SLIPPERY ROCK — For Seton Hill, the numbers simply don’t add up.

The Griffins (1-2, 1-1) invade Mihalik-Thompson Stadium for a 2 p.m. Saturday homecoming football game against Slippery Rock (3-0, 2-0) trying to beat some long odds:

Since reaching the Division II playoffs and finishing 10-3 in 2008, Seton Hill is 6-52.

The Rock owns a 4-1 edge in the series between the teams, including wins of 51-14, 52-6 and 55-21 the past three years.

SRU is 22-4 in homecoming games under coach George Mihalik, winning the last five and eight of the last nine.

Rest assured, Seton Hill will show up on Saturday anyway.

“They look better than I thought they would on film, particularly on defense,” Mihalik said. “And that’s a program looking for a signature win.

“When you’re nationally ranked, it’s a reward for all the hard work — it also puts a big target on your chest. We’re going to get their best.”

The Rock enters the game ranked No. 15 in the D2Football.com poll, No. 22 on the AFCA poll.

“They’re a phenomenal team,” second-year Seton Hill coach Isaac Collins said. “They’re used to quick strikes and plenty of possessions.

“Instead of eight possessions a half, we need to cut them down to four, limit their scoring opportunities, make them cherish those possessions more.”

The Griffins’ lone win is a 27-16 triumph over Lock Haven. Seton Hill is coming off a 45-10 loss to 10th-ranked West Chester. SRU has defeated Kutztown (37-26), East Stroudsburg (56-24) and Millersville (46-19) despite failing to score first in any of the three games.

Slippery Rock ranks fourth in all of Division II with 563 total yards and 338 rushing yards per game. SRU is allowing a mere 66 yards per game on the ground.

Shamar Greene has run for 619 yards — more than 13 other teams in the PSAC — and leads all of college football with an average of 206.3 yards per game and an average of 10.3 yards per carry.

“He’s a combination of speed and power,” Mihalik said of Greene. “His YAC yards (yards after contact) are amazing.

“Our offensive line takes great pride in what he’s been able to do so far and I know Shamar appreciates their efforts.”

The Rock’s offensive front of Cory Tucker, Kirk Nypaver, Joe LoSchiavo, Kyle Henderson and Bill Whitaker all started last year. They’ve led SRU to offensive outputs of more than 475 yards in 13 of the team’s last 15 games, including 11 games over 500 yards and six over 600.

They’ve also allowed quarterback Zack Newsock to be sacked only twice this season.

“We probably didn’t even have to wash Zack’s uniform last week, they kept it so clean,” Mihalik said.

But The Rock offense will be challenged this week.

“Our offensive coaches tell me Seton Hill’s defense is the best we’ll face so far this year,” Mihalik said.

That unit is led by middle linebacker Tyler Zimmer, who had 93 tackles last season. Defensive back John Falatovich has 20 tackles, 13 solos, an interception, forced fumble and two fumble recoveries this year.

“We’ve gotten teams in third-and-long situations, but we can’t get off the field,” Collins said. “We’ve given up big, explosive plays. We can’t do that this week.”

Offensively, Seton Hill uses two quarterbacks in Andrew Jackson and Dan Pietrangelo. Jackson threw for 2,131 yards, 16 touchdowns and 16 interceptions in 2012, but was not in school last year. He’s thrown for 507 yards and five TDs this season.

Pietrangelo has completed 17 of 26 passes for 172 yards.

“Jackson is the more experienced guy and a pure pocket passer,” Collins said. “Pietrangelo is more mobile and can make plays with his feet.

“We play both of them because neither one has nailed dowe the job yet. We’re waiting to ride the hot hand. If neither gets there, we’ve got a freshman waiting in the wings.”

Brandon Stout leads the Griffins’ running game with 220 yards.

“He’s a downhill, physical runner. We can’t let him get going,” Mihalik said.

Mars graduate Austin Miele and Butler grad Bob Vernick lead SRU with 26 and 24 tackles, respectively, from their linebacker positions. Defensive end Marcus Martin leads the PSAC and is third in Division II with five quarterback sacks. Derrick Fulmore leads The Rock with three interceptions.

Greene, Martin and Fulmore are all West Mifflin High School graduates.

Seton Hill is among the nation’s leaders in kick and punt returns. Malik Scott is third in Division II with an 18.3 yard average on punt returns and Jarvis McClam, a former quarterback, averages 24 yards per kick return.

“They have a few former quarterbacks playing at other skilled spots on offense,” Mihalik said. “They’ve got two 6-foot-3 receivers and our corners aren’t very big. We could have some match-up problems there.”