SLIPPERY ROCK, Pa. -- Slippery Rock University officials announced Tuesday The Rock will host six home football games during its 2010 season.

The home games are pretty well spread out throughout the 11-week season.

The Green and White opens the season with a 7 p.m. Thursday game Sept. 2 against NCAA Division II Super Region One rival Merrimack College of Massachusetts on Bob DiSpirito Field at N. Kerr Thompson Stadium.

Merrimack had a 7-3 record and shared the Northeast 10 Conference championship with Bentley (Mass.) and Southern Connecticut State.

Two weeks after the season opener, on Sept. 18, The Rock hosts West Chester (7-4 in 2009) in a 7 p.m. Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference "crossover" game. That will be the same day SRU holds its annual Hall of Fame induction ceremony.

Three weeks after that, on Oct. 9, SRU entertains Edinboro (9-4) in a 6 p.m. PSAC-Western Division contest.

Two weeks later, on Oct. 23, The Rock hosts PSAC-West rival Lock Haven (0-10) in a 2 p.m. Homecoming game.

The Rock then closes out its 2010 regular-season schedule with back-to-back 1 p.m. home games Nov. 6 and 13 against division rival Gannon (6-5) and "crossover" foe C.W. Post (6-5), respectively.

Sandwiched between the home games against Merrimack and West Chester will be a Sept. 11 PSAC "crossover" road game at Cheyney (0-11).

In between the home games against West Chester and Edinboro will be road trips to PSAC-West rivals indiana (5-6) and Clarion (8-3) on back-to-back weekends, Sept. 25 and Oct. 2.

After hosting Edinboro, The Rock will travel to defending NCAA Super Region One champion California (11-4) for a PSAC-West contest Oct. 16.

The final road game of the regular season will be an Oct. 30 date with Mercyhurst (4-7) in Erie.

The Rock's 2010 schedule includes seven PSAC-West games, seven games against teams that had winning records in 2009 and two contests against teams that competed in the 2009 NCAA playoffs: California and Edinboro.

California and Edinboro were two of the three NCAA playoff teams SRU faced during its 2009 season. The Rock played at East Stroudsburg in the final week of the season.

C.W. Post, Cheyney and West Chester replace ESU, Kutztown and Millersville as SRU's "crossover" rivals in 2010.

Rock head coach George Mihalik will build his 2010 team around three returning All-PSAC-West first-team selections (senior kicker C.J. Bahr, senior cornerback Robert Doiley and senior center Brandon Fusco) and two second-team All-PSAC-West performers (senior wide receiver Devin Goda and junior linebacker Zach Sheridan).

Fusco also earned second-team All-America honors from Don Hansen's Football Gazette and finished third in Super Region One balloting for the Gene Upshaw Division II Lineman of the Year Award, while Bahr was one of 10 finalists for the inaugural Mitchell Award presented to the top college division kicker in the nation.

The Rock's 2010 schedule is as follows (starting times in parentheses):

Sept. 2 MERRIMACK (7 p.m.)
Sept. 11 at Cheyney (TBA)
Sept. 18 WEST CHESTER [Hall of Fame Day] (7 p.m.)
Sept. 25 at Indiana (TBA)
Oct. 2 at Clarion (2 p.m.)
Oct. 9 EDINBORO (6 p.m.)
Oct. 16 at California (TBA)
Oct. 23 LOCK HAVEN [Homecoming] (2 p.m.)
Oct. 30 at Mercyhurst (TBA)
Nov. 6 GANNON (1 p.m.)
Nov. 13 C.W. POST (1 p.m.)