By: Kurtis Ternet

HANOVER, Ind. – The Hanover College football team (2-3 overall, 2-0 HCAC) heads north for an HCAC matchup with the Manchester Spartans (1-4 overall, 0-2 HCAC). Kickoff is set for 1:30 PM at Spartan Stadium.
 
Hanover Celebrates Homecoming with Big Win
Hanover handled business on October 8^th as they celebrated homecoming with a 63-21 win over the Bluffton Beavers. Hanover was clicking on all cylinders as they took a 21-0 lead nine minutes into the first quarter. Sophomore Mason Williams (Fort Mitchell, Ky.) had a breakout day, which included two receiving touchdowns in the first quarter. Williams finished the day with five catches for 82 yards and two touchdowns.

The Hanover passing game was led by Senior Matthew Weimer (Georgetown, Ind.) who completed 26 passes on 29 attempts. He threw for 333 yards and three touchdowns, which was propelled by three passes over 40 yards in the first half.

On the ground, Panther running backs sophomore Austin Oppel (Brandenburg, Ky.) and sophomore Blake Huffman (Columbus, Ind.) both carried the ball seven times. Oppel finished the day with 70 rushing yards, 95 receiving yards, and two total touchdowns. Huffman also found the endzone two times, to go along with 89 rushing yards.

Defensively, junior Caleb Brewster (Hiram, Ga.) led the Panthers with 12 tackles, one tackle for a loss and a forced fumble. In the secondary junior Brody Luker (New Palestine, Ind.) recorded five tackles, and three pass breakups. Hanover has now won two straight games and looks to keep their HCAC record undefeated.
 
Manchester Drops Fourth Straight
After winning their first game of the season, Manchester has found themselves losing four straight. Last weekend, Manchester was on the round against Rose-Hulman. Manchester's offense was not able to keep up as the dropped the bout 48-14. One bright spot for the Spartans was running back David Smith, who carried the ball for 64 yards and a touchdown. Manchester now has a record of 1-4, while being 0-2 in the HCAC.
 
Matchup History
Since 2012, Hanover leads the Manchester series 6-3. Since Coach Matthew Theobald took over for the Panthers, Hanover has won four out of five games. Last year, Hanover shut out Manchester 33-0. This was also a record setting day for Hanover quarterback Matthew Weimer who recorded 515 yards of total offense including three touchdowns.

Across the HCAC, there are four teams tied for first with a conference record of 2-0. Those teams include Hanover, Mt. St. Joseph, Franklin, and Rose-Hulman.