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Gators Look to Make it Three in a Row
October 26, 2007
Football Game Notes (PDF)
MEADVILLE, Pa. – After a pair of conference wins over Kenyon and Wooster, the Allegheny football team (5-2, 3-1 NCAC) looks to record their second three-game win streak of the season when it travels to Ohio Wesleyan (2-5, 2-3 NCAC) on Saturday.
Last week, the Gators held off Wooster in the final seconds when safety Andy Toner (Bethel Park, Pa./Bethel Park) intercepted a Fighting Scot pass in the endzone, preserving a 27-20 Gator win. Quarterback T.J. Salopek (North Huntingdon, Pa./Norwin) completed 18-of-24 passes for a career-high 262 yards and a touchdown while Pete Obourn (Farmington, N.Y./Victor) hauled in four receptions for 94 yards and a score.
“A big key for offense has been that we are blocking a lot better,” said head coach Mark Matlak. “We’re getting guys in the right places and they are starting to come together a bit. We have also gotten really good play out of our quarterbacks and receivers. When you add those three things up, you get good results.”
At Ohio Wesleyan, the Gator offense will be led by Salopek (83-of-144/944 yds/6 TDs/4 INT), running back Rodney Still (Hummelstown, Pa./Dauphin), who leads the team with 326 rushing yards and four touchdowns, and wide receiver Jim Lieb (Carrolltown, Pa./Northern Cambria). Lieb has 42 receptions on the year for 458 yards and recently moved into a tie for second place on the Allegheny all-time receptions list (125) and into sole possession of fourth place on the all-time receiving yards list (1,481 yds).
“We have continue to do the things we do on offense,” noted Matlak. “We have to take advantage of what the opponent give us and keep a balanced attack going. If we do that, we have a pretty good shot at winning.”
Defensively, the Blue and Gold is paced by linebackers Mateo Villa (Windsor, Ohio/Middlefield Cardinal) and Ross Simcoe (Coudersport, Pa./Coudersport) with 71 and 70 tackles respectively. Toner is third on the team with 66 stops to go along with a pair of sacks and a team-high five pass breakups. Linebacker Craig Lawrence (Fairview, Pa./Fairview) leads the squad in sacks (4.0), tackles for loss (8.5), and fumble recoveries (4) while cornerback Nick Jones (Blairsville, Pa./Homer Center) and safety Curt Anderson (Batavia, N.Y./Batavia Notre Dame) are tops on the board with three and two interceptions apiece.
“We’re facing an offense that gets quarterback play and has good skill players,” said Matlak. “Like any team you play, it will be difficult to prepare to for.”
Offensively, Ohio Wesleyan’s “Wing-T” rushing attack is led by running back Kyle Adams (81 att/386 yds/2 TDs), quarterback Mike Fisher (67 att/276 yds/TD), and running back Steven Brown (55 att/215 yds/2 TDs). Fisher also has 490 yards through the air with four scores while fellow signal-caller Andy Boff has thrown for 462 yards passing.
“We faced a similar style of offense at Carnegie Mellon earlier this year,” said the coach. “But, there are a lot of things different in the way Ohio Wesleyan runs. We won’t be able to key in on any one facet of their game – it’s going to be a challenge.”
On the defensive side of the ball, the Bishops are paced by linebackers Tommy Saunders (78 tackles/4.0 tfl), and Chad Ellis (64 tackles/6.0 tfl/4 sacks), defensive end Patrick Tenor (40 tackles/11.5 tfl/7.0 sacks), and defensive back Daniel DeLay (2 INT/5 PBU).
The Allegheny-Ohio Wesleyan series is still young, dating back only to the 1984 season — the first year of the North Coast Athletic Conference; however, it has treated the Gators well, as the Blue and Gold hold an 18-5 lead in the all-time count. The Bishops won the first meeting in 1984 by a score of 21-17 before Allegheny took four of the remaining five meetings in the 80s. The 90s were especially good to the Gators, posting a perfect 10-0 mark over the Bishops. The streak stretched to 11 with an Allegheny win in 2001, but saw Ohio Wesleyan snap the streak in 2001. Since that time, the teams have met five times with the Gators holding a 3-2 edge. Last season, the Gators won 30-13 in Meadville, avenging a 13-8 loss to the Bishops in Meadville during the 2005 season. The largest margin of victory in the series is 61, when the Gators earned a 61-0 shutout in 1995. The highest scoring affair for both sides came in 2001, a 51-47 Ohio Wesleyan victory.
Kickoff from Selby Field is set for 1:00 p.m.