VALLEY — The Point University football team (0-2) is ready for Saturday’s home opener against NAIA No. 19 Southeastern University.

“[I’m] excited to play on home territory, not have to worry about the rigors of travel to get in the friendly confines,” Point head football coach Julius Dixon said. “Defending home just leaves a special mark. Our guys have had a good week of practice and are eager just to be home.”

This week is the Skyhawks’ third consecutive ranked opponent to open up the season. Kennesaw State is the No. 7 ranked team in NCAA FCS football, Lindsey Wilson was ranked No. 13 in NAIA and now Southeastern.

“If you’re going to be the best, you’ve got to beat the best,” Dixon said. “This schedule has been out for a while, so it’s not like it’s a surprise or secret, we knew about the schedule that we had. I think the first week to the second week is usually the biggest improvement, and we did some things better, but we have still yet to play mistake-free football. When you go against good competition, if you’re making mistakes and they’re scoring easily, it’s hard to evaluate how good of a team we are.”

After suffering a 59-0 season-opening loss at Kennesaw State, the Skyhawks scored their first points of the year at Lindsey Wilson in a 34-9 defeat.

“We played football,” sophomore offensive lineman Jacob Longacre said about the team’s week two performance compared to week one. “When the offense got down a little bit, the defense played harder. Our defense played a lot better. The offense is still struggling a little bit, but we’re going to come together.”

Junior linebacker Kameron Weems has been noted as a standout defender so far for the Skyhawks, Dixon said.

“I’ve just been doing my job,” Weems said. “I trust the guys around me to do what they have to do.I’m just doing my part and doing what I have to do as well. I’m trying to lead our team to a victory, the best way I can.”

Getting off to a better start and consistency was highlighted as the two keys of winning the game, according to Dixon and Longacre.

Saturday afternoon’s game kicks off at 1:30 p.m. EDT at Rams Stadium.