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Butler hosts Providence Saturday night at the Sellick Bowl in Indianapolis, with both programs looking for their first BIG EAST win of the season.

ENTERING THE MATCH-UP: Butler is 1-4-1 on the season, while Providence brings a 3-4-1 record to Indianapolis. Both teams lost their BIG EAST openers on Saturday, Sept. 15. The Bulldogs dropped a 3-0 decision at (then) No. 25 Creighton, while the Friars fell, 2-1, at DePaul in double overtime.

FOLLOW ALONG: Saturday night's match will be streamed live on the BIG EAST Digital Network, which can be found at FOXSportsGo.com and the FOX Sports Go app. Live stats are also available. Visit the schedule page on ButlerSports.com for links.

THE SERIES: Butler owns a 4-1-1 advantage in the all-time series with Providence. All of the meetings have taken place since Butler joined the BIG EAST prior to the 2013 season. All four of Butler's wins have been shutouts. The Bulldogs are 2-0-1 in matches played in Indianapolis. The tie (2-2) was a 2015 BIG EAST Tournament quarterfinal match-up that saw the Friars advance, 5-4, on penalty kicks.

ONE YEAR AGO: Four magnificent saves from keeper Eric Dick and a goal in the 31^st minute by Brandon Guhl gave Butler a 1-0 win at Providence Sept. 23, 2017. As PC tried to clear the ball up the left side, Lewis Suddick intercepted a pass and feed it to Isaac Galliford in the far right corner. His short cross made it to the edge of the six-box where Guhl was able to flick it out of the air by Providence keeper Colin Miller. Dick made diving saves in the 27^th and 42^nd minutes, respectively, using his left knee in both cases to redirect point-blank shots from Danny Griffin and Matt DePerro.

BIG EAST MARKS: Brandon Guhl's eight points are tied for fourth in the BIG EAST rankings, while freshman keeper Gabriel Gjergji's 4.00 saves per game are also tied for fourth among league colleagues.

FRESH FACES: Six true freshmen have already started matches in 2018. Keeper Gabriel Gjergji, has started all of Butler's matches this season, while Eric Conerty, Jack Haywood, Griffin DeBolt, Louie Bulger, and Logan Lee have also gotten the starting nod in multiple matches.

GUHL AND THE (NEW) GANG: Butler's six goals this season have either been scored by leading returning scorer Brandon Guhl or by players registering their first goal as a Butler Bulldog. Guhl, who scored 13 goals in 2017, has found the net three times in the team's first five matches, while freshmen Louie Bulger and Eric Hollenkamp as well as junior Derek Sutton have scored the initial goals of their Butler careers.

PRESEASON HONORS: Three Bulldogs picked up preseason BIG EAST accolades as senior Joe Moulden and juniors Brandon Guhl and Jared Timmer were selected to the preseason All-BIG EAST squad. Guhl was also named the BIG EAST Preseason Offensive Player of the Year.

ACCORDING TO THE COACHES: Butler has been picked to finish second in the BIG EAST Preseason Poll. The conference's head coaches voted in the preseason poll. Georgetown, which finished second to the Bulldogs in the 2017 regular season but won the BIG EAST Tournament, was picked to win the conference. The Hoyas received seven first-place votes from the coaches, while Butler picked up the remaining three nods.

BIG YEAR AHEAD: Junior Brandon Guhl is a popular guy in terms of preseason honors and watch lists. Guhl is on the 2018 MAC Hermann Trophy Watch List. He was also selected to Top Drawer Soccer Men's Preseason Best XI Team (Third Team) and No. 31 on the TDS Preseason National College Soccer Players list, as well as being named to the College Soccer News 2018 Preseason All-America First Team.

NOT KIDDING AROUND: The Bulldogs put together a challenging schedule for the upcoming season as the Bulldogs will face four teams ranked in the preseason Top 25: Indiana (No. 2), Akron (No. 4), BIG EAST rival Georgetown (No. 13), and Western Michigan (No. 14). Columbia, Creighton and Xavier also received votes in the preseason poll.

UP NEXT: Butler takes a quick break from BIG EAST play to host Marshall Wednesday (Sept. 26) night in Indianapolis. The Bulldogs then return to conference action at St. John's Saturday, Sept. 29.