PURPLE RAIDERS NOTES From Mount Union Stadium

Strong start: Mount Union has won 21 straight season-openers, dating to a 17-15 loss to the College of Wooster in 1987.

Going pro: Former Mount receiver Pierre Garcon will make his NFL debut tonight when the Indianapolis Colts open the season against the Chicago Bears in a nationally-televised game on NBC at 8:15 p.m. Garcon made the Colts’ 53-man roster after being selected in the sixth round of the draft. He is the first modern-day Purple Raider drafted.

Team captains: Seniors Daryl Ely (defensive back), Greg Micheli (quarterback), Nate Kmic (running back) and Chas Yoder (linebacker) were selected by their teammates as captains for this season.

King Kmic: Running back Nate Kmic moved into eighth place on the NCAA Division III career rushing list and now has 5,515 yards. R. J. Bowers (Grove City College) owns the top spot on the list with 7,353 yards (1997-2000).

Micheli’s blog: Mount Union’s Greg Micheli writes a blog throughout the 2008 football season on NCAA.com. The All-American signal caller posts weekly updates on his experiences as a college student and starting quarterback during the course of the season. The NCAA selected 16 different schools in all divisions to provide a football player to blog during the season. Nine different players from schools like The University of Florida, Appalachian State (NC) University and Valdosta State (GA) University have already posted entries.

Get the scores: Mount Union College will offer fans the ability to get sports scores, news and updates for free as either a text message on their cell phones or e-mails sent directly to their mailbox. E-Scores will allow fans to choose any or all of the Purple Raiders’ 21 teams to get information instantly on their cellular phones, computer or both. Updates will come after every event. Visit www.muc.edu to sign up.

Eric Hamilton