarterfinals and finishing with a national ranking of No. 7.
—The lone mutual opponent between Elon University and Coastal Carolina is North Carolina A&T State University. The Phoenix lost 17-12 to the Aggies Sept. 13, while the Chanticleers beat the Aggies 31-30.
—Elon and Coastal Carolina played at Rhodes Stadium Sept. 28, 2013, with the Chanticleers winning 53-28.
—Coastal Carolina is averaging 35.0 points per game and allowing just 13.0 points per game.
—The Chanticleers have outscored opponents 51-10 in the first quarter. De’Angelo Henderson leads Coastal Carolina’s ground attack, averaging 124.5 yards per game with six touchdowns.
—Quarterback Alex Ross has completed 67 percent of his passes for an average of nearly 200 yards per game with three touchdowns.
—Quinn Backus leads the Chanticleers with 38 total tackles, while also tallying two sacks.