The 25th-ranked Hobart College football team will journey to Canton, N.Y., to take on No. 13 St. Lawrence University at 1 p.m. on Saturday, Nov. 5 at Leckonby Stadium. The Statesmen take a 7-1 overall record up against the Saints' 8-0 mark.
 
The winner of the game will be in first place in the Liberty League with one week remaining. If Hobart prevails, the Statesmen could clinch the conference championship and its accompanying NCAA tournament bid with a victory next week against the University of Rochester. If St. Lawrence prevails, the Saints will clinch the title outright.
 
This will be the 88th all-time meeting between Hobart and St. Lawrence. The teams first met back in 1901 with the Statesmen posting a 10-0 victory in Canton. Hobart holds a 49-36-2 series lead, including a 22-17-1 mark in Canton. The Statesmen have won each of the past five meeting, but the past two showdowns have both been decided by a mere two points.
 
The game will be broadcast live on WEOS-FM (89.5/90.3 in Geneva).
 
Hobart has built a reputation for eking out narrow victories late in games this season. The Statesmen have five game-winning drives in the final three minutes of games, including last week's three-play, 58-yard drive that ended with an 18-yard pass from junior quarterback Shane Sweeney to senior wide receiver Jack Pfohl with just three seconds remaining. Pfohl was named the Liberty League and ECAC North Offensive Player of the Week after recording a Hobart record-tying 12 receptions for 197 yards and two touchdowns against the Engineers.
 
Sweeney had a record-setting day as well, eclipsing the Hobart season records for completions and passing yards last week. Through eight games, he's completed 61 percent of his passes (191-313) for 2,526 yards and 25 touchdowns. Sweeney is 10th in the nation in passing yards, 12th in passing touchdowns, 13th in passing yards per game, and 19th in completions per game. He enters Saturday's game nine pass attempts and six passing touchdowns away from breaking those Hobart season records.
 
Hobart junior wide receiver Brandon Shed also ranks among the national leaders. He's fifth in receiving touchdowns (13, one shy of the Hobart season record) and 18th in receiving yards (868, 161 behind the season record).
 
On defense, Hobart has yielded 328.6 yards per game and 21.9 points per game. The starting inside linebackers Almamy Conde and Jedh Downey lead the team in tackles. Conde has a team-high 70 while Downey, who has been named the Liberty League Rookie of the Week three times, adds 66 stops. The Statesmen lead the conference in sacks with 22, including six by senior defensive end James Hedger.
 
The Saints enter the game as the league leader in scoring offense (32.8 ppg), scoring defense (6.9 ppg), total defense (217.5 yds/g), and passing defense (114.3 yds/g). SLU's pass defense is especially formidable, ranking among the best in the nation in passing yards allowed (114.3, 1st) and team passing efficiency defense (91.65, 7th).