Mercer Football Faces No. 21/22 Samford Saturday

MACON, Ga. – Mercer's Homecoming and a welcome home game feeling was short-lived for Mercer as the Bears hit the road again this week with a Saturday tilt at No. 21/22 Samford in Birmingham, Alabama.

The Bears, who know all about traveling as they prepare for their seventh road game of the season, will face one of the nation's most vaunted passing attacks. Kickoff is set for 3:30 p.m. ET/2:30 p.m. CT as Mercer will face its third ranked opponent of the season.

Samford, which is looking to stay ranked and in the hunt for a playoff spot, hosts its own Homecoming this week.

GAMEDAY LINEUP
Date: Saturday, Nov. 12 | 3:30 p.m. ET/2:30 p.m. CT
Teams: Mercer (5-4, 3-3 SoCon) at Samford (6-3, 4-2 SoCon)
Location: Birmingham, Ala. | Seibert Stadium
Broadcast: ESPN3 | Watch ESPN
Broadcast Talent: Curt Bloom (play-by-play), Ben Neill (analyst), Hattie Breece (sideline)
Radio: Mercer Sports Network (Flagship: 97.3 FM The Bull Icons) | iHeartRadio
Radio Talent: Rick Cameron (play-by-play), Roger Jackson (analyst), Megan Trammell (sideline)
Live Stats: Stat Broadcast
Twitter Updates: @MercerFootball
Game Notes: Mercer | SoCon | Samford

Series History
The series between Mercer and Samford dates back to 1907, although it began under a different name of sorts (the school was founded as Howard College and renamed Samford in 1965). Fortune has favored the Bulldogs as Samford has won the last six meetings with Mercer being winless in the last seven meetings (the teams tied in 1936).

And on the Complete Opposite End of the Spectrum...
On three different occasions this season Mercer's defense has a triple option attack that has challenged its defense to stop the run. But this week will be a complete reversal of sorts as the Bears face a Samford team whose top three running backs have fewer carries this season than the Bears' three triple-option opponents (The Citadel, Georgia Tech, Wofford) recorded against Mercer this season.

Mercer Opponent	Carries vs. MER	Samford Player	Carries in 2016
Wofford	60	K'rondis Larry	60
The Citadel	52	Justin Curry	43
Georgia Tech	52	Roland Adams	35

Make it Three!
With a 21-13 win over East Tennessee State on Nov. 5, Mercer registered its third Southern Conference win of the season. The Bears, in just their third season of Southern Conference play, have improved their record in league games with each succeeding season.

Year	SoCon Record
2014	1-6
2015	2-5
2016	3-3

Learning How to Come From Behind
Also part of building a program, this Mercer team is learning how to rally when forced to. The Bears are 2-3 this season when trailing entering the fourth quarter. On its own that is not a great mark but considering the program was 0-15 when trailing at the end of the third quarter prior to this season, it seems that Mercer is refusing to lay down at any point in time.

Of Course, They've Had Practice
Of course, not getting discouraged early comes with plenty of practice for this year's team. Entering this week's contest, Mercer has trailed at halftime in seven of its nine games, posting a 3-4 record overall (three of those games were against ranked or FBS opponents).

Opponent	Halftime Score	Outcome
#15 The Citadel	3-21	L, 23-24
at Georgia Tech	7-21	L, 10-35
Tennessee Tech	10-21	W, 34-27
at #3 Chattanooga	3-38	L, 31-52
Western Carolina	3-7	W, 38-24
at Wofford	0-14	L, 21-31
East Tennessee State	7-13*	W, 21-13	(Mercer led at half, 7-0, but trailed 13-7 entering 4th Qtr)

Marquise Irvin Makes it Six in a Row for Six
With a 33-yard touchdown reception against East Tennessee State on Nov. 5, Mercer receiver Marquise Irvin marked his sixth consecutive game with a touchdown reception and scoring six points. A sophomore that scored two total touchdowns last season, Irvin did not reach the end zone in the first three games of the season but has crossed the plane into the end zone in every game since.

Irvin TD Receptions in 2016
Sept. 1	The Citadel	0
Sept. 10	at Georgia Tech	0
Sept. 17	Tennessee Tech	0
Oct. 1	at VMI	1
Oct. 8	at Chattanooga	1
Oct. 15	Western Carolina	1
Oct. 22	at Austin Peay	1
Oct. 29	at Wofford	2
Nov. 5	ETSU	1

How to Follow the Bears:
For complete coverage of Mercer Football, please follow the Bears on social media at @MercerFootball (Twitter), /MercerFootball (Facebook) and @MercerFootball (Instagram) or visit the official home of Mercer Athletics at MercerBears.com.

Mercer Football Faces No. 21/22 Samford Saturday

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Players Mentioned

Marquise Irvin

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Mercer University Athletics

Mercer Football Faces No. 21/22 Samford Saturday

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Marquise Irvin

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