Rock holds Cheyney scoreless in home opener

Slippery Rock football opened the renamed Mihalik-Thompson Stadium Saturday night in great fashion by rolling to a 54-0 shutout of Cheyney University.

This was the second game in a row the Rock has scored 50 plus points as a team.

Head coach George Mihalik was not surprised with how Saturday's game went and got what he expected with the results.

"We knew they'd come out and play us hard," Mihalik said. "The start of the game wasn't a surprise for us. We knew if we could get a score up on the board, we could take control of the game."

Rock quarterback Cody Endres was 13-for-23 for 241 yards and threw his first touchdown of the season.

"Most important, as always, is we got the win," Endres said. "I felt a lot more comfortable with the offense this week."

Running back Akeem Satterfield had a big game as he rushed for 119 yards on 18 carries and scored three touchdowns on the ground.

"It was a great accomplishment," Satterfield said. "Every game I play in, I try to give it my all. My line did well and so did my receivers. I'm just blessed to be on this team."

The Rock defense also continued its strong play against Cheyney by holding them to just 104 yards of offense.

A blocked punt by senior Brandon Watters got the defense's third touchdown in two weeks, and Watters also got his second interception of the year.

The Green and White travel to West Chester this weekend for a 1 p.m. Saturday matchup against the Golden Rams.

West Chester will be SRU's final non-conference game before facing Indiana University of Pennsylvania Saturday, Sept. 24.

Quarterback Cody Endres has played well in his debut season with the Rock and his focus remains the same going into this Saturday.

"It's going to be the same type of play as it has been the past two weeks," Endres said. "If we come out and execute our assignments and do what we have done the past two weeks, we will be fine. My main focus is to put the offense in position for the best play possible."

West Chester is 0-2 on the season with its losses coming against the University of Delaware, which is ranked No. 7 in the FCS, and the University of New Haven, which won the Northeast-10 championship last season.

The Rock defense has played very well to start the season and will need to remain focused this week against West Chester, according to Mihalik.

"There is a bigger challenge this week because of the balance," Mihalik said. "When you hold a team to 104 yards of total offense, especially in this day and age, it's an impressive feat. We looked to hold Cheyney to second or third and long situations. West Chester runs a no huddle and is more up-tempo. We are going to have to look for more than just getting them in long down situations."

Coach Mihalik is expecting his playmakers to contribute as they have the first two weeks of the season in this test against a well-balanced West Chester team.

"This will be a good test for our team as a whole," Mihalik said. "We expect our top tier players to play well every game and this is nothing different."

West Chester's key playmakers on offense are receiver LaRonn Lee and running back Rondell White.

Stopping these players will be the main focus for the defense, according to Mihalik.

"Unlike Cheyney, West Chester is a much more balanced offense," Mihalik said. "They have threats in the pass and run and we just have to keep them from using the entire field."

Junior running back Akeem Satterfield is planning on continuing his strong play from the Cheyney game.

"I am aiming for about 150 yards and two touchdowns," Satterfield said. "I'm also looking to contribute in the receiving game, as well."

If SRU wins against West Chester and Indiana University of Pennsylvania beats Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania, both teams will be undefeated in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference opener at Mihalik-Thompson Stadium.