Football Heads to Georgetown on Saturday for Final Road Game of Season
11/8/2016 8:05:00 AM | Football
What: Bucknell Bison (3-6, 2-2 PL) at Georgetown Hoyas (3-6, 0-4 PL)
Where: Cooper Field, Washington, D.C.
When: Saturday, Nov. 12, 2016, 3:30 p.m.
Internet Video: Patriot League Network
Radio: Eagle 107 (107.3 WEGH)
Internet Radio: BucknellBison.com
Live Statistics: GUHoyas.com
Probable Starters - Offense
QB 6 R.J. Nitti (Sr., 6-6, 230) - Needs 144 passing yards to move into 2nd on all-time list
or 4 John Chiarolanzio (Fr., 6-3, 195) - Threw for 139 yards in 2nd half vs. Colgate in 1st game
RB 23 Joey DeFloria (Jr., 5-9, 195) - Five 100-yard rushing games this season
FB 88 Marcus Ademilola (So., 6-3, 225) - Expected to make first career start at FB/TE (1 start at WR)
WR 18 Will Carter (Sr., 5-11, 180) - Owns Bucknell records for career receptions and receiving yards
WR 2 Alan Butler (So., 6-1, 180) - Multiple receptions in all seven games played this season
LT 70 Julie'n Davenport (Sr., 6-7, 315) - 3-time All-Patriot League selection; 42 straight starts
LG 66 Devlin Brennan (Sr., 6-4, 310) - 36 career games played, started all 11 games at RG in 2015
C 62 Ned Bent (Sr., 6-2, 290) - Started 5 games at C in 2015, 35 career games played
RG 54 Cary Hess (Sr., 6-4, 295) - 23 career games played; 10 career starts
RT 63 Griff Barth (Sr., 6-4, 290) - Moved to RT from RG Oct. 22 vs. Lafayette; Played RG last week
TE 87 Andrew Podbielski (Jr., 6-4, 230) - First career TD reception Oct. 22 vs. Lafayette
Probable Starters - Defense
DE 90 Doug Whitlock (Jr., 6-2, 250) - 15.5 of 64 career tackles have been for loss
DT 40 Abdullah Anderson (Jr., 6-4, 295) - 2-time All-Patriot League selection; started all 31 games of career
NG 96 Troy Glenn (Sr., 6-1, 270) - Five straight starts before Lafayette game on Oct. 22
DE 48 R.J. Sheldon (Sr., 6-3, 235) - Had game-clinching sack Oct. 8 at Holy Cross
Mike LB 29 Ben Richard (Jr., 6-1, 240) - Second Team All-PL in 2015; Top 10 in PL in tackles, TFL, sacks
Sam LB 5 Mark Pyles (Jr., 6-0, 220) - Preseason All-PL, second on team with 150 career tackles
SS 26 Joe Lauro (So., 5-11, 200) - 3 double-figure tackle games this season
FS 12 Bret Berg (Sr., 6-1, 205) - Averaged 9.6 tackles from Sept. 10 to Oct. 15
WS 43 Connor Golden (Jr., 6-0, 200) - Second career multi-INT game Oct. 29 at Charleston Southern
CB 9 Bryan Marine (So., 5-9, 175) - Most pass breakups (11) by a Bison since 2004
CB 8 Nick O'Brien (Sr., 5-9, 180) - 25 career starts, 138 career tackles
Specialists
PK 93 John Burdick (Jr., 6-0, 195) - Team-best 11-for-12 on XP this season
or 83 Jack Chambers (So., 5-10, 175) - 4th on team with 13 points this season
KO 93 John Burdick (Jr., 6-0, 195) - Averaging 57.8 yards on 29 kickoffs this season
P 12 Bret Berg (Sr., 6-1, 205) - Starting safety, first time as starting punter Oct. 22 vs. Lafayette
PR 8 Nick O'Brien (Sr., 5-9, 180) - Third in PL with 8.9 punt return average
KR 8 Nick O'Brien (Sr., 5-9, 180) - 1,031 career KOR yards
9 Bryan Marine (So., 5-9, 175) - Returned first three kicks of career vs. Colgate (23.3 avg.)
LS 58 Dillon Paprota (Fr., 5-11, 225) - In first year as long snapper
H 11 Alexander Romango (Sr., 6-2, 230) - Also a backup QB
With a Victory over Georgetown, Bucknell Would ...
• ... equal its win total from all of 2015.
• ... exceed its Patriot League win total from 2015.
• ... snap a two-game losing streak.
• ... finish with a .500 (3-3) road record in 2016.
• ... win at Cooper Field for the sixth time in the last seven tries.
• ... clinch at least a .500 finish in Patriot League play.
• ... snap a five-game November losing streak.
• ... help Joe Susan tie Tim Landis for seventh place on the Bucknell career wins list with 32.
About the Game
Bucknell and Georgetown both enter Saturday's game looking to get back on the winning side. The Bison have lost two in a row to nationally ranked opponents, while the Hoyas have lost six in a row since a 3-0 start. Both teams rank in the top three in the Patriot League in scoring defense and in the bottom three in scoring offense, meaning ever possession will be key. It is the final road game of the season for Bucknell, which is 2-3 away from Christy Mathewson-Memorial Stadium this fall. Two of Georgetown's three wins this season have come at home. The Hoyas will honor their senior class during Senior Day ceremonies prior to kickoff.
Broadcast Options
• Doug Birdsong and Kevin Herr will call all the action on Eagle 107 (WEGH 107.3) and BucknellBison.com.
• A free live video broadcast will be available on the Patriot League Network (PatriotLeague.tv).
About Georgetown
• Georgetown is 3-6 overall and 0-4 in Patriot League play.
• The Hoyas have lost six games in a row, including a close 21-20 home loss to Holy Cross last Saturday.
• Georgetown opened the season with three consecutive wins for the first time since 1999.
• Georgetown is averaging 16.6 points and 238.0 yards per game this season. The Hoyas are allowing 21.9 points and 390.4 yards per game.
• Junior RB Alex Valles leads Georgetown with 405 rushing yards this season.
• Georgetown has used three quarterbacks this season. Sophomore Clay Norris was 25-for-37 for 185 yards last week vs. Holy Cross. He has appeared in all nine games and is second on the team with 553 passing yards. Senior Tim Barnes leads the squad with 650 passing yards and seven touchdowns in four games played.
• Sophomore LB J'V'on Barnes leads Georgetown with 73 tackles this season. He also has five tackles for loss, one sack, one interception, five pass breakups, one forced fumble and one fumble recovery.
Bucknell vs. Georgetown Series Notes
• Bucknell leads 16-11-1.
• Bucknell has won six of the last eight meetings.
• Ten of the last 11 games have been decided by 10 points or less.
• A total of 102 points have been scored the last four years (25.5 ppg).
• The winning team has had more than 30 points just once in the last decade (Bucknell scored 35 points in 2011).
• Georgetown has not won games in back-to-back years since 1938 and 1939.
• Bucknell and Georgetown went from 1939 to 2000 without playing and have now played each of the last 16 years.
Last Time vs. Georgetown
Georgetown 17, Bucknell 9 (Oct. 24, 2015 - Lewisburg, Pa.)
• Georgetown won at Christy Mathewson-Memorial Stadium for the first time since 2007.
• Bucknell QB R.J. Nitti became the second Bison to throw for 300 yards (338) in a game in the last 20 years. It was just the 11th 300-yard game in program history.
• Bucknell had a 100-yard rusher (C.J. Williams) and a 100-yard receiver (Bobby Kaslander) in the same game for the first time since 2013 at Colgate.
• Bucknell outgained Georgetown 412-288, won the turnover battle 2-1, ran 29 more plays (87-58) and dominated the time of possession 36:57-23:03, but was a combined 7-for-23 on third and fourth downs and was 1-for-4 inside the red zone.
• Georgetown sacked R.J. Nitti four times for a combined 45 yards.
• It was Homecoming at Bucknell.
• Bucknell WR Will Carter had a career-high 12 receptions for 92 yards. The 12 catches tied him for second place on the Bison single-game list, and he became the first Bucknell player with double-figure receptions since Shaun Pasternak in 2008.
Inside the Lehigh Box Score
• Lehigh's win clinched the Patriot League title and the conference's automatic berth to the NCAA playoffs. It was the 11th Patriot League title for the Mountain Hawks, and their first since 2011.
• Bucknell led or was tied for the first 43:14. Lehigh did not take its first lead until 1:46 remained in the third quarter.
• Bucknell had two fourth-quarter possessions with a chance to tie the game with a touchdown. Those drives ended with an interception and a turnover on downs.
• The Bison had the ball for nearly 12 minutes in the fourth quarter. They put together a 17-play, 71-yard drive during the final period.
• Bucknell RB Joey DeFloria posed his fifth 100-yard rushing game of the season with 119 yards on 28 carries.
• Bucknell WR Will Carter posted his third 100-yard receiving game of the season with 120 yards on four catches.
• Bucknell's defense held Lehigh to a season-low 20 points. The Mountain Hawks entered the game averaging 42.2 points and 504.4 yards per game. Lehigh generated just 357 yards of total offense, its second-lowest figure of the season.
• Bucknell and Lehigh's defenses combined for eight sacks. Abdullah Anderson posted a game-high two sacks for the Bison.
• Four of Bucknell's six penalties came in the fourth quarter.
• Bucknell missed a 26-yard field goal and an extra point in the first half.
• The attendance of 7,049 was the largest to see a Bucknell game this season.
Carter Likes Lehigh
• Bucknell senior WR Will Carter played his final game vs. Lehigh last week.
• Carter finished his career against Lehigh with 17 catches for 496 yards, including three 100-yard outings.
• Carter had six catches for 130 yards in 2013, seven catches for 246 yards in 2014 and four catches for 120 yards last week.
• Carter had five career receptions of at least 50 yards vs. Lehigh (54, 64, 69, 77, 78).
Record-Breaking Carter
• Bucknell senior WR Will Carter broke Tom Mitchell's 51-year-old program records for receptions and receiving yards Oct. 8 at Holy Cross.
• Carter now tops both lists with 184 receptions and 2,632 receiving yards in his career.
• Only two other players in program history have surpassed 2,000 yards. Only eight other players have at least 100 catches in their careers.
• Carter leads Bucknell in receptions (38), receiving yards (622) and receiving touchdowns (3) this year.
• Carter had at least three receptions in all 30 career games played before being held to two catches Oct. 22 vs. Lafayette.
It's a Different Week
• Last week, Bucknell faced red-hot Lehigh when the Mountain Hawks were undefeated (4-0) in Patriot League play and owned a seven-game winning streak.
• This week, the Bison face Georgetown with the Hoyas winless (0-4) in Patriot League play and on a six-game losing streak.
• Lehigh entered last week's game averaging 42.2 points per game and had not scored less than 35 points since week two of the season. Georgetown is more defensive-minded, averaging 16.6 points per game. The Hoyas have not scored more than 20 points in a game since a season-opening 38-14 win over Davidson.
Road Finales
• Saturday's game marks the final road game of the 2016 season for Bucknell.
• The Bison have won their road finale in two of the last three years.
• Bucknell is 2-4 in its final road game under Joe Susan.
100-Yard Rushers
• Bucknell has had a 100-yard rusher in six of its nine games this year, equaling its total from all of 2015.
• Joey DeFloria ran for 100 yards against Marist (145), Cornell (154), Holy Cross (149), Lafayette (130) and Lehigh (119), while Chad Freshnock did it against VMI (161).
• DeFloria has run for 100 yards every other game this season. He ran for 100 yards in the season's first, third, fifth, seventh and ninth contests.
• DeFloria is the 15th player in program history to record at least five career 100-yard games.
• DeFloria is ranked 11th nationally in rushing yards per game (102.2).
1,000 Yards?
• Junior RB Joey DeFloria enters Saturday's game with a career-high 920 rushing yards this season.
• DeFloria is on pace to become Bucknell's first 1,000-yard rusher since Daris Wilson ran for 1,149 yards in 2004.
• Seven different players have rushed for 1,000 yards in a season for Bucknell. That figure has been reached just nine times (Rich Lemon did it three times).
• DeFloria is ranked third in the Patriot League in rushing, behind only Fordham's Chase Edmonds (1,499) and Lehigh's Dom Bragalone (996).
Nitti Moving Up Lists
• Senior QB R.J. Nitti has moved up the Bison career record books this season. He is 62-for-114 for 712 yards and four touchdowns.
• Nitti now ranks third in program history in career passing yards (5,113), fourth in career pass completions (410) and tied for second in career pass attempts (752). Nitti is ranked second on the school's all-time list with 34 touchdown passes.
Low-Scoring Bucknell Games
• Bucknell ranks fifth in the Patriot League in scoring offense (21.0 ppg) and third in scoring defense (24.4 ppg). The average points scored in a Bison game this season is 45.4.
• In Patriot League games, Bucknell and its opponents are averaging a combined 41.8 ppg (167 total points in four games).
Patriot League Total Points Per Game
15 Patriot League Games in 2016: 50.9 ppg
11 Patriot League Games Not Involving Bucknell: 54.3 ppg
4 Bucknell Patriot League Games: 41.8 ppg
Milestone Watch
• Will Carter: Needs 458 all-purpose yards to move into top 10 on program's career list
• Joey DeFloria: Needs 80 rushing yards to become 10th Bison to rush for 1,000 yards in a season
• Bryan Marine: Needs 1 tackle to reach 100 in career
• Matt Muh: Needs 157 passing yards to reach 1,000 in career
• R.J. Nitti: Needs 144 passing yards to move into second place on the school's all-time passing yards list
Up Next
• Bucknell will conclude its 2016 season next Saturday, Nov. 19, with a home game against Fordham.
• The Bison lead the all-time series 18-13, but the Rams have won three in a row.
• Four games in a row in the series have been decided by fewer than 10 points.
