What to know about upcoming matchup with MEC playoff contender Charleston

This exciting conference matchup will host the two best teams in the MEC. As the Frostburg State Bobcats will travel to Charleston West Virginia, and play the Eagles on Saturday at 1 p.m.  Both teams hold 6-1 records with five wins coming from conference play for each team. Charleston crowned themselves as early season leaders after tallying six straight wins and scoring over 50 points in four of those victories. In week six Charleston lost to a very gritty Fairmont State team that holds a 6-2 record. Charleston threw two interceptions that were returned for touchdowns, and four field goals before giving up a goal-line touchdown in the last ten seconds.

Frostburg State is on a three-game winning streak after beating West Virginia State 28-14 on a Thursday night game. Frostburg lost to a conference rival Notre Dame in week four and has since beaten Concord and UNC Pembroke before grabbing their third against West Virginia State. Frostburg has not put up the numbers Charleston’s offense has but has a good resume through seven weeks. Frostburg’s offense has scored more than 27 points in five of their seven games. This offense averages just over 380 yards with more emphasis on the running game.  The defense has held opponents offenses to an average of 15.7 points with two teams being held to under ten points.

A big emphasis will need to be on penalties and red zone defense. This Frostburg defense allows teams to score on 68% of their red zone attempts. With an explosive Charleston offense, it is inevitable that they will reach the red zone let alone the endzone. The Bobcats give up 57 yards to penalties which is more than the teams they have faced on average. Head coach Eric Wagoner needs to emphasize composure to his team. A victory for the Bobcats will put them on top of the MEC standings and give them a legitimate shot at the playoffs this year. To do that Frostburg will need to orchestrate its best offensive game this year. And in order to do that, Graham Walker and the offense will need to convert on third down. This is something the offense has struggled with, converting at a 37% rate on third down is not efficient enough for a team to be considered the best. If this offense can’t convert red zone trips it will need Dayne Koontz to step up and make field goals, something he has struggled to do this year. Dayne was named to first team all MEC in 2022 and has not lived up to his hype. He is making field goals at a 46% rate and has missed seven this year; he missed eight total in 2022.

Frostburg will travel to Charleston West Virginia on Saturday, October 28 to play the Eagles at 1 p.m. Use the link below to watch the game on Charleston’s website.

https://vcloud.blueframetech.com/broadcast/embed/588412