Bucknell Football Returns to Action at Lehigh

LEWISBURG, Pa. – The Bucknell football team returns to action by traveling to rival Lehigh for a 12:30 p.m. game on Saturday, Nov. 3. The 82nd meeting between the Bison and Mountain Hawks will be featured on Stadium and Facebook Live.

To follow the team on the road, sign up for the Bison Club's fan bus. Fans are also invited to register for a pre-game meet-up at Taps Tavern in Bethlehem, Pa. For more information, visit this link.

When: Saturday, November 3 – 12:30 p.m.
Where: Goodman Stadium – Bethlehem, Pa.
Television: Stadium's Family of Networks
Internet Video: Stadium or Facebook Live
Radio: Eagle 107 (107.3 WEGH)
Internet Radio: BucknellBison.com
Live Stats: LehighSports.com
Follow on Twitter: @Bucknell_FB

With a victory the Bison would...
• even their Patriot League record at 2-2
• improve to 2-0 while playing on natural grass
• snap a three-game losing streak to the Mountain Hawks

Bucknell at a Glance
• The Bison are currently 1-7 (1-2 Patriot League) on the season. They finished winless in non-conference play, at 0-5, for the first time since 2010 (also 0-5).
• Bucknell finished 2017 with a 5-6 (2-4 PL) record. The Bison, who took sixth in the Patriot League a year ago, were chosen to tie for fifth with Lafayette in the 2018 preseason poll, as voted on by the league's coaches and sports information directors.
• Bucknell returned a total of 41 letterwinners in 2018. That group includes 14 seniors, 17 juniors and 10 sophomores. Eight seniors—WR Alan Butler, DL Alex Jordan, S Joe Lauro, CB Bryan Marine, CB Fisayo Oluleye, TE/FB Andrew Owers, P Alex Pechin and LB Matt Robinson—are three-time letterwinners.
• OL Pat Finn, Lauro, Marine and Pechin are serving as team captains in 2018.
• The Bison have led the Patriot League in total defense six of the past seven seasons, including five years in a row from 2011 to 2015. In 2017, they finished fourth nationally in passing defense (148.3) and 11th in total defense (294.6).
• QB Logan Bitikofer has completed 103 of 187 passes for 1,050 yards and seven touchdowns. RB Jared Cooper is the team leader in rushing yards (447) while he (252), WR Brandon Sanders (308), Butler (238) and WR Justin Bethea (215) have all eclipsed 200 receiving yards.
• Through eight games, three Bison have made at least 60 tackles: Lauro (65), Marine (64) and LB Sam Chitty (60). Chitty has paced the Bison in tackles for a loss (11.5) while LB Simeon Page is the team leader in sacks (4.5).
• Bucknell is currently tied for fourth in the FCS with 21 turnovers gained on 11 fumble recoveries and 10 interceptions. The Bison are just two outside of first.
• Nine different Bison have recovered a fumble, with Marine and DE Roger Mellado recovering two apiece. Seven different Bison have picked off a pass, led by Marine (3) and Oluleye (2).

Inside the Lafayette Box Score
• Bucknell dropped a tight 29-27 decision to Lafayette on Oct. 20. The Leopards scored 22 of the second half's 35 points to hand the Bison a Homecoming loss.
• While QB Logan Bitikofer found WR Justin Bethea for a touchdown with 4:25 remaining in regulation, his pass on the two-point conversion that would have tied the game fell incomplete, leading to the 29-27 final score.
• Bitikofer threw for a season-best 267 yards and three touchdowns while TE/FB Andrew Owers became the first Bison to catch multiple touchdown passes since September 2016.
• CB Sterling Deary accounted for Bucknell's other touchdown, returning his first career interception 41 yards to the house with 5:55 left to play in the third quarter. He became the second Bison to record a pick 6 in 2018, joining CB Fisayo Oluleye.
• Bitikofer found Owers for a pair of touchdowns in the first half, staking the Bison a 14-7 lead at the break. He completed 11 of 13 passes for 169 yards, just 24 shy of his career high set during Bucknell's 19-16 victory at Holy Cross.
• Bitikofer became the first Bison to throw three touchdown passes since QB R.J. Nitti tossed four in a 35-24 victory at Lafayette on Oct. 31, 2015.
• Bethea led all players with a career-best 111 receiving yards on just four catches, becoming the first Bison since November 2016 to accumulate at least 100 receiving yards in a single game. His touchdown catch, a career-long 40-yard reception, was the first of his collegiate career.
• WR Brandon Sanders (66) and Owers (50) also posted at least 50 receiving yards.
• S Brandon Benson paced Bucknell with nine tackles (seven solo); the sophomore recorded the 100th tackle of his collegiate career during the contest.
• The Leopards held advantages in first downs (19-15), total offense (338-292) and time of possession (35:32-24:28). They effectively snuffed out the Bison's ground game, holding them to a season-low -2 yards.

Lehigh at a Glance
• The Mountain Hawks are currently 1-7 (0-3 Patriot League). Entering the 2018 campaign, they had never before lost their first three Patriot League games.
• Lehigh is currently riding a seven-game losing skid that includes two losses by wider than a 50-point margin.
• The Mountain Hawks, who went 5-7 (5-1 Patriot League) a year ago, were picked to finish second in 2018 Patriot League preseason poll. Lehigh represented the Patriot League in the 2017 NCAA FCS playoffs after tying Colgate for the league title.
• The Mountain Hawks returned RB Dominick Bragalone, the 2017 Patriot League Offensive Player of the Year who was named a consensus First Team All-American by five different organizations. Bragalone, Lehigh's all-time leading rusher, has been set back by injuries this year; he still boasts a team-best 483 yards on 147 carries.

The Bucknell/Lehigh Series
• The Mountain Hawks lead the all-time series, 47-31-3, and have won eight of the past 10 meetings.
• From 1998 to 2012, Lehigh ran together a 15-game winning streak over Bucknell, the longest by either team in the all-time series. The Bison ended that streak with an emphatic 48-10 victory over the then No. 15 Mountain Hawks during their 2013 Homecoming game.
• Bucknell then won the 2014 contest, 45-24, before dropping the 2015 (10-21), 2016 (13-20) and 2017 (21-42) meetings.
• In Bucknell's last victory, on Oct. 11, 2014 in Bethlehem, QB Trey Lauletta became the first Bison in 20 years to throw for at least 300 yards, completing 15 of 20 passes for 313 yards and four touchdowns.
• WR Will Carter became only the fourth Bison to catch three touchdown passes in a single game while also accumulating 246 receiving yards, which ranks second in school history. His touchdown receptions were 69, 78 and 77 yards long.
• The Bison scored 31 unanswered points in a span of less than 20 minutes from late in the first quarter to early in the third frame, turning a 7-0 deficit into a 31-7 advantage. After Lehigh closed the gap to 31-24 with 6:46 left to play, Bucknell scored the game's final two touchdowns.

The Last Meeting with the Mountain Hawks
Bucknell 21 – Lehigh 42 (Nov. 4, 2017 – Lewisburg, Pa.)
• RB Chad Freshnock rushed for a career-high 174 yards and three touchdowns, but Bucknell was downed by Lehigh, 42-21, in its Homecoming game.
• Freshnock became the first Bison since 2014 to rush for three touchdowns and the first since 2012 to have a run of at least 60 yards.
• Freshnock's 85-yard touchdown was the fifth-longest from the line of scrimmage in school history. The only four ahead of it in the Bucknell record books occurred in 1938, 1946, 1952 and 1979.
• The Bison's 342 yards of total offense was their highest total of the 2017 season. They also eclipsed 300 yards against Sacred Heart (318) and at Cornell (306).
• QB Matt Muh completed 22 of 37 passes for 144 yards, matching his career high in completions set on Sept. 9, 2017 against Holy Cross.
• LB Mark Pyles led the Bison defense with 10 tackles (seven solo), one sack and his first career interception. S Brandon Benson also had 10 tackles (four solo) while S Drew Newcomb and LB Ben Richard each posted a sack.
• Newcomb's sack, which went for a loss of eight yards and forced Lehigh to punt from its 28, was the first of his career.
• For Lehigh, RB Dom Bragalone ran for 136 yards and three touchdowns on 21 carries while QB Brad Mayes completed 17 of 25 passes for 193 yards and two touchdowns. WR Gatlin Casey caught both of Mayes's touchdown passes; he and WR Troy Pelletier accounted for all but eight of the Mountain Hawks' receiving yards.
• Lehigh posted 383 yards of total offense, 116.8 below its average entering the tilt.

Inside the Bucknell Depth Chart
• Bucknell's 11 projected starters on offense have made a combined 131 starts.
• Bucknell's 11 projected starters on defense have made a combined 117 starts, with CB Bryan Marine (32) and S Joe Lauro (25) accounting for nearly 49 percent of them.
• On offense, three seniors, two juniors, four sophomores and two freshmen are expected to start. On defense, four seniors, one junior, five sophomores and one freshman are projected to start.
• Thirteen seniors, 10 juniors, 14 sophomores and 11 freshmen appear on the depth chart.
• Thirteen players on Bucknell's roster have made at least 10 career starts: Marine (32), WR Alan Butler (28), Lauro (25), OL Pat Finn (17), TE/FB Andrew Owers (17), OL P.J. Barr (16), WR Justin Bethea (14), DE Roger Mellado (14), OL Noah Stephenson (14), TE Alex Twiford (13), LB Simeon Page (12), QB John Chiarolanzio (11) and OL Erik Lukner (10). S Brandon Benson, LB Sam Chitty and S Chanse Riley will join them with a start at Lehigh.
• Butler (19), Barr (16) and Mellado (14) are the only Bison with starting streaks in the double digits. Finn and Page had starting streaks snapped in the double digits, at 13 and 11 respectively, when they missed Bucknell's most recent game due to injury.
• Marine became the first member of the class of 2019 to reach the 30-start plateau against Colgate on Oct. 6, 2018.
• LB Matt Robinson leads the senior class with 38 career games played.
• LB Rick Mottram earned his first career start in Bucknell's Homecoming game. QB Tarrin Earle is projected to start his first game at Lehigh.
• A total of 39 different Bison have started a game in 2018, a figure that represents nearly 47 percent of the team's 83-man roster.
• Eight Bison have started all eight games: Barr, Butler, Chitty, Lauro, Marine, Mellado, OL Justis Peppers and Robinson.
• To date, 18 Bison have earned their first career start in 2018, including four freshmen: DE Grayson Cherubino, RB Jared Cooper, CB Sterling Deary and WR Brandon Sanders.

Bison Among Active NCAA FCS Career Leaders
• P Alex Pechin: 2nd in punting average (43.9)
• CB Bryan Marine: 3rd in passes defended (39), 5th in solo tackles per game (4.73), t-6th in interceptions (10)
• LB Simeon Page: 1st in tackles for loss per game (1.38), 2nd in sacks per game (0.84)

Bison in the NCAA FCS Top 15
• P Alex Pechin: 2nd in punting yards (2,676), 5th in punting average (45.4)
• CB Bryan Marine: 5th in combined kick returns (627), t-5th in solo tackles per game (6.4), t-5th in solo tackles (51), t-9th in fumbles recovered (2)
• S Gerrit Van Itallie: t-8th in blocked kicks (2)
• DE Roger Mellado: t-9th in fumbles recovered (2)

School Record Holders on the 2018 Roster
• LB Simeon Page: Single Game Sacks (4.0, 11/18/17), Rookie Season Sacks (9.0, 2017)
• P Alex Pechin: Career Punting Average (43.9), Season Punting Average (45.1, 2017)

Alex Pechin: Setting an All-American Standard
• P Alex Pechin is currently fifth in the NCAA FCS ranks with a 45.4 punting average; he also stands second in punting yards (2,676) and third in punts (59).
• Pechin's career punting average of 43.9 is second among all active FCS punters.
• After averaging a career-best 51.0 yards on nine punts at No. 14/15 Villanova, Pechin received Honorable Mention National Special Teams Player of the Week laurels from STATS.
• Pechin's 51.0 punting average against the Wildcats was a single yard shy of the school record, set in 1962; he had five punts sail for at least 50 yards, including a 71-yard bomb.
• Pechin owns Bucknell's third- (71, 2018), seventh- (67, 2017) and 10th- (64, 2017) longest punts in school history.
• Pechin was named to 2018 Preseason All-America First Teams by STATS, Phil Steele, Hero Sports, College Sports Madness and FreeAgentFootball.com
• Pechin was honored on the 2017 STATS All-America Third Team after finishing third in the NCAA FCS ranks with a 45.1 punting average. His average shattered his previous school record, set in 2015 as a freshman, by three full yards.

Bryan Marine: Bucknell's 13th-Straight Campbell Trophy Semifinalist
• CB Bryan Marine was among 179 semifinalists for the 2018 William V. Campbell Trophy®, commonly known as the "Academic Heisman."
• Only Bucknell and Dayton have had a Campbell Trophy semifinalist each of the past 13 years. Previous Bison honorees include David Frisbey (2006), Nick Mozal (2007), Kevin Mullen (2008), Sam Nana-Sinkam (2009), Travis Nissley (2010), Tim Bolte (2011), Samuel Oyekoya (2012), Tracey Smith (2013), Derek Maurer (2014), Matt DelMauro (2015), Cary Hess (2016) and Mark Pyles (2017).

Milestones Met Against Lafayette
• S Brandon Benson: Made the 100th tackle of his career; now has 103

Milestone Watch
• WR Alan Butler: Needs 93 receiving yards to reach 1,000 in his career
• CB Bryan Marine: Needs one interception to enter tie for seventh in career annals with 11
• CB Bryan Marine: Needs 27 punt return yards to crack Bucknell's season top 10 with 232
• CB Bryan Marine: Needs 29 tackles to reach 250 in his career
• CB Bryan Marine: Needs 83 kickoff return yards to crack Bucknell's season top 10 with 505
• LB Simeon Page: Needs three sacks to crack Bucknell's career top 10 with 16.5
• LB Simeon Page: Needs 16 tackles to reach 100 in his career
• P Alex Pechin: Needs 832 punting yards to reach 10,000 in his career
• LB Matt Robinson: Needs 18 tackles to reach 100 in his career
• S Brice Sydnor: Needs 21 tackles to reach 100 in his career

Head Coach Joe Susan
• Joe Susan, the 26th head coach in program history, is in his ninth season at the helm and currently ranks third in career games (96) and sixth in career victories (38).
• Susan broke a tie with Bob Odell, who coached the Bison from 1958 to 1964, for sixth in career wins with Bucknell's victory at Holy Cross on Sept. 29, 2018. He now needs two wins to tie George Hoskins (1899-1906, 1909) for fifth.

Inside the 2018 Schedule
• This is the 133rd season of football at Bucknell. The Bison played their first game in 1883 and have played continuously since 1887.
• Bucknell's 2018 opponents went a combined 50-72 (.410) in 2017. Of that group, Monmouth (9-3), Colgate (7-4) and Penn (6-4) finished at or above .500. At 5-6, the Bison had a better 2017 record than seven of their opponents and matched one other's mark.
• Bucknell's five non-conference opponents hail from four different conferences: the Big South Conference (Monmouth), the Colonial Athletic Association (Villanova and William & Mary), the Ivy League (Penn) and the Northeast Conference (Sacred Heart).
• The Bison entered the campaign with a 151-244-12 (.371) record against their 2018 opponents, including winning marks against Fordham (18-15), Georgetown (18-11-1) and Sacred Heart (2-1).

How to Follow the Bison
• Every game will be broadcast on Eagle 107 (WEGH 107.3) and BucknellBison.com.
• All five of Bucknell's home games and its road contests at Holy Cross, Lehigh and Georgetown will air on the Patriot League Network (PatriotLeague.tv).
• Bucknell's home contests against Sacred Heart and Fordham and away game at Lehigh are among 10 Patriot League tilts that will be carried on Stadium's family of over-the-air channels and streaming services. All three will also be carried on Facebook Live.
• In addition, Bucknell's home game against Colgate and away contest at Georgetown will be streamed on Facebook Live.
• The Bison are active on Twitter (@Bucknell_FB) and Instagram (Bucknell_FB). Interact with the team using the hashtag #BandOfBison.

Up Next
• The Bison travel to Georgetown for their final road game of the 2018 campaign on Saturday, Nov. 10 at 12:30 p.m.

Next Event

Players Mentioned

P.J. Barr

Brandon Benson

Justin Bethea

Logan Bitikofer

Alan Butler

Grayson Cherubino

John Chiarolanzio

Sam Chitty

Jared Cooper

Sterling Deary

Tarrin Earle

Pat Finn

Chad Freshnock

Alex Jordan

Joe Lauro

Erik Lukner

Bryan Marine

Roger Mellado

Rick Mottram

Matt Muh

Drew Newcomb

Fisayo Oluleye

Andrew Owers

Simeon Page

Alex Pechin

Justis Peppers

Mark Pyles

Ben Richard

Chanse Riley

Matt Robinson

Brandon Sanders

Noah Stephenson

Brice Sydnor

Alex Twiford

Gerrit Van Itallie