Bucknell University Athletics
Football Heads to Army West Point Saturday for Final Non-League Game of Season
10/12/2015 11:58:00 AM | Football
What: Bucknell Bison (3-2, 0-1 PL) at Army West Point Black Knights (1-5)
Where: Michie Stadium, West Point, N.Y.
When: Saturday, Oct. 17, 2015, 12 p.m.
TV: CBS Sports Network
Internet Video: Knight Vision
Radio: Eagle 107 (107.3 WEGH)
Internet Radio: BucknellBison.com
Live Statistics: GoArmyWestPoint.com
Probable Starters - Offense
QB 6 R.J. Nitti (Jr., 6-4, 230) - 21 career TD passes; 4 rushing TDs in 2015
RB 4 C.J. Williams (Jr., 6-0, 210) - 11 career 100-yard rushing games, including 2 this season
FB 80 Andrew Owers (Fr., 6-3, 240) - Led team in receptions three times this season
WR 2 Bobby Kaslander (Sr., 6-2, 200) - Only Bison with at least 1 catch in all 5 games this season
WR 18 Will Carter (Jr., 5-10, 180) - First Team All-PL in 2014, Preseason All-PL in 2015
LT 70 Julie'n Davenport (Jr., 6-7, 315) - 2-time All-Patriot League selection
LG 76 Clayton Hoffmaster (Sr., 6-4, 295) - 12 career starts at RG; 17 total starts
C 54 Cary Hess (Jr., 6-4, 290) - Made first career start at C vs. Cornell
RG 66 Devlin Brennan (Jr., 6-4, 295) - 21 career games played
RT 71 Ramy Kased (Sr., 6-6, 315) - 36 career games, 28 career starts
TE 87 Andrew Podbielski (So., 6-4, 240) - Started four of five games this season
Probable Starters - Defense
DE 90 Doug Whitlock (So., 6-2, 250) - Career-high 10 tackles vs. Duquesne
DT 40 Abdullah Anderson (So., 6-4, 295) - 35 pounds heavier than last year's listed playing weight
NG 99 Ben Schumacher (Jr., 6-2, 270) - Fifth on team with 4.5 TFL this year
DE 15 Jimmy King (Sr., 6-1, 250) - Named Bison Athlete of the Week after Cornell game
Mike LB 29 Ben Richard (So., 6-1, 235) - Tied for third in PL with 7 TFL
Sam LB 42 Mark Pyles (So., 6-0, 220) - Tied for sixth in PL in tackles per game (9.0)
SS 5 Clayton Ewell (Sr., 6-1, 195) - Only Bison to play in all 38 games over last 4 years
FS 12 Bret Berg (Jr., 6-1, 200) - Career-high 7 tackles twice this season
WS 28 Connor Golden (So., 6-0, 195) - Missed season opener vs. Marist due to injury; started last 4 weeks
CB 13 Colin Jonov (So., 5-11, 195) - One of only two freshmen to start last year's season opener
CB 8 Nick O'Brien (Jr., 5-10, 195) - 11 tackles last week in season debut
With a Victory over Army West Point, Bucknell Would ...
• ... finish its non-league schedule with a 4-1 record.
• ... defeat an FBS opponent for the first time.
• ... defeat the Black Knights for the first time in six all-time meetings.
• ... improve to 17-6 in its last 23 games.
• ... improve to 6-2 in its last eight October games.
• ... stretch its road winning streak to six games.
• ... help Joe Susan move into sole possession of ninth place on Bucknell's all-time wins list (28).
About the Game
Bucknell heads to West Point to play an FBS opponent for the first time since 2001 Saturday when it faces Army West Point at Michie Stadium. The game will be televised live on CBS Sports Network. It is Homecoming at West Point and it is also the 125 Years of Army Football Celebration. The Bison are coming off a 21-10 home loss to Lehigh in their Patriot League opener this past Saturday, while the Black Knights suffered a 44-3 home loss to Duke last week. Bucknell has long been known as a strong defensive team against the run under head coach Joe Susan, and it will be an interesting matchup against Army West Point's triple option offense that ranks 12th nationally in FBS in rushing yards. This will be the final non-league game for the Bison, and it will be the earliest start time for a Bucknell contest all season.
About Army West Point
• Army West Point is 1-5 this season with its lone win coming by a 58-36 margin at Eastern Michigan.
• Four of Army West Point's losses have come by less than a touchdown, including its 20-14 loss at Penn State two weeks ago.
• The Black Knights utilize a triple option offense that is averaging 258.7 rushing yards per game. Seven different Army West Point players have more than 100 rushing yards this season, led by Ahmad Bradshaw's 308.
• Bradshaw also leads the Black Knights in passing yards with 249. Army West Point attempts just over seven passes per game.
• Army West Point entered the 2015 season ranked 31st in FBS all-time victories with 661.
• The Black Knights were 4-8 last year in their first year under head coach Jeff Monken.
• Army West Point is a member of the Patriot League in the majority of its other sports besides football, meaning a number of Bucknell teams regularly face the Black Knights.
Bucknell vs. Army West Point Series Notes
• Army West Point leads 5-0.
• The most recent meeting came in 1995.
• All five games have been played at West Point.
• The average score has been 33.4-5.6.
Long Time Between Meetings
• Bucknell and Army West Point have not met since 1995.
• The last time the Bison played an opponent with a longer gap between games was againt VMI in 2013. At that point, Bucknell had not faced the Keydets since 1978, a span of 35 years.
Last Time vs. Army West Point
Army West Point 37, Bucknell 6 (Nov. 18, 1995 - West Point, N.Y.)
• Army West Point snapped a five-game Bucknell winning streak on Senior Day at Michie Stadium.
• Bucknell's lone score was a 20-yard pass from Jim Fox to John Sakowski in the second quarter.
• Army West Point outgained the Bison 496-291.
• There were a total of seven turnovers in the game, including five by Army West Point.
• Rich Lemon was Bucknell's leading rusher with 87 yards on 21 carries.
Inside the Lehigh Box Score
• Bucknell and Lehigh totaled 31 points, marking the fewest combined points in a game in the series since 2002 (Lehigh 24, Bucknell 0).
• Lehigh's 21 points marked the lowest winning score in the series since 2001 when the Mountain Hawks defeated the Bison 21-14.
• The 11-point final margin was the closest in a Bucknell-Lehigh contest since 2001.
• Bucknell had 148 yards of total offense on its two scoring drives and 85 yards on its other eight drives.
• Lehigh's three scoring drives averaged 10 plays and 74 yards.
• Lehigh possessed the ball for more than 19 minutes in the second half, including more than 11 minutes in the fourth quarter thanks to a 17-play drive that took 8:35 off the clock.
• R.J. Nitti connected with freshman WR Alan Butler on a 44-yard touchdown pass in the first quarter. It marked the longest pass play by a Bison this season.
• Bucknell had a two-game winning streak in the series snapped.
• Lehigh ran 82 offensive played compared to 55 for Bucknell.
• Lehigh became the first team since Bryant last October to rush for 200+ yards vs. Bucknell.
• Bucknell had four players reach double figures in tackles for the second straight week, led by 13 stops from Mark Pyles.
• Bucknell's defense posted exactly four sacks in a game for the fourth time in five outings in 2015.
• Bucknell fell to 17-13 all-time in Patriot League openers.
Career Highs Set vs. Lehigh
• Alan Butler: receptions (5), receiving yards (91), long reception (44), touchdown receptions (1), all-purpose yards (91)
• Omar Garcia: rushing attempts (6), rushing yards (21), long rush (9), all-purpose yards (21)
• Connor Golden: tackles (10), forced fumbles (1)
• Colin Jonov: interception return yards (51), all-purpose yards (51)
• Joe Lauro: tackles (2)
• Bryan Marine: tackles for loss (1)
• Andrew Owers: receptions (6)
• Alex Pechin: punt average (46.2)
• Ben Schumacher: pass breakups (1), blocked field goals (1)
Bucknell Success
• Bucknell is 16-6 in its last 22 games dating back to 2013.
• Bucknell is outscoring opponents 540-406 (24.5-18.5) during that 22-game stretch.
• Bucknell's record has been at or better than .500 since November 2013.
• Bucknell is 5-2 in its last seven October games.
• Bucknell has not lost back-to-back games since the first half of the 2013 campaign.
• Bucknell opened the 2015 campaign with a 3-1 record, marking the third time in the last five years it won at least three of its first four games.
Bucknell vs. FBS
• Army West Point is Bucknell's first Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) opponent since it faced Kent State in the 2001 season opener.
• The Bison lost that game at Kent State by a 38-17 score.
• Bucknell is 0-5 against FBS schools since the FBS/FCS (formerly I-A and I-AA) classification began in 1978.
Bucknell vs. FBS Schools (since Division I classification began in 1978)
Sept. 23, 1978: Rutgers 27, Bucknell 13 (Lewisburg, Pa.)
Sept. 22, 1979: Rutgers 16, Bucknell 14 (Piscataway, N.J.)
Oct. 1, 1988: Army West Point 58, Bucknell 10 (West Point, N.Y.)
Nov. 18, 1995: Army West Point 37, Bucknell 6 (West Point, N.Y.)
Sept. 8, 2001: Kent State 38, Bucknell 17 (Kent, Ohio)
Road Success
• Thanks to its overtime win two weeks ago at VMI, Bucknell is 8-1 in its last nine road contests and 10-2 in its last 12.
• The Bison have won five in a row on the road, their longest road winning streak since 1997.
• The program record for consecutive road wins is 10 (1950-52).
• Bucknell is in the midst of playing six of its final nine games this year on the road.
• The Bison were 5-1 away from home last fall and are 2-0 this season.
• With a win over Army West Point, Bucknell will begin its road schedule 3-0 for the ninth time in program history.
Bucknell's 3-0 Road Record Starts
1952, 1962, 2008: 3-0
1929, 1951, 1971: 4-0
1964: 5-0
1997: 6-0
Longest Road Winning Streaks
1950-52: 10
1963-65: 7
1997: 6
1975-76 & 2014-15: 5
Early Start Time
• Saturday's noon kickoff is the earliest start time for a Bucknell game all season.
• The last time the Bison had a game kick off at noon was in 2012 against Lafayette in a game that also aired on CBS Sports Network.
Recent CBS Sports Network Appearances
• This is the fifth time in recent years that Bucknell has appeared on CBS Sports Network.
Recent CBS Sports Network Appearances
Oct. 2, 2010: Cornell 21, Bucknell 12 (Lewisburg, Pa.)
Sept. 22, 2012: Lafayette 20, Bucknell 14 (Lewisburg, Pa.)
Oct. 13, 2012: No. 21 Harvard 35, Bucknell 7 (Cambridge, Mass.)
Nov. 7, 2014: No. 9 Fordham 30, Bucknell 27 (OT) (Lewisburg, Pa.)
Strong Rush Defense
• Under sixth-year head coach Joe Susan, Bucknell has held 28 of 60 (46.7 percent) opponents under 100 yards rushing.
Opponents Under 100 Yards Rushing
2010: Marist - 39; Georgetown - 41
2011: Marist - 56; Cornell - 50; Princeton - 74; Georgetown - (-3); Lehigh - 43; Holy Cross - (-16); Lafayette - 26; Fordham - 51
2012: Marist - 57; Lafayette - 11; Cornell - 62; Holy Cross - 37; Lehigh - 26; Bryant - 31
2013: Marist - 39; Cornell - 17; Dartmouth - 76; Lehigh - 85; Colgate - 36; Georgetown 22; VMI - 94
2014: Marist - 19; Lehigh - 96; Fordham - 78
2015: Marist - 21; Cornell - 88
Large Crowds
• Army West Point has drawn more than 22,000 fans to each of its first three home games, including 39,712 to last week's contest against Duke. Bucknell has not played in front of a crowd of more than 20,000 fans since its last trip to Michie Stadium in 1995.
• The crowd of 16,057 that watched Bucknell's mid-September game at Cornell marked the fifth-largest attendance at a Bison contest in the last 20 years.
Highest Attendance at Bucknell Game (since 1995)
Nov. 18, 1995: Army 37, Bucknell 6 (at Army - 30,023)
Sept. 15, 2012: Delaware 19, Bucknell 3 (at Delaware - 18,118)
Oct. 21, 2000: Lehigh 21, Bucknell 14 (at Lehigh - 16,906)
Oct. 15, 2011: Harvard 42, Bucknell 3 (at Harvard - 16, 236)
Sept. 19, 2015: Bucknell 19, Cornell 14 (at Cornell - 16,057)
Turnovers
• There have been just 12 total turnovers in Bucknell's five games this season.
• The Bison have turned the ball over eight times and opponents have four turnovers.
• Bucknell forced 100 turnovers over the last four years (2011-14), an average of 2.3 per game, including 39 in 2011 to rank second nationally.
• The Bison won the turnover battle last week vs. Lehigh, marking the first time they have done that this year.
Susan Moving Up Lists
• Saturday's game will be sixth-year head coach Joe Susan's 61st at Bucknell. He ranks ninth on the Bison's all-time games coached list. Next up for Susan to pass is Bob Odell, who coached 63 games from 1958-64. Bucknell's head coaching position is named the Bob Odell Head Coach.
• Susan is tied for ninth in program history with Pete Reynolds in victories with 27, just three behind eighth-place Al Humphreys.
• Susan was the 2014 Patriot League Coach of the Year, Bucknell's first honoree since Tom Gadd in 1997.
Milestone Watch
• Bobby Kaslander: 192 receiving yards shy of 1,000 for career
• R.J. Nitti: 158 passing yards shy of 3,000 in career
• Nick O'Brien: 14 tackles shy of 100 in career
Up Next
• Bucknell will return home next Saturday, Oct. 24, for a 1 p.m. game against Patriot League foe Georgetown. It is Homecoming at Bucknell. The Bison are 16-10-1 all-time against the Hoyas and have won six of the last seven meetings. Bucknell's final five games are against Patriot League opponents.
