GETTYSBURG, Pa. – Coming off a solid all-around performance in a victory over Susquehanna University, Gettysburg College will look to claim the Old Tin Cup and close the home careers of Head Coach
Barry Streeter and the 20 seniors with a victory over Muhlenberg College this Saturday at Shirk Field at Musselman Stadium.
OPENING KICKOFF
Gettysburg (3-5, 3-4 CC) erased a 21-7 deficit to beat Susquehanna 29-21 last Saturday. The Bullets forced a season-high six turnovers in the game. Muhlenberg (5-3, 4-3 CC) nearly upended No. 24 Johns Hopkins last Saturday, but the Blue Jays scored the go-ahead touchdown with 4:39 left to sneak out of Scotty Wood Stadium with a 31-24 win.
GAME COVERAGE
Saturday's game will feature
live video and live stats courtesy of Gettysburg's partnership with Stretch Internet. A full recap of the game will be posted on
GettysburgSports.com with additional in-game updates sent out via
Twitter.
THE SERIES
Gettysburg leads Muhlenberg 43-37-1 in a series that began 110 years ago. The Mules carry a five-game winning streak against the Bullets into this weekend's contest. The Orange and Blue have fared better on the home turf with a 27-14-1 advantage. Gettysburg's last victory over Muhlenberg was a 14-10 decision at home in 2011.
THE OLD TIN CUP
The Old Tin Cup was created as part of an elaborate ruse in 1954. Members from both school newspapers teamed with campus officials to create a legend centering around two brothers who played for the Bullets and Mules in 1911. While the story was fabricated, the rivalry developed into an annual prize in the form of a Tin Cup.
LAST MEETING
Muhlenberg held Gettysburg to season lows for rushing yards (82) and total offense (234) in a 43-7 decision in Allentown last fall. The Mules forced five turnovers and racked up 11 tackles for a loss in the game.
Ty Abdul-Karim '18 (Washington, D.C./Woodberry Forest (Va.)) accounted for the Bullets' touchdown on a 36-yard pass from
Danny Thompson '17 in the fourth quarter.
Justin Davidov '18 (Ossining, N.Y./Ossining) accumulated 56 yards on seven carries, while Thompson finished with 115 yards passing. Abdul-Karim totaled 48 receiving yards.
Kamau Bridges '18 (Ellicott City, Md./Mount Saint Joseph) and
Glenn Benson '18 (North Plainfield, N.J./North Plainfield) each totaled 10 tackles, while
Dakota Brovero '18 (Monroeville, N.J./Delsea) totaled nine tackles, 2.5 tackles for a loss, and two sacks.
Nick Savant paced Muhlenberg with 114 rushing yards and 145 receiving yards and scored three touchdowns.
Nick Palladino threw for 258 yards and three scores for the Mules.
LAST TIME OUT
Gettysburg scored the final 22 points to take down Susquehanna 29-21 last Saturday at Shirk Field at Musselman Stadium. After scoring the opening touchdown, the Bullets fell behind 21-7 by the end of the first quarter. Sophomore
Justin Geisel (Charlotte, N.C./Charlotte Country Day School) accounted for the next nine points on field goals for the hosts, including a career-long 47-yarder in the third quarter. Gettysburg dominated the final quarter, out-gaining the River Hawks 137-54 and forcing three turnovers. A 78-yard touchdown from senior
Justin Davidov to sophomore
Kevin Benavente (San Diego, Calif./Mt. Carmel) put the Bullets in front 22-21 with 11:39 left. Senior
Glenn Benson forced a pair of fumbles with the final takeaway leading to a rushing touchdown by Davidov with 1:57 remaining. Senior
Nick Corbi (Medford, N.J./Shawnee) sealed the victory with an interception on Susquehanna's final possession. Freshman
Reggie JeanCharles (Galloway, N.J./Holy Spirit) carried the ball 22 times for 78 yards and Davidov finished with 60 rushing yards and 165 passing yards. Benavente totaled 83 yards on a pair of catches. Junior
Jake Skinner (Annapolis, Md./Broadneck) led the defense with 13 tackles and Benson posted a career-high 11 stops. Junior
Mike McKnight (West Chester, Pa./Bayard Rustin) accounted for a pair of interceptions.
SCOUTING MUHLENBERG
Muhlenberg took Johns Hopkins down to the wire before coming up a touchdown short last Saturday. Freshman quarterback
Michael Hnatkowsky set a program record for passing yards for a first-year quarterback with 371. He was 26-of-38 and connected on three scores in the game. Two Mules finished with over 100 receiving yards as sophomore tight end
Ryan Curtiss hauled in 11 catches for 158 yards and two scores and junior wide-out
Josiah Wright received six balls for a career-high 107 yards. Freshman
James Diggs led the ground attack with 45 yards on 22 carries. Junior
Nate Corvil posted seven tackles and two tackles for a loss, while senior
Travis Crawford brought down the quarterback twice.
Muhlenberg is seeking a postseason bid for the sixth consecutive season. The Mules competed in the ECAC South Atlantic Bowl in 2012-13 and the NCAA Division III Tournament in 2014. The last two campaigns have seen the team advance to the Centennial-Middle Atlantic Conference Bowl Series. Muhlenberg ranks second in the CC in total yards per game (412.3) and rushing yards per game (194.3). The team also paces the conference with 12 interceptions and has scored three defensive touchdowns. Hnatkowsky has thrown 13 touchdowns and just five interceptions in his debut campaign. Prior to going down with an injury against Ursinus, senior
Nick Savant was the conference's leading rusher with 562 yards in the first four games of the year. Diggs has carried the ball 39 times for 213 yards in the last two games. Sophomore linebacker
Kwasi Ampomah leads the Mules with 6.5 sacks this season. Corvil owns twice as many interceptions as any other player in the conference with six.
THE END OF AN ERA
The 2017 season will mark the final campaign for Gettysburg Head Coach
Barry Streeter. Streeter joined the Bullets' staff as an assistant coach in 1975 and was named head coach just three years later. Over the last 39 years, he has guided the Bullets to 196 victories and three Centennial Conference titles. In 1985, he led Gettysburg to its only unbeaten regular season (9-0-1) and an appearance in the NCAA Division III semifinals – the best finish by a Centennial institution to this day. Streeter has coached 207 all-conference performers, three CC Offensive Players of the Year, 21 All-Americans, and six Academic All-Americans at Gettysburg. He played both football and lacrosse at Lebanon Valley College and is a member of the Dutchmen's Hall of Fame.
SENIOR DAY
Prior to the start of Saturday's game, 20 senior student-athletes will be recognized in their final game in front of the home crowd.
GETTYSBURG OFFENSE
Gettysburg has climbed to third in the CC in rushing with 175.6 yards per game. Freshman tailback
Reggie JeanCharles leads conference newcomers with 82.8 rushing yards per game, while senior
Justin Davidov is one of the top running quarterbacks with 53 rushing yards per game. Davidov has thrown his nine passing touchdowns to seven different receivers, including three to senior
Ryan Thompson (Oakland, N.J./Indian Hills). Sophomore
Kevin Benavente has taken over the top spot in receiving yards on the team with 264 on 16 receptions.
GETTYSBURG DEFENSE
Junior
Jake Skinner has posted double-figure tackles four times and ranks second in the conference with 84 total stops. Junior
Mike McKnight is fifth in the conference in tackles and leads the way with 15 pass break-ups. Junior
Logan Aikey (Lewisburg, Pa./Lewisburg) ranks fourth in the conference with 12 tackles for a loss. Freshman
Thomeir Richardson (Trenton, N.J./Trenton Central) has recovered four fumbles and ranks second in the league with 10 pass break-ups. Senior
Glenn Benson ranks third on the team with 55 tackles and is the only Bullet with an interception, fumble recovery, and forced fumble this season.
GETTYSBURG SPECIAL TEAMS
Sophomore
Justin Geisel connected on a career-high three field goals last game and ranks third in the conference with nine made field goals this fall. His 47-yarder against Susquehanna was the longest in the conference this fall. Sophomore
Evan Tannenbaum (Berwyn, Pa./Conestoga) is averaging 36.3 yards per punt and has placed 14 punts inside the opponent's 20-yardline.
PLAYERS OF THE WEEK
Senior linebacker
Glenn Benson and sophomore kicker
Justin Geisel were named Centennial Conference Players of the Week on Monday. Benson grabbed the defensive award after posting a career-high 11 tackles and two forced fumbles against Susquehanna. Geisel earned his second specials teams nod after booting three field goals and two extra points in the victory over the River Hawks. Freshman tailback
Reggie JeanCharles was also named CC Offensive Player of the Week on Oct. 8 following his 178-yard rushing performance against Juniata College.
TAKE THAT BALL AWAY!
Gettysburg's six takeaways against Susquehanna were the most in a single game since the squad racked up four interceptions and two fumble recoveries against McDaniel College in 2012. The team has recovered a fumble in all but two games and its nine fumble recoveries are tied for the top spot in the conference this fall.
DUAL THREAT
Earlier this season, senior quarterback
Justin Davidov became the fourth Bullet signal caller to post 1,000 rushing yards in a career, joining
Matt Flynn '10 (1,128),
Kody Smith '13 (1,066), and
Joe Gossweiler '05 (1,056). Entering this weekend, Davidov is just one rushing yard shy of Flynn's rushing record for a Gettysburg quarterback. Davidov has also thrown for over 2,000 yards and joins the aforementioned trio as the only members of the 2,000-1,000 club.
ROOKIE RUSHER
With 178 rushing yards against Juniata, freshman
Reggie JeanCharles posted the best rushing day by a first-year tailback since
Tom Sturges '08 went for 180 against Ursinus on Oct. 23, 2004. The most rushing yards in a game by a Gettysburg freshman was 242 by
Paul Smith '00 against Swarthmore in 1996. Smith also holds the program record for rushing yards by a freshman with 888 in 1996. Smith and JeanCharles are both graduates of the same high school – Holy Spirit – in Absecon, N.J. JeanCharles' 662 rushing yards this season are the third-most by a freshman running back at Gettysburg.
DO-IT-ALL DEFENDER
Senior
Glenn Benson is the lone Gettysburg player with an interception, fumble recovery, and forced fumble this fall. Benson posted his first career interception in the season opener against Bridgewater and he logged two fumble recoveries against Moravian. He has three forced fumbles on the season, including two against Susquehanna. The senior linebacker is the only Bullet to have two fumble recoveries and two forced fumbles in different games in the same season.
BREAK IT UP
Junior
Mike McKnight recorded a career-high five pass break-ups against Moravian, which is one shy of the program's single-game record. McKnight already has 15 pass break-ups this season, the most by a Bullet in over two decades.
Andy Baribeau '96 holds the program record for pass break-ups in a season with 16 in 1995.
BLOCKED KICKS
Gettysburg swatted a pair of kick attempts in the season opener. Senior
Dakota Brovero blocked an extra point and classmate
Andrew Major (St. Davids, Pa./Radnor) denied a 30-yard field goal. It was the first time Gettysburg managed two blocked kicks in the same game since beating Misericordia in 2013. Major also swatted away a field goal against Johns Hopkins, moving him into a tie for the program's career mark with four.
FAMILY TIES
Senior
Dakota Brovero is the second member of his family to play for Coach Streeter. Dakota's father,
Don '88, was a three-time letterwinner with the Bullets and helped the team win the Centennial Conference title and go to the NCAA Division III semifinals in 1985. The younger Brovero is in the midst of a career year on the defensive line with 36 tackles, seven tackles for a loss, and five sacks.
IN THE ARMY NOW
Six members of the Gettysburg community took the Oath of Enlistment into the Army prior to the game against Dickinson, including sophomore football player
Tyrus Legenski (Glendora, N.J./Triton Regional). All of the cadets received full tuition and fee scholarships for college valued between $100,000-200,000.
