Complete Game Notes (PDF)
SATURDAY l 1:05 p.m. l EILER-MARTIN STADIUM
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TV: Live on Blue Ridge TV-13 and
ESU Warriors "All Access". Play-by-play man Chris Doty, in his 23rd season, is joined in the booth by Jim Riley (fifth season) with Mike Remish on the sidelines.
Radio: Live on WVPO 840 AM for the 50th season, and
redzonemedia.com. Chuck Seese, the 2009 PSAC Heaslip Media Award recipient, is in his 24th season as the voice of the Warriors, with Bob Brittain in his 12th year providing the color commentary. Pre-game begins at 12:30 p.m.
THE MATCH-UP: Head coach
Denny Douds becomes the first coach in NCAA Division II history, and 15th in college football history, to coach 400 games as East Stroudsburg University hosts Cheyney on Saturday afternoon at Eiler-Martin Stadium. Douds, in his 39th season, set the Division II record with his 394th game against Millersville on Oct. 22 last year, and coaches his 400th game exactly 11 months later.
MAKING HISTORY: Of the 15 men to coach 400 games, Douds is just the fifth to spend his entire career at one school, joining Eddie Robinson (Grambling), Joe Paterno (Penn State), Roy Kidd (Eastern Kentucky) and Tubby Raymond (Delaware). [Douds and the Warriors played at Kidd and Eastern Kentucky in 1995, falling 26-0 in Douds' 215th game and 22nd season as head coach]
Also this weekend:
• Douds can move into sole possession of 5th in Division II history in career wins, entering with 233 (tied with Arnett Mumford, who coached four schools from 1924-61)
• ESU can become the 4th program in PSAC history with 450 wins, joining West Chester, IUP and Slippery Rock, his alma mater (class of 1963)
• ESU can extend its NCAA all-division record for consecutive wins over an opponent in an uninterrupted series, winning the last 32 games since Cheyney's only win in the series (7-3 in 1979)
PROGRAM WINS: ESU can become the 4th PSAC program to reach the 450-win mark, with an all-time record of 449-299-19 (.598) in its 85th year of varsity football since 1926. The top 3 are West Chester (542), IUP (504) and Slippery Rock (452). IUP is 3-0 and West Chester and Slippery Rock are both 2-1 this year.
Douds has a 233-163-3 record in 399 games as head coach at ESU. Including 68 games and 45 wins as an assistant coach under Charlie Reese from 1966-73, he has coached in 467 of the 767 games (60.9 percent) and 278 of the 449 wins (61.9 percent) in program history. As head coach, he is responsible for 52.0 percent of the program's games and 51.9 percent its wins.
Along with holding the PSAC record for career wins, he has also coached in 96 more games than the second-most in conference history.
THE HEAD COACHES: Denny Douds (Slippery Rock '63), in his 39th season, has led the Warriors to 9 PSAC titles and 4 NCAA Playoff appearances since taking over as head coach in 1974. His teams won outright state titles in 1975, 1978 and 1982 before the State Game was discontinued following the 1987 season. His teams have claimed PSAC East divisional titles in 1975, 1976, 1978, 1980, 1982, 1983, 1991, 2002 and 2003. NCAA Playoff appearances have come in 1991, 2004, 2005 - when the Warriors won the Northeast Region title and advanced to the national semifinals - and 2009. Among active coaches, Douds ranks 2nd in Division II and 7th in all of college football with 233 career wins.
Ken Lockard (Bucknell '03) is in his second season as head coach at Cheyney and has a record of 2-12. He was previously the Wolves' defensive coordinator for three seasons, from 2008-10, and served as interim head coach in 2011 before taking over full-time in this year. He was previously outside linebackers coach at Lehigh for two seasons and has also coached at Santa Barbara City College (Calif.) and New Mexico Highlands University in Las Vegas, N.M.
DOUDS' FOES: Douds has faced 99 head coaches, including Lockard, since taking over the Warriors' program in 1974. Lock Haven's John Allen became the 99th on Sept. 8. He will face #100, Marty Schaetzle of Mercyhurst, for the first time in the season finale unless either team advances to the State Game.
Douds will meet Bloomsburg's Danny Hale, formerly of West Chester, for the 26th time on Oct. 13. The only more frequent opponent was Millersville's Gene Carpenter, who he faced 27 times from 1974-2000.
50 YEARS: This fall marks Douds' 50th season in the coaching profession, 47th at ESU and 39th as head coach. He was an assistant coach at McDowell HS (Erie, Pa.) in 1963-64 and a graduate assistant at West Virginia in 1965 before coming to the Poconos to coach for newly-appointed Charlie Reese in 1966. The 50th anniversary of Douds' final collegiate game at Slippery Rock, a 13-6 win over East Stroudsburg in the PSAC State Game, is on November 17. Also of note, the 1964-65 PSAC champion football teams, coached by Jack Gregory, will be inducted to the ESU Athletic Hall of Fame on October 6. The 1965 State Game, a 26-10 win over Indiana (Douds' hometown team), was the last Warriors game without Douds on the sidelines.
REMEMBERING DEREK: The ESU football family sustained two losses during the summer.
Derek Brown, a starting linebacker as a sophomore on last year's team, died on July 5 from injuries sustained in a car accident on June 30. Brown's older brother, Matt, was a four-year letterwinner at tight end and graduated in 2011. Matt Deery, the younger brother of Sr. TB
Eric Deery, died in a car accident on August 1. Both were remembered with a moment of silence before the opener on Sept. 8 and the Warriors will wear a #24 decal (Brown's number) on their helmets throughout the season.
THE SERIES: ESU's 32 straight wins over Cheyney are an NCAA all-division record for an uninterrupted series. The Warriors won last year's meeting, 10-6, in a rain, sleet and mud-filled game at Cheyney behind 105 yards and the game's only TD by TB
Kendrick Williams. ESU leads the all-time series, 55-1, with Cheyney's only win coming in 1979 (7-3) when the Wolves went on to win the PSAC championship.
LAST TIME OUT: Zach Zulli, the nation's leading passer, threw for 496 yards and 5 TD as Shippensburg posted a 63-21 win over the Warriors. Shippensburg's 606 yards passing and 719 yards of total offense rank 3rd and 6th, respectively, in PSAC history. ESU led 14-7 with 10 minutes left in the 2nd quarter before Shippensburg scored 33 points to close the half.
Shippensburg set records for most passing yards and total offensive yards by an ESU opponent, and its point total was the most by a Division II opponent (ESU lost 70-10 at Division I-AA New Hampshire in 1998). Zulli's 496 yards passing were also the most by an opposing quarterback.
GETTING THEIR FEET WET: ESU has had 45 players contribute in the first 2 weeks, with 17 seeing their first career action. Nine players have made their first career starts, and 12 are in their first season as full-time starters. Three true freshmen started the season opener vs. Lock Haven - RT
Cody Laubach, OLB
Mike Kinney and ILB
Brandon Pearce. ESU had started just two true freshmen in a season opener in the last 10 years. Other starters as true freshmen were OL Jeff Kocsis in 2004 at Lenoir-Rhyne and FS Kevin Antol last season vs. Pace.
Laubach and Kinney have both started the first 2 games. ESU has had just 6 players (true freshmen or redshirt freshmen) start every game of the season since 2003, all on offense. They are R-Sr. OL
Wrenton Wright II in 2009, OL
Dan Caffrey in 2008, OL Morgan Thomas in 2006, OL Jeff Kocsis in 2004 and QB Jimmy Terwilliger and WR Evan Prall in 2003.
NEW LOOK: Of the 84 players on the roster, only 30 had seen game action entering the season opener. That number is now 47 after the second game of the year. The roster is evenly split between returners (43, including redshirts) and newcomers (41). The Warriors have already played 9 true freshmen, their highest total since at least 2007.
BUILDING DEPTH: ESU graduated 10 senior starters off last season's team. The bulk of the Warriors' returners are in the sophomore class, where 9 players are listed as starters on this week's depth chart. Out of the 19 sophomores on the roster, 17 have seen game action, including 6 as true freshmen last year. Another returner, So. LB Don Kinney, Jr., lettered as a true freshman in 2010 and returned to the team this season.
FOR OPENERS: R-Jr. QB
Nate Daniels' 355 passing yards vs. Lock Haven rank 4th by an ESU QB in a season opener. Damian Poalucci threw for 527 at New Haven in 1996, 429 vs. American International in 1995 (his first career start), and
Ray Wagner threw for 375 vs. Pace last year (also in his first career start). Poalucci led the nation in passing in 1996 and Wagner was 6th in 2011. Daniels is 5th in the PSAC and t-34th in DII with 243.0 yards per game through 2 games.
DANIELS, SOLTES HIT CENTURY MARK : Daniels and R-Fr. QB
Matt Soltes both threw for more than 100 yards vs. Shippensburg. Daniels was 9-for-20 for 131 yards, 1 TD and 3 Int., and Soltes was 8-for-20 for 114 yards. It marked the 5th time in school history that two QB's threw for 100 yards in a game, and 2nd time in as many years. Daniels (182 yards) and Wagner (172) did it last year vs. Millersville after Wagner left due to injury.
It also marked the 2nd time that two QB's attempted 20 passes in the same game, joining Charlie Diskin (11-20, 120 yards) and Andy Baranek (3-22, 51 yards) in 1983 at Lehigh - Douds' 100th career game.
AIRING IT OUT: ESU has led the PSAC in passing in 7 of the last 10 years, and the Warriors' quarterback has been in the top 3 in the PSAC in total offense all 10 seasons. The Warriors were 5th in DII in passing (323.2 ypg) and Wagner was 6th in DII individually (293.3) last year, both figures that led the PSAC.
FAMILY TRADITION: Soltes and his father, Andy, are the 3rd father-son tandem to see action at quarterback for the Warriors under Coach Douds. Andy Soltes lettered as a freshman in 1982 and led the Warriors to a 17-9 comeback win at West Chester late in the PSAC championship season.
Mike Terwilliger, ESU's offensive coordinator and QB from 1974-77, and his son Jimmy, the Harlon Hill Award winner in 2005, combined for 83 starts. Mike started 35 games, going 30-4-1, and Jimmy started 48 games, going 36-12, from 2003-06.
Brian Marshall was ESU's starting QB in 1981 and his son Matt started 25 games from 2007-10, taking the Warriors to the NCAA Playoffs in 2009.
REED HITS MILESTONES: Jr. WR
Dusty Reed set career-highs with 11 catches for 198 yards vs. Shippensburg and hit 3 offensive milestones in the process.
He went over 100 catches (107), 1,500 yards (1,532) and 2,000 all-purpose yards (2,006), including a 25-yard kick return in the 4th quarter. Reed has 124 rushing yards and 350 kick return yards along with his receiving total.
Reed was voted ESU's MVP by his teammates in 2011, setting ESU sophomore records with 62 catches and 929 yards. He compiled 1,355 all-purpose yards, 9th in school history, adding 101 yards on 13 carries and 325 yards on kick returns. On the final play of the season vs. Edinboro, he caught a game-tying 21-yard TD pass from Wagner, with the extra point giving ESU a 27-26 victory.
Reed led the PSAC East in yards per game (84.5), was 1st team All-PSAC East and 3rd team Football Gazette All-Region. He was named to the BSN Preseason All-America 3rd team this summer.
MR. CONSISTENT: Reed displayed remarkable consistency during the 2011 season. Among his accomplishments:
• 86+ yards in 8 of 11 games
• 100+ yards in 4 games
• 4+ catches in 8 games
• first ESU WR with 7 catches in 5 straight games
• first ESU WR with 8 catches in 3 straight games
• 75+ all-purpose yards in all 11 games
• 100+ all-purpose yards in 8 games
He set records for most receptions (93) and yards (1,306) through a sophomore season, and currently has 107 catches for 1,532 yards and 14 TD in 24 games.
REED'S FAMILY TIES: Reed is the nephew of former ESU All-America center Pat Flaherty, the offensive line coach of the New York Giants. Flaherty has won two Super Bowl rings in the last five years, in 2007 and 2011. He was inducted to the ESU Athletic Hall of Fame in 2004 and was the starting center for quarterback
Mike Terwilliger, ESU's offensive coordinator who is in his 35th season as an assistant coach under
Denny Douds.
GOING DEEP: R-Sr. WR
Jordan Hallman had his 5th career 100-yard receiving game vs. Lock Haven - 7 catches, 179 yards and 3 TD - and scored on plays of 10, 79 and 61 yards. He is the 2nd player in school history to have two TD's of 50+ yards in a game, twice in his career.
Hallman was the only receiver in Division II with back-to-back 200-yard games last year, with 5 catches for 239 yards and 2 TD vs. C.W. Post, and 8 catches for 221 yards and 2 TD vs. Millersville. The 460 yards receiving in consecutive weeks are also the most in school history.
Hallman had TD catches of 73 and 75 yards in last year's C.W. Post game. He also caught a 72-yard TD pass - from Daniels - against Millersville.
Hallman averaged 24.4 yards per catch last season, 4th in school history. He had 35 catches for 854 yards, including 13 plays of 30+ yards. He has 81 catches for 1,557 yards and 15 TD in his career.
WARRIORS WR RANK 1-2-3 AMONG PSAC RETURNERS
At wide receivier, ESU had the top 3 returners in the PSAC in yards per game in Jr.
Dusty Reed (84.5 ypg, 4th overall in PSAC), R-Sr.
Jordan Hallman (77.6, 5th) and R-Jr.
Robert Bleiler (65.9, 8th).
The trio combined for 130 catches, 2,442 yards and 17 TD last year, averaging 18.8 yards per catch. They also had 9 of the Warriors' 11 100-yard receiving games.
• vs. LHU -- 13 catches, 288 yards, 4 TD (Hallman: 7-179)
• vs. Ship -- 12 catches, 212 yards, 1 TD (Reed: 11-198)
WARRIORS STRETCH THE FIELD IN 2011 ...
Among Division II schools with at least 15 completions per game, ESU led the nation with 15.6 yards per catch during the 2011 season. The Warriors generated 35 plays of 30+ yards in 11 games, with 12 going for touchdowns.
... AND 2012: The Warriors are averaging 17.6 yards per catch and have 6 plays of 30+ yards, including 3 TD.
BIG PLAY BLEILER: Bleiler has two 100-yard receiving games in his career, both for more than 150 yards. A 3rd 100-yard game would make him the 3rd active ESU receiver with 1,000 yards in his career, entering this weekend with 49 catches for 901 yards and 5 TD.
Bleiler caught a long TD pass in the season opener for the 2nd straight year vs. Lock Haven. He scored the Warriors' first TD of the season, turning a short pass into a 68-yard TD in the 1st quarter. He had 3 catches for 81 yards vs. LHU.
Last year vs. Pace, Bleiler had 3 catches for 172 yards and 2 TD, all in the 2nd quarter - including a 97-yard TD from
Ray Wagner that is the 2nd-longest pass play in school history.
He finished the season with 33 catches for 659 yards, averaging 20.0 per catch. He was 3rd in the PSAC East (behind Reed and Hallman) and 8th in the PSAC with 65.9 yards per game.
WHO'S NEXT: The Warriors have a host of players available to catch passes after their top three returners of Reed, Hallman and Bleiler. Among the top candidates at the next level:
So.
Ray Dominguez
• 15 catches, 202 yards in 11 games (7 starts)
• 7 catches, 111 yards vs. Bloomsburg in 2011
R-Jr.
David Radziak
• 6 catches, 110 yards in 6 games
R-Fr.
Jon Schnaars
• 58 catches, 1,006 yards, 12 TD at Central Dauphin
R-Fr.
Brandon Mercer
• 6 KR, 163 yards vs. Shippensburg (6th ESU history)
• 2 catches, 16 yards vs. Shippensburg
• ESU freshman records in 60m (7.02), 100m (10.74) in track & field
• Member of PSAC champion 4x100 relay
THE TIGHT END: R-So.
Steven Jones is the only tight end on the Warriors' roster. He had 1 catch for 34 yards vs. Lock Haven after recording 13 catches for 154 yards and 3 TD last season. He already has 3 catches of 20+ yards in his career. Jones was named 2nd team All-State on La Salle College HS's AAAA state championship team in 2009.
IN THE FRONT ROW: The Warriors lost 78 career starts from center
Dan Caffrey (45) and LT
Zach Sarginger (33), but count 94 career starts among this year's starters:
LT -- R-Sr.
Wrenton Wright II (6-3, 295)
• 35 career starts - 28 at right tackle, 7 at left tackle
• started all 11 games at right tackle as a junior
• started 5 games at LT, 5 at RT in 2010
• started all 12 games at right tackle in 2009
LG -- So.
Pete Wolmart (6-3, 310)
• 4 career starts, 2 at left guard this season
• 2 starts as a freshman, both at left tackle
• missed rest of season due to injury
• 2nd team All-State Group 4 at Randolph HS (NJ)
C -- R-Jr.
Greg Blue (6-2, 290)
• 20 career starts - 2 at center, 9 at LG, 9 at RG
• started 9 games at left guard as a sophomore
• started 9 games at right guard as a freshman
• first ESU center besides
Dan Caffrey since 2007
RG -- R-Sr.
Seve Rivers (6-3, 300)
• 2nd team All-PSAC East last season
• 33 career starts - 18 at LG, 15 at RG
• 24 consecutive starts (most on team)
• started all 11 games at right guard in 2011
RT -- Fr.
Cody Laubach (6-5, 305)
• first true freshman OL to start opener since 2004
• 1st team All-Lehigh Valley Conference at Emmaus HS
• Morning Call All-Area 2nd team
• McDonald's Lehigh Valley All-Star Game
WILLIAMS CONTINUES ADVANCE: Sr. TB
Kendrick Williams is climbing ESU's career rushing, all-purpose yardage and scoring charts during his final season.
He enters this week with 1,698 career rushing yards, jumping from 14th to 11th vs. Lock Haven. He can move into ESU's career top 10 with 16 yards vs. Shippensburg. He is 81 yards from moving into 9th and 93 from moving into 8th.
7. 1,914 -- Greg Vaughn, 2000-03
8. 1,791 -- Andre Myers, 1996-99
9. 1,779 -- Jim Snyder, 1977-80
10. 1,714 -- Jimmy Terwilliger, 2003-06
11. 1,698 --
Kendrick Williams, 2009-pres.
Later this year, Williams can become the 7th back in school history with 2,000 career rushing yards.
WILLIAMS IN 2011: Last year, Williams ranked 4th in the PSAC and 35th in Division II with 140.5 all-purpose yards per game. His season total of 1,405 yards was 7th in school history and included 541 yards rushing, 140 yards receiving and 724 yards on kick returns.
He was named 2nd team All-PSAC East as a sophomore in 2010, running for 668 yards and 9 TD. He had 436 yards rushing and 245 yards receiving (681 total) in 7 games as a freshman in 2009, making his debut in the 6th game of the season at West Chester and helping the Warriors reach the NCAA Playoffs.
Notable career statistics
All-Purpose yards -- 2,969 (7th)
Rushing yards -- 1,698 (11th)
Yards from scrimmage -- 2,161 (16th)
Rushing attempts -- 382 (10th)
Rushing TD -- 16 (1 from a tie for 7th)
Total TD -- 18 (3 from a tie for 10th)
100-yard rush games -- 4
THERE GOES DEERY: Sr. TB
Eric Deery is closing in on 1,000 career rushing yards, entering this week with 938 yards and an average of 4.8 yards per carry. He ran for 121 yards at Cheyney in his first career game in 2009.
He was ESU's 2nd-leading rusher last year with 76 carries for 413 yards and 3 TD. He finished the season with 187 yards and 2 TD over the last two games - 81 yards on 7 carries at Shippensburg, and 106 yards on 11 carries vs. Edinboro.
Deery's career total includes 3 100-yard games, two during his freshman season - 121 at Cheyney and 102 vs. Millersville. He was ESU's first true freshman with a 100-yard game since 1997.
RECEIVING THREAT: R-Jr. FB
Thomas Tippett has 4 catches for 42 yards and scored his 2nd career rushing TD last week. He has 19 catches for 191 yards and 2 rushing TD in his career, including 8 starts.
INSIDE THE WARRIORS DEFENSE
A very young ESU defense has just 2 returning starters and has seen 9 players make their first career starts over the first two weeks.
Of the 22 players on the depth chart, there are:
SR -- 3 starters
JR -- 1 starter
SO -- 6 starters, 5 backups
FR -- 1 starter, 6 backups
Entering the season, most of the returning experience was on the line, especially at defensive end, with returning starter R-So.
Brandon Gattelli and Sr.
Waverly Harris, R-So.
Sam Trunzo and So.
Tarik Haddad forming the rotation for the second straight year.
Gattelli started 8 games last year, leading the defensive ends in tackles (38) and TFL (6.5) and leading the defensive line in sacks (3.5). Harris started 3 games and had 29 tackles, 4.0 TFL and 2.0 sacks. Trunzo and Haddad also played in all 11 games.
At tackle, R-So.
Bryan Thomson and R-Sr.
Sam Hull moved into the starting spots. Hull, a 3-year letterwinner, made his 1st career start and Thomson made his 2nd career start. Thomson had 29 tackles, 2.5 TFL, 2.5 sacks and 2 forced fumbles, along with 2 blocked extra points. R-So.
Josh Przywara and R-So.
Jon Noble (a transfer from Shippensburg in 2009) are also on the depth chart.
The linebackers are completely new with the graduation of inside linebackers
Mike Bergey and
Taylor Cave, outside linebacker
Bryan Billger, and the death of
Derek Brown this summer.
Six players have made their first career starts at linebacker in the first two weeks. At inside linebacker, So.
Don Kinney, Jr. and So.
Cody Simcox hold the starting spots. So.
James Lancellotti and Fr.
Brandon Pearce were the starters in the season opener vs. Lock Haven with Kinney, Jr. and Simcox both missing practice time the previous week.
Kinney, Jr. played in all 11 games as a freshman in 2010 before spending last year away from football. Simcox is a transfer from Division I FCS Maine, where he played tight end last season. He was a 2nd team All-State linebacker at Wilson West Lawn in 2010.
At outside linebacker, Jr.
Darius Jackson moved to defense in the spring after playing in 21 games, including 5 starts, at fullback over two years. He scored 3 TD, 2 receiving and 1 rushing, Jackson has 15 tackles in the first two weeks, 8 vs. Lock Haven and 7 vs. Shippensburg.
Fr.
Mike Kinney had 12 tackles in his first career game, and start, vs. Lock Haven in the season opener. He had 2 tackles vs. Shippensburg but left due to injury.
Fr.
Greg Jones had an active preseason camp, moving from tailback to safety before landing at outside linebacker. He had 8 tackles vs. Shippensburg after making 2 in limited action vs. Lock Haven. He also returned the opening kickoff 20 yards vs. LHU. During his high school career at Colonia (N.J.), Jones was named 3rd team All-State in New Jersey, running for 2,080 yards and 33 TD as a senior.
In the secondary, R-So. FS
Anthony Singlar is the only returning starter and is 2nd in the PSAC with 10.0 tackles per game. He had 6 tackles and his 1st career interception vs. Lock Haven, and 14 tackles last week vs. Shippensburg. Singlar made 5 starts at safety last year, one of three players to hold the role and was ESU's top returning tackler with 51.
The cornerback spots are held by R-So.
Andrew Coyle, who saw some time at nickel back last year, and Sr.
Brandon Phillips, who is in his first season with the Warriors. Both have started the first 2 games. Fr.
Teron Dobbs saw his first career action vs. Shippensburg.
BROTHER ACT
So. LB
Don Kinney, Jr. and Fr. OLB
Mike Kinney both started at linebacker against Shippensburg. Mike also started the season opener vs. Lock Haven and led the Warriors with 12 tackles. They are separated by two years, as Don lettered for the Warriors as a true freshman in 2010 before spending last year away from football.
Both were high school standouts at Loyalsock, teaming up on the Lancers' 2008 Eastern Conference championship team (when Don was a junior and Mike was a freshman) and 2009 District championship team, when Mike was the Williamsport Sun-Gazette Area Player of the Year as a sophomore. Don was a three-time All-District first team selection and Mike was named to the first team all four years. Mike was also a two-time All-State selection, named to the 2nd team as a sophomore and 1st team as a junior.
WARRIORS IN DII RANKINGS
Through two weeks, ESU ranks 35th in Division II in rushing defense (98.5 ypg), 156th in passing defense (378.5), 145th in total defense (477.0) and 106th in scoring defense (31.5 ppg).
ESU ranked 16th in the PSAC and 138th in Division II in total defense last season, yielding 451.3 yards per game. Part of that was a product of being on the field for 76.1 plays per game, as ESU held the ball for just 24:43 per game and didn't have a time-of-possession advantage all season. Offensively, ESU's 41 turnovers were the most in DII and was in the bottom third of DII in red zone efficiency. Taken together, ESU allowed its most yards per game and points per game (29.4) since 1999.
GROFF AMONG NATION'S BEST KICKERS
Jr. K
Taylor Groff is just 1-for-3 on field goals this year but has two long attempts, missing from 49 yards vs. Lock Haven and 53 yards vs. Shippensburg. He made his first kick of the season, hitting from 37 yards on ESU's first possession vs. LHU.
Groff is as a member of the Watch List for the Fred Mitchell Award for the nation's top small college kicker. Among his career highlights:
Career - 28-38 - 18-20 inside 40 - 10-18 over 40
• 11-for-12 (5-for-6 over 40) on FG to tie game or give ESU lead
• 6-for-6 (2-for-2 over 40) on FG in final 1:00 of 1st half
2011 Season - 11-14 - 5-7 inside 40 - 6-7 over 40
• 6 FG of 40+ yards - tied for the most in school history with Joey Pingitore (1983)
• the rest of the PSAC's kickers were 9-for-31 from 40+ yards
• made the 2 longest FG in the PSAC (52 and 48 yards)
• 52-yard FG at Kutztown is 2nd-longest in ESU history
• made two 43-yard FG vs. Millersville, becoming the first ESU kicker with two 40+ FG in a game since Ed Detwiler made 3 vs. California in 1992
• missed first 3 games due to injury
2010 Season - 16-21 - 12-12 inside 40 - 4-9 over 40
• ESU record with 16 field goals
• perfect inside 40 yards
• one of two kickers in DII to make a FG in every game
• 87 points were 2nd-most in school history
ESU Career Field Goal Percentage
1. 73.7 --
Taylor Groff (28-38)
2. 67.2 -- Mark Brubaker (39-58)
ESU Career Field Goals
1. 50 -- Ed Detwiler (1989-92)
2. 39 -- Mark Brubaker (2002-05)
3. 30 -- Matt Seagreaves (1994-96)
4. 29 -- Joey Pingitore (1982-84)
5. 28 --
Taylor Groff (2010-pres.)
28 -- J.D. Stern (1996-99)
ESU Career Field Goals of 40+ Yards
1. 12 -- Ed Detwiler
2. 10 --
Taylor Groff
3. 8 -- Joey Pingitore
NET PUNTING
So.
Jordan Bair was 5th in the PSAC in punting average (37.8) and 6th in net punting (32.9) as a freshman. He had his two longest punts of the season, 51 at Shippensburg and 53 vs. Edinboro, in the last two weeks.
ESU has been a regular among the Division II leaders in net punting, ranking in the top 5 in three of the last eight years. The Warriors led the nation in 2004 (40.6) and 2008 (39.7) and ranked 3rd in 2006 (36.0).
RULE CHANGE
The NCAA has instituted two rule changes on kickoffs for the 2012 season. The kickoff spot has been moved up 5 yards (to the 35-yard line), and the touchback spot has been moved up 5 yards (to the 25-yard line).
The Warriors ranked 10th in the PSAC with an opponents' average drive start at the 33-yard line last season.
In 2010, ESU led the PSAC in kickoff coverage, with an average drive start of the 26-yard line. Groff had 11 touchbacks on 65 kickoffs, and his rate of 17% was more than triple the 5% rate of the rest of the PSAC. In 2011, Groff had 3 touchbacks on 37 kickoffs (8%).
IN 2012 ... ESU's opponents' average start is the 25-yard line ... Groff has 2 touchbacks on 11 kickoffs (18%)
TIME OF POSSESSION ADVANTAGE
ESU held the time of possession edge vs. Shippensburg, maintaining possession for 31:50. It was ESU's first advantage in 18 games, since a 38-31 loss vs. Kutztown in 2010. ESU has lost its last 3 games when holding a TOP advantage.
GREGORY-DOUDS FIELD AT EILER-MARTIN STADIUM
• Field renamed to honor coaches Jack Gregory and
Denny Douds after ESU's 58-14 win vs. Cheyney on Oct. 30, 2010
• Gregory had 49-11-2 (.806) record from 1959-65 and won 1964 and 1965 PSAC championships
• Douds has been ESU's head coach since 1974
• Eiler-Martin Stadium has been the home of the Warriors since 1938
• John R. Eiler was an outstanding athlete at the school in the early 1930s and later athletic director and a championship soccer coach
• Gene Martin was the Warriors' head football coach from 1942-57 and the school's long-time Dean of Men
• The Warriors have a 121-71 home record (.630) under Douds and a 41-28 home record (.594) since 2000
Renovations include:
• New home bleachers were added in 1960
• The current press box was installed in 1988
• The track was resurfaced and expanded to 8 lanes in 2005
• Lights were added prior to the 2007 season
• FieldTurf was installed prior to the 2008 season
UNDER THE LIGHTS
ESU is 6-4 in night games since lights were installed in 2007:
9-15-07 -- L 23-38 vs. IUP
8-28-08 -- W 14-11 vs. #25 Virginia Union
9-6-08 -- W 23-10 vs. Gannon
9-27-08 -- W 52-12 vs. Cheyney
9-12-09 -- W 45-31 vs. Clarion
9-11-10 -- L 17-23 vs. IUP
9-1-11 -- W 56-14 vs. Pace
9-17-11 -- L 19-22 vs. #21 California
9-8-12 -- W 31-0 vs. Lock Haven
9-15-12 -- L 21-63 vs. Shippensburg
FAMILY AFFAIR
Two Warriors have fathers who played for Coach Douds:
• R-Sr. DL
Sam Hull - father Chris, four-year letterwinner at DE from 1984-87
• R-Fr. QB
Matt Soltes - father Andy lettered at QB in 1982, threw game-winning TD at West Chester
In addition, two Warriors have relatives who played for ESU under Douds:
• Jr. WR
Dusty Reed - uncle Pat Flaherty was All-America center in 1976 and is currently the offensive line coach of the NY Giants
• R-So. CB
Andrew Coyle - father is cousin of Tim Bishop, an All-East WR in 1984 and All-PSAC pitcher, 2B and OF in baseball
At least six other father-son combinations have earned letters since Douds arrived in 1966:
• Falcone - Michael, LB '73; Bryan, LB '00-02
• Jackson - Steven, C '69-71; Greg, TE '98-99
• McNamee - Doug, DB/WR '64-66, Todd, K/P '85-88
• Stem - Willard, FS '72-75; Drew, WR '05-08
• Terwilliger - Mike, QB '74-77 (Douds' first 4 seasons, entering 35th year as asst. coach); Jimmy, QB '03-06 (Harlon Hill Award in 2005)
• Marshall - Brian, QB '81; Matt, QB '08-10 (3rd in career total offense)
WARRIORS FROM 2000-09
• The Warriors wrapped up their winningest decade in school history in the 2000's, going 77-34 for a .694 winning percentage
• They had nine winning seasons in 10 years, made three NCAA Playoff appearances, won PSAC East titles in 2002 and 2003, and had a school-record 11 wins in 2005
• ESU has an all-time record of 449-299-19 (.598)
ESU IN THE NCAA PLAYOFFS
• ESU has played in the NCAA Division II Playoffs four times, most recently in 2009 when they fell to Edinboro, 31-16, in the first round
• The Warriors have also played in the postseason in 1991, 2004 and 2005, when they advanced to the national semifinals
• ESU has a 4-4 record in four postseason trips
PSAC PRESEASON POLL
• ESU was picked to finish 6th in the 2012 PSAC East Coaches Poll
• The Warriors were selected behind Kutztown, Bloomsburg, LIU Post, West Chester and Shippensburg and ahead of Millersville and Cheyney
WARRIORS ON RADIO
• WVPO 840 AM is in its 50th season broadcasting ESU football and will once again carry all 10 games in 2012
• Chuck Seese, the 2009 PSAC Heaslip Media Award winner, is in his 24th season as the voice of the Warriors
• He is joined in the booth by Bob Brittain, who is in his 12th year providing the color commentary
WARRIORS ON TV
• Blue Ridge TV-13 will broadcast ESU football for the 26th year this season, with all five home games airing live across the region
• Play-by-play man Chris Doty (23rd year) is joined by color commentator Jim Riley (5th year) and sideline reporter Mike Remish (3rd year)
WARRIORS ON SPORTSFEVER TV
• ESU will play 3 games on state-wide and national television this season through a partnership with SPORTSfever TV
• The Warriors' games at Clarion (Sept. 29), vs. West Chester (Oct. 6) and at LIU Post (Oct. 27) will be broadcast, tape-delay, on Blue Ridge cable, the Comcast Network and ROOT Sports (formerly Fox Sports Pittsburgh)
• Broadcast times will be announced
At the end of the 2012 season, SPORTSfever will have broadcast 16 games over the last six seasons.
ESU WARRIORS ALL ACCESS
• All five broadcasts on Blue Ridge TV-13 will be available online through ESU Warriors “All Access” at www.esuwarriors.com
• The single-season package ($24.95) gives access for all football content, live and archived, through August 31, 2013
• The single-day package ($6.95) gives access for a 24-hour period
AND WE GO TO...OVERTIME
• ESU is 4-6 all-time in overtime contests and has won its last two games in OT, 27-20 at Kutztown in 2009 and 44-41 vs. Shippensburg in 2008
• The win vs. Shippensburg gave head coach
Denny Douds the PSAC record with his 213th career victory
OVERTIME GAMES
1991 - L 34-33 vs. Shippensburg (NCAA Playoffs)
1996 - W 27-20 vs. Kutztown
1999 - L 33-27 at Shepherd (2OT)
2000 - W 35-28 vs. Shepherd
2000 - L 33-26 vs. Millersville
2000 - L 17-14 vs. Shippensburg
2004 - L 38-37 vs. West Chester
2005 - L 31-24 vs. Bloomsburg
2008 - W 44-41 vs. Shippensburg
2009 - W 27-20 at Kutztown
PSAC CHAMPIONSHIPS
• ESU has won a share of nine PSAC titles under head coach
Denny Douds, and 12 in school history
• The most recent championships came in 1991, 2002 and 2003, when the Warriors won the PSAC East championship
• Overall PSAC titles came in:
1942, 1954, 1964, 1965, 1968, 1975, 1976, 1978 and 1982
• ESU has a 199-108-1 (.648) record in PSAC games entering 2012 for the 3rd-best winning percentage since the first on-the-field title was awarded in 1960
JAMES FRANKLIN UPDATE (Bio l Twitter)
• James Franklin '95, a two-year starter at QB and a Harlon Hill candidate in 1994, is in his 2nd season as head coach at Vanderbilt
• Franklin led the Commodores to a 6-6 regular season record in 2011 and their 2nd straight bowl game, the AutoZone Liberty Bowl
• Vandy is 1-2 this year, getting its first win of the year last week vs. Presbyterian after falling to #9 South Carolina and Northwestern
• Next up, the 'Dores travel to #5 Georgia on Saturday night
ACADEMIC ACCOLADES
• ESU has produced 55 ESPN The Magazine Academic All-District selections over the last 5 years, 2nd-most in the PSAC
• ESU led the PSAC with 15 selections in 2010-11 and 10 selections in
2007-08 and 2008-09
• ESU has 19 PSAC "Top 10" award winners over the last 5 years, also 2nd-most in the PSAC
• 5 student-athletes were Academic All-America selections in 2011-12 — Rose Mascoli and Corinne Fitzgerald (women's cross country/track & field), Dan Johnson and Ian Melhorn (men's cross country/track & field) and Nemanja Nikolic (men's soccer)
The football program has had 5 Academic All-Americans:
2010 - Matt Freed, LB, 1st team
2009 - Matt Freed, LB, 1st team
2004 - Matt Crispell, DB, 1st team
1992 - Ed Detwiler, P, 2nd team
1984 - Ernie Siegrist, TE, 1st team
1979 - Warren Brown, LB, 2nd team