Lebanon Valley (0-0, 0-0 MAC)
vs. Gettysburg (0-0, 0-0 Centennial)
Saturday, Sept. 4 - 1 p.m. - Arnold Field - The 38th Meeting
Live Stats: GoDutchmen.com
Radio: Flying Dutchmen Radio Network (WMSS 91.1FM and WWSM 1510AM)
Webcast: WMSSFM.com
Game Day Central
LVC Media Notes
Game-Day Program
LVC Two-Deep
Gettysburg Two-Deep
Lebanon Valley begins one of the most anticipated seasons in its history Saturday against Gettysburg. Coming off a record-setting 9-2 season and an ECAC Southwest Bowl win, the Flying Dutchmen aim even higher in 2010 as they chase an MAC title and the NCAA Tournament.
On the Radio
Saturday's game will be simulcast on the Flying Dutchmen Radio Network on Middletown's WMSS 91.1 FM and WWSM 1510 AM in Annville.
John Wilsbach and
Brian Keyser will call the action against Gettysburg. The game will be streamed live and free at
WMSSFM.com and GoDutchmen.com.
If You Only Know 5 Things...
1. LVC's 9-2 record in 2009 was the most wins ever in a season, and their ECAC Bowl win was their first postseason hardware since winning the 1935 Tampa Bowl.
2. The Dutchmen return 16 starters overall, including eight on offense with two pre-season all-Americans: RT
Jason Sneeringer and DE
Zach Bleiler.
3. Lebanon Valley was picked second in the preseason MAC coaches' poll, its highest showing ever. The Dutchmen also received votes in the d3football.com Preseason Top 25 poll.
4. For the first time in program history, LVC received votes in the d3football.com Preseason Top 25 poll.
5. Gettysburg coach
Barry Streeter, a 1971 Lebanon Valley graduate, is facing his alma mater for the 17th time. He is 12-4 against LVC.
Carrying the Momentum
Lebanon Valley is coming off one of the best seasons in program history, with a 9-2 overall record (a new program mark for wins) and the ECAC Southwest Bowl title (their first postseason victory since 1935). LVC's scoring offense was the most prolific in program history, scoring 49 touchdowns for 349 points in all.
What To Watch - Offense
The positions to watch on offense will be at wide receiver, where a new crop of Dutchmen will have to emerge following the graduation of three wide-outs, and at running back, where all-time leader
Charlie Parker '10 and fullback
Bryan Lynch '10 have both graduated. But it isn't all bad news for LVC, which had an offense last year that scored more points than any other in its history. The Dutchmen lose Parker but return
Ben Guiles at tailback, and four starters return from a very good offensive line in front of him. Quarterbacks
Caleb Fick and
Colt Zarilla are back, along with tight ends
Matt Mankiewicz and
Brendan Riley. Three starters also return on the offensive line (RT
Jason Sneeringer, RG
Andrew Scott, and C
Clint Surgeoner).
What To Watch - Defense
With eight starters returning, including pre-season all-American
Zach Bleiler at defensive end and all-MAC safety
Dane Eichelberger, the Dutchmen should be able to count on their defense to be even better in 2010. The entire defensive line and secondary returns, but new faces will have to step up at linebacker, where LVC graduated three starters including all-MAC inside linebacker
Will Keylor '10. Up front, it will be the combo of DEs Bleiler and
Cory Homer around NT
Nick Bowne; in the backfield it's CBs
Matt Lillis and
Tim Ridewood with safeties Eichelberger and
Jur'ey Fowlkes.
What To Watch - Special Teams
With plenty of veterans returning, the Dutchmen expect to have a solid special teams group in place for 2010. All-MAC punter
Colt Zarilla and senior kicker
Brittany Ryan lead the unit, which does have some key holes to fill, most notably on kick-offs and on returns, where all-MAC specialist
Sean Donovan '10 graduated after leading the team in return yardage. LVC will try a couple of returners with several candidates getting preseason work; freshman kicker
Sean Fakete could also make an impact after an all-state career at nearby Central Dauphin.
LVC Receives Votes In Preseason Top 25
For the first time in program history, Lebanon Valley received votes in the d3football.com preseason top 25 poll. The Dutchmen received 49 votes, placing 32nd in the poll. LVC has never appeared in the top 25. d3football.com also lauded LVC in their preseason feature, predicting a 9-1 record for the Dutchmen and ranking them 27th nationally in their top-to-bottom rankings.
MAC Coaches Pick LVC Second
Lebanon Valley was picked second in the Middle Atlantic Conference's preseason coaches' poll, the highest appearance in the poll under coach
Jim Monos. Defending champion Delaware Valley was picked first with 47 votes and six first-place nods; LVC had 41 votes and the other two first-place picks. Last year's runner-up, Albright, was third, followed by Wilkes and Lycoming in a fourth-place tie. Widener, FDU-Florham, and King's round out the poll, in that order.
Bleiler, Sneeringer Earn Preseason All-America Buzz
After outstanding junior years, both senior DE
Zach Bleiler and senior RT
Jason Sneeringer have been named to a handful of preseason all-America teams. Both men were named to the D3 Senior Classic teams, with Bleiler a first-teamer and Sneeringer a second-teamer; Bleiler was also on D3 Pro Day's first team and CDS' second team.
Coaching Changes
LVC had several coaching changes over the summer, most notably with the departure of Mike Donghia at defensive coordinator; he resigned due to health concerns. Secondary coach Cory Wenger will serve as interim defensive coordinator for 2010 while retaining secondary duties. A notable addition to the staff is
Jack Beidler '96, the former head coach at Northern Lebanon High School. He'll work as a defensive assistant; Beidler was a team captain at linebacker for LVC, and is also a graduate of Annville-Cleona High School.
Number Changes
Three notable number changes for LVC from last year's roster: QB/P
Colt Zarilla is now wearing #15 instead of #12 (matching the number he wears at shortstop for the LVC baseball team); CB
Matt Lillis has changed from #25 to #2; and ILB/P
Clay Chaney is now #45 from #81.
Home Cookin'
There's a notable lack of the word “at” on LVC's 2010 schedule. That's because there are seven home games on there, the most in program history. In fact, LVC is one of only two NCAA Division III teams in the nation to play seven times at home this year, along with Morrisville State, which is also playing all of its non-league games at home (it is a member of the NJAC). It will also be the first time since 1997 that the Dutchmen begin the year with three games at home. Last year, LVC played just four regular-season home games (five in all with the ECAC Bowl game against Salisbury); the 2011 schedule is still up in the air with scheduling of the MAC's recent addition, Stevenson, yet to be determined, but LVC will have road games with Grove City and Gettysburg.
Senior Citizens
LVC returns an experienced line-up for 2010, and it shows in the two-deep. Of the expected starters for the Gettysburg game, 17 (9 offense, 8 defense) are seniors. The entire secondary is seniors, both starters and back-ups, along with all five starting offensive linemen.
Sack Happy
The 2009 Dutchmen were one of the best in the nation at hitting the quarterback with 36 sacks and 76 tackles for a loss in all. LVC ranked 7th in NCAA Division III and tops in the MAC in sacks. With
Zach Bleiler and
Cory Homer on the ends and pass rusher
Alex Gilchrist at outside linebacker, LVC returns 21.5 of those sacks.
The Turnover Battle
The Dutchmen were +10 on turnovers last year (and +12 over just the final five games), thanks in large part to the offense's ability to limit giveaways. Their 15 giveaways (seven fumbles, eight interceptions) were tied with Wilkes for the fewest in the MAC.
A Punter's Chance
Thanks to a strong offense, LVC punted just 40 times last year; at 3.6 punts per game, it was the fewest in a season since 1972. And when they did punt, they made it count. First-team all-MAC punter
Colt Zarilla averaged 38.8 ypp and put 13 inside the 20-yard line. Opponents had just 4.0 yards per return.
Pick Pockets
Lebanon Valley returns the MAC's most prolific pass interceptor from 2009 in cornerback
Matt Lillis. The fifth-year senior snagged a MAC-best seven picks last year, including two returned for touchdowns. LVC picked off 18 in all last year, ranking third in the league, and bring back the players that produced all but two of those: Lillis (7),
Jur'ey Fowlkes (4),
Dane Eichelberger (2),
Alex Gilchrist (1),
Tim Ridewood (1), and
Jason Gigous (1).
All The Time In the World
The 2009 Dutchmen led the MAC in time of possession by a good margin, eating up 32:27 of time on average per game, 48 seconds more than second-place Delaware Valley and more than four minutes more than last-place Widener. The offense was especially adept at winding down the fourth quarter, where LVC averaged 8:43 of possession, including four 9+ minute quarters and two games - Moravian and Wilkes - where LVC used a superior rushing game and controlled for just under 13 minutes.
Ryan Nears NCAA Points, LVC PAT Marks
Junior K
Brittany Ryan, already the unofficial NCAA all-divisions leader for PATs by a female player, is just five points short of Tonya Butler's (West Alabama) record of 87 career points. In LVC history, Ryan is nine PATs short of the program record in that category (has 68, record is 76), and 12 shy of PAT attempts (has 79, record is 90). She set LVC single-season marks in both PATs made (33) and attempted (40) last year. Ryan has 83 points (68 PATs, 5 FGs) in her career.
Justin Lee Elected To National SAAC
Senior CB
Justin Lee has been selected to represent the Middle Atlantic and Old Dominion Athletic conferences on the NCAA Student-Athlete Advisory Committee. Lee will be the conferences' student-athlete representative at the 2011 NCAA Convention in January. The NCAA SAAC is made up of 24 student-athletes from 43 conferences to serve as liaisons between the happenings on campus, conference, and national levels.
Taking on the Centennial Conference
Since several MAC members, including Moravian, split away to join the Centennial Conference in 2007, LVC is 6-3 against the CC, including 3-0 last year with wins over Gettysburg, Ursinus, and Moravian.
LVC-Gettysburg Series History
Today's game is the 38th meeting all-time ... Gettysburg leads the series 30-6-1, but four of LVC's wins have come in the past six years ... This will be the ninth consecutive year the two teams have met ... Last year, LVC won in Gettysburg for the first time since 1979 with a 47-42 shootout win ... LVC leads, 3-2, over the last five games but Gettysburg is 6-4 in the last 10 ... Head Coach
Jim Monos is 4-2 against the Bullets ... The first meeting in the series was Oct. 1, 1898, a 6-0 Gettysburg win in what was the first true intercollegiate game in LVC football history ... LVC is 1-0 on Sept. 4, beating Gettysburg on this date in 2004 ... LVC has not won three consecutive season openers since 1967-69 ... LVC is 6-3 against the Centennial Conference since several MAC members split away to join the CC in 2007.
Scouting Gettysburg
Gettysburg promises to have a different look in 2010 with the graduation of standout quarterback Matt Flynn (2,714 yds, 19 TD, 59.6%), but the Bullets return six offensive starters (and 14 overall), including leading rusher Jamel Mutunga (1,015 yds, 14 TDs) and and receivers Brian Betley (588 yds, 4 TD) and Charles Curcio (501 yds, 4 TD). They were a big part of Gettysburg putting together the nation's fourth-best offense last year, racking up a whopping 493.1 yards and 34.2 points per game.
So that said, how the heck did a team with that kind of firepower go 3-7? Giving up 30.2 points per game didn't help. This was a team that scored 40+ points and lost three times in 2009. But, the Bullets bring back eight starters on the defensive side of the ball, five of whom were freshmen or sophomores last year. The experience should help improve their 421.5 ypg allowed mark, although the Bullets lose top tackler Tim Widdoes (94 T, 2.5 sacks). Six of the team's top-eight tacklers are back from a year ago, including junior safety Joe Delaney, who posted 86 hits.
The Bullets were picked ninth out of 10 in the preseason Centennial Conference coaches' poll, a point behind Moravian for eighth place. Gettysburg finished sixth out of nine last year.
Last Year vs. Gettysburg
Lebanon Valley rolled out to a 41-14 halftime lead, then held off a late Gettysburg charge to win, 47-42, in the season opener. The Dutchmen scored on their first six possessions of the first half after
Ben Guiles returned the opening kick-off 95 yards for a touchdown, but the Bullets scored four touchdowns in the second half in an epic comeback attempt before LVC recovered a late onside kick attempt.
Charlie Parker became LVC's all-time leader in rushing touchdowns, scoring his 24th in the second quarter to break the 20 year-old record held by Ken Wilson '90. The Bullets put up 565 yards of total offense and 375 passing yards from quarterback Matt Flynn, but it wasn't enough to add up to a comeback. LVC won in Gettysburg for the first time since 1979, and won consecutive season openers for the first time since 1969.
Next Time Out
For only the second time ever, LVC will host Grove City as part of the PAC-MAC Challenge. Kick-off is 1 p.m. at Arnold Field.
