Game Notes

HAMPTON, Va. – The Hampton University football team will look to get back into the win column on Saturday, when the Pirates square off against Delaware State at Armstrong Stadium at 1 p.m.

The Pirates (5-4, 3-3 MEAC) are coming off a 10-7 loss to Howard in the annual Battle of the Real HU – Hampton's first loss to Howard since 1995 – while the Hornets (2-7, 0-6 MEAC) have lost seven straight following a 14-7 loss to North Carolina Central this past Saturday.

Since coming in late in the game against North Carolina Central on Oct. 22, freshman quarterback Travis Champion (Moreno Valley, Calif.) has shown what he can do. He went 5-for-5 through the air against NCCU for 47 yards, while also orchestrating the game-winning touchdown drive for the Pirates in overtime.

Champion went on to start at Savannah State on Oct. 29, completing 21 of his 32 passes for 197 yards and his first collegiate touchdown – a 14-yard strike to senior wide receiver Reginald Hicks (Hampton, Va.). Champion is completing 68.5 percent of his passes (37-for-54) so far this season.

For the season, senior quarterback David Legree (Brooklyn, N.Y.) is completing 61.6 percent of his passes (141-for-229) for 1,636 yards and 10 touchdowns. Legree, who threw for 298 yards and a touchdown against North Carolina Central, is second in the MEAC in passing, averaging 204.5 yards per game.

He missed the Savannah State and the Howard games with a shoulder injury.

Senior wide receiver Dyrri McCain (Norfolk, Va.) is having by far the best season of his Hampton career; through eight games, McCain has caught 39 passes – second-most on the team – for a team-high 567 yards and four touchdowns. He is averaging a team-best 14.5 yards per catch, and McCain's 63.0 receiving yards per game are good enough for fifth-best in the MEAC. McCain has two 100-yard receiving games this season: a six-catch, 123-yard effort against Princeton and a career-high 143 yards on eight catches against North Carolina Central.

Sophomore running back Antwon Chisholm (Belle Glade, Fla.), the reigning MEAC Rookie of the Year, is averaging 3.9 yards per carry, and is currently fifth in the MEAC in rushing with an average of 65.0 rushing yards per game.

Sophomore linebacker Delbert Tyler (Monroeville, Pa.) currently leads the MEAC in tackles with 99, averaging 11.0 per game, while junior linebacker Lyndell Gibson (Virginia Beach, Va.), a Virginia Tech transfer, is tied for sixth in the conference with 87 tackles, an average of 9.7 per game.

Senior defensive back Micah Pellerin (New Orleans, La.) is third in the MEAC in passes defended, thanks to 11 pass breakups and two interceptions on the season. Junior defensive back Destin Route (Atlanta, Ga.) is tied for seventh in passes defended with eight pass breakups and one interception on the season.

The Pirates are 23-13 all-time against Delaware State, having won 13 of the last 16 meetings between the two teams – including a 20-14 in Dover, Del. last season. The Hornet last beat Hampton in 2009, escaping Armstrong Stadium with a 21-6 victory. The two teams first met in 1945, with Delaware State winning 14-0. The Pirates won nine straight in the series from 1995-2003, before the Hornet broke that streak with a 28-23 win in Dover, Del. in 2004.

Hampton is 12-7 all-time against Delaware State at Armstrong Stadium.

The Pirates are 189-159-6 all-time against schools currently competing in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) following a 23-17 win over Florida A&M on Sept. 8, a 35-31 loss at Bethune-Cookman on Sept. 22, 34-24 loss at Norfolk State, a 30-27 overtime win over North Carolina Central, a 22-5 win over Savannah State and a 10-7 loss to Howard this past Saturday.

Hampton is 9-8 against Bethune-Cookman; 23-13 against Delaware State; 8-12 against Florida A&M; 47-40-1 against Howard; 22-35-2 against Morgan State; 23-25-1 against Norfolk State; 25-15-2 against North Carolina A&T; 17-5 against MEAC newcomer North Carolina Central; 4-0 against MEAC newcomer Savannah State; and 11-6 against South Carolina State.

This is only the Pirates' 16th year as a member of the MEAC, as they initially became a member back in 1995. Since joining the MEAC, the Pirates have won the conference championship five times, including three straight in 2004, 2005 and 2006.

Live video streaming of Saturday's game will be available; simply visit the football page on www.hamptonpirates.com and click the All-Access Video Streaming link. The cost of viewing the game online is $5.95.

For more information on Hampton University football, please call the Office of Sports Information at (757) 727-5811, or visit the official Pirates website at www.hamptonpirates.com.