CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE COMPLETE 36-PAGE GAME NOTES

Complete game notes for the Lycoming-Hobart playoff football game are now available for download. The 36-page notes can be downloaded by clicking the link at the top of this page.

Included in the notes are game information, head-to-head stats, national and conference rankings, rosters, depth charts, game info, school info, Lycoming records and year-by-year results, Lycoming coach Mike Clark and Lycoming captains bios, complete 2008 statistics and ranking summaries for both teams.

Follow the Game Live

This week’s game is being broadcast by ESPN Radio (WLYC). The game can be heard on 104.1 FM and 1050 AM in Lycoming County and online via a free Web stream at: www.espnwilliamsport.com. Live statistics will be available online HERE.

The Coaches

Warrior head coach Mike Clark (Lycoming ’93) was named the Middle Atlantic Conference Coach of the Year on Wednesday. Clark led the team to its first MAC title and playoff appearance since 2003 in his first year at the helm of the program after taking over for legendary coach Frank Girardi, who coached for the previous 36 seasons.

Hobart is coached by Mike Cragg (Slippery Rock ’83), who is in his 14th year with the program. Cragg is the winningest coach in program history (97-43 overall) and has led the Statesmen to eight appearances in the NCAA Playoffs. He led the team to its third-straight Liberty League title this season and fifth consecutive trip to the NCAA Playoffs.

The Series

As difficult as it is to believe that two schools with such prominent football history, separated by less than three hours, have never met ... this will be the first meeting between the two teams.

Back to the Playoffs

Lycoming returns to the playoffs for the first time since 2003. The Warriors clinched the MAC’s automatic bid after claiming their 14th league title.

Lycoming boasts an overall playoff record of 13-11 with two trips to the National Championship game. The Warriors dropped a heartbreaking 21-14 overtime game against Allegheny in 1990 and were beaten 61-12 against Mount Union in 1997.

Last Time in the Playoffs

In 2003, Lycoming defeated East Texas Baptist in the opening round before falling to Bridgewater, 13-9, in the second round.

Less than 24 hours before the Bridgewater game, the Warriors top receiver, Ricky Lanetti, lost his life unexpectedly. After a snow storm made the field unplayable on Saturday, the game was moved to Sunday and played in front of a small crowd at David Person Field.

Last Time Out

Lycoming clinched a three-way share of the MAC title and a trip to the NCAA Playoffs with a 23-15 win against Lebanon Valley on Saturday, Nov. 15, at Person Field.

The Warriors were outgained 340-296, but managed a come-from-behind win with a 10-point performance in the fourth quarter.

Scott Erikson hit a 23 yard field goal and Jim Daley returned an interception for a touchdown to seal the win. Trailing 16-15 with two minutes to play, Lebanon Valley began a potential game-winning drive. Daley intercepted a pass at the 13-yard line and took it in to ice the game.

Josh Kleinfelter rushed for 101 yards and a touchdown and became the first running back since 2002 to gain more than 1,000 yards in a season. Colin Dwyer completed 16-of-31 passes for 220 yards and Ryan Wagaman caught seven passes for 100 yards. Kleinfelter and Wagaman combined for 241 yards of total offense in the game.

The defense kept the Warriors in the game, recording three interceptions in the wet and sloppy conditions. Daley was joined by TJ Doyle and Travis Leonarczyk with picks.

Erikson was a perfect 3-for-3 on field goal attempts (28, 24, 23) and scored 11 of the team’s points.

Daley led the defense with 12 total tackles. Ben Rosa had 11 tackles and Chris Tribanas had 2.0 tackles for a loss.

                           1    2     3    4      Final
Lebanon Valley     7    6     2    0      15
Lycoming             3    10   0    10     23

Scouting the Warriors

Lycoming enters this weeks game averaging 341.5 yards of total offense per game while allowing 290.4. The Warriors were outgained only twice all season (King’s and Lebanon Valley).

Dwyer was the top passer in the MAC, completing 153-of-283 attempts for a career high 1,845 yards and 12 touchdowns.

Kleinfelter has carried the ball 217 times for 1,074 yards and 11 touchdowns. He also has 27 receptions for 312 yards.

Wagaman has caught a team-high 44 passes for 534 yards and four touchdowns. He has posted 100+ yard efforts in each of the last three games. Brad Shellenberger has caught 42 passes for 618 yards and five touchdowns, including a school record 98-yard TD in the Wilkes game.

Freshman Ray Bierbach has been a welcomed addition to the special teams, posting an average of 18.8 yards per kickoff return and 10.9 yards per punt return. He broke one 59 yard touchdown return earlier this season.

Ben Rosa leads the defense with 80 total tackles, including 6.0 tackles for a loss and 3.0 sacks. He has forced two fumbles and recovered one. Chuck Bellitto has 79 total tackles, including a team-high 50 solo stops. He has one interception and five pass breakups. Ted Geurds leads the team in tackles for a loss with 11.5, including 7.0 sacks. Reese and Doyle each have two interceptions and Ed Grambo has blocked two kicks this season.

Turnovers have been an issue for the Wariors, who were intercepted 19 times this season, including ten times in the team’s three losses.

MAC Players of the Week

Lycoming swept the MAC Players of the Week, claiming all three honors.

Kleinfelter took home the offensive nod after leading the Warriors with 101 rushing yards and 40 receiving yards against Lebanon Valley. His rushing performance put him over the 1,000-yard mark for the season.

Daley earned his first defensive nod after leading the team with 12 total tackles and the interception return for a touchdown that sealed the win.

Erikson earned his second special teams honor of the season after a perfect performance (3-of-3 FG, 2-of-2 PAT) in sub-par conditions. He set a career-best with three made field goals in the game. Last season, the Warriors attempted just two field goals all year. Erikson has made 10-of-17 attempts this season.

All-Conference Honors

Coach Clark earned the MAC Coach of the Year honor, as announced this week by the league office. Eight Warrior players joined him on the All-Conference teams.

Wagaman, Reese and Geurds were all named to first team honors, while Dwyer, Kleinfelter, Bellitto, Pat Taylor and Nathan Schrack earned second team plaudits.

Taylor and Kleinfelter are repeat selections on the second team. The other six players were honored with their first All-Conference selection.

Perfect at Home

Lycoming closed out the 2008 season with a perfect home record of 5-0, running its home winning streak to eight straight games dating back to the final three games of the 2007 season. The Warriors were 2-3 on the road this season

New York State of Mind

The Warriors last win in the state of New York came on October 7, 1995, a 38-26 win at Hartwick.

Since then, Lycoming has only played two games in New York, both at Ithaca. The Warriors dropped a 49-7 decision in 2004 and lost the opener this season, 17-16, to the Bombers.

Overnight Trips

Lycoming finished the regular season with a 2-3 road record. Both of those wins came on weekends that the team traveled to the opponent on the Friday before the game (Widener and FDU-Florham). The Warriors will look to make it 3-for-3 on overnights this weekend as the team will travel to Geneva on Friday.

A Warrior Win This Week Would...

- Be the first playoff win since November of 2003
- Set up a second round game with the winner of Mount Union & Randolph Macon
- Be the eighth win in the career of head coach Mike Clark
- Be the 321st win in Lycoming football history.
- Improve the Warriors to 14-11 all-time in the NCAA Playoffs
- Be the first win in New York State since October 7, 1995

Hobart's Last Time Out

Hobart clinched its third-straight Liberty League title with a 10-7 victory in its rival game with Rochester on Saturday, Nov. 15, on a sloppy Boswell Field.

The Statesmen rallied back from a 7-0 defecit to score 10 second half points.

Rochester scored in the first quarter and Hobart would not get on the board until there were six minutes left in the third quarter.

Rich Doyle put the Statesmen on the board with a two-yard scoring rush. Connor Callahan sealed the win with a 20-yard field goal with 1:01 left in the fourth quarter.

The sloppy conditions contributed to an awful offensive game for both teams, with Rochester edging Hobart 199-143 in total offense.

Andrew Marlier carried the ball 21 times for 65 yards for Hobart, while Doyle added six rushes for 11 yards and the lone touchdown of the game. He completed 10-of-21 pass attempts for 84 yards with one interception. Doug Vella also saw time at quarterback, completing 2-of-7 passes for four yards with one interception.

Tyler Vincent caught six passes for 60 yards. Mike Lazore was the only other receiver with more than one catch, pulling down two passes for three yards. Vincent also punted the bal five times for an average of 36.2 yards per kick.

Lance Boyington returned five punts for 39 yards and had one interception with a 24 yard return. Jeff Sanders led the defense with 15 total tackles and two fumble recoveries.

                     1    2    3    4     Final
Rochester       7   0    0    0     7
Hobart            0   0    7    3     10

Scouting the Statesmen

Hobart enters this week ranked 23rd in the latest poll. The Statesmen offense puts up 318.3 yards per game while the defense allows 275.7.

The offense is a balanced attack that averages 189.2 yards through the air and 129.1 on the ground.

The defense gives up more yards rushing than passing, allowing 142.9 on the ground and 132.8 through the air.

Anthony Hobaica leads the team in rushing with 116 carries for 494 yards and three scores, but has not played in the last two games. Andrew Marlier has filled in during those games and has 116 carries for 421 yards and four scores. Rich Doyle has 52 carries for 147 yards and four touchdowns.

Doyle is the starting quarterback but the team has also used Doug Vella in six games. Doyle is 143-of-259 for 1,600 yards and 13 touchdowns with 10 interceptions. Vella is 9-of-22 for 86 yards, one score and one pick.

Tyler Vincent is the top receiver with 46 catches for 518 yards and six touchdowns. Zach Schulz has 35 grabs for 397 yards and three scores and Matt Duliba has 19 catches for 300 yards and two touchdowns.

Drake Woodward was named the Liberty League Rookie of the Year after leading the league with seven interceptions. Justin Hager leads the defense with 105 total tackles. Ryan Robinson has 14.0 tackles for a loss and Ryan Aruck has 8.0 tackles for a loss. Lance Boyington has five interceptions on the year.

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