Bucknell University Athletics
Bucknell Football Set to Host Villanova for First Time in 14 Years
10/13/2005 8:00:00 AM | Football
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For the first time since 1991, the Villanova Wildcats invade Christy Mathewson-Memorial Stadium on Saturday afternoon. Both teams come in looking to erase tough losses from this past weekend. In a driving rainstorm at Franklin Field, Bucknell fell to Penn 53-7, while Villanova lost 38-20 on the road to Atlantic 10 rival Richmond. In last week's deluge the Bison committed five turnovers, including two that were returned for touchdowns and three others inside their own 20-yard line that led to short TD drives. The Wildcats have also been hurt by turnovers this season, including four in last week's loss at Richmond. Both teams are -4 in 2005 and are hoping to benefit from a favorable weather forecast that projects sunny skies by kickoff after a week of rain.
TOURING THE HERD
• ON THE SIDELINE: Taking over the Bison after a 2-9 season, head coach Tim Landis has posted 6-6 and 7-4 records in his first two years at Bucknell, leading them to a pair of third-place finishes in the Patriot League. Landis is now 67-66-1 (.504) in his career, which also includes head coaching stints at Davidson (1993-99) and St. Mary's (2000-02). Landis is 0-1 in his career against Villanova.
• THE OFFENSE: Injuries in the backfield have severely hindered Bucknell's spread option attack. The Bison started four different quarterbacks and have used five players at the position already this season, while standout FB Blamah Sarnor was injured late in the second quarter of the season opener against Georgetown and will likely be sidelined for the season. Still, Bucknell leads the Patriot League in rushing at 193.6 yards per game. The Bison are averaging only 41.8 yards per game through the air, however.
• UNDER CENTER: The Bison have been jarred by injuries to two of their promising young quarterbacks already this season. Sophomore Terrance Wilson started the opener against Georgetown and played well, but suffered a broken jaw in that game and is out indefinitely. In week two at Stony Brook, Mahdi Woodard became the first freshman to start at QB for Bucknell since 1992, but he too was sidelined after taking a blow to the head late in the first half. Sophomore Ryan Ahern played the second half at Stony Brook, then became the third Bison starting QB in as many weeks at Cornell. Ahern also started against Marist, but he alternated with senior Dante Ross, who turned in a storybook performance in the win over the Red Foxes. Ross, normally a cornerback and kick returner, ran for 268 yards and three TDs, setting Bucknell and PL records for ground yards by a QB. Ross started last week against Penn and is expected to remain at the position for the rest of the season.
• BACKS & RECEIVERS: Bucknell also had a significant injury in the backfield on opening night, as senior FB Blamah Sarnor missed the second half with a foot injury and remains out. Sophomore Josh DeStefano moved from slotback to fullback, with juniors Kenny Davis and Peter Kaufman starting at the slots. Freshman WR Daniel Zvara caught his first collegiate pass against Marist, a 37-yard touchdown in the third quarter that gave Bucknell a 14-0 lead.
• THE O-LINE: Senior co-captain Stephen Watts shifted from tackle to center last week, opening up a starting assignment for Chad Glasser at left tackle. Guards Stefan Niemczyk and Michael Boccella have started all five games thus far, as has senior Eric Becker at right tackle. This week the coaching staff moved sophomore Jonathan Grainger from DL to OL to add depth on the offensive side of the ball.
• THE DEFENSE: Bucknell ranks 30th nationally in total defense at 319.8 yards per game. The Bison also have 12 takeaways in four games, including nine interceptions by eight different players. Last week Bucknell allowed 53 points, but two touchdowns were scored by the Penn defense and three others came on drives of 19 yards or less.
• DEFENSIVE FRONT: Bucknell has a deep, veteran defensive line, led by All-America DE Sean Conover. Senior DE Andrew Decker is expected to return this week after recovering from a dislocated thumb. Fellow senior DE Brandon Bailey replaced him in the starting lineup and has three sacks in the last two weeks. ILBs Ryan Slater and Dorian Petersen have been all over the field in the first three games. The duo combined for 29 tackles at Cornell and ranks 1-2 on the team in tackles.
• DEFENSIVE SECONDARY: Senior CB Dante Ross is the cornerstone of the secondary, and he has been outstanding all season. Sophomore FS Stephen Collage had a career-high 15 tackles at Cornell. Junior CB David Frisbey led the team with a career-high 13 tackles against Marist. Bucknell ranks third in the Patriot League and 31st nationally in passing defense, allowing only 169.2 aerial yards per game.
• SPECIAL TEAMS: Ross has become the Patriot League's premier return man and is the reigning PL Special Teams Player of the Year. He is averaging 10.8 yards per punt return and 25.4 yards per kickoff return this season. Freshman P Phil Azarik was off to a terrific start, averaging 39.5 yards on eight attempts, but he missed the last three games after coming down with a bout of mono, and he will likely be out this week as well. Junior walk-on Matt DeMartino handled the punting chores for the first time last week at Penn and did a credible job despite the miserable weather conditions. Freshman K Will Carney notched his first collegiate point when he made the PAT after Bucknell's lone touchdown in the second quarter.
BISON FOOTBALL NOTES & NOTABLES:
• NOWHERE TO RUN: Bucknell's defense has been very effective stopping the run in its last two contests.The Bison yielded only 42 rushing yards on 33 attempts, 41 coming on Obozua Ehikioya's fourth-quarter TD run after the game was well in hand. Prior to that run, the Red Foxes had just minus-4 rushing yards in the game. Last week at Penn, the Bison allowed 82 rushing yards on 36 carries. Over the last two weeks, opponents are averaging 1.8 yards per carry.
• COLOR-BLIND QBS: Bucknell already has nine interceptions in five games this season, including four two weeks ago against Marist. The Bison rank T-10th in Division I-AA in that category. It's especially impressive considering Bucknell opponents have only thrown a total of 114 passes, meaning the Bison are picking off about one of every 12 attempts. The nine interceptions are spread among eight different defenders.
• DANTE'S INFERNO: In a throwback performance that had many folks in the pressbox reminiscing about Gordie Lockbaum, Bucknell senior Dante Ross had one of the most memorable games in Bucknell history two weeks ago in the win over Marist. Ross, who is the team's smallest player at 5'8", 164 pounds, played offense, defense and special teams, and he tore apart the record book along the way. He started the game at cornerback, contributed five tackles (four solo) and made an important leaping interception in the end zone to stop a Marist drive. On offense, he entered the game at quarterback on the second series of the day, and two plays later he put the Bison ahead with a 39-yard TD run. And he never stopped running. He finished with 268 rushing yards and three touchdowns, and he also tossed a 37-yard TD pass to Daniel Zvara, a huge play at the time with Bucknell still clinging to that 7-0 lead in the third quarter. On special teams, Ross totaled 36 yards on three punt returns and had a 21-yard kickoff return. More on Ross' career day:
• The 268 rushing yards broke the Bucknell and Patriot League records for a quarterback, surpassing the 252 yards by Bucknell's Daris Wilson last season at Holy Cross. It was the second-highest rushing total in Bucknell history and tied for the third-highest in PL history. It was the 13th 200-yard rushing game in Bucknell annals.
• Ross' 325 all-purpose yards were the second-most in Bucknell history, behind only the 341 posted by Ken Jenkins against West Chester in 1980. It was the fourth time in school history a player topped the 300-yard mark, and it was tied for the fifth-highest total in Patriot League history.
• Ross accounted for 305 of Bucknell's 346 total yards (88.2%) and had a hand in all four touchdowns.
• In one memorable sequence in the game, he outleaped 6'4" receiver Prince Prempeh for the interception in the end zone, then stayed on the field and had runs of 18, 26, 8, 3, and 23 yards, the last a TD, accounting for 78 of the 80 yards on the scoring drive.
• Ross had never before played quarterback until the previous game against Cornell, when he rushed for 59 yards on 15 carries. He was recruited to Bucknell as a wide receiver and was moved to defensive back during his freshman season.
• ROSS TO START AT QB: Following the record-setting performance against Marist, Ross earned the starting nod at QB against Penn, making him the fourth Bison to start at the position in five games. Ross is expected to start at QB again this week against Villanova.
• ROSS ECLIPSES EIBEN'S RECORD: Lost in all of Dante Ross' heroics in the Marist game was the fact that he became Bucknell's career leader in punt return yardage. He now has 664 career yards, which is better than the 626 posted by current Toronto Argonauts star Kevin Eiben from 1997-2000. Ross also moved into second place on the Patriot League career chart.
• MORE FROM LAST WEEK'S GAME: The Bison were held to season lows for rushing (74) and total yards (103) by a stout Penn defense ... Bucknell had only two plays from scrimmage of 10 yards or more in the game ... RB Peter Kaufman had a 37-yard run, giving him a team-high 46 rushing yards on only three carries ... freshman QB Mahdi Woodard returned from injury and completed 5 of 10 passes for 24 yards ... Kaufman and QB/DB Dante Ross both had 45-yard kickoff returns ... LB James Lachman led the team with nine tackles ... DL Sean Conover's first career interception set up Bucknell's lone TD.
• BAILEY A FACTOR: Senior DL Brandon Bailey has been primarily a pass-rush specialist throughout his career, but with classmate Andrew Decker out the last month with a dislocated thumb, Bailey has taken on an increased role and has played very well. He has three sacks in the last two weeks and now has nine in his career.
• SWITCHING SIDES: A pair of defensive linemen could see time on the offensive side of the ball this week. Sophomore Jonathan Grainger began practicing with the offensive linemen on Tuesday and is listed as a backup at right guard. Grainger, normally in uniform No. 95, will wear No. 75 this week. Senior Andrew Decker has also changed his number, from 50 to 46, as he might see some time at tight end in addition to his regular defensive end duties.
• WEEKLY HONORS: Dante Ross was named the Patriot League Offensive Player of the Week after the Marist win. In his career Ross has now earned offensive, defensive and special teams player of the week awards, becoming the first player in league history to accomplish that trifecta. He was also named the ECAC Player of the Week and the Lewisburg Hotel Bison Athlete of the Week.
• TURNOVER WOES: Bucknell had struggled in the turnover category early in the season, but seemed to get things turned around two weeks ago against Marist when it had just one fumble, that coming on a sack on a Hail Mary pass attempt on the last play of the first half. But last week at Penn the Bison had a fumble and an interception returned for second-quarter TDs, and in the second half three turnovers inside their own 20 led to TD drives of 19, 8 and 12 yards.
• BUCKNELL VS. THE A-10: Bucknell is 40-61 all-time against the teams that currently comprise the Atlantic 10, including 1-2 vs. Massachusetts, 0-4 vs. New Hampshire, 2-4 vs. Hofstra, 3-1 vs. Northeastern, 1-1 vs. Rhode Island, 3-3 vs. Maine, 0-1 vs. Richmond, 8-8 vs. Towson, 0-4 vs. William & Mary, 11-11-2 vs. Villanova and 11-22 vs. Delaware.
• YOUTH IS SERVED: Bucknell's two-deep features 23 first or second-year players this week.
• A WINNING ERA: After posting a solid 7-4 campaign in 2004, Bucknell has finished at .500 or better in nine of the last 10 seasons. Over that decade span from 1995-2004, the Bison won 63 games, the most in any 10-year period in school history. This season Bucknell is in search of its first Patriot League title since 1996.
• PRESEASON PREDICTIONS: Bucknell over the summer was picked fifth in a preseason poll of Patriot League head coaches and sports information directors. Lehigh (68 points) was picked to win the conference, followed by defending champion Lafayette (61), Colgate (49), Fordham (41), Bucknell (40), Holy Cross (20) and Georgetown (15).
• HONORS GALORE FOR CONOVER: Senior DL Sean Conover has received a barrelful of honors since the end of last season. Following a monster junior year in which he led the Patriot League in sacks (10.5) and forced fumbles (5), Conover was named the Patriot League Defensive Player of the Year and earned Second Team All-America citations from both the Associated Press and The Sports Network. Conover was named to the Preseason All-America team and was on the initial Buck Buchanan Award Watch List by The Sports Network, in addition to Preseason Patriot League Defensive Player of the Year honors.
• ROSS ALSO HONORED: Senior QB/CB Dante Ross was named the Patriot League Preseason Special Teams Player of the Year last month after claiming the similar honor following a terrific 2004 season. Ross led the league in both kickoff (29.1) and punt (9.5) return average and became the first player in school and league history to return two kickoffs for touchdowns in the same game when he did so against Georgetown last season.
• IN THE CLASSROOM: The Bison boasted a league-record 26 members of the Patriot League Academic Honor Roll last season, and the team fashioned a solid 3.12 combined grade-point average last spring.
• UP NEXT: Things don't get any easier for the Bison in the next two weeks, as they host 20th-ranked Lehigh next Saturday, then travel to Lafayette on Oct. 29. Lehigh and Lafayette shared the Patriot League title last season and both teams earned NCAA Tournament berths.
