The Falcons improved to 1-2 on the season with a 40-36 win over visiting Glenville State last Saturday. Sophomore quarterback Cooper Hibbs was 25-of-36 passing for 384 yards.
       Fairmont State return nine starters on offense and five on defense where three defensive linemen graduated. One of the losses on offense was running back Dawrence Roberts who ran for 175 yards in last season's meeting.
        Teh Falcons feature a pass oriented offense gaining 837 yards through the air compared to just 226 on the ground, last in the conference, this season.
       In last season's game Hibbs completed 12-of-18 passes for 125 yards.
      Hibbs hit eight different receivers last week and 14 Falcons in all have caught a pass. Leading receiver Fabian Guerra dressed but did not play last week due to an injury sustained the week before. He is expected to return to action Saturday.
       One of Hibbs' targets, Malique Watkins, is last year's Kennedy Award runner-up. The Kennedy goes to the high school player voted the best in the state by West Virginia sportswriters.
        The Falcons rank last in the Mountain East in scoring and rushing defense giving up 44.7 points and 233.3 rushing yards per game.
         Without a threat from the running game the Pioneers were able to sack Hibbs four times and force him into throwing one interception last week.
          Fairmont State comes into the contest with an 11-game road losing streak. The Falcons hold a 32-13-1 edge in the series including last year's 56-3 win at home.