Football Hits the Road for Patriot League Contest at Colgate

LEWISBURG, Pa. – Bucknell hits the road for the first of back-to-back road games when it visits Colgate for a Patriot League matchup this weekend. The Bison and the Raiders are squaring off for the 71st time.

Bucknell is seeking its first Patriot League victory after falling to Lehigh at home last weekend. A win would even the Bison's record at 2-2 in the month of October and in road games this season. It would also be Bucknell's first win over the Raiders since 2019.

Colgate enters the weekend on a three-game win streak after opening the season 0-4. The Raiders have scored 27 or more points in three straight games and are coming off a Patriot League road win at Georgetown.

Media Notes:

When: Saturday, Oct. 29 – 1 p.m.
Where: Andy Kerr Stadium – Hamilton, N.Y.
Internet Video: ESPN+
Radio: 100.9 The Valley (WVLY)
Internet Radio: BucknellBison.com
Live Stats: ColgateAthletics.com
Follow on Twitter: @Bucknell_FB
Media Notes: Bucknell | Colgate

With a Victory the Bison would…
• improve to 3-5 on the season
• even its road record at 2-2
• move to 2-2 in the month of October
• win its first Patriot League game, improving to 1-3 in league play
• defeat Colgate for the first time since 2019
• improve to 19-52 in all-time meetings with the Raiders
• improve to 10-29 against Colgate in Hamilton

Bucknell at a Glance
• Bucknell fell to 0-3 in Patriot League play with a 27-18 loss against Lehigh last Saturday. The Bison are 2-5 overall on the season, picking up wins over VMI and Cornell.
• Teams that have beat the Bison have a combined 24-11 record. Three are nationally ranked, including the FBS' JMU, and another is receiving votes.
• DT Connor Carretta and WR/KR Josh Gary were honorable mentions for Patriot League weekly awards on Monday. Carretta posted a career-high 12 tackles, including seven solo stops and two tackles for loss against Lehigh. Gary, on just his second career kickoff return, scored an 88-yard touchdown against the Mountain Hawks.
• WR Derrick Anderson Jr. made his first career start against Lehigh and scored a fourth touchdown in as many games. He's totaled 15 receptions for 223 yards over the four-game stretch.
• The Bison were picked to finish in a tie for sixth in the Patriot League based on a vote by the league's head coaches and sports information directors ahead of the 2023 season.
• Bucknell went 3-8 (2-4 PL) during the 2022 campaign, finishing in a tie for fourth. The Bison, who were picked to finish last in that season's Patriot League preseason poll, earned league wins over Lehigh (19-17) and Georgetown (24-21, OT) before ending the year with a victory over Marist (24-13).
• Bucknell is in its fifth season under Cecchini, who spent the previous five as head coach at Valparaiso. Cecchini was honored as the Patriot League Dick Biddle Coach of the Year during the four-game spring 2021 campaign.
• Bucknell returned a total of 56 letterwinners in 2023, a group that includes 23 seniors, 20 juniors and 13 sophomores. 12 seniors are three-time letterwinners.
• RB Coleman Bennett, LB Blake Leake, QB Nick Semptimphelter and OL Casey Stephenson are serving as 2023 team captains, as voted on by their teammates.
• Bucknell welcomed a host of new faces to the staff this season, including new offensive coordinator John Bear. Wide receivers coach Braelon Roberts, offensive line coach Sean Pearson, defensive backs coach Pat Clark and safeties coach McNeil Parker are all new assistants on the staff as well.

Inside the Lehigh Box Score
• Lehigh held a 20-3 lead most of the way during Saturday's matchup in Lewisburg. The Bison and Mountain Hawks then combined for three touchdowns in the final 4:17 of the contest, as Bucknell fell 27-18.
• Special teams were a major factor in the game, which featured a blocked Bucknell field goal, a muffed Lehigh punt, a Lehigh punt return touchdown and a Bucknell kick return touchdown.
• Bucknell's offense was limited to 80 rush yards and 172 passing yards. The Bison alternated quarterbacks with Ralph Rucker sidelined due to injury. Both Nick Semptimphelter and Tyler Beverett completed nine passes and were each sacked twice. Bucknell was sacked three times on third down in the first half.
• Lehigh running back Luke Yoder carried the ball 38 times for 138 yards and scored two touchdowns. His first touchdown opened the scoring after a 12-play, 62-yard drive in the first quarter. Lehigh then settled for back-to-back field goals to build a 13-0 lead.
• With 4:03 left in the first half, Nick Peltekian returned a punt 57 yards for a touchdown, extending the Lehigh lead to 20-3.
• With just seconds left in the first half, Lehigh muffed a punt that set the Bison up at the Lehigh 18-yard line. Bucknell then kicked a field goal as time expired to get on the board.
• The two teams went scoreless in the third quarter before Yoder scored his second rushing touchdown with 4:17 to play to extend Lehigh's lead to 27-3.
• On the ensuing kickoff, Bucknell's Josh Gary returned the kick 88 yards for a score. The Bison got the ball back with 2:24 to play and added one more score – a 3-yard touchdown pass from Semptimphelter to Derrick Anderson Jr. with 36 seconds left. Eric Weatherly ran in the two-point conversion.
• Lehigh held a 35:30-24:30 advantage in time of possession.
• Bucknell won the turnover battle, as Roman Pearson and John Schlendorf both recorded interceptions. Connor Carretta led all tacklers with 12 stops and two tackles for loss.

Colgate at a Glance
• Colgate won its first Patriot League game and improved to 3-4 (1-1 PL) with a 28-18 victory over Georgetown last weekend. The Raiders have now won three in a row, including victories over Dartmouth and Cornell. Colgate opened the season with four straight losses.
• Colgate is currently sixth in the Patriot League in scoring offense (17.4 ppg) and seventh in scoring defense (34.4 ppg). The Raiders are ranked fifth in the FCS in red zone offense (.944).
• Colgate has played three different quarterbacks this season and is expected to start freshman Jake Stearney on Saturday. Stearney has appeared in two games and was 8 of 13 passing last week against Georgetown.
• Colgate WR Treyvhon Saunders is second in the Patriot League with 42 receptions for 531 yards and two touchdowns. The Raiders also have the league's leading kick returner in Jaedon Henry, who's averaging 26.3 yards per return.
• Colgate was picked to finish third in the 2023 Patriot League Preseason Poll after going 3-8 (2-4 PL) in 2022 and tying for fourth with the Bison.
• Five Raiders were named to the 2023 Preseason All-Patriot League Team, including QB Michael Brescia, LB Tyler Flick and DB Owen Goss.
• Colgate is led by third-year head coach Stan Dakosty. Dakosty is 11-18 during his head coaching tenure in Hamilton.

The Bucknell/Colgate Series
• Colgate has captured 52 of the 70 meetings since the series began in 1894. The Raiders have also won eight of the last 10 matchups.
• Colgate is 29-9 when hosting the Bison in Hamilton.
• The Raiders have put together two eight-game winning streaks against Bucknell. They won every game from 1952-59 and from 1964-71.
• The Bison have defeated Colgate back-to-back on two occasions – in 1995-96 and in 1962-63.
• The Bison last defeated Colgate during head coach Dave Cecchini's first season in 2019, winning 32-14 in Hamilton.
• Colgate won the matchup 13-7 in Lewisburg last season and has won two in a row over the Bison.
• The two teams did not meet during the spring 2021 campaign. It was the first season the Bison and Raiders did not face off since 1985.

The Last Meeting with the Raiders
Bucknell 7 – Colgate 13 (Oct. 29. 2022 – Lewisburg, Pa.)
• Bucknell's defense limited Colgate to just 13 points, but the offense only managed a touchdown in the fourth quarter, as the Bison fell 13-7 at home.
• The Raiders scored twice on QB Michael Brescia rushing touchdowns. The first, with 2:31 left in the first half, came at the end of a 16-play, 91-yard drive.
• Bucknell scored with eight minutes left in the fourth quarter on a 1-yard rushing touchdown by Rushawn Baker at the end of a 13-play, 74-yard drive. The Bison got the ball back two more times but turned it over on downs with 1:59 to play and failed to score as time expired in the game.
• Colgate ended the game with a 327-297 advantage in total yards. Bucknell committed the only turnover of the game, fumbling on a punt return in the first quarter.
• Bucknell S Brent Jackson posted 16 tackles in the game and had one of Bucknell's two sacks. He also added three tackles for loss. DL Tyler Alston had the other Bison sack.
• RB Coleman Bennett led all Bison with 71 yards rushing on 12 attempts.
• QB Ethan Grady completed 10 of 29 pass attempts for 85 yards, including a 31-yard completion to Damian Harris. Harris led the team with 51 yards receiving.
• DL Aneesh Vyas blocked Colgate's PAT in the second quarter.

Inside the Bucknell Depth Chart
• Bucknell's projected starters on offense have made a combined 123 starts.
• Bucknell's projected starters on defense have made a combined 159 starts.
• On offense, three seniors, three juniors and four sophomores and one freshman (OL Xavier Allen) are expected to start.
• On defense, three seniors, five juniors one sophomore (CB Roman Pearson) and two freshmen are expected to start.
• 20 Bison have made at least 10 career starts. Nine have started 20 games or more.
• Three Bison have starting streaks of 10 or more games in a row: Harris (20), S John Schlendorf (19) and TE Charlie Kreinbucher (10).
• Five Bison, Harris, Leake, Robinson, Schlendorf and Vyas, started all 11 of Bucknell's games in 2022.
• Only seniors P Ruben Anderson and Alston have played in all 33 of Bucknell's games over their four years.
• Of the junior class, Schlendorf and S Alex Smith Jr. have played in all 29 of the team's games over three seasons.
• 13 Bison have made their first career starts this season, including three freshmen. In 2022, seven players each made their first career starts. Two were juniors, two were sophomores, and three were freshmen.

Milestone Watch
• Ralph Rucker needs one passing touchdown to reach 10 on the season.
• Coleman Bennett needs 94 rush yards to reach 1,000 for his career.
• Brad Jamison needs 4 tackles to reach 100 in his career.
• Connor Carretta needs 9 tackles to reach 100 in his career.

Milestones Met Last Week
• John Schlendorf recorded his first career interception.
• Josh Gary scored his first kickoff return touchdown.

Bison Award Winners
• Coleman Bennett was one of 201 college football players to be named a 2023 William V. Campbell Trophy semifinalist. Bucknell and Dayton are the only schools to have a Campbell Trophy semifinalist in each of the last 18 years.
• DL Aneesh Vyas was named the Patriot League Special Teams Player of the Week on Monday, Sept. 25 for blocking an extra point and a field goal against Penn. He's the first Bison to earn a Patriot League weekly award this season.
• The Bison returned one All-Patriot League player, OL Ethan Pitzel (2nd Team in '22). DL Tyler Alston and K Matt Schearer were both voted to the 2023 Preseason All-Patriot League Team. Coleman Bennett was a 2021 Preseason All-League honoree as a return specialist.
• The Bison graduated three All-Patriot League players following the 2022 season: LB Ben Allen (2nd Team in '22), S Brent Jackson (2nd Team in '22), and CB Gavin Pringle (2nd Team in '22 and '19, 1st Team in 'S21).
• In 2022, Bennett was named an Arthur Ashe Jr. Sports Scholar by the publication Diverse: Issues in Higher Education. The award recognizes undergraduate students of color who have excelled in the classroom as well as on the athletic fields.
• Last week, Bennett was named Bucknell's 2023 nominee for the William V. Campbell Trophy, which is awarded by the National Football Foundation to player with the best combination of academics, community service, and on-field performance. Bucknell and Dayton are the only schools that have had a Campbell Trophy semifinalist each of the past 17 years.
• Six Bison were named to the 2022 CSC Academic All-District Team: Ben Allen, Connor Carretta, Brent Jackson, Ethan Pitzel, Jonathan Searcy and Aneesh Vyas.
• Bucknell returned two of its three Academic All-Patriot League honorees from the 2022 season: Bennett and Pitzel.
• In March, 50 Bucknell football players were named to the Patriot League Academic Honor Roll for achieving a 3.2 GPA or higher. The Bison led all Patriot League teams in the category.

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.
• Since arriving at Bucknell, Cecchini's players have combined to earn 20 All-Patriot League First/Second Team awards as well as one First Team All-American.

Inside the 2023 Schedule
• This is the 138th season of football at Bucknell. The Bison played their first-ever game in 1883 and have played continuously since 1887.
• The Bison opened the 2023 slate against FBS opponent James Madison, which tied for first place in the Sun Belt East Division during its inaugural season in the conference with an 8-3 (6-2 SBC) record.
• After hosting VMI for the home opener on Sept. 9, the Bison remain at Christy Mathewson-Memorial Stadium to face Penn, which is coming off its winningest season in more than a decade. It marks the 44th time in the last 45 seasons that Bucknell has had an Ivy League program on the schedule.
• Bucknell's other non-league games include Cornell on Oct. 14 and Marist to close out the regular season on Nov. 18.
• Bucknell opened Patriot League play on the road at Lafayette on Sept. 30. The Bison play host to reigning league champion Holy Cross, Lehigh and Georgetown.
• Bucknell's 2023 opponents went a combined 58-64 last season.

How to Follow the Bison
• All of Bucknell's games this season, with the exception of the season finale at Marist, will be broadcast on ESPN+.
• All of the Bison's games will be broadcast on 100.9 The Valley (WVLY). The broadcast will also be available for internet streaming on 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 is back in the state of New York to face Fordham at Moglia Stadium on Saturday, Nov. 4. It's Bucknell's second-to-last Patriot League game of the season.

Football Hits the Road for Patriot League Contest at Colgate

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Players Mentioned

Ben Allen

Xavier Allen

Tyler Alston

Ruben Anderson

Derrick Anderson Jr.

Rushawn Baker

Coleman Bennett

Tyler Beverett

Connor Carretta

Josh Gary

Ethan Grady

Damian Harris

Brent Jackson

Brad Jamison

Charlie Kreinbucher

Blake Leake

Roman Pearson

Ethan Pitzel

Gavin Pringle

Ralph Rucker IV

Matt Schearer

John Schlendorf

Jonathan Searcy

Nick Semptimphelter

Alex Smith Jr.

Casey Stephenson

Aneesh Vyas

Eric Weatherly