TICKET INFORMATIONwww.muticketsonline.comReserved Seat: $10
General Admission: $8
Senior Citizen: $5
Visiting Students with ID: $5
Children under 6: FREE
MU Students: FREE with valid ID
Faculty and Staff: FREE with valid ID
COMPLETE GAME NOTESGAME OVERVIEW•   Millersville enters week three with an 0-2 record after falling to Clarion at home in week two. Earning its first win of the season will be a tough task for Millersville with defending PSAC West champs Slippery Rock invading Biemesderfer Stadium. The Rock boasts the PSAC's top-ranked rushing offense at 326 yards per game and and its No. 2-ranked scoring offense at 46.5 points per game. Millersville has been productive on the offensive side as well, averaging 393.5 yards per game, which is fifth-best in the league.
•  Â
Matt Misley has been just what the Marauders were looking for at quarterback, making plays and playing efficient football. He ranks third in the PSAC in passing efficiency (151.7) and ranks third in touchdown passes with six. In addition to 400 yards passing, he has rushed for 84 yards.
•   As a team, the Marauders are averaging 4.6 yards per carry on the ground, and five of the six non-quarterbacks to run the ball the season are averaging over 4.0 yards per tote. Explosive plays have also become a hallmark of the Millersville offense. The Marauders have generated six plays over 38 yards this season.
Malont'a Patterson owns three of them, but
Kevin Wiggins (64-yard reception),
Kevin Porter (51-yard catch) and
Myron Myles (38-yard run) have also been a part of the act. Â
•   On defense,
Reggie Slaton ranks third in the PSAC and tied for seventh nationally with 27 tackles. He has recorded double-digit stops in back-to-back games for the first time in his four-year career. Freshman
Logan Kinser has made plays as well. He is averaging 6.5 tackles per game, but has recorded at least a half-tackle for loss in both games and also has an interception.
ABOUT THE SERIES•   Millersville and Slippery Rock first met in 1938 and have played 20 times with the last meeting coming in 2009 (31-14 win for Slippery Rock). The Rock has controlled the all-time series with a 15-4-1 advantage. Millersville last won in 2004 (17-14 at home), but Slippery Rock has won five in a row. Tropical Storm Hanna plagued the game with high winds and heavy rains the last time the two teams played at Biemesderfer Stadium (2008). Millersville scored 17 points off of special teams, including a Andy Tischbein punt return for touchdown and a fumbled punt recovered for a touchdown. Slippery Rock won the game 28-24 when Ryan Lehmeier capped a 12-play, 73-yard drive with a 13-yard TD run with 22 seconds left.
SCOUTING THE ROCK•   Winners of two of the last three PSAC West titles, Slippery Rock looks like an early-season favorite to win the division once again after steamrolling PSAC East foes Kutztown and East Stroudsburg in the first two games. Slippery Rock debuted in the national ranking at No. 25 on Monday and not only ranks No. 2 in the PSAC in scoring offense (46.5), it also ranks first in rushing at 326 yards per game and 5.9 yards per carry. The Rock ranks second in total offense at 540 yards per game. Slippery Rock's rushing attack features Shamar Greene, who has averaged 190.5 yards per game and 10.3 yards per carry. The reigning PSAC West Athlete of the Week led the way to a school-record 456 yards rushing against East Stroudsburg. Greene ranks fourth in Division II in rushing yards and has fewer carries than each of the three backs ranked ahead of him.
•   The Rock defense has faced two pass-heavy attacks so far and has allowed an average of 327.5 yards through the air but 62.5 yards on the ground. Opponents average just 2.2 yards per carry. Marcus Martin has racked up a PSAC-best 4.0 sacks in two games.
MALONT'A MAKING PLAYS•   Patterson has quickly becoming a playmaker for the Marauders with 10 catches and a total of four touchdowns in two games. Patterson has caught three TD's, which is tied for 10th nationally. He ranks third in the league in scoring with 24 points, sixth in receiving yards and eighth in receptions.
  Â
THE LAST TIME OUT•   In just a matter of seconds, Millersville went from trailing Clarion 7-0 with the end of the first half nearing, to trailing 28-0 one drive into the third quarter. Five Millersville turnovers and an onside kick that went to Clarion resulted in a wave of misfortune for the Marauders. The game ended in a 55-16 score. Clarion out-gained Millersville 357-284. Delrece Williams rushed for 92 yards and two scores. Misley finished 13-of-24 for 156 yards with two touchdowns and a pick. Patterson caught five passes for the second consecutive week and brought his season touchdown total to four. He also added 100 kick return yards, giving him 183 all-purpose yards.
THE GROUND GAME IS GOING•   Millersville has rushed for over 100 yards in seven consecutive games dating back to Oct. 19 of last season, totaling 1,193 yards. That's good for an average of 170.4 yards per game and 4.1 yards per carry. It is the longest run of 100-yard rushing games since the 2007 team posted 10 in a row to close the season.
•   Millersville has rushed for 384 yards in the first two games, which is the most through two games since the 2003 club posted 204 and 215 yards for 419 yards in the opening two games.
DAVID RETURNS FOR HISTORY•  Â
David Coates has already set Millersville career records for return yards and return attempts in a season and a career. Coates leads all NCAA football players regardless of Division in total kickoff return yards (2,627) and kickoff returns (118). He ranks fourth in all divisions and first in Division II in yards per game (76.0). He is the only Division II player ranked in the top 25. Coates now needs only 16 kick returns to set the all-time Division II record and is 639 yards away from snapping the career record of 3,265 set by Fairmont State's Zack Page from 207-10.
•   In 2012, Coates was the lone Marauder to earn All-PSAC East honors, being named to the second team. He was Millersville's first return specialist to be named all-conference since Bakari Brown in 2004. He led all of Division II in return yards and his 1,156 kickoff returns set a new school record and was the second-most in PSAC history. His 25.7 yards per return ranked 33rd nationally and was the highest by a Marauder since Dondre Gilliam in 1999. He had at least one 25-yard return in nine of 11 games.
INTO THE FIRE•   Coach Breitbach signed his first recruiting class in February and the freshmen class wasted no time making an impact.
Kevin Wiggins scored the first touchdown of the season on a 64-yard catch and run that was the longest TD reception by Millersville since Oct. 3, 2010.
Malont'a Patterson has scored four touchdowns in two games.
Sene Polamalu and
Logan Kinser shared a sack in the opener and Kinser intercepted a pass and nearly returned it for a touchdown until it was called back because of a penalty. The duo has combined for 18 tackles and 2.5 tackles for loss.
•   The depth chart currently lists five true freshmen in starting roles. A total of 12 true freshmen are listed on the two deep. A total of 18 true or redshirt freshmen are listed on the two deep.
NEW LEADERSHIP, NEW LOOK•   Millersville's defense has a new leader in defensive coordinator
Ralph Clark and a new look with a 3-4 scheme. The Marauders' defense has finished no higher than 13th in the 16-team PSAC in total defense and no higher than 14th in scoring defense since 2007. Only once in the last six seasons did Millersville allow fewer than 400 yards per game. While Clark coached Millersville's wide receivers last season, he is a defensive coach by trade. He served as the defensive coordinator at Division I FCS Saint Francis and at Division III Rose-Hulman.
TEAM PICKS CAPTAINS•   The Millersville football players voted for their team captains following the 2014 training camp. The players chose senior linebacker
Reggie Slaton, senior tight end
Trenton Petrovich and graduate quarterback
Matt Misley. Slaton is now a rare two-time team captain, becoming only the 10th two-time captain since 1956.
•   Of those two-time captains, three were linebackers (Slaton, Joe Hollister (2003-04), and Tim Naylor (1991-92)). Quarterback had the most with four (Dan Csencsitz (2005-06), Drew Folmar (1999-00), Chris Fagan (1991-92) and Bret Stover (1987-88)).
•   The good news for Slaton is that eight of the nine previous two-time captains were named All-PSAC East during their careers. Hollister was the 2004 PSAC East Defensive Player of the Year.
•   Additionally, the coaches will select a fourth captain each week based on the performance in practice and games. As part of Millersville's new "Hoist The Colors" tradition, The weekly coaches' pick will lead the team out of the tunnel carrying the "colors." The day after the game, coaches will choose a new captain for the week and the new captain will take over the "colors" for the week.
SANELLI'S STREAK•   Center
Lenny Sanelli is becoming Millersville's Iron Man. He has started all 24 games since stepping on campus as a freshman in 2011. He started at tackle during his first season and moved to center as a sophomore. He has started 13 consecutive games at center.
FAMILY CONNECTIONS•   A pair of Marauder football players have family ties to the NFL. Senior wide receiver
Mike Reichenbach's father, Mike, played eight years as a linebacker with the Philadelphia Eagles and the Miami Dolphins. The younger Mike played quarterback for his father at Calvary Christian.
•   Freshman linebacker
Sene Polamalu shares the same last name as his first cousin Troy Polamalu, who is an All-Pro safety and future Pro Football Hall of Famer Troy Polamalu. Sene's father, Ao, played defensive line for Penn State. Sene's older brother, Maika, is a senior linebacker at Navy.
PETRO SHOWS GOOD HANDS•  Â
Trenton Petrovich is in his third season as the team's starter with 30 games played at the position. Petrovich caught a career-high 14 passes in 2013, which was the most by a Marauder tight end since Greg Frantz caught 14 in 2009. Petrovich also blocked four kicks to help Millersville lead the nation in the category. His 2014 season started with his second career touchdown catch.
•   Petrovich not only shows good hands on the field, he was also nominated for the AFCA/Allstate Farm Good Works Team for his efforts off the field. Petrovich was one of 182 nominees across all divisions of football. There will be 11 individuals selected from the ranks of Division I FCS, Division II, Division III and NAIA to be recognized at the Allstate Sugar Bowl in January 2015. Petrovich contributed 70 hours of community service while the team was in season in 2013 and individually raised over $1,000 and shaved his head for the St. Baldrick's Foundation.
MISLEY TAKES OVER•    Millersville used four quarterbacks in 2013 and three of them are no longer with the program. The four combined to throw 17 interceptions and just seven touchdown passes with a combined completion percentage of 50.5. The lone QB from that group to return is
Curtis Frye, who posted far-and-away the best numbers. He was 34-of-52 (63.0) for 323 yards in six reserve appearances. His season, however, was cut short because of a knee injury.
•   From 2011-2013, Millersville used an eight different quarterbacks. Seven different quarterbacks started games in that span. Millersville's eight quarterbacks have combined to throw for 22 touchdowns and 45 interceptions with an average of 1,405 yards per season and a completion percentage of 50.2.
•   While
Matt Misley--a graduate student--will only be Millersville's starter for one year. He played 21 games at Division I FCS Wagner before coming to Millersville. He has been impressive in his first two games. In the opener, he became the first Marauder to throw for more than 200 yards and rush for 70 yards in more than 12 years. He also threw four touchdowns to no interceptions.
BOUNCE BACK•   Millersville posted a 1-10 record in
Greg Breitbach's first season. The first season for Millersville coaches have rarely been successful. Before Breitbach, Greg Colby went 1-10 in his opening season. The last 10 Millersville coaches all posted records under .500. John Pucillo, who went 4-2 in 1933, was the last first-year coach to post a winning record.
•   The good news for the Marauders is that year two almost always shows an improvement. George Katchmer (1954), Gene Carpenter (1970) and Colby (2008) all improved records in year two. Kevin Kiesel (2001) and Joe Trainer (2005) posted identical records in year two.
A CHAMPIONSHIP PEDIGREE•   In addition to the promotion of
Ralph Clark,
Greg Breitbach also added
Mike Wood as the team's wide receivers coach. A 2001 graduate of McDaniel and native of Delaware, Wood is returning home. In the previous two seasons, Wood built a championship resume as the offensive coordinator at American International. His Yellowjacket offense led the NE-10 in rushing in 2013 and paved the way to a NE-10 Championship and NCAA playoff appearance.
Â
Â
