9/5/08

DOWNLOAD THE COMPLETE ITHACA GAME NOTES HERE

WILLIAMSPORT, Pa. -- The Lycoming College football team will open the season on Saturday, Sept. 6, at Ithaca College. Complete game notes are now available.

The 22-page game notes include a breakdown of the game and the series, as well as coaching profiles, facts about each school, statistics, national rankings, scouting reports, depth charts and historical information. Also included is information on live coverage of the game, including audio and video broadcasts and live statistics.

The complete notes can be downloaded in PDF format by clicking the link at the top of this page.

All-Access Pass

Audio and video broadcasts of the game will be available. ESPN Radio WLYC will broadcast the game live on 1050 AM and 104.1 FM in Lycoming County. The ESPN Radio feed will also be broadcast online for free. A link will be provided on the Lycoming sports Web page at: www.lycoming.edu/athletics. Ithaca’s campus television station will also air a live video stream of the game. Fans can purchase that game through the Ithaca Web site at: www.bombers.ithaca.edu. Live stats will also be available during the game by visiting the Ithaca Web site.

The Mike and Mike Show

Saturday's game will feature two head coaches that returned to their Alma Maters to become head coaches.

Mike Clark (Lycoming ’93) will make his head coaching debut for the Warriors on Saturday after taking over the program from legendary coach Frank Girardi. Girardi compiled a career record of 257-97-5 in 36 years at the helm of the program. Saturday’s game marks the first time since 2004 that Ithaca will open the season against a coach making his debut. In 2004, the Bombers defeated Buffalo State and first-year head coach Paul Shaffner 45-0.

Mike Welsh (Ithaca ’73) enters his 15th season as the head coach of the Bombers. Welsh has a career mark of 112-41 (.732) and ranks 15th in the nation in winning percentage among active coaches. Prior to taking the head coaching job, he served 10 years as an assistant under head coach Jim Butterfield.

The Series

Ithaca holds a 3-1 advantage in the series that dates back to 1948. Lycoming’s one win in the series was a 33-30 overtime win in 2005. Last year, the Bombers opened the season with a 31-6 victory over the Warriors at David Person Field.

1948 - Ithaca 25, Lycoming 0
2004 - Ithaca 49, Lycoming 7
2005 - Lycoming 33, Ithaca 0 (OT)
2007 - Ithaca 31, Lycoming 6

The Last Time They Met

Ithaca defeated Lycoming 31-6 on Sept. 1, 2007 at David Person Field in Williamsport. Bomber quarterback Dan Juvan threw for a career-high 309 yards with three touchdowns to lead the attack. Lycoming’ s score came on a 13-yard pass from Colin Dwyer to Bill Margetich with just under two minutes to play in the third quarter. The extra-point attempt was blocked.

                    1    2     3     4      Score
Ithaca          10   7     7     7      31
Lycoming     0    0      6    0        6

Scouting the Warriors

Lycoming was picked fifth in the MAC preseason poll. The Warriors enter Saturday’s game coming off a 3-7 record in 2007. Head coach Mike Clark will look to put the team back on track after posting a 16-23 overall record since the beginning of the 2004 season. Prior to that, the Warriors enjoyed 30-straight winning campaigns.

Offensively, all eyes will be on sophomore Josh Kleinfelter in the backfield. One of the most explosive athletes on the team, his production on the ground will be crucial to the Warriors offensive success. Junior Brad Shellenberger will pose the biggest threat at receiver. Shellenberger has great size (6-3, 192) and speed and is deadly in the open field. Junior Colin Dwyer and sophomore Tim Hook will battle for the starting quarterback job right up until game day. Both players started games for the Warriors in 2007.

The offensive line is the most veteran-stacked squad on the team. Four seniors will start on the line, including both of the Warriors offensive captains in Pat Taylor and Andy Marino. They are joined by Dave Nocera and Nathan Schrack. Sophomore Matt Landseidel is projected to be the fifth starter.

The Warriors must replace 2007 captain Bill Margetich at tight end. Junior Jimmie Stevenson will start the game Saturday and will share time with sophomore Adam Paulhamus.

Defensively, senior captains Nick Reese, Chris Smith and Chris Tribanas will lead the effort. Tribanas will anchor the front line after returning from an injury that sidelined him for the 2007 season. He is joined by three juniors up front in Kyle Murren, Ted Geurds and Matt Licci.

Smith will lead the linebackers from the weak side and will be joined by sophomores Zach Hanner and Ben Rosa. Rosa will start his first game on defense after moving over from fullback during preseason camp.

Senior Scott Kish and Sophomore Jim Daley will start at corner with Reese and junior Travis Leonarczyk starting at safety.

Senior Scott Erikson, who joined the team late last year, will look to turn things around from the kicking standpoint. The Warriors attempted just two field goals in 2007.

Scouting the Bombers

The Bombers were picked to win the Empire 8 conference this season after posting an 8-3 overall record in 2007 and reaching the NCAA Playoffs for the 17th time in school history. Ithaca is ranked 18th in the D3Football.com preseason national poll, 17th in Lindy’s preseason poll and 21st in the USA Today Sports Weekly preseason poll.

Senior guard Chris Gray and senior tight end Brian Weverbergh were each named second team preseason All-Americans by Lindy’s College Football Preview as well as Consensus Draft Services. Weverbergh set school records for a tight end with 44 catches and 580 yards in 2007. On top of his preseason All-America recognition, he was featured as one of five “Players to Watch” in USA Today’s Sports Weekly.

Also named on the Consensus preseason All-America list was punt returner Jason Chier, who led the nation in returns last year at 20.2 yards per return with two touchdowns.

Senior quarterback Dan Juvan will lead the offensive attack again this season.

Juvan put up career-bests of 309 yards and three touchdowns against Lycoming in 2007. He finished the season with 2,303 yards and 22 touchdowns while ranking 10th in the nation in efficiency. He and Weverbergh will serve as captains this season with linebacker Matt Scalice joining as the third captain. Scalice led the team in tackles last season with 94 total stops, including 14.0 tackles for a loss and three sacks. He also forced two fumbles and blocked one kick.

The Bombers must replace leading rusher Jamie Donovan (1,085 yards), who also led the team in scoring with 13 touchdowns last year. Thomas Bergerstock is the top returning rusher from the 2007 season. He appeared in six games with no starts and rushed for 99 yards on 29 carries.

Ithaca ranked 26th in nation in total offense last season, putting up 428.2 yards per game. More impressively was the Bombers rankings when it came to turnovers. They ranked eighth in turnovers lost with 12 total lost turnovers and seventh in fumbles lost with five on the year.

We’re Going Streaking

The Bombers carry a streak of 37 consecutive winning seasons into 2008, which is the second longest streak for any school in any division of NCAA football (Linfield has 52).

Download the Complete 22-page Notes Here