GAME NOTES (PDF)

THE MATCH-UP: ESU travels to Farrell Stadium for the 74th meeting between the Warriors and the Golden Rams. The Warriors are coming off a 37-0 win at Cheyney on Saturday, while West Chester improved to 2-0 in the PSAC East with a 37-17 win over Kutztown. Both schools are looking for a signature win in the PSAC East and NCAA Division II Super Region 1 (formerly Northeast Region) standings.

ESU FANS: Saturday's game is Homecoming at West Chester, so all fans are encouraged to arrive early to the game. The gates will open at 12 p.m. for the 2 p.m. kickoff between the Warriors and Golden Rams.

THE SERIES: West Chester holds a 53-20 advantage and has won the last six meetings in the all-time series that dates to 1926, ESU's first year of varsity football. The Warriors' last victory came in 2003 (28-27), and their last win at Farrell Stadium was in 2000 (12-6). West Chester has won the last three games by at least 10 points - 49-28 (2006), 30-15 (2007) and 34-24 (2008) - since an 18-17 win at home in 2005.

LAST TIME OUT: The Warriors posted their first shutout since 2006 with a 37-0 win at Cheyney on Saturday. Fr. TB Eric Deery ran for 121 yards, R-Fr. TB Justin Lee had 58 rushing yards and two TDs and R-Sr. WR Sam Shuman caught a pair of TD passes to lead an offensive effort that produced 517 yards (235 rushing, 282 passing). The Warriors defense limited Cheyney to 189 yards led by R-Jr. OLB Matt Freed, who had 12 tackles and a sack. Jr. CB David Castillo and Fr. CB D'Jon Tillman both had interceptions.

Lee started at tailback and scored his first two career TDs late in the second quarter as ESU built a 23-0 halftime lead. Deery went over the 100-yard mark on 15 carries in his first career action. In the passing game, R-Jr. QB Matt Marshall (10-for-17, 195 yards, 2 TD) and R-So. QB Ray Wagner (3-for-4, 87 yards, TD) both threw 27-yard TD passes to Shuman, who had four catches for 97 yards, and R-Jr. WR Ed Kiser also had a 22-yard TD catch.

THE HEAD COACHES: Denny Douds (Slippery Rock '63) holds the PSAC record for career wins with a 222-143-3 record in his 36th season as head football coach at ESU. Douds is in his 44th season at ESU overall and is one of five active coaches in Division II, and one of just 16 coaches in all of college football, with at least 200 career victories. He has led the Warriors to nine PSAC titles and three NCAA Playoff appearances, including the Northeast Region championship in 2005 when ESU advanced to the national semifinals. For more information on Coach Douds and the ESU coaching staff, please see page 8 of the game notes.

Bill Zwaan (Delaware '79) has a 57-24 record in his seventh season as head coach at West Chester. He guided Widener to a six-year record of 54-14 from 1997-2002 and has a career mark of 111-38. Zwaan has led the Golden Rams to five straight NCAA playoff appearances and three PSAC East championships.

PSAC RANKINGS: Today's game matches the No. 2 and No. 3 scoring offenses in the PSAC, with West Chester (33.2 ppg) ranking just ahead of ESU (30.6 ppg). ESU is 2nd in both total offense (410.2 ypg) and pass offense (268.8 ypg), while West Chester leads the conference in total defense (240.8 ypg) and rush defense (68.2 ypg). The Golden Rams are 5th in total offense with a balanced attack that ranks 3rd in rushing (169.4 ypg) and 4th in passing (225.8 ypg). ESU ranks just 10th in total defense but is in the top half of the PSAC in scoring defense, allowing 19.2 points per game.

RUNNING THE GAUNTLET: ESU is 15-1 in its last 16 games against opponents other than West Chester and Bloomsburg. The Warriors are playing the schools in consecutive weeks for the fourth straight year and haven't beaten both in the same year since the 1991 NCAA playoff season. Since 2000, ESU is 3-7 vs. both Bloomsburg and West Chester and 34-4 against the remainder of the teams in the PSAC East.

INDIVIDUAL PSAC LEADERS: R-Jr. WR Jeff Giglio leads the PSAC with 101.4 receiving yards per game and is 16th in Division II. Giglio ranked 6th in the nation with 118.2 yards per game entering last week's game at Cheyney, where he had one catch for 34 yards.

The Warriors have a player in the top 3 in the PSAC in nearly every offensive category:

R-Jr. WR Jeff Giglio - 1st receiving yds (101.4), 2nd all-purpose yds (124.8), 5th receptions per game (5.4)
R-Jr. QB Matt Marshall - 2nd pass rating (161.9), 2nd total offense (263.8), 3rd passing yds (231.0)
R-Jr. TB Zach Krise - 2nd rushing yds (97.8), 2nd scoring (6 TD, 9.0 ppg), 5th all-purpose yds (112.2)

THE MARSHALL PLAN: R-Jr. QB Matt Marshall is 6-1 as a starter, going 2-0 last season and 4-1 this year. He has completed 65.1 percent of his passes this season, behind only Edinboro's Trevor Harris (67.3) in the PSAC, and has run for 164 yards and a touchdown, ranking second behind C.W. Post's Eric Anderwkavich in rushing yards by a quarterback. Marshall's 161.9 quarterback rating is 14th in Division II.

Marshall has thrown for 1155 yards with 10 TDs and 4 interceptions in 2009. He had 937 yards passing, 9 TDs and 6 interceptions and completed 57.5 percent of his passes last year while making two starts and also playing vs. Clarion and Millersville.

He was the PSAC East Offensive Player of the Week vs. Clarion after completing 79.3 percent of his passes (23-for-29), the second-best day in school history, for 316 yards and 3 TDs. He was also honored by the conference following the final two games of the 2008 season in wins over Millersville and Slippery Rock.

OUT OF THE BLOCKS: Marshall has been almost perfect in the first quarter this season, going 29-for-37 (78.4 percent) for 428 yards, 3 TDs and one interception. He was 11-for-12 for 94 yards and a TD to start the season opener at Virginia Union, and has thrown for at least 80 yards in the first quarter in four of the Warriors' first five games.

MARSHALL TO GIGLIO: The Warriors' top quarterback and receiver have connected 41 times for 840 yards and 7 TDs in less than eight games over the past two years, including four 100-yard games:

2008 vs. Cheyney: 3 catches, 87 yards, 2 TD
2008 at Millersville: 4 catches, 134 yards, 2 TD
2008 at Slippery Rock: 8 catches, 162 yards, TD
2009 at Virginia Union: 6 catches, 69 yards
2009 at Gannon: 7 catches, 140 yards, TD
2009 vs. Clarion: 7 catches, 148 yards, TD
2009 at Shippensburg: 5 catches, 66 yards
2009 at Cheyney: 1 catch, 34 yards

PSAC LEADER: R-Jr. WR Jeff Giglio, the PSAC leader with 101.4 receiving yards per game, has gone over the 100-yard mark five times in the last seven games coinciding with Marshall taking over as the Warriors' quarterback.

He finished the 2008 season with 301 yards and 3 TDs over the final two games and had three straight 100-yard games before last week's game at Cheyney.

Giglio had 41 catches for 749 yards and 10 TDs last year. He was tied for 4th in the PSAC in receiving TDs and ranked 7th with 68.1 receiving yards per game.

EVERYBODY'S ALL-AMERICAN: R-Jr. OLB Matt Freed, a first team Daktronics Division II and third team Associated Press Little All-American last year, is putting up similar numbers in 2009. He is fourth in the PSAC with 10.2 tackles per game and has 51 tackles, 5.5 TFL and 3.0 sacks.

Freed has reached double figures in tackles in 12 of his 16 career starts. He tied for sixth in Division II with 11.5 tackles per game last year and recorded 126 tackles, 11.0 TFL, 4.0 sacks and 4 interceptions. He was a three-time PSAC East Defensive Player of the Week and had 13 or more tackles in six of the Warriors' 11 games.

ACADEMIC ALL-DISTRICT: Freed and R-Sr. WR Sam Shuman have been named to the ESPN The Magazine Academic All-District team in their careers. Freed was named to the first team last year with a 3.55 GPA as a History major. Shuman, a Pharmacy major completing his ninth semester at ESU, was an Academic All-District selection in 2007.

THE WIDE RECEIVERS: R-Sr. Sam Shuman, R-Jr. Jeff Giglio and R-Jr. Ed Kiser are all averaging at least 16 yards per catch for the second straight season and have combined for more than 4,000 yards in their careers.

Shuman just missed his fifth career 100-yard receiving game with four catches for 97 yards and two TDs at Cheyney last week. He is less than 200 yards away from becoming the eighth player in ESU history to reach 2,000 career receiving yards.Shuman set career-highs in receptions and yards last season and led ESU with 36 catches for 534 yards in 2007, when he was second team All-PSAC East.
2009 yards per catch: 16.8; Career yards per catch: 15.5

Shuman is 2-for-2 for 102 yards passing this season and 5-for-6 for 216 yards in his career. He completed a 52-yard pass to Kiser at Virginia Union and a 50-yard pass to Giglio at Shippensburg, and was 3-for-3 for 114 yards last year.

Giglio has been the Warriors' go-to receiver this season after the graduation of Doug Ogden, who had 39 catches for 825 yards and 8 TD in 2008. The PSAC's leading receiver, Giglio has more than 1,500 career yards in 25 games at ESU. For more information on Giglio, please see page 2 of the game notes.
2009 yards per catch: 18.8; Career yards per catch: 18.2

Kiser has emerged as a solid all-around receiver and is just outside the top 10 in the PSAC in both receiving and all-purpose yards per game. He has caught a TD pass in each of the last two weeks and had a career-high 156 all-purpose yards at Shippensburg. Kiser has accounted for 471 yards (282 receiving, 37 rushing, 152 KR) for an average of 94.2 yards per game.

Kiser was 5th on the team in receptions and 4th in yards last season but averaged 18.5 yards per catch and hauled in a 96-yard TD pass at Millersville, the second-longest pass play in school history. He held the school record in the 400m (49.49) until it was broken last year and contributed to three school record-setting relay teams for the Warriors.
2009 yards per catch: 18.8; Career yards per catch: 18.6

R-Fr. Jordan Hallman has added a fourth wide receiver to the mix this season with 7 catches for 91 yards and his first career TD, a 32-yard catch at Gannon. Fr. WR Bryan Ogden has 2 catches for 43 yards and had a 37-yard catch at Cheyney.

R-Sr. TE Willie Bell (8 catches, 104 yards) provides a receiving threat from the tight end spot with 8 catches for 104 yards and a TD this year and 6 catches for 124 yards last season. R-Jr. FB Brent Jones has 5 catches for 39 yards.

THE RUNNING GAME: R-Jr. TB Zach Krise was held out of action last week after running for 391 yards and 5 TDs through the first four games. He is third in the PSAC with a 97.8-yard rushing average.

In his first three games, Krise ran for 107 yards and a TD on 26 carries at Virginia Union, 184 yards and 2 TD on 29 carries at Gannon and 93 yards on 23 carries vs. Clarion. His average of 26.0 carries per game was fifth in Division II. He was the PSAC East Offensive Player of the Week with 222 all-purpose yards and 3 TDs in ESU's win at Gannon. He was held to 7 yards on seven carries on a tough day for the Warriors' offense at Shippensburg.

Krise, in his first year as a starter at tailback, was primarily a wide receiver his first two years and was a defensive back during his redshirt year in 2006. He was ESU's leading returning rusher with 11 carreis for 43 yards entering the year and had three catches for 38 yards as a redshirt freshman.

STEPPING IN, STEPPING UP: R-Fr. TB Justin Lee and true freshman Eric Deery both saw the first significant action of their careers at Cheyney. Lee got the start at tailback and ran 17 times for 58 yards and 2 TDs, all in the first half, and Deery ran for 121 yards on 15 carries in his first career game. Deery is the first ESU true freshman to have a 100-yard rushing game since Stewart Ford eclipsed the 100-yard mark five times in 1997 on his way to a 1,109-yard season, the second-best in school history.

OFFENSIVE VERSATILITY: ESU has rotated offensive linemen at tight end, along with regular tight ends Willie Bell and Matt Brown, the last two years and added Sr. Dan Finnegan, an offensive lineman, at fullback to join R-Jr. Brent Jones this season. Finnegan changed numbers to 48 (from 68) earlier this year. R-Fr. Blair Gower and Jr. Mike Dimitriou have also seen action at tight end.

IN THE FRONT ROW: R-Sr. Morgan Thomas has started 35 career games (5 at LT, 17 at RG, 13 at RT) and made the switch to left tackle this season. He was second team All-PSAC East last year and was named a preseason honorable mention All-American by CDSdraft.com this summer.

The Warriors made their first change on the offensive line last week, with Jr. Mike Dimitriou replacing R-So. Zach Sarginger at right guard. ESU started the same five players on the offensive line in 10 of its 11 games last season.

R-So. Dan Caffrey has started all 16 games in his career at center after moving from the defensive line, where he spent his redshirt season. R-Fr. Seve Rivers (left guard) and R-Fr. Wrenton Wright II (right tackle) have started all five games this year, and Sarginger started the first four games at right guard.

MAGIC NUMBER = 140: ESU has won its last 13 games when running for at least 140 yards. The Warriors had six games with 140 yards rushing last season and have topped the mark three times this year (143 at Virginia Union, 187 at Gannon, 235 at Cheyney). The last loss with at least 140 rushing yards was a 49-28 setback vs. West Chester in 2006.

RED ZONE SUCCESS: ESU led the PSAC in red zone offense last season, scoring points on 44 of its 48 possessions inside the 20-yard line (92%). The Warriors scored 32 touchdowns (72% of their posssessions) and kicked 12 field goals.
This year: ESU ranks eighth in the PSAC at 79.2 percent (19-24) with 16 TDs

THIRD DOWN SUCCESS: The Warriors have converted at least 50 percent of their third downs in four of the first five games. They ranked 5th in Division II at 55.3 percent before going 1-for-10 at Shippensburg, and their current percentage of 47.5 is third in the conference. ESU was 2nd at 46.1 percent in 2008.

GOING THE DISTANCE: ESU had three scoring drives that covered 88 yards last week at Cheyney, and has six drives of at least 85 yards this season.
85-yard drives over the last four seasons: 2009 - 6; 2008 - 4; 2007 - 1; 2006 - 3

GOING THE DISTANCE (2): ESU had a 16-play drive that took 6:47 off the clock in the second quarter last week. The Warriors have had 190 scoring drives (146 touchdowns, 44 field goals) since the start of the 2006 season, and just three that have lasted at least 6:00. The longest drive in that stretch was a 12-play, 44-yard possession that took 6:55 and set up the game's final field goal in a 12-0 win at Edinboro in 2006.

SHUTTING IT DOWN: The Warriors' 37-0 shutout at Cheyney was their first shutout since the 12-0 win at Edinboro in 2006. ESU has 26 shutouts in 36 seasons under head coach Denny Douds. The defense has held opponents to 9 or fewer points 23 times since 2000, including six shutouts, and has a 22-1 record in those games with the only loss coming by a 9-7 score vs. Bentley in the 2006 season opener.

WARRIORS ON DEFENSE: ESU used the same starting defensive lineup through the first four games before making its first change last week, when Jr. ILB Kevin Schafer was held out due to injury and replaced by So. ILB Mike Bergey, who made his first career start. Schafer is still second on the team with 30 tackles and is one of three new starters at linebacker this season, along with Jr. OLB Mark Kalo and R-So. ILB Taylor Cave. R-Jr. OLB Matt Freed was an All-American last season as the only first-year starter among a veteran group of linebackers. For more information on Freed, please turn to page 3.

Freed has made 16 career starts and is one of five returning starters from last year, joining R-Sr. DE Matthew Faas (25 career starts), R-Jr. DE Jeff Case (15), Jr. CB David Castillo (21) and Sr. FS Nicholas Artinger (23). For a complete list of career starts for the Warriors, please see page 4 of the game notes.

Case leads the Warriors' defensive linemen with 22 tackles, 5.0 TFL and 2.0 sacks and R-So. DL Cody Berry also has 2.0 sacks this season after tying for the team lead with 4.0 sacks last year. Faas recorded 9.0 TFL last year and tied for the PSAC lead with 4 fumble recoveries. R-Sr. Keith Galinsky and R-So. Rudy Cerami are both in their first year as starters at defensive tackle, and Jr. Alex Figueroa and Fr. Kevon Brown have also been on the field at defensive end.

In the secondary, Artinger is one of three players in the PSAC with three interceptions this season, including two vs. Clarion, and has six interceptions in his career. He has started 15 games at safety over the last two years and has also made 8 starts at cornerback. Sr. FS Mike Gnall made his first appearance of the season last week after returning from injury and has made 9 career starts.

Castillo had his first interception of the season and fifth of his career last week. He was second in the PSAC with 15 passes defensed (3 interceptions, 12 pass breakups) last season and has three breakups and an interception this year. R-So. CB Shawnte Carroll is the starter on the other side and true freshmen Mark Henderson, John Mack and D'Jon Tillman have also contributed at cornerback and nickel back.

BALANCED DEFENSE: Freed leads the defense with 51 tackles, 5.5 TFL and 3.0 sacks and the Warriors have seen almost every player who has stepped on the field make an impact this year. Each of the top 13 tacklers have made at least one tackle behind the line of scrimmage, including eight players who have contributed to the Warriors' 11 sacks.

BREAK IT UP: ESU is fifth in the PSAC in pass efficiency defense, allowing a 113.1 opponents' quarterback rating, and has 7 interceptions while allowing just 5 TD passes. The Warriors have forced 10 turnovers through the first five games with four players recording interceptions. Artinger has three picks, Cave has two including a 26-yard TD vs. Clarion, and Castillo and Tillman both intercepted passes last week. ESU has also registered 16 pass breakups.

DEPARTED ALL-AMERICAN: The Warriors boasted the top punter in Division II in 2008 in Nick Krut, a first team Daktronics Division II and first team AP Little All-American, who led Division II and ranked second in all divisions of college football with a 46.0-yard average last season. Krut had 15 punts of 50 or more yards and eight of 60 or more yards with a long of 73. He had a career average of 42.4 yards in three years.

NATION'S BEST: ESU led Division II with a 39.7-yard net punting average and has ranked in the top 5 four times in the last nine years. The Warriors also had the top net average of 40.6 in 2004. ESU has had seven first team All-PSAC East punters and six first team kickers in the past 10 years, and Denny Douds has coached 14 first team kickers and 13 first team punters in his 35 seasons at ESU.

RETURNING STARTERS: The Warriors returned nine starters, four on offense and five on defense, after graduating 15 seniors (14 starters) from last year's team. Five players made their first career starts in the season opener - R-So. DL Rudy Cerami, Jr. OLB Mark Kalo, R-Fr. LG Seve Rivers, R-So. RG Zach Sarginger and R-Fr. RT Wrenton Wright II.

2009 ROSTER BREAKDOWN: 54 players have participated for the Warriors through the first five games this season, including 18 who saw their first career action for the Warriors.

The Warriors have played seven true freshmen - DB Mark Henderson, DB John Mack, DB D'Jon Tillman, DE Kevon Brown, TB Eric Deery, WR Bryan Ogden and P Joseph Janovic - after playing only five true freshmen in the past two years. So. LB Mike Bergey was the only true freshman to letter last year, and Jr. CB David Castillo, Jr. OLB Mark Kalo and Jr. LB Kevin Schafer lettered in 2007.

WARRIORS ON TV: Blue Ridge TV-13 will broadcast ESU football for the 22nd year this season, with all five home games airing live across the region. Veteran play-by-play man Chris Doty is joined by color commentator Jim Riley and sideline reporter Drenen Tucker.

ESU will also have two games broadcast across the state by the SPORTSfever Television Network - Bloomsburg (Oct. 10) and Millersville (Oct. 31). Five ESU games have been broadcast by SPORTSfever over the last two years. The telecasts will air on STN-affiliated stations WTVE (Philadelphia-Lehigh Valley-South Jersey), WGCB (Harrisburg-Lancaster-York), WQMY (Wilkes-Barre-Scranton-Williamsport) and WQED (Pittsburgh-Western Pennsylvania). They will also be featured on FSN Pittsburgh on Monday nights and replay on Time Warner, Armstrong, Atlantic Broadband, Blue Ridge, Service Electric and Comcast (WIUP) cable systems throughout Pennsylvania.

WARRIORS ON RADIO: WVPO 840 AM is in its 47th season broadcasting ESU football and will once again carry all 11 games in 2009. Chuck Seese, recently honored as the 2009 PSAC Heaslip Media Award winner to recognize his contributions to ESU and the PSAC, is in his 21st season as the voice of the Warriors. He is joined in the booth by Bob Brittain, who is in his ninth year providing the color commentary.

UNDER THE LIGHTS: ESU is 4-1 in night games since lights were installed at Eiler-Martin Stadium before the 2007 season. The Warriors dropped their inaugural game to IUP (38-23) on Sept. 15, 2007, but won all four since then — Virginia Union (14-11), Gannon (23-10) and Cheyney (52-12) in 2008, and Clarion (45-31) in 2009, the only night game on this year's schedule.

PSAC PRESEASON POLL: ESU was picked to finish third in the 2009 PSAC East Coaches Poll, which was released at PSAC media day on August 3. The Warriors, who received one first place vote, were selected behind preseason favorite Bloomsburg and defending PSAC East champion West Chester. C.W. Post was fourth, followed by Shippensburg, Kutztown, Millersville and Cheyney.

In the West, defending PSAC champion and two-time NCAA semifinalist California was picked to defend its title, followed by Edinboro, IUP and Mercyhurst. Slippery Rock, Gannon and Clarion, all on the Warriors' schedule in 2009, were fifth through seventh. The 2009 season will mark the second year of the PSAC State Game, which was held annually from 1960-1987 and returned last season.

AND WE GO TO...OVERTIME: ESU broke a four-game losing streak in overtime games with its 44-41 win vs. Shippensburg on Sept. 20, 2008, which gave head coach Denny Douds the PSAC record with his 213th career victory. ESU is 3-6 all-time in overtime contests.

LIKE FATHER, LIKE SON: Two members of this year's team have fathers who earned letters for the Warriors under Coach Douds. They join at least five other father-son combinations who have been affiliated with ESU football since Douds arrived in 1966.

R-Fr. DE Sam Hull - father Chris was a four-year letterwinner at DE from 1984-87
R-Jr. QB Matt Marshall - father Brian was the Warriors' leading passer in 1981

* Michael Falcone lettered at linebacker in 1973, his son Bryan earned 3 letters at linebacker from 2000-02
* Steven Jackson lettered at center from 1969-71, his son Greg lettered at tight end in 1998 and 1999
* Doug McNamee (DB/WR) was a co-captain on the 1966 team, his son Todd was a four-year letterwinner as a kicker and punter from 1985-88
* Willard Stem was an All-American safety in 1975, his son Drew was a two-year starter at wide receiver and kick returner in 2007 and 2008
* Mike Terwilliger was the starting quarterback for Douds' first four years as head coach and has been an assistant coach since 1978, his son Jimmy was a four-year starter at QB and won the Harlon Hill Award as the top player in Division II in 2005

PSAC CHAMPIONSHIPS: ESU has won a share of nine PSAC titles under head coach Denny Douds, and 15 in school history. The most recent championships came in 2002 and 2003, when the Warriors tied for the PSAC East championship. Outright PSAC titles came in 1964, 1965, 1975, 1978 and 1982. ESU has a 205-98-1 (.676) record in PSAC games for the third-best winning percentage since the first on-the-field title was awarded in 1960.

EILER-MARTIN STADIUM: Eiler-Martin Stadium has been home to the ESU football program since 1938 and was named in honor of John R. Eiler, an outstanding athlete at the school in the early 1930s and later athletic director and a championship soccer coach, and Gene Martin, the Warriors' head football coach from 1942-57 and the school's long-time Dean of Men. The stadium has been upgraded several times since its construction. New home bleachers were added in 1960, the current press box was installed in 1988, the track was resurfaced and expanded in 2005, lights were added in 2007 and FieldTurf was installed prior to the 2008 season. The Warriors have a 115-59 record at Eiler-Martin Stadium under head coach Denny Douds and a 35-16 home record since the start of the 2000 season.

ACADEMIC ACCOLADES: ESU has led the PSAC with 10 ESPN The Magazine Academic All-District II selections in each of the last two years and produced two Academic All-Americans in 2008-09, men's basketball player Chris Bach and track & field athlete Paul Wagner. ESU also led the conference with five “Top 10” honorees last year. R-Jr. OLB Matt Freed was first team Academic All-District last year and will have an opportunity to become the fifth ESU football player to be named an Academic All-American. Matt Crispell (DB, 2004) and Ernie Siegrist (TE, 1984) were both first team Academic All-Americans and Ed Detwiler (K-P, 1992) and Warren Brown (LB, 1979) were mentioned on the second team.