Week 6 Preview: North Greenville
North Greenville University, GSC (D2)
Broadcast: FLOSPORTS 7 PM EST/6 PM CST
When We Last Saw NGU
2021 Record: 3-2 (0-1)
North Greenville, the newest member of the GSC, was at home last weekend falling 42-21 in a bit of a surprise loss to Mississippi College. The Choctaws, known for their triple option offense, ran right through the Crusaders in Tigerville, to the tune of 414 yards and 5 TD on a grinding 5.7 yards per rush. For NGU’s part, they got a middling game from Kaelen Riley (14-24 137 yards 2 TD 1 INT), and 122 yards rushing on 23 carries. What North Greenville does have on offense is an absolute star at RB, Dre’ Williams, who had 100 yards and 1 TD rushing along with 46 yards and another TD receiving last week. He exploded up the middle for a runaway 60+ yard TD on Saturday and added a 19 yard reception for TD in the second half. On the season North Greenville has had one of the better rushing offenses in the GSC, averaging 188 yards per game which currently ranks third in the GSC. They have topped 100 yards rushing in each game, excluding sack yardage, with a 427 yard explosion against Erskine two weeks ago and eclipsing 100 vs FCS Citadel the week before. The Crusaders, however have one of the least productive passing offenses in the conference averaging 202 yards per game which is 6 out of 8 in the GSC and 6.8 yards per attempt, which is last in conference.
NGU’s leading passer Riley is 70 for 120 859 yards 9 TD 3 INT, but only played 4 games, missing the Erskine contest. The Crusaders haven’t topped 200 yards in the air for a game since the first two weeks of the season against Limestone and Newberry. Dre’ Williams leads the way not only running the ball but also in receptions, receiving yards, and TD, with Matthew Martin (8 receptions 193 yards 2 TD) on top for the Wide Receivers in yards, TD, and average. Defensively, North Greenville plays a true 3-4 defense, with two thumpers in the middle. That linebacking duo of Eddie Martin and De’Iveion Donald rank 5th and 9th in total tackles in the GSC respectively. Up front, NGU is not very big on the Line, with just five players listed at 280 or heavier, and only three players 6-3 or taller. They haven’t gotten to the QB much with a league worst 4 sacks on the season, and rank near the bottom of the conference in most defensive categories, including last in rushing yards per game allowed, and 2nd to last in defensive passing efficiency. To their credit, they have faced two really difficult offenses in FCS Citadel and Mississippi College, who both run an option attack that can be very tricky to defend. Some of their defensive stats are conflated by the fact that those two teams combined for over 700 yards rushing in two games, while they’ve held each of Erskine, Newberry, and Limestone to under 150 on the ground.
Three Players to Know
Sophomore Dre’ Williams, Running Back 5-10 185
2021 Stats: 67 carries 534 yards 4 TD 31 catches 283 yards 3 TD
Williams is a big play waiting to happen at Running Back, and the first real weapon at that position the Argonauts have faced in 2021. Through five games, he has three 100 yard outings and runs of 94, 84, and 62. He leads the conference in rushing yards by more than 100 yards over UWF’s own Shomari Mason, and his 8.0 yards per carry average is 2nd among running backs. He is a dangerous weapon in the passing game as well, scoring touchdowns in three different games, and snagging a season long 48 yarder and another 44 yard catch for a TD against Newberry in a 155 receiving yard effort. As an offensive weapon Williams leads the conference in All-Purpose yards with 163.4 per game, almost 40 yards per game more than #2 UWF WR David Durden with 125.3. Last week Williams was really the lone bright spot for NGU contributing 146 of their 254 (57%) yards from scrimmage.
For the ‘21 season, Williams has 17 explosive plays (definition varies, I use 10+ yards rushing or 15+ yards receiving) in 98 touches, including 8 of over 20 yards, and 5 explosive TDs. He is a different kind of backfield weapon than UWF has seen this season, and only has two games of less than 100 yards from scrimmage in his career, so UWF will probably look to take away the run and dare NGU to throw the ball. Stopping the talented Running Back will fall largely on Linebackers Campbell and Williams (more below).
Grad. Matthew Martin, Wide Receiver 6-0 180
2021 Stats: 8 Receptions 193 yards 2 TD
The former Charleston Southern player doesn’t get a ton of looks, but makes the most out of what he does. Over the last two seasons 23% of his receptions (6/26) went for 30 or more yards. This year he is their leading Wide Receiver in yardage and has 2 of the WR group’s 4 TD, despite being third in receptions among WR. His 24.1 yards per reception is 3rd in the conference. He is a guy who can really stretch the field, and he popped once in the games I watched, catching a 40 yard TD against MC last weekend.
The Argos gave up a lot of yards through the air last week, with three DSU pass catchers topping 75 yards on the day. They’re going to have to bounce back from a sub-standard performance and try and limit big plays from Martin. Cornerback Marcus Clayton has been relatively quiet this year, but if they need to go speed on speed, that’ll be the matchup.
RS Freshman De’Iveon Donald, Middle Linebacker 6-0 255
2021 Stats: 29 tackles (10 solo) 2.5 TFL
D0nald is a massive Inside Linebacker at 255, who is second on the team in tackles and third solo tackles. He missed the Citadel game, which could have been a big game for him in terms of tackles, since they run triple option. His 7.2 tackles per game is tied for 4th in the GSC and he is 9th overall despite missing the one contest.
UWF has been able to pretty successfully run the ball, and outside of two games against triple option offenses, NGU has been pretty solid against the run, holding Newberry and Erskine to their second worst games of the season. This will be an interesting read for the Argonauts, because they’re probably going to make this guy and his partner Martin run a lot. Will they be able to hold up if they’re having to chase UWF’s Backs around the front?
Matchup of the Week
Linebackers Shea Campbell and Stephon Williams vs Running Back Dre’ Williams
Williams is the best player on the North Greenville roster, stop him and the rest of their offense is going to fall apart. He was really good in 2019 in just 4 games, and has picked up where he left off keeping pace with his 163 All-Purpose yards per game average over the first half of 2021. On defense, West Florida hasn’t given up many yards to a single player rushing this season, McNeese State’s Huderson’s 73 yards is the season high by an individual against the Argos. Williams is a modern day RB, he can run between the tackles, he can make guys miss on the outside, he has the speed to pull away from the secondary, but really what makes him special is his ability to contribute in the passing game. He has a 155 yard receiving game this season, to go along with three 100+ yard rushing efforts. In that 155 yard game he caught 12 passes against Newberry, including two of more than 40 yards.
Run defense always starts with the Defensive Line, but the two Inside Linebackers are going to have to fill the gaps and finish tackles around the line of scrimmage. So far this season Campbell (28 tackles 13 solo 2 sack 2 TFL) is second on the team in tackles, and has been pretty stalwart for the West Florida defense. His partner Williams (21 tackles 5 solo 2.5 sacks 4.0 TFL), a transfer from Valdosta State, leads the team in TFL. Because of Williams’ ability to turn plays into huge gains, cleaning up everything around the line is going to be crucial for the defense. The early game tackling needs to be better than it was last week, especially if they’re having to deal with Williams in space in the passing game.
The most likely way that North Greenville is going to be able to hang with West Florida is if they can get Williams going early, when the Argos have been susceptible on defense to giving up yards and points. Don’t be surprised if NGU has Williams significantly above pace for his typical usage in the first half, trying to keep it competitive. They’ll motion him out, but also run routes from the backfield, so the LBs are going to be asked to move a lot more than they have been so far this season.
The defense needs to take away Williams as a running threat and force the Crusaders to become a passing team. NGU QB Riley’s season high is 296 yards and 3 TD against a solid Newberry team (206 passing yards per game allowed), but he has only topped 200 twice. On top of that, throwing a ton isn’t in alignment with their balanced offensive philosophy (179 rush attempts vs 149 pass attempts, 188 yards rushing per game vs 202 yards passing per game). We have seen a lot of LOS matchups this season worth monitoring, but this is the first time I think the second level defenders hold the keys to the game.
Prediction
This one has a little bit of a trap game vibe to it. NGU is 3-1 against D2 opponents, and they’ve been a little better in individual games than their season averages would indicate. UWF is coming off an extremely emotional conference opener, and once again hits the road for a long trip away from Pensacola, with a top 25 team in West Georgia coming in next week. North Greenville also has one of the individual stars of the league in Dre’ Williams, who can turn nothing into explosive gains in both phases of offense. UWF is going to have to come out a lot more motivated in the opening drives of this game and try to establish the tone in the first quarter, because if they don’t NGU could similarly jump out on the Argos the way Delta did. What I think is a huge advantage for the Argonauts is NGU is pretty one dimensional, or rather, they rely heavily on one player making plays on offense, and haven’t had anyone else consistently make big plays. On the other side of the ball, UWF should be able to take advantage of a smaller DL going against a West Florida Offensive Line that has played good football all year. With all of that being said, I expect we see a highly motivated West Florida team this weekend, and they win 41-23. Reed goes for 300+ for the first time since week 1, and Durden continues his streak of consecutive games with a TD. I think Mason, Newton, and Hargrove will each get 8 or more touches, trying to soften up the middle of the defense for some big plays from Reed to Durden and Coates.
