NEWBERG, Ore. -- It's déjà vu all over again for the George Fox football team, who faces Willamette for the second time in 2024 on Saturday.

The Bruins faced the Bearcats in the second game of the season in their annual Oregon Cup game, a nonconference game between the two Northwest Conference teams, winning in convincing fashion; Fox led 31-0 at the half en route to a 37-14 victory.

Now, Fox will travel to Salem, Ore., for an NWC-counting game and hopes for a similar result. A victory for the Bruins will serve as a bounce-back effort for a team that dropped their Family Weekend game to Linfield.

Starting his seventh game of the season at quarterback will be DeMontre Thomas II. The senior quarterback, who threw for one touchdown against Linfield, had his best performance of the season against Willamette. In the win over the Bearcats, Thomas II threw for 238 yards and two touchdowns, rushing for 48 yards and an additional score.

The running game ran wild for the Bruins in their 37-14 win, with starting quarterback Taylor Saben rushing for 84 yards and two touchdowns. Saben will get the nod at starting tailback, while William Moffitt will back him up. Last time out against Willamette, the dual-threat Moffitt had 10 carries and three receptions.

Elias Polanski, River Osen, and Kaelan Frey all earn the start at receiver for the second straight week. The trio has been potent against the Bearcats in the past, combining for 11 catches and 149 yards in the September game. Big-play weapon Chavis Lee, whose breakout 46-yard touchdown catch against Willamette set the tone for his season, enters the game following a 43-yard TD reception against Linfield. Joining the receivers on the line is tight end Thomas McMillan.

The line up front will see one big change on Saturday: Bryce Goetz, who entered the season as a starting defensive tackle, will start for the Bruins at right guard. Thus far, Goetz has recorded five tackles on the defensive side; now, though, the fifth-year senior will be defending his quarterback. Joining Goetz will be Derryck Wallace, Kyle Osowski, Michael Echtle, and Lawa Ah Yat.

The defensive side of the ball thrived in the two team's September meeting, with Fox holding the Bearcats scoreless until two late touchdowns. With Goetz's departure from the defensive line, only one change will be made to the defensive 11: Silas Kincaid, who has been a force for Fox up front, recording 26 tackles, will start against the Bearcats. Kuyper Assink and Blake Mazurowski.
 will join him on the line

Austin Harrison recorded his first career interception in the win over Willamette and will look to add another to his totals as the starting cornerback alongside Zak Holsey. Also in the defensive backfield are safeties Ty Borde, who tallied two pass breakups against Willamette, Kiegan Schaan, and Nolan Martin.

Linebacker Nash Wylie recorded 10 tackles in both the Bruins' games against Linfield and Willamette and will start his sixth game of the season commanding the defense. Joining Wylie are Noah Tack and Dustin Kunze, who each pulled in key tackles in their first meeting against Willamette.

For the special teams unit, it will be Ben Rembisz and Riley Rutledge doing the kicking. Rutledge pinned the Bearcats deep on several occasions in their last meeting, while Rembisz found a dead spot in the Willamette kick return squad, resulting in a recovered fumble on the kickoff. Saben and Moffitt will return the kicks, but expect Vincent Cabezudo to return the punts; over the past two games, the sophomore has brought back three punts for 24 yards.

While the Bruins look to bounce back following a loss, Willamette is desperately searching for an answer on the offensive side of the ball. After the Bearcats took down Simpson (Calif.) in their final nonconference game of the season, they have not scored a point in NWC play. Through three games, the Bearcats have faced very stiff competition, losing to No. 17 Linfield, 72-0, No. 10 Whitworth, 48-0, and Pacific Luthern, 50-0.

The Bearcats have bounced between quarterbacks in the past three games but will look to Alex Riviera IV to start in Salem. The quarterback finished with 146 yards, two touchdowns, and one interception in his outing against the Bruins.

The Fox defense especially limited do-it-all back Gabriel Herrera, holding him to 32 yards in their previous meeting. The running back has been stifled thus far into the season but has passed 100 yards in the past. At wide receiver, Brandon Johnson and Elijah Romero were the two Bearcats to score in the loss in Newberg.

Though the record may not show it, the Bearcats have improved on their 1-9 mark from the year prior, recording their second win against Simpson. But for the Fox squad who won't take any opponent likely, they hope to improve to 2-0 against Willamette this season.

Kick-off for the game is scheduled for 1:00 p.m., with live stream and live stats, and available on the Bruins' website.