Shawn Lutz and Gary Dunn have already gotten a good look at each other’s teams.
Fortunately for Dunn, California University of Pennsylvania’s 28-7 victory Oct. 19 against Slippery Rock put his Vulcans on the path toward their first outright Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference West Division championship since 2016.
Lutz, meanwhile, was left to pick up the pieces and help his team forge on after having the Rock’s 16-game regular-season and 15-game PSAC West Division winning streaks snapped.
While they undoubtedly perceived their regular-season showdown differently, this weekend’s rematch between the two perennial powers in the NCAA postseason has left the coaches in agreement on the current state of their teams now nearly six weeks since they last met face to face at California’s venerable Adamson Stadium.
“We are both different,” said Lutz, now in his ninth season as head coach and 29th overall at Slippery Rock. “I mean, they kicked our butt in all phases. We hadn’t lost in conference in two years, and they got us.”
Now with two NCAA Division II playoff victories each in tow, No. 11 Slippery Rock (11-1) and No. 20 California (10-2) will meet again at 1 p.m. Saturday in the Super Region One championship game at Adamson Stadium.
The winner of the contest will advance to the NCAA semifinals where the winner of the Super Region Three championship game between No. 1 Ferris State (11-1) and Harding (12-1) will be waiting.
The Vulcans, Super Region One’s third seed, and the fourth-seeded Rock will be the first PSAC West Division teams to meet in the NCAA quarterfinals since Indiana University of Pennsylvania defeated Shippensburg, 52-7, in 1991.
“I think teams evolve as the season goes on,” said Dunn, now in his ninth season coaching his alma mater. “Teams grow and get better at some things and change, so we’re not putting a lot of stock in what happened in the first game. We know we’ve got a really, really good football team coming in here.
“We’re more focused on ourselves and what we can do good than maybe what Slippery Rock does.”
Both programs will bring their fair share of NCAA postseason pedigree to the matchup.
Slippery Rock is in the NCAA playoffs for the sixth consecutive season, which is the second longest active streak in the nation behind only Ferris State’s 10-year postseason run. The Rock has qualified for the NCAA playoffs eight times and is looking for its fifth semifinal appearance and first since 2019.
“I think it’s awesome,” said Lutz, whose team is in the Super Region One title game for the second consecutive season. “We know them. They know us. We recruit the same players. It’s what it’s all about. We’ve both had a tough path.
“We’re battled tested, both of us.”
California is also in the NCAA playoff field for the eighth time but is making its first appearance since 2017. The Vulcans are 3-1 in NCAA quarterfinal contests, which includes a streak of winning their Super Region three years in a row from 2007-09.
“We’re just trying to prepare well to play a really good football team on Saturday,” Dunn said. “Everyone around campus and our alumni are excited. We are trying to keep everything in perspective that we’ve got to go play 60 minutes.”
The matchup of quarterbacks will be at the forefront of Saturday’s game.
Slippery Rock senior Brayden Long was named a finalist this week for the Harlon Hill Trophy, which is annually given to the top Division II player in the nation. He is the first Rock player to be named a finalist for the award two seasons in a row.
The 6-foot-3, 220-pound quarterback has thrown for 2,918 yards, completing 65% of his passes, with 22 touchdowns and just four interceptions.
California will counter with 6-foot-5, 230-pound senior Davis Black, who has thrown for 2,858 yards, 20 touchdowns and just four interceptions, while also rushing for 366 yards and a team-high 12 scores.
“I think eliminating turnovers is going to be the key,” Dunn said. “They’re both senior quarterbacks. Their kid has had a heck of a career. All he’s done is win, and we’re going to have to try and find a way to create turnovers, and for us it’s about eliminating explosive plays. I think that’s where Slippery Rock does a really good job with their offense.”
Wide receivers Kylon Wilson, Mike Solomon and Logan Ramper provide explosive plays in the Rock offense, while tight end Kam Kruze, a West Allegheny product, also creates matchup problems for opposing secondaries.
Wilson has a team-high 621 yards with four touchdowns, Solomon has racked up 583 yards and seven touchdowns, Ramper has contributed 504 yards and three scores, and Kruze has added 313 yards and four touchdowns.
California’s offense also includes four strong receiving threats.
Junior wide receiver Eric Willis III has 1,006 yards and six touchdowns for the Vulcans to go along with Demonte Martin’s 490 yards and two touchdowns, D’Avay Johnson’s 488 yards and four scores and Omari Hopkins’ 344 yards and seven touchdowns.
“We’ve got to eliminate the big, explosion plays and really not turn over the ball like we did last week,” Lutz said. “I like what our offense is doing. We are going to spread them out and run the football. I think it’s really going to come down to, though, what quarterback – two great quarterbacks Brayden Long our guy, Davis Black theirs – who is going to have the best day and who is going to be able to eliminate the mistakes in the turnover game.”
Both teams feature a strong group of defensive playmakers who are capable of taking over the game.
Slippery Rock’s defensive line is led by defensive end Todd Hill, a Steel Valley product who transferred to the Rock this season after playing at NCAA Division I FBS Pitt and FCS Duquesne. The graduate student was named the PSAC West Division defensive player of the year and led his team with 69 tackles, 14½ for a loss, 6½ sacks, 13 quarterback hurries and 1 safety.
Linebacker Andrew Vince also provides a steady presence for the Rock, while cornerbacks Josh Stokes, McKeesport product Kanye Thompson and safety Eddie Faulkner IV, a Shady Side Academy graduate, provide the capability for explosive plays on the back end.
California also counters with a strong front seven, led by senior linebackers John Hutchinson and Armani Caraballo.
Hutchinson has 56 tackles, eight for a loss, with 2½ sacks, while Caraballo has racked up 31 tackles, 11½ for a loss, with nine sacks.
The Vulcans’ secondary has plenty of playmakers as well. Sophomore defensive back Khalil Taylor, a Westinghouse product, has a team high 64 tackles with two sacks and an interception, while Clairton graduate Dominic Solomon Jr. has 49 tackles and two interceptions and Obama Academy product Rashan Murray has chipped in 34 tackles and four interceptions.
“To say that you won the region, you’re one game away from the next step of a national championship, would just be an honor,” Lutz said.
NCAA Division III
Fresh off winning its first NCAA playoff game since 2022, No. 13 Carnegie Mellon will travel to face No. 5 Mount Union for a third-round contest at noon Saturday at Kehres Stadium in Alliance, Ohio. The Raiders defeated John Carroll, 42-7, in the second round, while the Tartans knocked off Centre, 24-15, in the second round.
Mount Union, which won the Ohio Athletic Conference championship, qualified for the NCAA Division III playoffs for a record 35th time and is looking to win its 14th national championship.
Carnegie Mellon is in the NCAA playoff field for the ninth time, which includes three of the past four seasons.
The winner of Saturday’s game advances to face the winner of a third-round game between Salisbury and Randolph-Macon in the NCAA quarterfinals.
Mount Union enters Saturday’s game with an offense featuring the nation’s top running back, while Carnegie Mellon counters with one of the country’s top defenses.
The Tartans finished the regular season second in the nation in total defense and fifth against the run, conceding opposing offenses just 45.4 yards per game on the ground.
Raiders running back Tyler Echeverry has rushed for 1,294 yards and averages 8.5 yards per carry. The 5-foot-10, 200-pound senior’s 22 rushing touchdowns lead the nation.
Mount Union quarterback Noah Beaudrie has thrown for 1,780 yards, completing 69% of his passes, with16 touchdowns and only two interceptions.
Carnegie Mellon’s defense is led by one of the top linebackers in the country in Robert Coury.
The graduate student led the Tartans with 71 tackles, 17 for a loss, with five sacks. His 360 tackles, 63½ for a loss, are the most in program history.
Linebackers Thomas Coury, along with Evan Roper and Moon product Logan Young, also lead the veteran Carnegie Mellon defense along with defensive backs Jacob Franze and Peters Township product Adrian Williams.
John is a copy editor and page designer at the Post-Gazette, but he's currently on strike. Email him at jsanta@unionprogress.com.