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Allegheny Aims for Third Straight Win
September 27, 2007
Football Game Notes (PDF)
MEADVILLE, Pa. – After consecutive road wins at Hiram and Carnegie Mellon, the Allegheny College Gators (2-1) return home for their North Coast Athletic Conference opener against Denison (1-2) at Frank B. Fuhrer Field on Saturday.
At Carnegie Mellon, Allegheny forced five second half turnovers en route to earning a 24-21 victory in Pittsburgh. Andy Toner (Bethel Park, Pa./Bethel Park) paced the defense with 20 tackles while Craig Lawrence (Fairview, Pa./Fairview) totaled two sacks, a forced fumble, and two fumble recoveries, an effort which netted him NCAC Defensive Player of-the Week honors as well as D3football.com National Team of the Week status. Offensively, the Gators got another efficient from performance (17-of-30/196/2 TDs) from quarterback T.J. Salopek (North Huntingdon, Pa./Norwin) while Jim Lieb (Carrolltown, Pa./Northern Cambria) grabbed seven catches for 100 yards.
“Last week’s game had a great atmosphere and was a lot of fun to be a part of,” said Gator head coach Mark Matlak. “I thought our offense showed vast improvement with good balance and better blocking. Defensively, we played tough against the Wing-T and were pretty solid aside from the two touchdown passes we allowed. In the end, the kicking game was also a big difference as was our return game. Overall, we showed great intensity and executed well.”
This week, the Gator offense will once again be paced by Salopek, who has completed 35-of-61 pass attempts for 406 yards and three touchdowns since taking over the starting quarterback duties in the second half of week one’s game against Westminster. A trio of running backs have seen significant carries in 2007, including tailbacks Rodney Still (Hummelstown, Pa./Dauphin) and Devin Raynor (Bemus Point, N.Y./Maple Grove), and fullback Matt Cellini (Trumbull, Conn./St. Joseph). Still has a team-high 156 yards on 28 carries, while Raynor has a team-high two rushing touchdowns to go along with 113 yards on the ground. Cellini got a bulk of his carries last week and has totaled 62 yards and a touchdown this season. Lieb has been Salopek’s favorite target so far this season, catching 16 balls for 186 yards while James Jones (Ellington, N.Y./Falconer Central) has grabbed a team-best two touchdown receptions.
“On offense we have gotten a bit better, which is something you want to see each week,” noted Matlak. “We have to continue to improve with seven conference games coming up quickly. This week, we have to handle Denison’s pressure and man-to-man play, they are a team that constantly flies around the ball.”
Defensively, Allegheny is led by linebacker Mateo Villa (Windsor, Ohio/Middlefield Cardinal), who leads the squad with 34 tackles in 2007. Toner is right behind Villa with 32 tackles from his safety position with corner Jon Buggey (Homer City, Pa./Homer Center) leading the team with 5.5 tackles for loss. Lawrence has been very opportunistic this fall, recording team-highs in sacks (3.5) and fumble recoveries (3).
Overall, the Gator defense has recorded 11 sacks in 2007, already one better than their total of 10 from last year. “The big difference this year is player improvement,” said the head coach. “We have a vastly different group of guys like Craig Lawrence, Doug Macik (Lancaster, Pa./Hempfield), Jermaine Mitchell (Brooklyn, N.Y./Xaverian), and Andy Mihalcin (Beaver Falls, Pa./Blackhawk), who were not there last year.”
“Defensively this week, we need to handle their quarterback Mike Barnes and both their tailbacks, said Matlak. “When you watch them on film, you see that Barnes gives them a real spark, giving us a big challenge in stopping them.”
The Big Red moved from the ranks of the unbeaten against Gallaudet on Saturday, scoring 28 second-quarter points en route to a 42-0 victory over the first-year program. Denison accumulated 525 yards of total offense to just 161 from Gallaudet, with 470 of those yards coming from the rushing game. Dan Crawford and Mike Barnes rushed for 139 and 121 yards respectively, while Crawford reached the endzone three times. Barnes was named the NCAC Offensive Player of the Week for his efforts. On defense, Josh Hamperian totaled six tackles and three sacks while Tyler Lambert intercepted a Gallaudet pass.
Jon Berg has led the Denison rushing attack with 220 yards on 33 carries and two scores while Crawford has a team-high three rushing touchdowns to go along with 162 yards. The Big Red defense is paced by linebacker Joe Ulrey (25 tackles, 1 interception) and defensive back Drew Homyk (25 tackles).
The Gators have won the last 18 meetings between the two schools, opening their lead to 18-3 against the Big Red. The two teams have only met as North Coast Athletic Conference rivals, with the Big Red winning the first three matchups in the first three seasons of the NCAC. Lately it has been the Gators that have had the upper hand, out-scoring the Big Red 675-to-155 in the last 15 meetings, an average score of 45-10. The series took a two-year hiatus in 2004 and 2005 due to the NCAC Power-Rating schedule, before the Gators traveled to Deeds-Piper Stadium, winning 23-6 last season.
Saturday’s game is part of Allegheny College’s community day and will have free admission to the public. Kick-off is set for 2:00 p.m.