Bucknell University
Georgetown
Football Set for Final Road Game at Georgetown
11/10/2022 3:22:00 PM | Football
LEWISBURG, Pa. – Bucknell football heads to Washington, D.C. for its final road game of the season at Georgetown. The Bison are in search of a second Patriot League win against a Hoyas team that also has one league victory this fall.
This will be the 34th all-time meeting between the Bison and the Hoyas.
The complete media notes can be viewed here. The game program can be viewed here.
When: Saturday, Nov. 12 – 12:30 p.m.
Where: Cooper Field – Washington, D.C.
Watch: ESPN+
Radio: 100.9 The Valley (WVLY)
Internet Radio: WVLY.com/The__Valley
Live Stats: GUHoyas.com
Follow on Twitter: @Bucknell_FB
With a victory Bucknell would...
• defeat the Hoyas for the first time since 2019
• improve to 2-4 against league opponents this season
• win its second road game of the season
• move to 20-13-1 in the all-time series against Georgetown
Bucknell at a Glance
• Bucknell (1-8, 1-4 PL) is looking for its second win in four weeks when it travels to Georgetown on Saturday. The Bison are coming off a home loss to nationally-ranked Fordham.
• The Bison have seen some bright spots on defense in recent weeks, forcing three fumbles and grabbing eight interceptions in its last four games. Bucknell also posted a season-high four sacks against the nation's No. 1 offense in Fordham last weekend.
• Bucknell was picked to finish seventh in the Patriot League based on a vote by the league's head coaches and sports information directors ahead of the 2022 season.
• The Bison finished 1-10 overall in the 2021 season and went 0-6 against league opponents. They were picked in the same spot prior to the shortened 2021 spring season before capturing the Patriot League South Division title and earning a spot in the first-ever Patriot League Championship. Bucknell eventually fell to Holy Cross in the title game that spring, and the Crusaders were picked to win the league again in 2022 as the three-time defending champions.
• Senior DB Gavin Pringle was voted to the 2022 Preseason All-Patriot League Team for a third time in his career. Pringle is a two-time All-Patriot League selection and tied for the team lead in pass breakups last year despite missing more than half the season with injury.
• The Bison returned a staggering 51 letterwinners in 2022, as dozens of underclassmen gained playing experience during an injury-plagued season last fall. The young group of returning lettermen include 18 sophomores, 23 juniors and 10 seniors. Five seniors are three-time letterwinners: Pringle, DB Jonathan Searcy, LB Ben Allen, Jackson and DL Cooper Kim.
• Bucknell's lone victory during the 2021 campaign came at home in week 4 against Cornell. The Bison scored two unanswered touchdowns in the fourth quarter and generated four turnovers during Homecoming Weekend. Quarterback Nick Semptimphelter connected with tight end Christian Spugnardi for the go-ahead touchdown. Semptimphelter later ran for a two-yard touchdown.
• Bucknell is in its fourth season under head coach Dave Cecchini, who spent the previous five years at Valparaiso. For leading the Bison to a spot in the Patriot League Championship Game during the 2021 spring season, he was voted as the Patriot League Dick Biddle Coach of the Year.
• Searcy, Allen, Jackson and junior OL Ethan Pitzel were selected as team captains for the 2022 season.
Inside the Fordham Box Score
• Bucknell held a 3-0 lead until the 8:32 mark in the second quarter when Fordham scored 24 unanswered to close out the first half. The Bison also had it down to a two-score game early in the fourth quarter, but Fordham went on to score 28 unanswered to seal the game.
• WR Damian Harris caught his first career TD pass from Nick Semptimphelter to make it 31-17 in the fourth. The junior led the Bison with four receptions for 44 yards.
• Junior RB Rushawn Baker scored Bucknell's other TD on a 12-yard run. It was Baker's sixth rushing TD of the season and his seventh TD overall. Baker led the team with 70 yards rushing on 15 carries.
• Semptimphelter finished the game with 154 yards through the air, completing 12 of 25 passes. Freshman QB Alex Brown also completed five passes on nine attempts for 52 yards, including a 40-yard pass to Marques Owens.
• Bucknell's defense came up with two interceptions and a season-high four sacks. LB Blake Leake led all Bison with 13 tackles and a sack. LB Ben Allen, DL Mike Bright Jr. and DL Tyler Alston all added sacks as well.
• Alston also had one of the two interceptions along with S Brent Jackson. Jackson finished the game with 10 tackles, three pass breakups and a pick.
• CB Gavin Pringle matched his career high with four pass breakups.
• Fordham QB Tim DeMorat threw for 346 yards on 31 completions and five TDs. WR Fotis Kokosioulis caught two TDs and finished with 12 receptions for 132 yards.
• Five different Rams combined for five tackles for loss, and DB Alex Kemper intercepted two passes, one of which he returned 22 yards for a TD.
Georgetown at a Glance
• Georgetown is 2-7 (1-3 PL) entering the weekend, including a 38-24 loss to Saint Francis last Saturday. Georgetown's two wins are over Lafayette and Marist.
• The Hoyas were picked sixth in the Patriot League preseason poll after going 2-8 (1-5 PL) in 2021.
• Georgetown QB Pierce Holley is second in the Patriot League with 2,420 passing yards and is third with 15 TD passes. Leading the Hoyas in rushing is RB Joshua Stakely, who has totaled 408 yards on the ground along with four TDs.
• On the defensive side, LB Justin Fonteneaux is fifth in the league with 77 total tackles with 1.5 sacks. DL Ibri Harrell has a team-high 4.5 sacks, and DB Wedner Cadet leads the Patriot League with five picks.
• Georgetown is led by head coach Rob Sgarlata, who in eight seasons has compiled a 25-60 overall record.
The Bucknell/Georgetown Series
• Bucknell leads the all-time series, 19-13-1, and has won six of the past 10 meetings.
• The Bison and Hoyas first met in 1904. They didn't face off between 1939 and 2000, the year before Georgetown joined the Patriot League as an associate member.
• Bucknell and Georgetown last squared off on Oct. 23, 2021, and the Hoyas came out on top with a 29-21 victory. Bucknell won the previous meeting in 2019, 20-17.
• Georgetown snapped a two-game losing skid to Bucknell with 2018's 14-3 victory at Cooper Field. The Bison won the 2016 (21-7) and 2017 (12-0) meetings behind strong defensive performances.
The Last Meeting with the Hoyas
• In the meeting last October, QB Ethan Grady connected with WR Dominic Lyles for three touchdowns in his first collegiate start, but the Hoyas scored two touchdowns in the final six minutes of regulation to defeat the Bison.
• Lyles's third touchdown catch came at the third quarter's 9:46 mark, capping a nine-play, 72-yard march that gave Bucknell a 21-13 advantage. It proved the last time the Bison would put points on the board, however, and Georgetown ultimately scored 16 unanswered to emerge victorious.
• Lyles matched the Bucknell record with his three touchdown catches; he became the sixth Bison to accomplish this feat.
• Grady finished the game with 162 yards on 12 completions, with five going for 110 yards to Lyles.
• The Hoyas finished with advantages in first downs (23-15) and total offense (476-301) while Bucknell led in time of possession (31:26-28:34).
Inside the Bucknell Depth Chart
• Bucknell's projected starters on offense have made a combined 126 starts. All 11 projected offensive starters have made at least one start.
• Bucknell's projected starters on defense have made a combined 186 starts. All 11 projected starters on defense have made at least one start.
• On offense, one senior (OL R.J. Mehan), six juniors and four sophomores are expected to start. Junior LT Ethan Pitzel leads the offensive group with 21 starts under his belt.
• On defense, four seniors, three juniors and four sophomores are expected to start. DB Gavin Pringle leads the entire roster in career starts (24).
• 20 Bison currently have at least 10 career starts.
• 11 Bison have started all nine games this season: Allen, Harris, Jackson, Leake, Pitzel, Pringle, Robinson, Schlendorf, Searcy, Sturgis and Vyas.
• Only Allen and Jackson started all 11 of Bucknell's 2021 games. On the offensive side of the ball, Harris, Pitzel and Mehan each made 10 starts last season.
• Six Bison currently boast starting streaks in the double digits: Allen (20), Jackson (20), Leake (16), Robinson (15), Harris (11) and Searcy.
• Only two seniors have played in all 35 of Bucknell's games during their time in Lewisburg to date: Allen and Searcy.
• Two juniors have played in all 23 of Bucknell's games during their time in Lewisburg to date: DL Tyler Alston and P/K Ruben Anderson.
• In 2021, a staggering 30 players each made their first career start. The total of 30 represented just over 34 percent of that team's roster; two were seniors, four were juniors, 12 were sophomores and 12 were freshmen.
Milestones Met Last Week
• RB Rushawn Baker reached 500 rushing yards on the season
Milestones to Watch
• RB Coleman Bennett needs 68 rush yards to reach 500 in his career
• WB Damian Harris needs 32 receiving yards to reach 500 in his career
• S Brent Jackson needs 7 tackles to reach 100 on the season
Bison Award Winners
• S Brent Jackson has been named Patriot League Defensive Player of the Week each of the last two weeks. He's the first Bucknell player to earn back-to-back weekly awards since Alex Peachin was named Patriot League Special Teams Player of the Week on Oct. 14, 2019 and Oct. 21, 2019.
• K Matt Schearer was named Patriot League Rookie of the Week on Oct. 24.
• Jackson was named a semifinalist for the 2022 William V. Campbell Trophy®, the National Football Foundation & College Hall of Fame (NFF) announced last week. Only Bucknell and Dayton have had a Campbell Trophy semifinalist each of the past 17 years.
• The Bison returned one All-Patriot League player in DB Gavin Pringle (1st in '21S, 2nd in '19).
• Pringle has been voted to the Preseason All-Patriot League Team in three consecutive seasons, and RB Coleman Bennett was voted to the 2021 Preseason All-Patriot League Team, representing Bucknell as a return specialist.
• The Bison graduated All-Patriot League honorees RB Jared Cooper and WR Dominic Lyles following the 2021 season.
• DB Brent Jackson was voted to the 2021 Academic All-Patriot League Team, earning the award for the first time in his career.
• Bennett and Jackson were named 2022 Arthur Ashe Jr. Sports Scholars by the publication Diverse: Issues in Higher Education in May. The award recognizes undergraduate students of color who have excelled in the classroom as well as on the athletic fields.
Head Coach Dave Cecchini
• Dace Cecchini, one of the all-time great wide receivers in Patriot League history who has since gone on to achieve tremendous success in the coaching ranks, was named the 27th Bob Odell Head Football Coach at Bucknell University on February 6, 2019.
• Cecchini was voted as the 2021 Spring Patriot League Dick Biddle Coach of the Year for guiding the team to a spot in the Patriot League Championship Game. In addition, he was selected as a finalist for the Eddie Robinson Award, presented by STATS to the FCS Coach of the Year, for the second time in his career.
• In his first season at the helm, Cecchini led the Bison to a third-place finish in the Patriot League, their highest placement since they were the 2014 runners-up. Their Patriot League victories came over defending champion Colgate (32-14), rival Lehigh (20-10) and Georgetown (20-17); two of their three league losses came by a touchdown or less.
• In 2017 while at Valparaiso, Cecchini was a finalist for the American Football Coaches Association's FCS National Coach of the Year and the STATS FCS Coach of the Year awards; he was also voted as the Pioneer Football League Coach of the Year and the AFCA FCS Region 4 Coach of the Year.
Inside the 2022 Schedule
• This is the 137th season of football at Bucknell. The Bison played their first game in 1883 and have played continuously since 1887.
• Bucknell's challenging 2022 schedule includes trips to FBS program Central Michigan and Ivy League opponent Yale. Central Michigan marks the third FBS team the Bison have scheduled in four seasons.
• Bucknell's 2022 opponents went a combined 58-64 in 2021, with Central Michigan winning its Sun Bowl game and Holy Cross advancing to the FCS playoffs for the third-straight season. VMI earned a spot in the 2021 spring FCS playoffs on the strength of its first conference title since 1977 while Towson, which did not compete during the 2020-21 school year, won seven games in both 2019 and 2018, advancing to the 2018 FCS playoffs.
• Bucknell begins Patriot League action at home against Lafayette on Oct. 1.
• Bucknell's other home contests include on Colgate on Oct. 29, Fordham on Nov. 5, and Pioneer Football League member Marist for Senior Day on Nov. 19 to close out the regular season on 19.
How to Follow the Bison
• All of Bucknell's home games and its road contests at VMI, Yale, Holy Cross, Lehigh and Georgetown will air on ESPN+, which became home of the Patriot League Network ahead of the 2020-21 school year.
• The Bison's game at FBS foe Central Michigan will be broadcast on ESPN3.
• All of the Bison's games will be broadcast on 100.9 The Valley (WVLY). The broadcast will also be available on WVLY.com/The__Valley and BucknellBison.com.
• Bucknell is active on Twitter (@Bucknell_FB) and Instagram (Bucknell_FB). Interact with the team using the hashtags #ACT and #rayBucknell.
Up Next
• Bucknell plays its final game of the 2022 season at home against Marist on Saturday, Nov. 19. The Bison will be celebrating Senior Day at Christy Mathewson-Memorial Stadium.
