Monday, November 25, 2002

MORAVIAN COLLEGE GREYHOUNDS
7-4 (7-2 MAC)

THE COACH: Scot Dapp (West Chester ’73) finished his 16th season at Moravian, with a career record of 100-63-1 (.613). He entered the season 45th in winning percentage among NCAA Division III active coaches. Dapp has earned Coach-of-the-Year accolades from the MAC three times including Co-Coach of the Year honors in 1997 and has led the ’Hounds to two appearances in the NCAA playoffs and the school's first-ever ECAC Southeast Championship game this season.

LAST GAME: The Greyhounds fell to McDaniel College, 21-7, in the 2002 Eastern College Athletic Conference Southeast Championship game last Saturday. Moravian falls to 7-4 for the year, their best season since a 7-3 season back in 1997. The Greyhounds were playing in the postseason for the first time since an NCAA Division III Playoff appearnace back in 1993. The Greyhounds received the opening kickoff but fumbled at the ten-yard line and Green Terror recovered the ball. McDaniel just needed three plays to take a 7-0 lead on a two-yard touchdown dive with 13:21 to play in the first quarter. Moravian had a chance to get on the board with 14:04 remaining in the second quarter but freshman Nate Strohl (Coplay, PA/Whitehall HS) missed a 38-yard field goal to the right. McDaniel would extend its lead to 14-0 on a two-yard touchdown run and an extra-point with 5:59 remaining in the second half. McDaniel took the opening kickoff of the second half and would score its third touchdown of the game on a five-yard scoring pass with 9:41 remaining in the third quarter. Moravian got into the red zone on the ensuing possession but turned the ball over on downs. The Greyhounds would break-up the shutout with 1:14 left in the game on a 31-yard pass from senior quarterback Charlie Bowden (Parlin, NJ/Sayreville War Memorial HS) to senior wide receiver Jarod Rhinehart (Washington, NJ/Warren Hills Regional HS). Strohl added the extra-point to cut the Green Terror lead to 21-7. Rhinehart caught three passes for 56 yards. Offensively for the Greyhounds, Bowden completed 11 of 26 passes for 185 yards with a touchdown and two interceptions. Bowden’s top target in the game was freshman wide receiver Ben Hawkins (Belmar, NJ/ Manasquan HS) who caught five passes for a career high 105 yards. Senior tailback Josh Fick (Emmaus, PA/Emmaus HS) led the Greyhounds with 46 yards on 11 carries. Senior fullback Eric Gustafson (Collingswood, NJ/Collingswood HS) gained 24 yards on 11 attempts. Senior linebacker John Cupples (Allentown, PA/Allentown Central Catholic HS) led the Moravian defense with 11 tackles while senior linebacker Vince Cowlishaw (Chatham, NJ/Chatham HS) had nine tackles. Junior linebacker Steve Maslanek (Stockholm, NJ/Vernon Township HS), sophomore defensive end Shawn Nelson (Bethlehem, PA/Bethlehem Catholic HS) and senior linebacker Bill Engler (Coopersburg, PA/Southern Lehigh HS) each had seven tackles.

MILESTONE WATCH: Senior wideout Jarod Rhinehart surpassed the 1,000-yard milestone last season and 100 career receptions this fall. Rhinehart completes his career with 1,442 yards (sixth) on 107 receptions (fifth). Senior quarterback Charlie Bowden also moved up the record books. He completed 383 (fourth) of 766 passes (fourth) for 5,128 yards (fourth) with 37 touchdowns (third). Senior tailback Josh Fick became the 17th Greyhound to reach 1,000 yards rushing in the Lebanon Valley College game. Fick had 1,293 yards (14th) on 238 carries with 17 touchdowns in his career. Senior linebacker John Cupples had 343 career tackles, which ranks seventh. Junior tailback David Darmofal (Clarks Summit, PA/Abington Heights HS) needs just 25 yards next season to become the 18th Moravian player to reach 1,000 yards. Darmofal, who missed the ECAC game with an injury, has 975 yards on 265 carries with nine touchdowns.

GREYHOUNDS IN THE MIDDLE ATLANTIC CONFERENCE: Beginning last season, the Middle Atlantic Conference became an 11-team conference instead of two separate leagues. Moravian was selected to finish sixth in the MAC Preseason Coaches Poll this season and the Greyhounds actually finished in third place. Widener, which reached the NCAA quarterfinals last season, was again selected as the top team in the MAC but the Pioneers were second to King’s College in the final standings.

MAC POST-SEASON AWARDS: The Greyhounds, which had their best season since 1997 and made their first-ever appearance in the Eastern College Athletic Conference Southeast Championships last weekend, has had ten players named to the 2002 All-Middle Atlantic Conference squads announced Tuesday. Senior linebacker John Cupples, senior defensive back Jarrod Pence (Livingston, NJ/Livingston HS) and senior offensive lineman Josh Zagorski (Morris Plains, NJ/Parsippany Hills HS) each earned First Team honors and made the All-Conference teams for the second consecutive year. Garnering spots on the All-Conference Second Team were senior offensive lineman John Giacchi (Franklin, NJ/Pope John XXIII HS), senior defensive lineman Tom Blackledge (Sellersville, PA/Pennridge HS), junior defensive back Nate Pogue, junior punter John McLain (Belvidere, PA/Belvidere HS) and freshman kicker Nate Strohl. Senior tight end Rick Kulp (Walnutport, PA/Northampton HS) and junior defensive back John Panikiewsky (Carteret, NJ/Carteret HS) were named Honorable Mention.

AFCA AZTEC BOWL: Moravian senior defensive back Jarrod Pence has been selected to play for the American Football Coaches Association’s Division III all-star team that will represent the United States against the Mexican National Team in the 2002 Aztec Bowl on December 14 in Torreon, Mexico. Pence is one of 42 NCAA Division III seniors from around the country who will make up this year’s team. Former Central (Iowa) College Head Coach Ron Schipper will coach the team for the sixth consecutive year. The team will spend a week in Mexico to prepare for the game, which the United States Team has won in each of the five previous meetings.

YOUNG, BALANCED & EXPERIENCED ‘HOUNDS: Of the 94 players on the Moravian roster, 44 were freshmen, 15 were sophomores and 13 were juniors. There were 22 seniors on the squad, the most ever for head coach Scot Dapp, and the Greyhounds had 42 letterwinners.

OVERTIME ‘HOUNDS: Moravian has played a total of eight overtime games since the NCAA instituted the rule for the 1996 season and is 5-3 all-time in the extra-session including this year’s loss to Widener. The Greyhounds hadn’t played an overtime game since October 16, 1999 versus Juniata College.

WINNING WAYS: Moravian had 11 consecutive winning seasons—all under Coach Scot Dapp, from 1987 to 1997 and has had 13 winning seasons in Dapp’s 16 years including 2002. The 11-straight winning seasons is the longest in school history. Dapp ranks third among Greyhound coaches in winning percentage.

MAC STATISTICAL RANKINGS: Moravian is ranked fourth in the MAC in total defense, allowing 303.1 yards per game. The squad is tenth in passing defense at 223.6 yards per game and the defense is third in rushing yards allowed at 79.5. The Greyhounds are third in points allowed at 15.9 per game and the squad is eighth in points scored per game at 22.7. Offensively, Moravian is tenth in the MAC at 292.9 yards per game. The Greyhounds are ranked fifth in rushing offense at 159.4 yards per game and ninth in passing offense at 133.5 yards per game. Moravian is fourth in turnover margin with a 0.20 per game average as the team has committed 28 turnovers while forcing 30 turnovers. Individually, junior tailback David Darmofal is tenth in rushing, averaging 58.6 yards per game. Senior quarterback Charlie Bowden is eighth in passing yards per game at 128.7 yards per game and he is ninth in pass efficiency at 106.7. Junior Kevin Miltenberger (Carlisle, PA/Carlisle HS) is fifth in punt returns with an average of 8.6 yards. Sophomore Jed Warsager (Andover, NJ/Newton HS) is second in kickoff returns, averaging 25.2 yards a return with one touchdown. Junior John McLain is second in the MAC in punting at 39.1 yards per kick. Freshman Nate Strohl is third in kick scoring at 4.6 points per game, tied for second in field goals per game at 0.80, second in field goal percentage at 80.0 and fifth in PAT percentage at 84.6 percent. Junior cornerback Nate Pogue is tied for first in the MAC in interceptions at 0.70 per game and first in pass break-ups with 21 while senior cornerback Jarrod Pence is second in pass break-ups with 18. Junior safety John Panikiewsky is tied for seventh in interceptions at 0.40 per game and third in passes defended with 15 while senior defensive lineman Tom Blackledge is fourth in tackles for loss with 2.15 per game. Senior linebacker John Cupples is fourth in tackles at 9.4 per game and Cupples leads the conference with five forced fumbles.

NCAA STATISTICS: Moravian had eight players ranked and the Greyhounds’ defense was ranked twice in the top 40 in the tenth release of the NCAA Division III football statistics for the 2002 season. Moravian’s highest ranked individual was senior linebacker John Cupples, who was tied first in the nation in forced fumbles per game at 0.50. Senior defensive lineman Tom Blackledge was tied for 19th in the country this week in tackles for loss with an average of 2.2 per game. Junior defensive back Nate Pogue was tied for ninth in passes defended at 2.1 per game while senior defensive back Jarrod Pence was tied for 17th in the nation in passes defended at 1.8 per game. Pogue was also tied for 13th in the country in interceptions with 0.7 per game while junior safety John Panikiewsky was tied for 38th in passes defended at 1.5 per game. Moravian’s other three players are ranked in special teams categories with freshman kicker Nate Strohl tied for 34th in field goals per game with an average of 0.8, junior punter John McLain tenth in the country in punting with an average of 39.1 yards per punt, and sophomore wide receiver Jed Warsager ranked 26th in the nation in kickoff returns with an average of 25.3 yards per return. The Greyhounds were 11th in the country in rushing defense, only allowing 79.5 yards per contest on the ground and the squad was 40th in scoring defense, allowing just 15.9 points per game.

BOWDEN LEADING THE ‘HOUNDS OFFENSE: Senior quarterback Charlie Bowden completed 98 of 219 passes for 1,472 yards with 14 touchdowns and 18 interceptions this year. Junior Will Seng (Allentown, PA/William Allen HS) has completed three of seven passes for 25 yards while freshman Jerry Venturino (Hopatcong, NJ/Hopatcong HS) has completed one of three attempts for 23 yards. The Greyhound quarterbacks were sacked just 22 times this season in 11 games.

IN THE BACKFIELD: Junior tailback David Darmofal led the Greyhounds with 586 yards and six touchdowns on 152 carries. Darmofal has had two 100-yard rushing games this season with a career high 107 yards at Wilkes University. Senior fullback Eric Gustafson picked up 325 yards on 80 carries while sophomore fullback Bill Carasia (Fair Haven, NJ/Rumson-Fair Haven HS) had 146 yards on 42 carries. Senior tailback Josh Fick had 383 yards and a touchdown on 100 attempts while freshman Kevin Lukich (Ogdensburg, NJ/Wallkill Valley HS) had 50 yards on 16 carries. Freshman wide receiver Ben Hakwins has added 116 yards on 18 carries while senior quarterback Charlie Bowden has added 36 yards on 58 attempts. Junior tailback Cody Hendershot (Bangor, PA/Bangor HS) contributed 20 yards on five carries while junior wide receiver Kevin Miltenberger had 15 yards on eight attempts.

THE WIDE RECEIVERS: Senior wide receiver Jarod Rhinehart caught a team-high 21 passes for 320 yards and one touchdown. Senior tight end Rick Kulp pulled down 18 passes for 278 yards and three touchdowns while junior wide receiver Kevin Miltenberger had 14 receptions for 175 yards and two touchdowns. Freshman wideout Ben Hawkins contributed 18 receptions for 394 yards and four scores in his debut season. Junior wide receiver Jeff Lowry (Catawissa, PA/Southern Columbia HS) had seven catches for 99 yards while junior tailback David Darmofal had eight receptions for 66 yards and two scores. Senior fullback Eric Gustafson pulled down four aerials for 14 yards while senior tailback Josh Fick had four catches for 81 yards. Sophomore wideout Jed Warsager had three receptions for 72 yards and a touchdown.

DEFENSIVE FRONT: Senior defensive end Tom Blackledge led the Hounds up front defensively with 65 tackles including 28 for loss, three pass break-ups and five and a half of Moravian's 20 sacks. Sophomore defensive end Shawn Nelson added 42 tackles with nine for loss, two sacks and three fumble recoveries while senior nose tackle Pat Mancini (Milford, NJ/Delaware Valley Regional HS) had 44 stops with six for loss, a half a sack and a pair of fumble recoveries. Senior nose guard Brian Cascioli (Center Valley, PA/Southern Lehigh HS) added 14 tackles with three for loss and one sack while sophomore defensive lineman Kevin McLaughlin (Philadelphia, PA/Northeast Catholic HS) had seven stops.

THE LINEBACKER CORPS: Senior John Cupples led the defense with 105 tackles. Cupples also had two sacks, four pass break-ups, five forced fumbles, an interception and 12 tackles for loss. Senior Bill Engler had 73 tackles with five tackles for loss, one fumble recovery and three pass break-ups while senior Vince Cowlishaw added 61 tackles, two and a half sacks, three forced fumbles, three pass break-ups and 11 tackles for loss. Junior Steve Maslanek had 56 tackles with eight for loss and a half a sack while freshman Richie Cline (Union Beach, NJ/Keyport HS) added 33 tackles, one and half a sacks, a forced fumble, an interception and eight tackles for loss. Junior linebacker Josh DiGiacomo (Zionsville, PA/Emmaus HS) contributed 20 tackles, one pass break-up and a fumble recovery.

THE DEFENSIVE BACKFIELD: Junior John Panikiewsky, who suffered a fractured ankle in Moravian's loss to Muhlenberg College, led the defensive backs with 59 tackles and he added eight tackles for loss, two sacks, seven pass break-ups and four interceptions. Senior Jarrod Pence made 55 tackles and 18 pass break-ups and three interceptions while junior Nate Pogue added 51 tackles, seven interceptions, 23 pass break-ups and two forced fumbles. Sophomore Bill Skriletz (Coopersburg, PA/Southern Lehigh HS), who missed the final three games with a knee injury, had 25 tackles, two for loss, a sack, an interception and 11 pass break-ups while senior Paul Block (East Hanover, NJ/Hanover Park HS) contributed 16 tackles and six pass break-ups. Freshman Andy Fick (Emmaus, PA/Emmaus HS) added 26 tackles, one tackle for loss, three pass break-ups, two forced fumbles and two fumble recoveries while playing for the injured Skriletz.

KICKING GAME: Freshman Nate Strohl was 23-for-27 on extra-points in his debut season and eight-for-11 on field goal attempts with a career-long of 43 yards against Widener University. Strohl, who made his first 12 extra-point attempts before missing, made eight of his last ten field goal attempts. Junior John McLain was called on to punt 54 times this season and he averaged 38.8 yards per kick with 12 punts over 50 yards, two of 60 yards and 13 downed inside the 20 yard line. McLain had his first punt attempt of the season blocked against Albright College and another against McDaniel College.

SPECIAL TEAMS: Sophomore Jed Warsager returned 23 kickoffs for 556 yards. Warsager had a 98-yard touchdown return at Lebanon Valley that broke Ralph Eltringham’s school record of 95 yards. Sophomore Cody Hendershot had six kickoff returns for 111 yards. Senior Josh Fick made six punt returns for 32 yards and four kickoff returns for 67 yards while junior Kevin Miltenberger had 17 punt returns for 147 yards. Freshman Steve Cline (Union, NJ/Keyport HS) made ten special teams tackles during the year while freshman Chad DeFelice (Pen Argyl, PA/Pen Argyl HS) had eight tackles. Freshman Kevin Lukich added seven tackles while senior linebacker Pat Sinclair (Wantage, NJ/High Point Regional HS) and sophomore linebacker John Murgitroyde (Philadelphia, PA/Archbishop Ryan HS) each made five tackles.