SLIPPERY ROCK — Edinboro is winless. Slippery Rock must win.

SRU football coach George Mihalik only hopes the former doesn’t affect the latter when the teams meet at noon Saturday at Sox Harrison Stadium.

“Nothing has changed for us,” Mihalik said. “Our backs are still against the wall. We must win.

“This is a West Division game and that should be all the motivation we need. We’re going to get their best shot and they’ve been improving lately, scoring a lot of points. We better be ready to play.”

The Fighting Scots (0-8, 0-5) have scored at least three touchdowns in each of their past five games. Their last two games were losses of 49-42 to Gannon and 38-28 to Mercyhurst.

“We’ve been competitive,” Edinboro coach Scott Browning said. “This is just a tough league to win games in.

“We’re not that bad. The West Division has been that good. And in Slippery Rock, we’re probably playing the best team yet.”

Now in his 10th season, Browning is 57-51 at Edinboro, trailing only Tom Hollman on the program’s all-time win list. Browning is in his 30th year on the Edinboro staff overall.

The Rock (7-1, 4-1) has won four straight since dropping a 41-38 decision to Seton Hill in its PSAC West opener. A win Saturday and another over Clarion next week would give SRU its fourth West Division title in five years.

“We expect them to hit us with bubble screens and quick three-step passes,” Mihalik said. “Teams have been doing that to neutralize our pass rush.

“Edinboro likes to throw the football. They will come out with five-wide and no running backs quite a bit. We have to make them drive the field and keep them from getting any early momentum.”

Jake Sisson is a sophomore quarterback who has thrown for 1,789 yards, 15 touchdowns and 15 interceptions. Senior Darren Massey is his favorite target with 58 catches for 621 yards and five touchdowns.

“Jake has been improving and making better decisions of late,” Browning said. “Darren Massey is a talented young man. He is an athlete who runs good routes and can make things happen with the ball in his hands.”

SRU owns a 55-26-6 lead in the series and has won the last five meetings, including a 29-7 decision last year.

The Rock will be without safety Derrick Fulmore, who recently had surgery for a broken foot, and receiver/return specialist Drew Scales, who has a knee injury.

Center Joe LoSchiavo and tackle Dean Ketterer, a Seneca Valley graduate, are battling nagging injuries. How much they will be available Saturday remains in question.

“We need our safeties to be aggressive and come up hard on those screen plays,” Mihalik said. “Delmar Henderson made his first start back there last week in a pressure atmosphere (40-39 win over Indiana) and did pretty well.”

Rock running back Shamar Greene now has 3,003 career rushing yards in just 29 games with SRU. He is the ninth Rock player to reach 3,000. Only a junior, Greene needs 930 yards to break The Rock’s career rushing record.

Fellow running back Julian Durden is sixth in the nation with 14 rushing touchdowns. Overall, The Rock has rushed for 31 touchdowns, five short of the program’s single-season record.

The Rock owns the third best scoring offense in the nation at 44.8 points per game, ranks second in rushing defense with 71.5 yards allowed per game, fourth in takeaways with 27.

“We need to be focused,” Mihalik said. “It their Senior Day and Massey is their go-to guy. Edinboro is looking for something to salvage their season.”

Andrew Huska will continue to kick from placement for The Rock in addition to his punting and kickoff duties.

Slippery Rock High graduate Forrest Christmann, a sophomore, is second on Edinboro’s depth chart at defensive tackle.