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Gators Set For Showdown With #15 Wabash
October 4, 2007
Football Game Notes (PDF)
MEADVILLE, Pa. – Three straight wins and a showdown with the 15th ranked team in the nation will not change how the Allegheny College Gators (3-1, 1-0 NCAC) prepare for this week’s opponent.
“We have to go about our business as usual,” said Gator head coach Mark Matlak. “We have to respect everyone and keep our level of preparation the same. Our guys know they have a good opportunity in playing the #15 team in the country and they will be confident like every week.”
Matlak was referring to Allegheny’s upcoming game with conference foe Wabash (4-0, 2-0 NCAC), the 2006 NCAC co-champion. The Gators come into the game riding a three-game win streak following wins at Hiram and Carnegie Mellon before a 14-0 win at home last week over Denison.
“Overall, I felt good about what we accomplished last week,” said Matlak. “We were coming off of a very intense game at Carnegie Mellon, and it is difficult to match that kind of intensity week in and week out. I felt we were able to meet the challenge and play at the same level on defense – on offense, we made enough big plays to get the win.”
In that contest, Allegheny was led by quarterback T.J. Salopek (North Huntingdon, Pa./Norwin), who completed 18-of-31 passes for 171 yards and a touchdown while leading the team in rushing with 68 yards and a score, garnering the sophomore NCAC Offensive Player of the Week honors. Defensively, linebacker Ross Simcoe (Coudersport, Pa./Coudersport) had a game-high 13 tackles and a sack while cornerback Nick Jones (Blairsville, Pa./Homer Center) intercepted his second pass of the year.
This week, the Gator offense will led by Salopek (53-of-91/577 yds/4 TDs/2 INT) along with running backs Rodney Still (Hummelstown, Pa./Dauphin) and Devin Raynor (Bemus Point, N.Y./Maple Grove). Still has a team-high 159 yards rushing while Raynor has 133 yards and a team-best two touchdowns on the ground.
Allegheny’s receiving corps is paced by Jim Lieb (Carrolltown, Pa./Northern Cambria) who has a team-best 21 catches for 217 yards, James Jones (Ellington, N.Y./Falconer Central) with 10 receptions for 131 yards and two scores, and Jake Vite (Hollidaysburg, Pa./Hollidaysburg Area) with eight catches for 143 yards and a pair of touchdowns.
“On offense, we’re not beating down a lot of doors by scoring a lot,” said the head coach. “This week we just need to try and improve like we do every other week. They have very talented players on defense, so we need to do the things we do and not turn the ball over.”
Defensively, the Gators are led by its linebackers Mateo Villa (Windsor, Ohio/Middlefield Cardinal), who has recorded a team-high 43 tackles, Simcoe, who has 38 tackles, and Craig Lawrence (Fairview, Pa./Fairview), who leads the team in both sacks (4.0), tackles for loss (6.5), and fumble recoveries (4).
In the secondary, Allegheny has gotten solid contribution from Andy Toner (Bethel Park, Pa./Bethel Park) with 36 tackles, Curt Anderson (Batavia, N.Y./Batavia Notre Dame) with 29 tackles, and Jon Buggey (Homer City, Pa./Homer Center) with five and a half tackles for loss and two sacks.
“We are going to be challenged on defense this week,” said Matlak. “We haven’t played them very well in the past, so were are going to find out how good our defense really is.”
Wabash is off to a 4-0 start after wins over Franklin, Milikin, Ohio Wesleyan, and Earlham. Offensively, the Little Giants are led by quarterbacks Matt Hudson (25-of-36/333 yds/4 TDs/INT) and Kyle Augustinovicz (39-of-59/373 yds/3 TDs/3 INTs). The ground game is is paced by Evan Sobecki (50 car/182 yds/2 TDs) while the receiving game is led by running back Brock Graham (25 rec/186 yds/3 TDs), Bart Branch (15 rec/260 yds/3 TDs), and Andrew Rode (14 rec/230 yds).
“One thing that has always stood out with Wabash, aside from being well-coached, is that they always have tremendous quarterback play and spectacular talent on both sides of the ball.”
On defense, the Little Giants are led by D3football.com preseason All-American linebacker Adrian Pynenberg (56 tackles/6.5 tfl/2 sacks), safety Rich Lehmann (33 tackles/4.0 tfl), linebacker Andy Deig (29 tackles/7.0 tfl), and defensive lineman Darryl Kennon (22 tackles/10.0 tfl/6.5 sacks).
Despite only meeting on the gridiron since 2000, the Allegheny/Wabash rivalry has turned into one of fierce battles, with only one meeting between the pair having been decided by more than two touchdowns (a 2001 Wabash 21-point victory). Wabash currently leads the grouping with a 4-3 mark after a 41-27 victory a season ago in Crawfordsville. Contrary to conventional wisdom, the home team has won only three of the seven meetings in the North Coast Athletic Conference series with the furthest driving distance (Mapquest.com has the distance between the two schools at 453.11 miles).
Kick-off from Frank B. Fuhrer Field is set for 1:00 p.m. as part of Allegheny College’s homecoming festivities.