CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. – The second of three-straight games on the road and the ASUN Conference finale is on deck for the Austin Peay State University football team when it travels to Kennesaw State for a noon (CT), Saturday showdown at Fifth Third Bank Stadium in Kennesaw, Georgia.

Austin Peay picked up a 38-35 win last week at North Alabama in the first leg of its season-ending, three-game road trip. Kennesaw State returns home after picking up a 44-27 win on the road over No. 15-ranked UT Martin.

Austin Peay will bring the ASUN's top defense to Kennesaw State, the Governors rank 10th in the FCS in total defense (229.6 ypg), 16th in rushing defense (110.2 rypg), and 33rd in scoring defense (22.4 ppg) – they lead the ASUN in all three categories. The Govs are also the fifth-best third-down defense in the country, holding opponents to just a 30.7 conversion rate.

Antoine Williams, who was named to the Stats Perform Buk Buchanan Award Watch List, leads the Austin Peay defense with 73 tackles and 11 tackles for loss this season. Kwame Sutton and Josh Rudolph have each added 7.5 tackles for loss on a defense that ranks ninth in the FCS with 7.7 tackles for loss per game.

Offensively, quarterback Mike DiLiello – who was named to the Stats Perform Walter Payton Award Watch List – is tied for 11th in the FCS with 21 passing touchdowns, which is already the third-best single-season in Austin Peay history. DiLiello's 2,096 passing yards rank 32nd in the FCS and are the sixth-best season in program history, they also make DiLiello just the seventh player in program history to pass for 2,000 yards.

DiLiello also leads the Govs with seven touchdowns on the ground, which ranks 11th among FCS quarterbacks, and 168 points responsible for, which ranks sixth in the FCS.

Drae McCray has caught nine touchdowns this season, which leads the ASUN and ranks 10th in the FCS, and is just 166 yards away from becoming the fourth Austin Peay receiver to eclipse the 1,000-yard mark. Also having a career year, CJ Evans Jr. has already posted career-bests with 558 yards and six touchdowns on the ground.

Saturday's game will be streamed on ESPN+ with Benjamin Ray and Bryan Neece on the call. Fans also can tune into the Governors Sports Network on ESPN Clarksville (104.1 FM/540 AM) to hear Brian Rives and Van Stokes call all the action. ESPN Clarksville will kick off its coverage with a re-airing of the Austin Peay Football Coaches Show at 2 p.m., followed by pregame coverage which begins an hour before kickoff.

INSIDE THE FILM ROOM

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NOTABLY

GOOD DIRECTIONS
In the past six seasons, Austin Peay's 40 victories are tied for the 14th most in the FCS and are the most in a six-year stretch in program history. There are three other ASUN Conference teams that rank in the top 16 in FCS wins during the past six seasons – Kennesaw State (54, 4th), Jacksonville State (48, 7th), and Central Arkansas (39, 16th). The Govs 40 victories in the past six seasons is one more win than the 39 victories they had in 14 seasons from 2002-16.

THREE FOR THE ROAD
Austin Peay wraps up the regular season with a three-game road trip. The Govs kicked off the longest road trip of the Scotty Walden Era with a win at North Alabama and now travel to Kennesaw State before ending the season at Alabama. This is the Governors' first three-game road stretch since the 2019 season.

NOVEMBER AIR
Head coach Scotty Walden is 4-0 at Austin Peay in the month of November. Last season, the Governors beat Eastern Illinois and Tennessee Tech at Fortera Stadium and picked up a win at Tennessee State in November. Austin Peay has won 10-straight games in November – with four wins on the road – and last dropped a game in the month when they lost at Eastern Illinois in 2018.

END ZONE EMBARGO
Austin Peay's defense is allowing just 22.4 points per game this season – which leads the ASUN and is tied for 33rd in FCS – while no other ASUN Conference team is holding its opponents to less than 24 points per game this season. In five home games, the Governors allowed just 15.4 points per game at Fortera Stadium with shutouts against Presbyterian and Mississippi Valley State and second-half shutouts against Eastern Kentucky and Mississippi Valley State.

GROUND GOVS
Austin Peay has posted a pair of 300-yard rushing games this season with 322 yards against Eastern Kentucky and 308 yards against Presbyterian. The Govs have not rushed for 300-plus yards multiple times in a season since 2017 when they topped the 400-yard mark twice and the 300-yard mark two more times. CJ Evans Jr. leads the Governors with a career-best 558 rushing yards while Mike DiLiello and Jevon Jackson have rushed for 485 and 437 yards, respectively.

WALDEN; OR, LIFE AT AUSTIN PEAY
After just 26 games at Austin Peay, Scotty Walden already ranks eighth in program history with 16 career wins. Walden is one win behind Roy Gregory for sixth place and three victories behind Bill Schmitz and Fred D. Brown for fifth place – Gregory, Schmitz, and Brown all needed six seasons to reach their respective win total. With four more wins, Walden would match Rick Christophel -- who also coached six seasons – for the fourth-most wins in program history while becoming just the fifth head coach to win 20 games at Austin Peay. 

PRESEASON PROPAGANDA
In the inaugural ASUN Football Preseason Coaches Poll, Austin Peay received a first-place vote but was tabbed to finish fifth in the league with 15 points. Kennesaw State was picked atop the league with four first-place votes and 34 points, while Central Arkansas – who received a single first-place vote – and Eastern Kentucky were tied for second with 25 points. Fourth-place Jacksonville State received 19 points and North Alabama rounded out the poll with 8 points.

LAST TIME OUT
Austin Peay beat North Alabama, 38-35, at Braly Stadium in Florence, Alabama. The Govs erased a 14-0 first-quarter deficit by scoring 31-unanswered points behind a 326-yard, three-touchdown passing performance from Mike DiLiello. Shamari Simmons also led the Governors defense with 11 tackles, 0.5 tackles for loss, and a game-clinching interception.

SCOUTING KENNESAW STATE

• This is the first-ever meeting between Austin Peay and Kennesaw State. 
• Picked to win the ASUN Conference with four first-place votes in the inaugural preseason poll, Kennesaw State is 5-4 this season and is on a three-game winning streak after beating #15 UT Martin, 44-27, on the road. Playing their penultimate season in the ASUN, the Owls will join Conference USA and play in the FBS in 2024-25.
• Kennesaw State was tied for the ASUN lead with four offensive players named to the Preseason All-Conference team. Offensive linemen Zion Katina, Terrell Paxton, and Matt Olson and quarterback Xavier Shepherd received the preseason honors. Preston Daniels leads KSU running backs with 342 rushing yards and four touchdowns. Backup QB Jonathan Murphy has 305 rushing yards and five touchdowns while running back Isaac Foster has added 249 rushing yards and three touchdowns.
• Kennesaw State leads the FCS with 24 turnovers gained and leads the ASUN with 14 interceptions and 10 fumble recoveries. Markeith Montgomery and Deontre Morris lead the ASUN with five and four interceptions, respectively, they rank second and tied for sixth in the FCS. Chance Gamble's three interceptions is the third-best mark in the ASUN, he and Garland Benyard led the Owls with two fumble recoveries. Benyard also leads KSU with 6.0 tackles for loss and 2.5 sacks.
• The Preseason ASUN Offensive Player of the Year, Xavier Shepherd leads ASUN quarterbacks with 493 rushing yards and 10 rushing touchdowns. Shepherd's 10 rushing touchdowns rank second overall in the conference and are tied for 15th in the FCS. Shepherd has passed for 1,083 yards and seven touchdowns this season, he leads the ASUN and ranks second in the FCS with 16.66 yards per completion.

UP NEXT

The regular-season finale and the final leg of a three-game road trip is an 11 a.m., Nov. 19 contest against Alabama at Bryant-Denny Stadium in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. It is the first-ever meeting between the Governors and Crimson Tide.