SLIPPERY ROCK — The last week has been an interesting one for Grove City High football coach Sam Mowrey.

He changed quarterbacks, replacing senior and three-year starter Jared Graham with sophomore Kameron Patterson.

The Eagles then made the trek up to Corry, fell behind 18-7, and then charged back, trailing 26-21 before lightning forced the game to be suspended midway through the third quarter.

Grove City made the journey north again on Saturday afternoon and had to wait through another delay before ultimately falling to the Beavers, 32-29.

“I was very happy with the way they responded to the whole situation,” said Mowrey, who is in his first season as the head football coach. “There was no complaining. No bellyaching.”

The Eagles (0-2, 0-1), who have lost two close games, will now have the task of trying to get their first win against Slippery Rock at 7 p.m. Friday at N. Kerr Thompson Stadium on the campus of Slippery Rock University.

The Rockets (2-0, 1-0) have won 16 straight games in the regular season, including a 14-7 triumph at Greenville last week.

Their last regular season loss? A 34-14 setback at Grove City in 2012.

Slippery Rock will have to contend with a Grove City offense that is radically different under Mowrey.

Grove City will spread the field and try to exploit certain matchups with Patterson, who went 11-of-13 passing for 149 yards and three touchdowns in his quarterback debut against Corry.

“We're going to have to defend all 53 yards across the field,” said Slippery Rock coach Brendan Hathaway. “Our defense has to execute the game plan as they did against Greenville.”

The Rockets held Greenville to just 101 yards of offense and kept the Trojans out of the end zone. Greenville's only score came on a 92-yard fumble return for a TD.

Greenville averaged just 2.4 yards per carry and had a mere six passing yards.

Grove City will be different kind of challenge for the Rockets.

“Just like we try to do with our offense, Sam is trying to put pressure on the defenses,” Hathaway said. “That's what we expect on Friday night. We're going to see if our defense can hold up against that style of offense. Our guys have to be up for the challenge.”

The Eagles' offense is even more dynamic with Patterson at quarterback.

Graham moved to running back and had a rushing and receiving touchdown in the close loss.

“I sat (Graham) down, and before I even finished he said, 'You want me to move to running back,'” Mowrey said. “He said, 'I told you during the summer that I'd move if you needed to me to and I'm sticking to my word.' It's testament to his character.”

Slippery Rock didn't produce the gaudy numbers it is used to piling up on offense against Greenville. Still, the Rockets were able to grind away for 150 yards rushing on 30 carries and senior quarterback Jake Whitmer completed three passes for 56 yards to senior wide receiver Brady Kadlubek.

Hathaway is expecting another slugfest against Grove City this week.

“We've been preaching that all year, that in this region, every week is going to be a dogfight,” Hathaway said. “Playing against these programs that are as storied as the Greenvilles and the Grove Citys and the Sharons and the Hickorys, every single game is going to be tough. I was happy with the way we played for four quarters. Our defense really played stout, and we're going to need that again this week.”