Tiffin University (5-2, 4-1 G-MAC) takes on 20th-ranked Ashland (6-1, 5-0) in a pivotal conference showdown at its annual Homecoming game Oct. 25 at 1 pm at Frost Kalnow Stadium.

Tiffin holds a 3-9 career mark against the Eagles but are 2-2 over the last four meetings. Last year they fell in a close 21-12 game on the road. With the exception of 2023's 55-30 TU blowout, the games have been close. Tiffin holds a 114-100 scoring edge over those four games.

LAST TIME OUT

Tiffin University had a massive first half at Thomas More, scoring 42 points en route to a 45-10 road victory. Tiffin's defense controlled the tempo throughout the game, holding the Saints to just 5 of 17 third-down conversions and 254 total yards of offense. The Dragons racked up 425 yards including 253 through the air. They also totaled 45 points with just 21:46 of possession time.

ASHLAND NOTES

Cameron Blair is the Eagles' signal caller. He has completed 110 of 170 passes for 1,237 yards with seven touchdowns and five interceptions.  

The Eagles have 16 rushing touchdowns through seven games, the most in the G-MAC. Ty'aris Stevenson has 73 carries for 361 yards with six touchdowns. Willtrell Hartson has 66 carries 254 yards with two touchdowns. QB Cameron Blair has 46 carries for 185 yards with three touchdowns. Orlando Kamara has 49 carries for 156 yards with three touchdowns.  

At receiver, D.J. Harvey leads the way with 26 catches for 252 yards and has one touchdown. Jent Joseph has 19 catches for 229 yards with one touchdown. Jamari Croom has 16 catches for 219 yards with one touchdown. Jonathan Merimee has 13 catches for 181 yards with two touchdowns. Other top receivers include Brock Henne (6-155-1), Luke Brenner (9-85), and Willtrell Hartson (11-53). 

The Eagles' return game is strong. Three different punt returners have one touchdown, and Riely Weiss leads the way with 12 returns for 125 yards.  

Defensively, Elisha Baldridge leads the team in both solo tackles (21), total tackles (42), quarterback hurries (3), and forced fumbles (2). Ben Holzopfel has 39 tackles and 2.5 tackles for loss. Jack Talkington has 36 tackles, 7 tackles for loss, and 3 sacks.  
Michael Shimek leads both the team and G-MAC in sacks with 10 and also has 10 tackles for loss along with 24 tackles. E.J. Teah has 22 tackles and leads the team with two interceptions. Izzy Vasquez has 23 tackles, one interception, and two pass break ups.  

A total of 22 different Eagles have at least 0.5 tackles for loss so far. 

Manaki Watanabe handles the kicking and is the reigning G-MAC Special Teams Athlete of the Week. He's 24 for 24 on PATs and 8 of 9 on field goals.  

Jaden Cook has punted 29 times for 1,210 yards and has pinned 10 inside the 20.  

The Eagles average 30 points per game offensively and allow just 13.1 defensively. Ashland's defense is the No. 1 unit in NCAA Division II in total defense, giving up just 210.6 yards per game, and is tied for the most sacks in the country with 30. 

TIFFIN NOTES

Quarterback Alex Johnson is by far and away leading the G-MAC in passing yards per game, averaging 273.9 and his 20 passing touchdowns are also the most in the conference. Overall, Johnson is 147 for 212 with 1,917 passing yards, 20 touchdowns, and seven interceptions.  

Running back Ronald Blackman leads the team and G-MAC in rushing, averaging 87.8 yards per game. Blackman has 99 carries for 527 yards with three touchdowns. Tyrese Banks-Dorn has 46 carries for 232 yards with three touchdowns. Nick Johnson has 19 carries for 100 yards. Isaac Bunts has 18 carries for 54 yards. Daniel Weems has 15 carries for 32 yards. 

Ethan Holbrook leads the team in catches (28), receiving yards (395), and receiving touchdowns (9). Emari White has 22 catches for 344 yards with three touchdowns, and Blackman has 20 catches for 235 yards with one touchdown. Other pass catchers include Will Linkhart (18-180-1), Banks-Dorn (15-132), Jaedyn McKinstry (10-206-1), Joey Zalewski (17-164-3), Javier Wills (4-135-1), and Josiah Raber (7-104).   

Defensively, Jacob Tueimeh leads the team in solo tackles (37) and total tackles (62) and has forced two fumbles. Malik Baker has 36 tackles, two interceptions, seven pass break ups, and one forced fumble. Isaiah Funches-Foster has 34 tackles and one interception. Khris Walton has 32 tackles and leads the team in both sacks (5.5) and tackles for loss (7).  

Ethan Evers is the reigning G-MAC Defensive Athlete of the Week following his pick six in the win at Thomas More last week. Evers has two interceptions, 1.5 tackles for loss, and 28 tackles. Aidan Fischer has 27 tackles.  

Dennis Crawford leads the team with nine pass break ups and has 21 tackles. Uzonna Nzekwe has 3 sacks and 6 tackles for loss. Kevin Hornbeak has 5.5 tackles for loss and 2.5 sacks.  

Placekicker Ben Rudolph is 29 for 30 on PATs and 6 for 8 on field goals. Punter Joseph Weiers leads the G-MAC in average yards per punt with 44.2. He's punted 26 times for 1,150 yards and has pinned 11 inside the 20-yard with six punts of over 50 yards. His longest punt of 69 yards is also the top mark in the conference.  

The Dragons have the highest scoring offense in the conference, averaging 33.7 yards per game. The defense is fifth in the conference, allowing 17.1 points per game.