GETTYSBURG, Pa.  – November is a big month for the Gettysburg College football team with both of its longest-standing rivalries coming to the forefront, beginning with this Saturday's showdown against Dickinson College at Shirk Field at Musselman Stadium.
 
Gettysburg (5-3, 4-3 CC) and Dickinson (3-5, 3-4 CC) meet for the 81st time on the gridiron. The series dates all the way back to 1892 when the two rivals, located just 30 miles apart, split a pair of games. Since 1938, the annual meeting has been further augmented by the addition of the Little Brown Bucket. Gettysburg leads the all-time series 43-35-2, but Dickinson has won the bucket 24 times in 46 meetings since it was added to the picture.
 
"You're fighting to win the prize and that's the prize," said Head Coach Barry Streeter, who has led the Bullets against the Red Devils every year since 1978. "It's a big tradition and it's been existence for a long time."
 
After a 5-0 start, Gettysburg has dropped its last three games, including a 35-32 decision at Moravian College last Saturday. Despite a 21-0 deficit, the Bullets steadily chipped away and out-scored the Greyhounds 32-14 over the final 45 minutes.
 
"One thing about these kids is they don't back down," noted Streeter. "They don't quit on anything. They just want to play another game."
 
Dickinson is also coming off a narrow loss against Muhlenberg. The Red Devils held the Mules scoreless in the second half, but couldn't convert on a potential game-tying two-point conversion with four minutes left of a 15-13 decision.

 

Adding more fuel to the fire will be the celebration of Gettysburg's 21 seniors. This group has played a key role in claiming the Bucket in the last two seasons. In 2013, tailback Kyle Wigley (Medford, N.J./Shawnee) rushed for 76 yards and a score and linebacker Kodie McNamara (Manasquan, N.J./Manasquan) posted 15 tackles as the Bullets helped that year's senior class go out with a 42-7 win over Dickinson. Wigley put up 136 yards and a touchdown in last year's meeting, while tight end Fred Pulzello (Glen Rock, N.J./Glen Rock) hauled in a 38-yard touchdown reception. Gettysburg won 36-27 in Carlisle last fall.
 
Streeter and his team know everything that's happened in previous years and so far this season for both teams goes out the window come November.
 
"The only thing that matters is what happens between the lines on Saturday. It's going to be a fight to the end on both sides. Nobody is backing off of this. It's not in the DNA in either one of the programs."
 
Kickoff is set for 1 p.m. on Saturday. Senior Day festivities will begin at approximately 12:30.
 
OPENING KICKOFF
Gettysburg and Dickinson meet for the 81st time in the quest for the Little Brown Bucket.
 
GAME COVERAGE
Saturday's game will feature live stats and live video courtesy of the Orange and Blue Club and Stretch Internet. Links for both can be found at http://portal.stretchinternet.com/gettysburg/.  
 
THE COACHES
Barry Streeter enters his 37th season at the helm of Gettysburg's football program. Streeter is the longest-tenured active coach in Division III and his 188 wins place him seventh among active coaches. Streeter has led Gettysburg to three Centennial Conference championships (1983-85) and he has twice been named CC Coach of the Year. In 1985, he led the Bullets to the only undefeated regular season in school history (9-0-1) and an appearance in the national semifinals.
 
Darwin Breaux is in his 23rd season as head coach at Dickinson. Breaux has compiled a career record of 130-102-1 at the helm of the Red Devils. He has guided Dickinson to four Centennial Conference titles with the most recent coming in 2006. Prior to arriving in Carlisle, Breaux served as an assistant coach under Barry Streeter at Gettysburg.  
 
THE SERIES
Gettysburg and Dickinson first met on the football field 136 years ago. The teams played a pair of games in 1879 without approval of the faculty and administration. Thirteen years later, the series officially began and its stands as Gettysburg's second most-played rivalry behind only Franklin & Marshall. The Bullets lead the all-time series 43-35-2.
 
LAST MEETING
Gettysburg maintained possession of the Bucket with a 36-27 win at Biddle Field last November. Chris Miller '17 (Manasquan, N.J./Manasquan) picked off a pass on fourth down with 2:39 left and Zach Miller '15 followed up with a 13-yard rushing touchdown to seal the win. Gettysburg recorded 31 first downs and out-gained Dickinson 427-370 in total offense. Kyle Wigley '16 (Medford, N.J./Shawnee) carried the ball 28 times for 136 yards and a touchdown. Miller added 93 yards on the ground, while also completing 15-of-20 passes for 147 yards and two touchdowns. Miller added 10 tackles and a sack to his interception. Dickinson quarterback Cole Ahnell accounted for three touchdowns and 262 yards of total offense, while Cedric Madden carried the ball 22 times for 105 yards.

 

LAST TIME OUT
Moravian put up 21 points in the first quarter and held off a Gettysburg rally for a 35-32 decision last Saturday. The Greyhounds scored on each of their first three possessions, while forcing the Bullets to punt the ball on their first six drives. Senior quarterback Sam McDermott (Newtown, Pa./Notre Dame (N.J.)) steered the comeback with four touchdown passes over the final three quarters as the Bullets closed the gap to three points with 7:45 remaining. Moravian ran nearly seven minutes off the clock on its final drive before turning the ball over on downs deep in Gettysburg territory with only 49 seconds left. McDermott finished 21-of-34 for 240 yards and he added 29 yards rushing. Senior tight end Fred Pulzello (Glen Rock, N.J./Glen Rock) caught five passes for 58 yards and senior Paul Lowry (Midland Park, N.J./Midland Park) picked up 59 yards on 14 carries. Junior linebacker Chris Miller posted 11 tackles, two sacks, one forced fumble, and one fumble recovery.
 
SCOUTING DICKINSON
The Red Devils have rotated wins and losses the last four weeks. Last Saturday, Dickinson was held to 191 total yards, including just 27 rushing yards, in a 15-13 loss to Muhlenberg. The Mules were held scoreless in the second half, but the Red Devils failed to convert on a potential game-tying two-point conversion with 4:16 left. Freshman quarterback Billy Burger completed 17-of-28 throws for 164 yards and a pair of touchdowns. Freshman Jake Walbert hauled in four catches for 47 yards and a score. Junior Kevin Sherry paced the defense with 13 tackles, including 2.5 for a loss. Dickinson ranks fourth in the conference in rushing average (203 ypg) and last in passing yardage (107.9 ypg) and total offense (310.9 ypg). After totaling 28 pass attempts in his first three appearances, Burger has totaled 75 passes in the last three outings. He's completed 47 of those throws for 458 yards and five touchdowns. Senior Anders Overhaug has a pair of 100-yard rushing efforts and a 100-yard receiving effort on his resume this season.
 
GETTYSBURG OFFENSE
Gettysburg ranks second in the conference in rushing at 239 yards per game. The team also ranks second in total offense at 443.3 yards per game. Senior tailback Kyle Wigley ranks second in the conference with a career-high 110.6 yards per game. Wigley missed last week's contest at Moravian due to injury. Senior quarterback Sam McDermott has thrown a school-record 20 touchdowns against just five interceptions this fall. McDermott leads all Centennial signal callers with an average of 58.5 rushing yards per game. Junior wide receiver Jordan Kelso (Cookstown, N.J./Bordentown Regional) ranks third in the conference with six touchdown receptions and he ranks sixth with 498 receiving yards.   
 
GETTYSBURG DEFENSE
Senior Kodie McNamara and junior Chris Miller rank 1-2 in the conference in tackles. McNamara sits atop the list with 84 tackles and an average of 10.5 stops per game. Miller has totaled 79 tackles and a team-best 8.5 tackles for a loss. Despite missing the last two games, senior Brian Calatozzo (Sewell, N.J./St. Augustine Prep) still leads the conference with five interceptions, the most by a Bullet in 12 years.
 
GETTYSBURG SPECIAL TEAMS
Senior Robby Fay (New Providence, N.J./New Providence) has placed 16 of his 37 punts inside the opponent's 20-yard line and he ranks fifth in the conference in punting at 37.3 yards per kick. Fay has converted 4-of-6 field goals and 23-of-26 extra points. Freshman returner Matt McFadden (Morristown, N.J./Morristown Beard) paces the conference in both kickoff return yards (470) and punt return yards (261).
 
THE LITTLE BROWN BUCKET
The Little Brown Bucket, or Old Oaken Bucket if you prefer, has been a staple of the Gettysburg-Dickinson rivalry since 1938. The trophy was created by S. Walter Stauffer and George Hummel, members of the Dickinson and Gettysburg Boards of Trustees, respectively. The first game was played on Thanksgiving and the Bullets emerged victorious 14-0, kicking off a string of nine consecutive wins by the Orange and Blue. Since the introduction of the Bucket, Dickinson has led the rivalry 24-21-1.
 
SENIOR CLASS IN A FLASH
The 21 members of the senior class will be competing on Shirk Field at Musselman Stadium for the final time today. The senior class has accounted for 21 victories over the last four seasons as well as totaling 4,256 rushing yards, 1,630 passing yards, 2,333 receiving yards, 369 points, 16 interceptions, and 781 tackles. The class hails from four states (Maryland, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania) and the athletes have 14 different majors ranging from Africana studies to mathematics to organization and management studies. Sixteen members of the class have started games this season. Two members – tailback Kyle Wigley and punter Robby Fay – have earned all-conference recognition.
 
RUSHING RANKS
Senior tailback Kyle Wigley continues to climb the rushing lists at Gettysburg. With 2,360 career rushing yards, Wigley ranks eighth in program history. He recently crossed 400 career attempts and sits 10th with 415. His 5.71 yards per carry trails only Paul Smith '00 (5.91) and Frank Capitani '58 (5.76). Wigley's 110.6 rushing yards per game this fall is the best by a Bullet since Tom Sturges '08 averaged 142.7 in 2007.  
 
MANASQUAN MAULER
Senior Kodie McNamara is just two tackles away from claiming second place on Gettysburg's all-time list. With 373 career tackles, McNamara trails Hayes Reilly '82 by one. Ryan Moore '02 is the program's career leader with 430. The senior linebacker ranks third among all active Division III players in career tackles.  
 
PASSING TD RECORD
Senior Sam McDermott has already set Gettysburg's single-season record for touchdown passes. McDermott has thrown 20 touchdowns this season, topping the previous record of 19 shared by Chris Adams '95 and Matt Flynn '10. He has thrown touchdowns to eight different receivers this fall.
 
PLAYERS OF THE WEEK
The Bullets have been a common feature in weekly award releases this fall. Seniors Robby Fay (Sept. 13), Sam McDermott (Sept. 13), and Kyle Wigley (Oct. 4) and freshman Matt McFadden (Sept. 27) have all been honored as Centennial Conference Players of the Week. Additionally, McFadden was named to the D3Football.com Team of the Week as a special teams selection on Sept. 29.
 
HAPPY 50TH!
Shirk Field at Musselman Stadium is celebrating its 50th year of competition this season. With former President Dwight D. Eisenhower in attendance, the stadium was dedicated prior to the game against Bucknell on Sept. 25, 1965. The venue has witnessed the transition to NCAA Division III, the rise of the Centennial Conference, and dozens of conference titles. In addition to football, the field is the home venue for field hockey, men's lacrosse, and men's and women's track and field. In 2003, the field received a makeover and was named in honor of Dick Shirk '67, captain of the 1966 team that won the Lambert Memorial Cup as the best small college team in the East.