Football 10/24/2012 12:40:00 PM

Football Meets Kutztown Under the Lights

Complete Game Notes

GAME INFORMATION
Millersville (2-6, 1-4) at Kutztown (4-4, 2-3)
Saturday, Oct. 27, 2012 - 6:05 p.m.
University Field - Kutztown, Pa.

SERIES INFORMATION
Series vs. Kutztown: 57-25-3
Series Streak: : KU, 2
First Meeting: 1903 (MU 16, KU 6)
Last Meeting: 2011 (KU 49, KU 7)

MEDIA INFORMATION
Audio Broadcast (MSBN)
Live Video
Live Stats

GAME OVERVIEW
• Millersville suffered a close 20-15 loss at LIU Post, dropping its road record to 0-3. Millersville stays on the road to face Kutztown's high-powered offense under the lights. Kutztown's offense ranks third in the PSAC in total offense (481.1) and second in scoring (46.3) while Millersville ranks 14th in total offense (264.9) and 14th in scoring (17.7). Kutztown had high expectations heading into the season after winning the PSAC a year ago and posting a school record 11 victories. The Golden Bears started 1-3 but has since won three of four to even its record at 4-4. The offense has scored 51.5 points per game over the last four and has scored at least 56 points four times.
• Millersville continues to shuffle players in and out of the lineup. The offense gets a lift as senior wide receiver Matt Egenrieder is expected to return. Leading receiver Mike Jones missed last week with a turf toe injury and is day-to-day. Quarterback Ted Stachitas was knocked out of the LIU Post game and has missed the majority of four games this season. Back-up QB Connor Casey also suffered a concussion against LIU Post and his status is uncertain for Saturday. Starting offensive lineman Chase Godfrey, Andrew Boal, Kevin Bohl and Josh Hunter have also missed extensive time, and last week, Millersville started three true freshmen on the offensive line. Millersville has started six freshmen in games this season.
• Millersville won its only other night game this season, defeating W.Va. Wesleyan in the season opener. Since 1969, Millersville is 13-8 at Kutztown but has lost four of the last five at University Field. The last road win for the Marauders came in 2006 by a 45-17 score.
• There are plenty of connections between the programs. Kutztown offensive coordinator Drew Folmar was a record-setting quarterback at Millersville from 1997-2000. Folmar threw for 10,483 yards in his career and set 16 school records. Millersville's wide receivers coach Dave Keeny is not only a Kutztown alum, but was the program's head coach from 1998-2005.

ABOUT THE SERIES
• Millersville controls the all-time series by a 57-25-3 margin. The first meeting came in 1903, and other than a four-year stretch during the years of World War II, the two programs have met each year since 1927. Millersville had won 22 of 26 until 2007. Since then, Kutztown has won four of the last five, but most of the games were closely contested. Of the last five games, four have been decided by 10 points or fewer. Millersville's last win came in 2009 by a 41-35 score in double overtime.
• Last season, Kutztown rolled to a 49-7 win at Millersville. In that game, Kutztown averaged 9.1 yards per carry. Curtis Wortham rushed for 199 yards on just 12 carries as the Golden Bears piled up 281 yards on the ground. Morton threw four touchdown passes.

SCOUTING THE GOLDEN BEARS
• Two-time PSAC East Offensive Player of the Year Kevin Morton leads an offense that scores in bunches. It's 46.3 point-per-game average is second only to Shippensburg in the PSAC and third in Division II. The 382 pass attempts are the third most in the nation and the 2,963 yards ranks fifth. If it weren't for Ship's Zach Zulli, Morton would certainly be on pace for a third player of the year award. He's thrown 26 touchdowns, which ranks second in the PSAC. He was named PSAC East Offensive Player of the Week last week.
• Morton's top target is Colby Tuell, who has a PSAC-leading 58 catches for 661 yards. Shahaid Smith (47) and Josh Mastromatto (41) also rank in the top 10 in the PSAC in receptions.
• After surrendering just six points in the season opener, Kutztown has allowed 42.7 points per game over the last seven games. It's given up more than 40 points five times. The 450 yards allowed is 14th in the PSAC.

THE LAST TIME OUT FOR THE MARAUDERS
• Millersville trailed LIU Post 13-0 early in Saturday's PSAC East tilt but rallied to within one score thanks in part to two fourth quarter interceptions by the Marauder defense. The comeback stalled, however, and the Pioneers were able to run out the clock and send the Marauders home with a 20-15 loss.
• Millersville picked off three passes, and the two in the fourth quarter were key. The first, by Nate Hinkle, halted a Pioneer drive at the Millersville 18, keeping the Marauders within striking distance. Then with just over five minutes remaining, Lou Brown picked off his third pass of the season and returned the ball 47 yards to the LIU post 33. A 15-yard penalty on the Pioneers put the Marauder offense in prime position. Three rushes from Ian Sadon on a four-yard run by Myron Myles pulled Millersville to within 20-15 with 3:48 to play. The two-point conversion failed, however.
• LIU Post quarterback Steven Laurino had sat out the entire game with an injury but entered on the final drive just in time to save his Pioneers. While the Marauder defense had risen to the occasion all game, it could not take the ball back from Pioneers on the final drive. Using his legs and running back Anthony Brunetti, the Pioneers ran 13 plays and chewed up every second left on the clock.
• Sadon rushed for a career-high 138 yards on 11 carries, and his 75-yard touchdown run with 11:47 left in the second quarter put Millersville in position for a comeback.

CATCHING ON
• Running back Mike Jones has shown his versatility this season by leading the team in receptions with 34. Jones has always been an adept pass catcher, totaling 36 in 13 games as a sophomore and junior. But with 34 this season, he ranks 17th in the PSAC eventhough Millersville's passing offense ranks 14th in the league.
• On Oct. 6 against Bloomsburg, Jones became the first Marauder since Jamal Smith in 2010 to record at least 10 catches in a game when he totaled 13. That was the most by a Marauder since Ryan Clift totaled 13 in 2003, and it also tied for the most in the PSAC this season (Dusty Reed, East Stroudsburg).
• Jones' 55-yard catch against Bloomsburg was the longest completion of the 2012 season and the longest since Jamal Smith and Bill Shirk hooked up for 75 yards in 2010. He made a 45-yard reception the following week against Cheyney, giving him four career catches of at least 34 yards.
• Dominic Sanders also recorded a career-high nine catches for a career-high 98 yards against Bloomsburg. His previous high in catches was seven, and it was his first game with more than 90 yards receiving.
• In the same game against Bloomsburg, Shane Doughty caught his first career touchdown, and Trenton Petrovich made his first career reception.
• Against Cheyney, Mike Reichenbach caught a 17-yard touchdown--the first of his career.

BREAKING AWAY
• After Ian Sadon's 75-yard run against LIU Post, Millersville had four different players record a rush of at least 40 yards in 2012. Of the longest rushes in the PSAC this year, only Millersville has four different players in the top 20. Sadon's run was the third longest. Stachitas has two runs of 50 or more, and Sean Quarterman had a rush of 52. Myron Myles had a rush of 40 yards.

30 A KEY
• Millersville has scored over 30 points twice this season and has won both games (41 vs. W.Va. Wesleyan and 35 vs. Cheyney). Scoring 30 points seems to be a key to success as the Marauders are 28-2 since 2000 when scoring 30 or more. More impressively, since football started at Millersville in 1889, the program is 175-9 when scoring 30 or more points.

FORCE THAT FUMBLE
• Of Millersville's 11 victories since 2008, it has forced two or more fumbles in seven of those wins. The team boasts a 7-6 record when forcing two or more fumbles but a 4-35 record when it doesn't.

NO PRESSURE HERE
• Millersville's defense started the season by averaging 7.0 tackles for loss in each of the first three games and recorded at least five in each of those games. But in the last four games, the team has just six tackles for loss and only three sacks after totaling five in the first two games.

THE CENTURY MARK
• Mike Jones' 108 yards receiving against Bloomsburg on Oct. 6 gave Millersville its first 100-yard game since Oct. 30, 2010--a span of 18 games. It was the first 100-yard receiving game of his career. He rushed for 100 yards against Lock Haven in 2010.

TOUCHDOWN MAKER
• Mike Jones has scored on the ground and through the air this season and leads the team with seven total touchdowns. He scored both a rushing and receiving score against Cheyney, giving him four receiving scores and three rushing scores. He is ranked 19th in the PSAC in receiving touchdowns. The last Marauder to score at least three rushing and three receiving scores in a season was Terrance Trogdon in 2001 when he scored six receiving and five rushing touchdowns. Jones has seven of the team's 17 touchdowns.

FIRST IMPRESSIONS ARE EVERYTHING
• Connor Casey made a historic debut at quarterback on Oct. 6 against Bloomsburg. The first Millersville true freshman to start a game since Kris Meyers in 2002, Casey completed 30-of-43 passes, marking the most pass completions and the most yards by a Marauder true freshman on record.
• It was also the first time since 2010 that a Millersville QB completed 30 passes and threw for 300 yards. He had 187 yards in the first half, which was more passing yards than in any of the previous 16 games.
• Casey was Millersville's fifth starting quarterback since the start of the 2011 season and the third of 2012. With both Ted Stachitas and Sean Quarterman out with injuries, Casey became the first Marauder QB this season to not throw an interception in a game. He also led his team in rushing with 35 yards on 10 carries.

CALLING TIGHT ENDS
• Trenton Petrovich made his first career catch on Oct. 6 against Bloomsburg, hauling in a 32-yard reception from Connor Casey and made a 17-yard grab against Cheyney to make it back-to-back weeks with a reception. His catch on Oct. 6 was the first catch by a Millersville tight end in the 2012 season, and only the third by a tight end in the previous 20 games dating back to the 2010 season. Greg Frantz caught two passes in the 2011 season finale. Frantz was the last Marauder tight end to catch a pass in consecutive weeks. He caught five passes over three games from Oct. 9-Oct. 23, 2010.

ONE BIG BOOT
• Following the first series of the Sept. 22 game at Shippensburg, punter Jeff Lawson kicked the longest punt in school history and the longest in the PSAC this season. With the ball snapped from his own 19-yard line, Lawson booted the ball into the Shippensburg end zone for a touchback and an 81-yard punt. That kick out-distanced the previous mark by eight yards. George Rule owned the previous record, kicking a 73-yarder againts Wittenberg in 1979.

KICKING AWAY
• Senior punter Jeff Lawson has been busy this season. His 58 punts per game is the most in Division II. His average of 38.7 is 7th in the PSAC. 15 of his punts have landed inside the 20 yard line while only one has been a touchback. He has three punts of at least 50 yards.

SENIORS' MOMENT
• Millersville's roster is led by 20 seniors. Of that group, 18 entered 2012 with starting experience. Lou Brown, Matt Egenrieder, Pat Maloney, Mike Jones, Brian Knell, Zack Riley, Jeff Lawson, Josh Hunter and Pat Cantrell are all multiple-year starters. As many as 13 seniors have started a game this season. The entire senior class has combined for 256 career starts. Riley, with 35, is the team leader.

MAKING THE SWITCH
• Lou Brown, who spent two-and-a-half seasons at wide receiver, has picked off three passes including one against Shippensburg's Zach Zulli, who had previously thrown only one interception this season. Brown ranks third on the team in tackles with 43 tackles. He recorded a career-high in tackles in three straight games from Sept. 22-Oct. 6, including 10 against Bloomsburg.
• Brown is fourth in the PSAC in passes broken up with 10. He is tied for fourth in interceptions.

RACK 'EM UP
• Senior Pat Maloney has been among Millersville's leading tacklers going on four consecutive seasons, and has piled up 217 in his career. His numbers have improved each season, jumping from 43 as a true freshman to 78 as a junior. He was averaging 10.6 per game as a sophomore until he was injured after game five. Maloney led the PSAC in tackles at the time of his injury.
• Last season, he also led the Marauders in tackles for loss with 9.0 and sacks with 4.0. He aims to become just the sixth player since defensive stats started being recorded in 1973 to lead the team in tackles in back-to-back seasons. Matt Sutjak most recently performed the feat in 2008 and 2009. The last Marauder linebacker to do so was Lee Rizzotto, who did it from 1997-99.
• So far in 2012, Maloney leads the team with 55 stops, ranking 22nd in the PSAC.
• Maloney's 13 tackles against Mercyhurst were a game high, and he totaled 12 against Cheyney giving him nine games with double-digit tackles in his career. He has also led the team in tackles in eight of the last 16 games that he has played.

FIRST IN A WHILE
• Jordan Rigby became the first Millersville defensive player to be named PSAC East Defensive Player of the Week in over five years Sunday after intercepting two passes and returning one for a touchdown in the week one win over W.Va. Wesleyan.
• His 19-yard interception return for a touchdown turned the tide of Saturday's game. Millersville trailed 10-7 in the third until Rigby's interception return put the Marauders on top to stay. He picked off Nate Montana twice, totaling 26 return yards. He also hurried Montana once, broke up another passes and tallied five tackles including a half-tackle for loss.
• His INT return was the first by a Marauder since Dan McClellan's in the 2008 season opener at Bentley.

THREE BY ONE
• Running back Mike Jones totaled a career-high three touchdowns in week one against W.Va. Wesleyan. One came on a reception and the other two were rushing. In his 12 previous games as a Marauder, Jones had scored just two touchdowns, and his first quarter, 1-yard run against Wesleyan was his first TD since scoring on a 74-yard run against Shippensburg on Oct. 30, 2010. It was also the first three-touchdown performance by a Marauder since Jamal Smith totaled three touchdown catches against Lock Haven on Sept. 11, 2010.

LIVING ON THE EDGE
• Marauder defensive end Reggie Slaton is having a breakthrough season. His 52 tackles rank second on the team. His 8.5 tackles for loss are not only a team best, but ranks 13th in the PSAC.

SPECIAL SPECIAL TEAMS
• As a team, Millersville ranks fifth in the PSAC in kick returns after averaging 23.8 yards on 36 returns. David Coates is eighth in the league and 18th in Division II in average at 27.6 on 26 returns. His 97-yard touchdown return against West Chester is the second-longest return in the PSAC this season and was one of just seven returns for touchdowns. He also had a 61-yard return against against Wesleyan and a 60-yard return against Shippensburg. Coates has five returns of at least 40 yards this season. The TD return at West Chester was the first of his career and the second TD of his career. It was also the first touchdown on a kickoff return since Jamal Smith's against LIU Post in 2010. Coates now leads the PSAC in return yards (653) and kick returns (23).
• Coates is well on his way to a record-setting season. The school record for kickoff returns in a season is 32 by Terrance Trogdon in 1991. Kevin Cannon (1994) owns the kickoff return yards record with 760. Coates is on pace for 36 returns and his 27.6 average puts him at 994 kick return yards by the end of the season.
• Lou Brown is ninth in the PSAC in punt return average at 8.3.
• Zack Riley also blocked a punt against Cheyney, which was the team's first since the 2010 season opener.

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