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| GAME COVERAGE |
Thursday, Sept. 1, 7 p.m.
Chryst Field at Biemesderfer Stadium
Live Stats | Live Audio | Live Video
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| ABOUT THE SERIES |
Series vs. Pace: First Meeting
Series Streak: N/A
First Meeting: N/A
Last Meeting: N/A
Largest Margin of Victory: N/A
Largest Margin of Defeat: N/A
Record at Biemesderfer: N/A
Most Millersville Points: N/A
Most Pace Points: N/A |
| INDIVIDUAL (RETURNING) |
RUSHING
#24 Phil Overton (VILLE)
91-297, 1 TD, 3.3 YPC
#36 Micahel Scotman (PACE)
183-716, 3 TD, 3.9 YPC
PASSING
#15 J.J. Paige (VILLE)
150-249, 15 TD, 5 INT, 1534 yds
#10 Dan Anerella (PAC)
55-142, 3 TD, 4 INT, 527 yds
RECEIVING
#1 Kevin Wiggins (VILLE)
45-524, 8 TD, 52.4 YPG
#80 Mohammad Masoud (PACE)
10-98, 1 TD, 8.9 YPG
DEFENSE
#5 Rob Varner (VILLE)
77 tkls, 2.5 sacks, 7 TFL, 1 INT
#51 Matt Corrie (PACE)
119 tkls, 85 TFL, 1 INT
|
| TEAM COMPARISON (2015) |
| VILLE |
STAT |
PACE |
| 14.6 |
PPG |
13.5 |
| 84.5 |
Rush/GM |
159.8 |
| 153.4 |
Pass/GM |
70.6 |
| 237.9 |
Total Off |
230.4 |
| 37.7 |
Scoring D |
33.8 |
| 189.4 |
Rush D/GM |
211.3 |
| 188.4 |
Pass D/GM |
176.4 |
| 377.6 |
Total D |
387.6 |
LAST SEASON AT A GLANCE
• Millersville won back-to-back games to close 2015 with a 2-9 record. The Marauders finished No. 2 in the PSAC in pass defense and fifth in total defense, marking its highest finish in 15 seasons.Â
• The offense ranked 15th in the 16-team PSAC in scoring and total offense.
• A win in the opener would give Millersville three consecutive victories for the first time since Sept. 16-30, 2006.
WHO RETURNS ON DEFENSE?   Â
• Millersville returns eight starters on defense including the entire defensive line, three linebackers, a corner and a safety. With
Matt Sutjak taking over at defensive coordinator, there will likely be a shift from the previously run 3-4 scheme.
• On the line,
Drew Seaburg,
Logan Kinser, and
Morgan Faughnan started all 11 games and combined for 18 tackles for loss. Â
• Linebackers
Sean Dugan,
Rob Varner and
Brandon Lopez return after starting all 11 games. Varner was second on the team in tackles with 77 as a redshirt freshman. Dugan led the team in TFL with 11.5. Lopez totaled 51 tackles and 2.5 sacks.
•
P.J. Santos enters his fourth year as a starter at safety. He picked off three passes last season and enters his final season with seven. Cornerback Alpha Kahn started all 11 games in 2015 and has started games in each of his first three seasons.
WHO RETURNS ON OFFENSE?
• With a start on Thursday,
J.J. Paige is the first Marauder quarterback to start the season opener in back-to-back seasons since Bill Shirk started three in a row from 2008-10. Since the start of the 2011, the Marauders have had 11 different players take snaps at the position.
• Paige threw for 301 yards in the 2015 season finale and tossed 12 touchdowns to 2 interceptions over his final six games.
•
Kevin Lang and center
Derek Yoder are the two returning starters on the offensive line.
Brandon Caldwell and
Garry Reyes played extensively in 2015 as reserves.
Dylan Farrow, the expected starter at right guard, played in eight games as a true freshman on the defensive line.
• Leading rusher
Phil Overton, leading receiving
Kevin Wiggins, and starting tight end
Tyler Zilen also return.
WIGGINS' PRODUCTION
• Wiggins, now a junior, has caught at least two passes in all 10 games he played last season and in 21 consecutive dating back to the start of his freshman season. With 88 career grabs, Wiggins is the second-fastest to 80 catches in program history, trailing only hall of famer Sean Scott, who totaled 108 grabs, 1,503 yards and 17 touchdowns in his first two seasons.
• Wiggins tied for 11th in the PSAC in touchdowns and 20th in catches in 2015.
• Wiggins was voted the team's offensive MVP in 2015.
• Since 2001, only three wide receivers have caught 40 or more passes in two consecutive seasons. Wiggins joined Jamal Smith (2009-10) and Andy Neupauer (2003-04).
TIGHT END TARGET
• Sophomore tight end
Tyler Zilen caught 14 passes in 2015, which marked the most catches by a Marauder tight end sincc Greg Frantz totaled 14 in 2009. Prior to that, the most by a Marauder tight end was Chris Hemmert's 26 in 1998. Zilen's five catches against Bloomsburg were the most by a Marauder in a single game in more than 15 years.
MULTI-PURPOSE OVERTON
• As a true freshman in 2015, Overton led the team in rushing yards, yards per carry, kickoff returns, kick return yardage and punt returns. His three receiving touchdowns also ranked third on the team.
SEASON OPENERS
• Millersville opens at home under the lights on a Thursday night for the third consecutive season. The Marauders are 0-2 in those games but both were decided in the final possession. Last season, the Marauders lost to Ursinus 17-9 in five overtimes. The prior season, Livingstone scored 20 points in the fourth quarter to top the Marauders, 46-44.
• Thursday marks the fifth consecutive season that Millersville opens its season at home. The Marauders last opener win came in 2012 over W.Va. Wesleyan.
• Millersville is 50-60-9 all-time in season openers and 15-8-2 in openers played at home. Millersville is also 36-20 all-time at home under the lights. Millersville went 0-4 in night games in 2015.
• Millersville and Pace meet for the first time. The Marauders, however, are no stranger to teams from the Northeast-10. Millersville played five games versus NE-10 opponents from 2007-13, going 1-4. The Marauders win came in 2009 over Assumption.
SCOUTING THE OPPONENT
• Pace enters its third season under head coach Andrew Rondeau. Coach Rondeau served as the defensive coordinator at Holy Cross before landing at Pace. He enters year three with back-to-back 1-10 seasons, but prior to his arrival, Pace won a total of one game in four seasons.
• Pace has won four games since 2009 and its last winning season came in 1999. In 2015, Pace opened the season with a 36-23 win over Ave Maria. Three of the team's losses came by 10
points or fewer, including each of the final two games of the season, which came by a total of 14 points.
• Leading rusher Michael Scotman returns for his senior season. The 245-pound back led the team with 716 yards in 2015.
• Multi-purpose players Delaney Wallace is player to watch. He rushed for 613 yards (5.6 per carry), caught seven passes and also played quarterback in four games, hitting 15-of-34 passes for
147 yards.
• Dan Anerella was the team's starting quarterback in eight games before attempting only two passes in the final two games. He tossed three touchdowns to four interceptions.
• Linebacker Matthew Corrie is among the most productive tacklers in the country. He totaled 119 as a sophomore. He has started 22 consecutive games.
SCOUTING BY THE NUMBERS
• While Millersville averaged just over 14 points per game in 2015, Pace averaged 13.45. Millersville allowed four more points per game than Pace. Pace struggled to stop the run, allowing 211.3 yards per game, 4.5 yards per carry and 26 rushing touchdowns.
• Pace threw for 70.6 yards per game last season and focused on the running attack, which netted more than double its passing total. Millersville, meanwhile, averaged just 2.1 yards per carry on the ground and scored just three rushing touchdowns.
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