Eisenhower head coach Jim Penley talks to his offense. Times Observer Photo by Steve Younger

The Eisenhower Knights take their 7-0 record on the road today for the long trip to Albion to take on the 5-2 Northwestern Wildcats in a Region 2 football game.

The Knights are coming off a 35-18 win over Saegertown last Friday and are in sole possession of first place in Region 2. Northwestern is coming into tonight’s game sitting at 5-2 after beating Conneaut, Ohio 20-0.

The Knights offense has been productive in all areas. Last week it was junior quarterback Shawn Pascuzzi’s turn to shine as he completed 20-of-24 passes for 250 yards and two touchdowns. He has yet to throw an interception this season. Pascuzzi does have the luxury of throwing to effective wide receivers. Senior Wyatt Lookenhouse has 18 catches for 292 yards and two touchdowns while junior Kris Bunk had 12 catches for 242 yards and a touchdown.

The running game for the Knights has been solid all season. Senior tailback Benji Bauer has rushed for over 1,200 yards and 16 touchdowns. Bauer averages nearly 180 rushing yards per game.

The Wildcats have an impressive offense of their own behind multi-talented quarterback Lloyd Fountain. The 5-foot-9, 160-pound junior has thrown for 660 yards on 36-of-64 passing with 10 touchdowns and four interceptions.

Fountain has caught the eye of Knights head coach Jim Penley.

“Their quarterback may be one of the most explosive players in District 10 that no one is talking about,” Penley said. “Just a great athlete.”

The skill players for the Wildcats are all dynamic players who can run and catch the football. Northwestern is led by 5-foot-11, 190-pound senior tailback Ben Campbell with 68 carries for 521 yards and four touchdowns. Senior Landon Wayne, at 5-foot-11 and 170 pounds, has 17 carries for 198 yards and two touchdowns.

The Knights defense will be busy with so many athletes in the Wildcats backfield.

“They are an outstanding option team that throws the ball tremendously well,” Penley said. “We have to account for all of their athletes on every play.”

Defensively the Wildcats run various fronts on the defensive line. Their best defensive lineman is 5-foot-10, 245-pound senior Zane Snyder-Scott.

“Just a tremendous football player who has the ability to disrupt our offense if we don’t contain him,” Penley said of Snyder-Scott.

The Knights have a lot on the line tonight facing a team from a bigger classification, but as the last unbeaten team in District 10, they have proven they can be competitive regardless of their opponent.

Penley is aware of what his team is up against.

“It’s a tall task, but we play schools in higher classifications all the time and we’ve never allowed that or other trivial things like how the field conditions are where we play to be an excuse,” Penley said. “We look forward to the challenge of playing great programs, and Northwestern is definitely a great program.”

Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. at Northwestern High School, 200 Harthan Way, Albion, PA 16401.