THE GAME
Gardner-Webb closes out its home schedule on Saturday, November 4, hosting Charleston Southern at 1:30 pm in Spangler Stadium. The game will serve as Senior Day for 17 seniors, who will play their final career game in Boiling Springs. The game will be televised live by College Football Down South, with Mark Bryant and Harold Nichols on the call.
  
SERIES NOTES
Gardner-Webb holds an 11-6 lead in the all-time series, which dates back to Gardner-Webb's NAIA days in the late 1980s ... The two teams first met in 1988, when CSU was playing as a club team ... Gardner-Webb won every game in the series until 2005, when the Buccaneers rolled to a 38-7 win in Spangler Stadium ... GWU won three-straight in the series from 2009-2011 ... GWU picked up its second win over a ranked Charleston Southern team last season, upending the 8th-ranked Bucs by a 17-10 score in Charleston.

THE HEAD COACHES
Gardner-Webb head coach Carroll McCray (Class of '83) returned to his alma mater in 2013 and has forged a 21-33 record so far in his time in Boiling Springs. Mark Tucker (ETSU '87) is in his first collegiate head  coaching post after several years as a successful coordinator and quarterbacks coach on the FCS/I-AA level at Charleston Southern, The Citadel and ETSU.

MAXWELL'S MOVING UP THE CHARTS
Standout quarterback Tyrell Maxwell (6-2, 231, Sr.) entered his senior season with a truckload of accolades, including preseason Big South Conference Offensive Player of the Year honors, and has overcome a slow start to get back to his 2016 form. Maxwell currently sits fifth in school history with 2,676 career rushing yards – just 57 yards behind Johnny Walker for second position on that list. Maxwell has also passed for 3,699 career yards, which ranks 11th in program history. Maxwell is 135 yards behind Jesse James for 10th in school history through the air. He is the first quarterback in Gardner-Webb or Big South Conference history to pass for 3,000+ yards and run for 2,000+ yards in a career. Maxwell is also the first quarterback in Big South history to rush for at least 20 touchdowns (20) and pass for at least 20 touchdowns (22).

SENIOR DAY
Gardner-Webb will recognize 17 seniors prior to kickoff Saturday afternoon. Thomas Adams (Memphis, Tenn.), Chase Arrington (Sanford, N.C.), Tyrell Maxwell (Orangeburg, S.C.), Willie Jackson IV (Mobile, Ala.), Kerry Bernard (Orlando, Fla.), Quinton Patterson (Shelby, N.C.), Donte' Gordon (Buford, Ga.), Jeffrey Pegues (Charlotte, N.C.), Dalton Cochran (Shelby, N.C.), Kenyatta Dunbar (Edgefield, S.C.), Tommy Torzsok (Gold Coast, Australia), Jacob Henderson (Waxhaw, N.C.), Jackson Goodman (Smithfield, Va.), Andrew Komornik (Fort Mill, S.C.), Paul Schumacher (West Palm Beach, Fla.), P.J. Fuimaono (Fagatogo, American Samoa) and Donovan Manning (Gaffney, S.C.) will suit up for the final time in Spangler Stadium. 

NOTE OF THE DAY: RED ZONE
Gardner-Webb excelled in its red zone offense and defense last season, scoring efficiently once reaching the opponents 20-yard line and closer. GWU also defended the red zone well in 2016, particularly in limiting the opponents to three points on deep penetrations. The 2017 season has seen a shift, with GWU reaching the red zone 17 times and scoring touchdowns just five times (29.4 percent). Opponents have entered the Gardner-Webb red zone 24 times and have scord 16 touchdowns (66.7 percent).

TOUGH SLATE
According to the NCAA's Toughest Schedule metric, Gardner-Webb has played the nation's most difficult schedule to date. The Runnin' Bulldogs faced four FCS non-conference opponents who were ranked at some point during the 2017 season so far, including No. 7 North Carolina A&T, No. 8 Wofford and No. 24 Western Carolina. Five teams on Gardner-Webb's schedule are currently ranked, including No. 24 Monmouth and No. 25 Kennesaw State. TTHE BIG MAN
 
THE BIG MAN
Punter Andrew Komornik (6-5, 264, Gr.) has shown off a strong leg again in 2017, ranking near the top of the Big South Conference with an average of 41.0 yards per punt. The Fort Mill, S.C., native has hammered six punts longer than 50 yards so far, including a 57-yarder, in 46 total attempts. Komornik has pinned 10 punts inside the 20-yard line, with seven of those pins coming in the past five games.

MORE MAXWELL
Gardner-Webb's Tyrell Maxwell is the Big South Conference's career leader with 11 games with 100+ yards rushing for a quarterback, doing so earlier this year vs. Western Carolina with 111 yards by halftime and against both Shorter (Ga.) and No. 25 North Carolina Central. His 10 games with 100+ yards rushing and 100+ yards passing is also a league record.

IT'S DAH-VIS
Defensive end Davis Neilands (6-3, 255, R-So.) – pronounced "DAH-vis" – is in his second season in the starting lineup and stands poised for a move into the elite among Big South Conference defensive linemen. The Latvian-born pass rusher emerged late last season, making a splash in his first start at Liberty (10/29) and a strong effort in the win at No. 8 Charleston Southern (11/5). He recorded five hits (four solo) and 1.5 sacks in an overtime loss at Liberty, then came through with 11 stops and a half sack in Charleston, S.C. Neilands finished his inaugural campaign with the Runnin' Bulldogs with 42 total tackles, 4.0 tackles for loss and 3.0 sacks in 11 games played – with only spot duty until late October. Neilands leads Gardner-Webb and ranks among the Big South Conference leaders with 2.0 quarterback sacks in 2017.

NEW FACES ON STAFF
Gardner-Webb welcomes two new assistant coaches to its staff in 2017, with Dennis Thomas taking over on the defensive line and Bennett Houston coaching the receivers. Thomas, who played on the defensive line at South Carolina himself, most recently coached at Tusculum (2016) and also served as an assistant coach at Western Carolina. Houston, a graduate of North Greenville, spent several seasons as an undergraduate coach with a strong Crusaders' program.

CAGLE COMES TO PLAY
With only two scholarship running backs available due to injuries, Jayln Cagle (5-11, 202, So.) enjoyed the best game of his collegiate career vs. Liberty. The Kannapolis, N.C., native carried 24 times for a career-high 179 yards and a touchdown in the game, with his 37-yard scamper up the middle cutting the Flames' lead to 19-17 early in the fourth quarter. Cagle's effort marked the most yardage gained on the ground by a Gardner-Webb runner since the move to NCAA Division I in 2000 – snapping the 176-yard effort by Phillip Peoples vs. Presbyterian (10/18/08). It is the sixth-best total all-time (since 1970). Cagle's previous career-best was a 50-yard effort vs. Charleston Southern last season.

SLASH
The Runnin' Bulldogs employ a dangerous weapon in a wide range of areas in 2017, as Brody Rollins (5-11, 182, Jr.) uses his 4.5-second speed to impact games at several positions. The Knoxville, Tenn., speedster lines up at quarterback, running back and receiver during regular sets offensively – also serves as one of Gardner-Webb's primary kick returners. Rollins finished the 2016 season with 14 carries for 42 yards, completed one pass, caught a pass for seven yards and led Gardner-Webb with 22 kickoff returns for 454 yards (20.6 yards per attempt). He caught his first career touchdown pass vs. Western Carolina, hauling in a 35-yarder late in the fourth quarter. Rollins had his first snaps under center vs. Shorter, completing 2-of-3 passes for 17 yards and carrying three times for 20 yards. He has 14 catches this season for 224 yards and two touchdowns. His 53-yard catch helped Gardner-Webb score late at NC Central, part of a 99-yard touchdown drive.

UP NEXT
Gardner-Webb wraps up the home portion of its 2017 schedule next Saturday, hosting Charleston Southern at 1:30 pm in Spangler Stadium. The game will air live on College Football Down South (CFDS), with local and regional affiliates to be announced at a later date. †
hree more were ranked earlier this season, meaning eight of the nine FCS teams on the 2017 slate earned a national ranking at some point this season.

BULLDOZERS 
Gardner-Webb success running the football last season was paved by a strong offensive line, a unit that returned three starters for the 2017 season in All-America candidate Will Millikan (6-3, 311, Jr.) at left tackle, third-year starter Charlie Eudy (6-2, 291, R-Jr.) at right tackle and second-year starter Brayden Briggs (6-3, 303, R-So.) at right guard. The addition of Eastern Michigan transfer Brandon Leahey (6-3, 297, R-So.) at center bolstered the unit and another newcomer was the talk of preseason camp with his quick emergence – similar to Millikan's prior to the 2015 season. Left guard Jack Nichols (6-3, 314, Fr.) started the season opener, becoming the first true freshman to earn a season opening start on the offensive line since Millikan did so at South Alabama in 2015. Millikan went on to a successful freshman season, starting 10 games, and was an All-Big South choice as a sophomore. Nichols was a standout at national power Roswell (Ga.) High before signing with Gardner-Webb in February. Newcomer Daniel Smith (6-4, 286, R-Fr.) earned his first start at right guard vs. Shorter and has started three games in a row.

VETERAN FRONT SEVEN
The Runnin' Bulldogs have plenty of experienced muscle up front, with all seven starters in the front seven in at least their third season of college football. Three of those seven starters are seniors and two more are redshirt juniors. Five of the seven have starting experience, led by All-Big South defensive end P.J. Fuimaono (6-1, 294, Sr.), standout linebacker Kenyatta Dunbar (5-11, 214, Sr.) and standouts Corey Horne (6-0, 221, Jr.) and Jeffrey Pegues (6-0, 208, Sr.) at inside linebacker. That group has helped GWU hold three teams to less than 100 yards rushing in a game this year, including FBS Wyoming (9/9).