Seeking its first win in over a month, the Elon University football team will host No. 16 University of Richmond on Oct. 25 at Rhodes Stadium.

Richmond (5-2, 2-1 CAA) is riding a three-game winning streak heading into the game, picking up wins against Liberty University, the University of Albany and the University of Rhode Island.

The Spiders only losses this year have come to the University of Virginia of the Atlantic Coast Conference and the University of New Hampshire, ranked third in The Sports Network’s latest poll.

Elon sits at 1-6 and 0-3 in the Colonial Athletic Association, having lost four games in a row following its lone win of the season Sept. 20. Elon’s latest setback came at the hands of Stony Brook University, who defeated the Phoenix 20-3 Oct. 18.

The game marked the third time in seven games that Elon has failed to score a touchdown. The Phoenix moved the ball well at times against the top-ranked defense in the CAA, but once again struggled to produce points in the red zone.

SCOUTING THE RICHMOND OFFENSE

Richmond ranks first in the CAA in total offense. The Spiders are averaging 493 yards per game, tops in the CAA, and 37.1 points per game, good for third in the league.

Two of Richmond’s top performers on offense have recently been lost for the season, but the Spiders have not missed a beat.

Quarterback Michael Strauss, the school’s record holder in completions, yards and touchdown in a season, suffered a season-ending ankle injury during the team’s game against Albany Oct. 11.  Wide receiver Stephen Barnette, a preseason All-CAA selection who led the CAA in receiving in 2013, was lost for the season after suffering a season-ending knee injury Oct. 11.

Backup quarterback Michael Rocco has been more than serviceable for the Spiders, leading his team to a 37-0 romp over Rhode Island Oct. 18 on 17-of-31 passing for 162 yards and a touchdown.

Rocco is more experienced than your average backup. A transfer from the University of Virginia, Rocco started 21 games for the Cavaliers from 2011-2012 and ranks eighth in program history in career passing yards (4,731) and seventh in touchdown passes (27).

According to Elon head coach Rich Skrosky, it’s this depth that presents a unique challenge for the Phoenix defense.

“[Richmond has] a lot of personnel,” he said. “Their personnel is diverse enough where they could give you a lot of different packages and they can play different styles of offense. They’re not a team that can just throw the ball and just run the ball and that’s probably what stands out the most. They can beat you several ways.”

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Richmond uses its diversity of personnel to its advantage, often lining up in offensive sets with two tight ends or two running backs.  Other times, the Spiders will run a four-wide set, a luxury for a team with three wide receivers with over 35 catches.

“We going to have to do what we do best and that’s get after the quarterback and wreak havoc back there,” senior defensive lineman Dustin Ruff said.

SCOUTING THE RICHMOND DEFENSE

Though the Richmond offense gets the majority of the hype, the Spiders boast a quality defense as well.

Richmond ranks fourth in the CAA in rushing (147.3 yards per game) and passing (202.3 yards per game) defense. In comparison, Elon ranks ninth and fifth, respectively, in rushing and passing defense.

MORE: Offensive inconsistency haunts Phoenix

Skrosky described Richmond’s shutout of Rhode Island as a “lights-out” performance by the defense. The Spiders held Rhode Island to just 255 yards of offense and intercepted five passes on 28 passing attempts by quarterbacks Kolt Peavey and James Caparell.

With Elon senior quarterback Mike Quinn coming off a game against Stony Brook in which he threw three interceptions, execution on offense will once again be a key for the struggling offensive unit.

“We feel like we’re going out there and beating ourselves,” senior wide receiver Kierre Brown said.  “No one’s really beating us or stopping us, it’s more on our end with dropped passes, missed assignments, penalties on big downs, things that we can control. Coach always says, ‘Control the controllables,’ and that’s what we have to do to get better.”

PREDICTION

Richmond 34, Elon 13

Elon’s defense kept the team in the game against Stony Brook, coming up with stops when it needed to. But Richmond’s high-powered offense will be too much to handle for a defense that is forced to be on the field for much of the game due to offensive inconsistency.  The Phoenix offense should be able to find the end zone after knocking on the door seemingly all season, but it won’t be enough to keep up with the Spiders.