Saturday, September 10
Lexington, Va.
1:30 p.m.
Bucknell University
at
VMI
Photo by: John Rooney
Football Travels to VMI for First Road Game of 2022 Season
9/7/2022 12:55:00 PM | Football
LEWISBURG, Pa. – The Bucknell football team plays its first road game of the 2022 campaign at Foster Stadium on Saturday when it challenges the VMI Keydets. Both teams are seeking the first wins of their seasons after Bucknell fell 14-13 in overtime to Towson, and the Keydets suffered a 44-10 defeat at No. 22 Wake Forest last weekend.
Bucknell and VMI, which played each other in four consecutive seasons from 2013 to 2016, are meeting for the sixth time ever. The last three contests between the Bison and Keydets were decided by six or fewer points, and the two most recent matchups required overtime. VMI won the last meeting, which was a triple-overtime thriller in Lewisburg nearly six years ago.
Media Notes & Game Program
When: Saturday, Sept. 10 – 1:30 p.m.
Where: Alumni Field at Foster Stadium - Lexington, Va.
Watch: ESPN+
Radio: 100.9 The Valley (WVLY)
Internet Radio: WVLY.com/The__Valley
Live Stats: VMIKeydets.com
Follow on Twitter: @Bucknell_FB
With a victory Bucknell would...
• collect its first win on the road since the 2021 spring season
• improve to 4-2 all-time against VMI
• win its first game over the Keydets since 2015
• snap an eight-game losing skid that dates back to last season
• improve to 50-82-4 all-time in first road games
Bucknell at a Glance
• Bucknell is 0-1 (0-0 PL) to open the 2022 season after falling 14-13 to Towson in overtime at Christy Mathewson-Memorial Stadium last weekend. Bucknell took Towson, a team that defeated the Bison 56-7 just three years ago, down to the final play after holding the Tigers offense off the scoreboard through nearly three quarters.
• 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 defensive back 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, DB Brent 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 Towson Box Score
• The game remained scoreless until just over two minutes remained in the third quarter, when the Bison and Tigers swapped touchdowns on back-to-back drives.
• Towson broke the 0-0 tie following a seven-play, 72-yard drive as Devin Matthews rushed five yards up the middle for a touchdown with 2:07 to go in the third.
• A 1-yard TD pass from Ethan Grady to Christian Spugnardi, set up by a 69-yard run by Rushawn Baker down to the one, drew the Bison even 39 seconds into the fourth quarter.
In overtime, Tyrell Pigrome converted a 15-yard pass on 4th-and-8 to set up the go-ahead 3-yard touchdown run for the Tigers.
• Ethan Grady then hooked up with tight end Christian Spugnardi for the duo's second touchdown of the night, pulling Bucknell within one point on the second possession of overtime, but the extra point was off the mark and Towson escaped with a 14-13 victory.
• Towson held a 383-307 edge in yards, including 225 passing. Bucknell racked up 149 on the ground and 158 through the air. The Bison grabbed the only turnover in the game, as Ethan Robinson picked off a Towson pass in the second quarter. Aneesh Vyas also blocked a Towson field goal.
• Baker's 69-yard run was the longest by a Bison since 2017. Grady's 43-yard pass to Damien Harris was the longest of his career.
• Also notable were 172 all-purpose yards for Coleman Bennett, including 60 rushing, 52 receiving and 60 return yards.
Milestones Met Last Week
• CB/S Gavin Pringle: Recorded the 100th tackle of his career
Milestones to Watch
• RB Coleman Bennett: Needs six carries to reach 100 in his career
VMI at a Glance
• VMI opened its season with a 44-10 loss at No. 22 Wake Forest out of the ACC last Thursday. The Keydets totaled 222 yards of offense, including 139 through the air. VMI's offensive efforts were highlighted by a 34-yard touchdown pass from Collin Ironside to Grant Swinehart. The Keydets also added a 42-yard field goal.
• VMI was picked to finish seventh by the coaches and sixth by the media when the Southern Conference released its 2022 preseason polls. The Keydets finished fifth in 2021 with a 6-5 overall record and a 4-4 mark in SoCon play. VMI earned wins over Davidson, Cornell, Wofford, Chattanooga, Mercer and Samford in 2021 before dropping its final three games.
• 10 VMI players earned All-SoCon Preseason honors, including two-time All-American and 2020-21 SoCon Defensive Player of the Year Stone Snyder. Three of the team's preseason honorees were First Team specialists. The Keydets also landed four athletes on the Preseason Second Team Offense.
• The Keydets are led by head coach Scott Wachenheim, who in his eighth season has compiled a record of 23-53. Wachenheim guided VMI to a SoCon title during the spring 2021 season and was named the FCS National Coach of the Year.
The Bucknell/VMI Series
• Bucknell leads 3-2 in the all-time series against VMI, dating back to 1978. The Keydets came out on top in the most recent matchup, defeating the Bison 23-17 in a three-overtime game in Lewisburg on Sept. 24, 2016.
• Prior to the 2016 loss, Bucknell won three straight in the series as the two teams met in four consecutive seasons from 2013-16. Each of the last two meetings required overtime. Bucknell's most recent win in 2015 was a 28-22 overtime decision in Lexington, Va. RB Matt DelMauro ran for a 23-yard touchdown to give the Bison the victory.
• Bucknell is 2-1 in road games at VMI, winning each of the last two in Lexington. VMI won the first meeting in 1978 by a 25-14 score.
• Neither team has won by more than six points over the last three meetings, including the two overtime games and Bucknell's 42-38 victory over the Keydets in 2014.
The Last Meeting with the Keydets
VMI 23 – Bucknell 17 (Sept. 24, 2016 – Lewisburg, Pa.)
• VMI handed Bucknell a triple-overtime loss on Family Weekend at Christy Mathewson-Memorial Stadium, as the Keydets scored the only points after regulation on a 12-yard touchdown rush by freshman Daz Palmer. It was the only three-overtime game in Bucknell's history.
• VMI sent the game to overtime thanks to a 25-yard field goal with 59 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter. Bucknell had led 14-6 during the second quarter.
• VMI held a 443-403 edge in yards. The Keydets' quarterback, Al Cobb, was 34-for-52 for 285 yards. He connected with receiver Dane Forlines 12 times for 157 yards. Bucknell's Matt Muh finished 20-for-30 for 226 yards and two touchdowns. Meanwhile, Bison running back Chad Freshnock piled up 161 yards on 33 carries.
• The overtime periods saw a combined three missed field goals, a turnover on downs and an interception.
Inside the Bucknell Depth Chart
• Bucknell's projected starters on offense have made a combined 78 starts.
• Bucknell's projected starters on defense have made a combined 107 starts.
• All 22 of Bucknell's projected starters have made at least one start.
• TE Colby Grames and OLB John Schlendorf both made their first career starts last week against Towson.
• 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 14 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 (17).
• 12 Bison currently have at least 10 career starts: DB Gavin Pringle (16), OL Ethan Pitzel (13), DB Brent Jackson (12), DL Mike Bright Jr. (12), OL Zack Tarburton (12), LB Ben Allen (11), OL R.J. Mehan (11), RB Coleman Bennett (11), DL Connor Carretta (10), WR Damian Harris (10), ILB Blake Leake (10) and DB Jonathan Searcy (10). Of that group, five are seniors and seven are juniors.
• 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.
• Two Bison currently boast starting streaks in the double digits: Allen (11) and Jackson (11). Carretta has a starting streak of eight games.
• Only two seniors have played in all 27 of Bucknell's games during their time in Lewisburg to date: Allen and Searcy.
• Two juniors have played in all 16 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.
Bison Award Winners
• QB Ethan Grady was an honorable mention for Patriot League Offensive Player of the Week this week (9/5), and CB Ethan Robinson was named an honorable mention for Patriot League Defensive Player of the Week (9/5).
• 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
• Dave 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 heads to Mount Pleasant, Mich. to take on the Central Michigan Chippewas for the first time in program history. The game is scheduled for 1 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 17.
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